The club’s president held a switchblade to the man’s neck. “What happened to the other women?”
“Does it fucking matter?” Jacob cried. “You’re going to kill me anyway.”
“It does if they are still alive.” The knife went deeper, leaving a trail of blood in its wake.
“They’re not.” Jacob lowered his head, as if hoping to stop the blood draining out.
Arlo placed a hand on Forge’s shoulder. He rose and cleaned the blade off with the only clean spot still left on Jacob’s shirt.
Saige had no idea what the hierarchy of the men in suits were, but Roman and Arlo seemed to be the ones in charge. “According to the tech guys’ research, the freak had a girlfriend who dropped him many years ago. Whenever he came across a woman who resembled her, he stalked her. We came across a few of the missing women in a paper trail. They were tortured, killed, and buried in out in a field. Because these women were hiding out to begin with, he, up until now, has gotten away with it.”
After hearing what had almost become of her, Saige gripped his hand even tighter as Capone held a possessive arm around her waist. It was reassuring, comforting, and empowering. With a man like him by her side, she’d never have to worry about anyone harming her again. She’d never care what anyone thought of her either. His touch recharged her battery and gave her strength.
Stepping out of Capone’s embrace, Saige walked up and stood in front of Jacob. How could she have ever though this monster was attractive? With all the energy she could muster, Saige punched him in the face. Her hand throbbed, and it was a good bet she probably broke something, but it didn’t matter. It was cause and effect all over again. She’d survived a monster and come out the other side, battered but stronger. No one, no matter who, was ever going to take control from her again or make her feel less than she was.
“What happens to him now? Do we call the police?” She turned to address Roman.
“We’ll take care of him.”
“Take care? What do you mean by that? He’s a creep. I don’t want him to get away with it.”
“He won’t. We will interrogate him, get info, and then dispose of him,” Arlo added.
“Dispose?” Did she hear him right? A chill ran down her back, yet a sense of relief filled her.
“Yes, I’ve already discussed it with Forge, and we will take care of things today.” Roman shoved his hands in his pockets, and the large gold watch on his wrist caught the reflection of the light. “Within the hour, this piece of shit will be just a bad memory that you never need to worry about again. If you need us to be of assistance again, just let us know. Arlo, here, will return you to your family.” With that, Arlo guided her back to where Capone had remained standing. Return her to her family?
The shock of it all started to trickle through her mind. In just a matter of days, she’d escaped a murderer, ended up with a biker gang, and had justice served to her tormentor by the mob. What had she done to deserve this?
It was too much. Saige marched back over to where Jacob sat, his body bloody and broken. After hearing what he’d done to those other women and what he was going to do to her, he truly was a monster. She spit in his face. The creep would die soon at the hand of these men for the crimes he’d committed, and she didn’t feel a bit of sympathy for him.
Chapter Five
When Roman said she would be return to her family, Saige didn’t think he meant her real family, yet here she was. Her bedroom at her parents’ house was the same. It was like she’d never left. Her parents acted as if nothing had happened. Arlo had dropped her off at their front door, and they were waiting just inside to greet her. What kind of relationship with the Caponellis did her parents have? Other things didn’t make sense either. Why had Jacob picked her to go after? He’d admitted to being hired to find her yet didn’t know by whom. And what about Capone? Did he think of her at all?
She’d been in a haze after leaving Jacob’s side. Probably shock. The only memory Saige had of what happened afterward was of Capone hugging her and kissing the top of her head. He whispered words of encouragement in her ear. To be strong, to be passionate about life, and to come back to him. Yet she didn’t even have his phone number.
Maybe it was time to focus on herself for a bit. To start over fresh, do things right for once. The next few weeks flew by. Once Saige made up her mind to stay in Genoa, she worked night and day to make it happen. Even though her parents offered to help, she’d saved up enough money to rent a nice apartment near the center of town and rented a small storefront. Yes, the town had an art center for local crafters and artists, but she knew with the influx of rich Chicago tourists, there was a market for high end art. Capone’s paintings as well as others she’d worked with in the big city would be well received.
Whether he would be willing to let her sell them for him was yet to be seen. Call her a coward, but she still hadn’t contacted the man, and she’d not heard from him either. Maybe he just said those things to be nice, maybe she was just another notch on his bedpost, or maybe he was just giving her time to find herself before coming to find him.
A knock at the door drew her out of daydreaming. The delivery man was there. She’d already received several shipments of paintings from her contacts in Chicago, so this was most likely more. After signing for the package, Saige took it to the back and carefully opened it.
Seeing the breathtaking portrait, her knees weakened. Even without seeing the signature, there was no doubt who the artist was. Capone had sent it, and it was a painting of her, smiling and sitting on his bike, his leather jacket draped around her shoulders. It showed love, it showed happiness, and it showed possessiveness. His words replayed in her mind: “I never paint anything that I don’t love looking at, that doesn’t make me feel something, or that doesn’t make me happy.”
He’d given her time, but that was running out. She couldn’t leave him hanging. She couldn’t risk him finding someone else. Who knew if they were meant to be together, but if they didn’t try, they would never find out. They were from two different worlds. He was from two different worlds. One of crime and one of beauty and art. Could she accept both?
During the last few weeks, she also did a little research on the Caponellis. They were a high-profile crime family, yet the deadly men she’d seen in the building a few weeks ago had all found love and married girls from town. Love was blind, they say. When she looked at Capone, she only saw the good side, not the bad.
Grabbing her keys and purse, Saige closed up the shop and headed for her car. The business could wait; she had one goal in mind and one only: find Capone and tell him how she felt.
It took awhile and one wrong turn, but she found his home in the country. Her heart sank when she found he wasn’t there. Then she drove to the Tribe club house. The few guys hanging out there had no clue where he was either. Wracking her brain for where he might be, she started to drive, going only on a hunch.
Her heart soared when she spied his bike parked by the tree that was in the painting. Getting out of her car, she walked, then jogged, then ran to the spot they talked and shared stories of their past. His back was to her, but Capone turned when he heard her calling his name. She slowed as her old insecurities raised their nasty heads.