Bloody Mine (Royal Bastards MC, #2)

where I didn’t have nightmares anymore and wasn’t tempted to glance over my shoulder every minute of the day. Nothing like being taken against your will to kick up a little paranoia. Of course, I was the stupid one who went on my own free will. All to save my best friend. They would have killed Trish if I didn’t listen to their demands.
I didn’t regret my choice. We were both alive and that was what mattered.
Since Bodie wanted me at the Crossroads, I packed a couple of bags with extra clothes and did a load of laundry, sticking around for another two hours before I was finally ready to leave. One the way out, I bumped into the neighbors on the right. A single mom with two young kids. My friend Gina, Rev who was ten, and his younger sister Olivia who was seven.
“Sasha!” Olivia called out, waving from the backyard.
Rev was jumping up and down on their trampoline. “Hi, Sasha!”
“Hey, you two.”
“Mom is working all weekend,” Rev complained.
“Can we come stay with you?” Olivia asked, giving me a pleading look.
Shit. I hadn’t seen these kids in weeks and felt bad that they were alone so much. Gina worked two jobs to make ends meet – during the day at the same dental office where I was a receptionist and then at night as a waitress. She was the one who initially told me about the job and put in a good word.
“Tell you what, I’ve got to take care of a few things tonight but I’ll be by tomorrow. We’ll spend the day together. How does that sound?”
Rev did a flip and landed on his back as the air was knocked out of his lungs but he was right back up again. “Okay!”
Olivia seemed disappointed. “Will you bring pizza?”
“Of course, Liv. I promise.”
She smiled timidly. “Okay.”
“And root beer!” Rev added.
Laughing, I agreed. “Sure. You both stay together and in the house. Call me if you need anything tonight. I can be here in fifteen minutes.”
Rev gave me a thumbs up and Olivia nodded before she ran to the trampoline, shoving her brother out of the way as she began to jump in the middle. He bounced to the side and shook his head but didn’t get mad. He was patient with her and I wasn’t too worried. Those kids did alright on their own.
It wasn’t my place to judge if they were home alone often. The kids had school which kept them out of trouble. They listened to their mom on the weekends and helped out around the house. Responsibility far too mature for their ages but life wasn’t always as easy as we liked. I snagged the last bag from the house and waved to the kids again, wishing there was some way to do more for Gina.
The SUV was packed when I went back to lock up, double checking that I set the alarm Bodie insisted was installed. He never said much but I was certain the club kept an eye on the place, even when no one was home. One of the bikers was a whiz with computers and technology. I hadn’t spoken to Xenon much but he struck me as incredibly intelligent and inventive.
I flipped the porch light on and shut the door, ensuring everything was set. Frowning, I wondered why the light wasn’t working. Dipping my head down to unscrew the sconce, I found the socket empty.
Strange.
I knew there was a bulb the last time I was here. Sure, it may have burned out or even ended up broken somehow but stolen? That didn’t make any sense at all. I didn’t remove it. Trish hadn’t been here.
Who would unscrew another person’s front lightbulb and steal it?
Panic tried to press in from all sides as I immediately jumped to conclusions and worried that I was somehow a target again. Sighing shakily, I twisted the sconce back in place and lifted my chin, determined not to let my fear rule my life. This was probably a prank. Lots of young people lived in the area and it wasn’t far fetched to think it was a joke.
I shoved my sunglasses on, climbed onto the driver’s seat of the SUV, cranked Avenged Sevenfold, and drove toward the Crossroads, singing loudly to the lyrics the entire ride.
Fuck it. I was chasing my happiness and letting the cares of the world fade away.

“What’s the deal, brother?”
I took a long drag from my cigarette before replying, still attempting to calm myself down from the conversation with Grim. “A fuck ton of bullshit,” I finally mumbled.
“I hear you.” Wraith leaned against the side of the concrete façade. One leg was crossed over the other at the ankles. “Shit with the Scorpions is coming to a head.”
“It’s not just that, Wraith. It’s fucking personal.”
“Suraya and Sasha.” He understood my shit mood had to do with losing one woman and nearly arriving too late to rescue the other.
“Yeah.”
“What are you feelin’?” Wraith didn’t ask the obvious – if I wanted to do something about it. He already knew. What he was asking was if I was gonna wait it out like Grim asked.
“Not much choice. Can’t go rogue and risk somethin’ happening to Sasha or blowback on the club. My hands are fucking tied.”
“I don’t like it.”
“That makes two of us.”
Mammoth exited the clubhouse, his expression stormy as he headed my way. If I wasn’t a brother and absolutely certain he wasn’t about to kick my ass I would have been afraid of the three hundred plus pounds of muscle that he heaved on his big frame. The guy was six-and-a-half-feet tall with shoulders so wide he had to turn sideways to enter and exit the Crossroads. Big motherfucker was as gentle as a mouse until you pissed him off then he was like a charging bull and it was a fuckin’ beautiful thing to watch.
His Reaper was so wild and untamed that he was the most unpredictable of