AustinThe hysterics were nice until her screams semi-damaged my eardrums. I expected her to fight and she almost disappointed me. She’s different than I thought she would be. The excitement I feel over terrorizing her is a surprise. I kill with cold dispassion. This is different, a methodical game of restraint not to kill that I’ve never experienced.I step on the foot pedal and the Dragonfly fires up. I delight when her body goes rigid at the sound before I depress the pedal and the room is quiet again. The sound of her harsh breathing thunders through my veins and I swear our hearts sync.Normally I would tell a person to relax. Not because I care, but because it’s what you do when someone’s in your chair—or bed as the case is now. I don’t want her to relax, though. I want this to fucking hurt. I want her to feel every fucking needle prick as I mutilate her lovely skin. I want to penetrate her skin further than I should and watch the colors bleed into her flesh. I want my ink to be
AustinAnother round of trembling passes through her and I give her a moment to gain control. She finally sucks in a long breath and goes taut. The room is cold and she has goosebumps on her flesh. I grab a blanket from the low shelf where I’ve stored my supplies. I cover her from her hips down. “Relax and it won’t be as painful,” I say before I can stop the words vomiting from my mouth.“Fuck you.” Her body sinks into the bed and I begin rubbing my special combination of coconut oil and shea butter deep into her skin. I use the combo so my needle doesn’t hang up on dry skin. When her flesh is supple, I step on the pedal, dip my needle into a cup of dimension black, and bend my wrist. My mind turns to the art like a switch flicking on and lighting a room. My brain focuses on lines and swirls. Color and shading now fill my world and it’s time to allow it free reign.I begin with decisive lines and work on an area about twelve inches long. I never listen to music when inking. The hum of
MelinaThe pain from the needle was minor. Irritating might be the best way to describe it. I’ve thought of getting a tattoo before, but I knew my brother would burn it from my skin with a blow torch. There was no reason to give him an excuse to hurt me. And I’ve seen the results of his favorite torture method and cringe at the memory of the screams.I pull the blanket tighter, thankful that I have it again. Even with the added protection, I’m uncomfortable on the cold floor and the tattoo on my back stings. He said weeks. He. I don’t even know his name. Should I care? Probably not but there seems to be a lack of manners in today’s torture session. I actually giggle until the sound becomes sobbing. Why the fuck am I being such a baby?Sniffing loudly, I inhale deeply and pull myself together. I will not give into weakness. I’ve survived my father and my brother. The man marking my body has no idea that he’s nothing in my world of constant emotional and physical pain. Shifting beneath
AustinFernandez is doing everything he can to pin his sister’s disappearance on my organization. He’s suspicious, but he has no proof and that must be driving him insane. My men are keeping close tabs on Fernandez, while Andreas is keeping me apprised of any changes in the situation. Fernandez has no solid proof about what happened to his sister because I covered my tracks. I had Edgar, my computer genius, find the information on Melina and keep it quiet. My men weren’t aware of my plans until after I took her.Taking on Fernandez immediately after gaining the reins of Victor’s organization is not the smartest move I could make. Doing nothing makes me weak too. Right now, I want Fernandez paranoid because he thought his sister safe. I want him to question the men around him and wonder who betrayed him. His screams when I kill him will delight my ears.My men are another story. I don’t have a fucking clue how to run this organization. I only ever trusted Victor and I do not trust the
MelinaSleep takes me far away from this living nightmare. When I finally wake, the cold has seeped into my body and my muscles ache. I don’t think I moved the entire time I slept. I stretch while trying to control the stormy sea of emotions rolling through me.The complete darkness keeps me from having any idea what time it is, which is disorienting. I inch my hand along the rough wall searching for the waste bucket. My fingers knock hard against the plastic and I’m surprised the damn thing doesn’t spill everywhere. Maybe if I coat myself with shit the asshole will stay away.I manage to squat on the damn thing and clean myself in the dark. It could be hours before he comes down. It could also be seconds. I fell asleep earlier playing the what if game. Sadly, besides pushups and sit ups, it’s all I have to occupy my time.What if I manage to kill him? I run and don’t go back to my brother.What if he kills me? It’s over and that’s okay.What if he returns me to my brother? Again I di
Melina“You behaved, so I have a treat for you.” I stare at him without comprehension. This is the second longest string of words he’s put together since I arrived. “You’ll get one chance at this. If you blow it, I won’t take you out of here again. Or, I should say until I take you back to your brother.”The intense look in his eyes tells me he can’t wait to send me back. “I’ll be good.” My voice breaks slightly. Fuck me. Will I be good? This could be my one chance at escape. “I promise,” I add because he just keeps staring at me with those same cold eyes that say he could break my neck just like my brother did Feather’s.He gives me the slightest nod. “Follow me.” He turns and heads up the stairs.He’s really taking me out of the dungeon. Shakily I make my legs move. I lift the blanket higher so I don’t trip. He opens the door and looks back at me while holding it. I keep climbing until I walk out of the door into a large kitchen. I was raised with money, ill-gotten, dirty money but
AustinWhen I’m inking her skin, I enter another zone where the normal world is dreamlike. My entire focus centers on the flesh beneath my fingers. Tattooing has always been my escape. With her, it’s different in so many ways—the softness of her skin, the shiver that occasionally passes along her back and shoulders, and the timbre of her voice. The dark swirls of my past infiltrate her skin just like the ink. But unlike the ink, she absorbs the darkness and turns it light. She’s playing havoc with my thoughts and this isn’t a good thing. She isn’t as malleable as she lets on.It was stupid to allow her upstairs. I didn’t give it thought when the words spilled from my mouth. It’s something about her that I can’t put my finger on. It felt right to have her walking around my home. Not that she was able to explore, but her presence reminded me of the way Cindy filled a room and made me feel welcome.Melina complied so beautifully with my orders and I’ll probably do it again. And yes, it w
AustinI’m careful about the blood as I begin systematically removing his fingers. The plastic tarp beneath him flows red and his screams are deafening. I’m tempted to cut out his tongue even without the information I came for. Only two fingers remain on his left hand when he starts talking. Diego Fernandez has his fingers where they don’t belong and those fingers will come off one by one too. The bullet I place between the man’s eyes cuts off his final scream. I look at the three men standing in the warehouse with a dispassionate stare. This is my business now and I’ll respond exactly as Victor would. Death is a gift. The men in my world respect that. They know Victor held me on a tight leash and I don’t want them to see all of the monster quite yet.Without a word, I wash my hands in a small sink, remove the rubber apron, roll down my sleeves, and place my jacket back on. I casually pull my shades over my eyes and walk from the warehouse, leaving the men to dispose of the body. A st
I rolled over and yawned, my arms coming from beneath the soft white cotton of the bedding and bumped the hard body next to me. Moon’s hand went into my hair and he moved his leg between mine and something very hard hit my belly making me smile. The smile lasted a few seconds before I covered my hand and jumped from the bed trying to get to the toilet before I lost the contents of my stomach. Yep, that was sexy. This time the hand in my hair pulled it back away from my face while I heaved my guts. He didn’t say anything and just waited for me to finish. It was horrible and at the same time endearing because I loved him so much. I stood and leaned back against his body. “Crawl back into bed and I’ll grab tea and crackers,” Moon said gently. I wanted to bitch and moan about the morning sickness but held it in. When I had my shoulder injury that took me from my career as a cop, I had a small amount of control. I could do my physical therapy and ice as needed and it worked. There was
Duke The wedding night was at the cabin and our honeymoon at the property. We had a week to ourselves. Cori laughed when I carried her over the threshold and straight to my bed. “Do not touch that dress,” I typed into my phone before checking the house was secure and I could fuck my wife for the first time. Her laughter followed me. When I walked back into the room, she was waiting exactly where I left her, smart woman. She opened her legs wide, the stilettos going to either side of the bed. A bit of red showed. The dress was fucking perfect. I crawled between her legs and pushed the yards of black lace up higher in the bed and snagged the red G-string with a finger. The garter wasn’t in my way. Cori sat up suddenly and stopped my exploration. “You spoke your vows.” I smiled even though my dick throbbed. “Thank you,” she added and lay back. I planned to fuck her until she couldn’t walk or talk. I didn’t remove the red nothing lace. I lazily fingered her, then took a long, slo
CoriIf I weren’t lying down, I would have fallen. Of all the things she could say, it was the last I expected and I couldn’t hide my shock.“No, I’m not pregnant yet but we’ve decided to try. We’re leaving and starting a family. Alex and Celina are taking over Moon’s operation.” She turned to Celina. “I’ll call it Alex’s operation eventually.”“Are you sure?” I asked softly.I was having trouble processing.“I’m absolutely positive. I thought I never wanted children but when Moon brought it up, I knew I was wrong. I want Moon’s babies.”“As in multiple?” I asked in horror.Children wasn’t something I ever wanted. I was not a rug rat fan and could tolerate Sofia’s rug rats for a limited time only. I thought Mak and I were on the same page.“We’ll decide if we want another after the first.”“Congratulations,” I offered, my voice uncertain.Melina started laughing.“You’re taking it how I did. The last thing needed in this world is a mini Austin.”I could most definitely second that.“O
CoriLife slowly returned to normal, though my new normal was much different than the old one. Things changed more after the cast came off and Duke could ride again. That’s when I became a true biker bitch.I blinged the shit out of my newly purchased black wardrobe and made that shit look good. I had standing orders from the other old ladies too. The club whores and I had a talk and we seemed to be on good terms. My end of that conversation was short.“Keep your hands off my man and we won’t have a problem. Touch him, even when I’m not around, and you’ll lose a fucking nipple, we clear?”They were fine with it. I understood their world. Respect was key. I had no problem with their choices as long as they respected me and my man.Dax’s club was a community of misfits and I fit in like I never thought I could. They didn’t care that I arrived in five-inch stilettos, looking like I was heading to a ritzy club. They accepted me as Duke’s old lady.Duke spoke to Dax and arranged a week off
Cori“How is Mr. Grumpy today?” Mak asked. She had her overprotective Pitbull at her side. I hadn’t seen Two-dogs since I arrived with Duke. I contained myself to the kitchen and Duke’s room. Two-dogs stayed out of Gabriella’s domain because the two of them stayed at war over what was permissible and what was not. I secretly thought Gabriella slipped the dog treats when no one watched but I had no way to prove it. I guess her new kindness made me think she was something other than Attila the Hun. I needed to watch those stupid fantasies.With assistance, Duke had made it downstairs for this morning’s physical therapy. He refused pain meds afterward and fell asleep exhausted. It gave me time to do something normal. I’d quietly left the room and gone to the outside patio to escape. The heat, even with the water misters, would make it too hot to stay for long but it was nice to be outside.I blinked at Mak who carried a towel. She took the lounge chair beside mine.“He’s sleeping. I’m es
DukeMy biggest problem was boredom. It almost went hand in hand with people poking and prodding constantly. I didn’t live at the clubhouse for a reason. If it weren’t for Cori, I would have found a way to escape Moon’s place the first day. Maybe. I was fooling myself. The ability to lift a spoon to my lips was pushing things.I remembered little about what happened at Wild Fur. Between blood loss and the damage to my stomach, I should have died in oblivion. Things were foggy since waking too. I remembered telling Cori I loved her. It just came out. I hadn’t practiced speaking in years. It was something I did when younger when no one was around. I never felt comfortable with the sound of my voice and eventually decided it wasn’t necessary. That was true until Cori. There were things she needed to hear. Cori hadn’t asked me to speak since it happened. I doubted she even understood what I’d said.My grandfather took me in when my dad went to prison for almost killing me. They were the b
CoriThe air in the room was soft if that were even a thing. There were four rows of chairs. There was a podium at the front. No crucified Jesus hung from the wall, only a large framed needlepoint with writing.“Enter in peace and leave your sorrow.”I sat in the front row and bowed my head. My prayer was to Jesus.“I’ve never asked for anything.”Tears gathered in my eyes and turned to sobs. I couldn’t go on and fell apart. So many thoughts tumbled through my head. I was the whore of Babylon. If there were a man who would hear me, it would be Jesus.“Please,” was all I managed the next time I tried.The quiet settled over me and I inhaled in and out slowly. Within a few minutes, I wiped my tears. The room, like Duke with his silence, gave me peace. It also gave me strength.I went back to ICU and held his hand again. He wouldn’t die because I wouldn’t let him. I spoke to him quietly and assured him all would be okay. I spoke of silly things. I had to keep the connection so he knew I
CoriIt took us more than three hours to get back to the city and another hour through rush-hour traffic to get to Wild Fur. Moon sent his men in first and stayed with me in the SUV. Alex and Austin were with the other women at his compound. Moon didn’t want them here. He’d also left a vehicle behind with four men on Duke’s property to dispose of the bodies.The men cleared inside the Wild Fur quickly. There were two female employees cleaning and handling inventory. The place didn’t open until eight at night. They weren’t harmed and they were assured they could leave after we found Duke. The men hadn’t located him when they cleared the building. Moon and I entered and were shown the entrance to the basement.A light had been turned on. It looked no better than the club upstairs. I saw a rat scurry along the wall. Moon found the hidden door within a few minutes. He pried it open and we entered the dark room.The smell of excrement and death hit us.Death.I couldn’t breathe.In the sha
CoriDuke never left my thoughts. If he was dead, so was I. My life changed that fast. We hadn’t known each other long and it didn’t matter. He was everything I wanted and most of all he was someone who loved me for who I was. I knew he loved me. He shared his silent world and refused to take advantage when he could have. From the time his arms wrapped around me in the car after my escape from Fernandez, we belonged together.My past didn’t matter to him because he lived in a world where endurance and hard work were part of life. Duke and the men like him respected survival.Moon brought more firepower than required and the guns we’d pulled from the cave weren’t exactly needed. I decided to stick with Duke’s weapons because he made sure I was familiar with them. A piece of him was with me.Our plan had been to ambush the vehicles a mile before the entrance to the property. Alex moved the attack to the house. I wasn’t worried about Cartwright’s men knowing the location. None would leav