His eyes widen as he takes me in; I can see the fear in his eyes. Lifting my hand, I take ahold of his fist. “Biiig fucking mistake,” I chuckle, twisting his wrist with all of my strength, loving the fucking sound of the breaking of his bones.
“Please let me go,” he pleads, his knees on the ground.
I tighten my hand on his wrist. “Please let me go,” I mock his pathetic fucking voice. “I won’t let you fucking go. You DARED to hit her!” I roar in his face, loving the way he flinches.
“I think he’s from the cult,” Etta whispers softly behind me. I look at her and her face is completely, utterly fucking pale. “He said, it’s not my place.” She’s shaking.
FUCK.
I take out my phone and text Lane to get here ASAP. I don’t know her story, but I know that she grew up in a cult and they were fucked in the head.
Lee starts screaming, trying to pull away. “Get the fuck down!” I growl, pushing him down until his face is on the gravel, lifting his arm up higher so he can’t move unless he wants to break his shoulder.
“Etta, look at me.”
She looks at me, her beautiful eyes wide. “You’re safe. No one can hurt you,” I reassure her. I know that she’s feeling some old shit right now.
She takes a deep breath, nodding. “Tell me who the fuck you work for,” she demands, putting her foot on Lee’s neck, pushing down.
Holy fuck.
He struggles to get away from her. “You will tell me or I’ll shoot your fucking dick off. You have no other choices. Know your place, fucker.” She throws his words right back at him.
I can’t resist the urge to laugh. She’s fucking hot. “Darlin’, if you’re trying to make me fall in love, it’s working.” I wink at her.
She grins, the light back in her eyes giving me exactly what I was hoping for.
“You’re crazy,” she tells me, laughing slightly.
I laugh right with her. “I don’t think I’m the only one.”
She shakes her head, turning the attention back to Lee. “Tell me the name of the fucking cult now!”
“Danielson!” he screams.
She takes a step back like he burned her, just as Trey runs up with her brother Vinny, Lynn, and my MC brothers. Vinny stops in his tracks at the word Danielson.
“This fucker tried to hit her,” I tell them all. I’m still so fucking pissed. I want to put a bullet in his head. I want to end him for daring to hurt her.
“Danielson is the cult that we grew up in,” Lynn tells everyone around us, letting it sink in.
He is there for them.
* * *
Etta
When he spoke those words, I knew. I knew because I heard them almost every single day of my life.
Know your place.
We were taught that we were nothing, that was all we would ever be in their eyes.
Lynn takes my hand. I know she’s scared and, honestly, I am too. “Why are you here after so many years?” Lynn asks. Vinny wraps his arms around her tightly.
“You took my fiancée.”
I blink and the silence around us grows as we each try to figure out who the fuck his fiancée could be.
Lynn pales to the point that I’m terrified she’s going to pass out. “No!” she screams and then it hits me.
Michaela.
Fear unlike anything I have ever felt before overwhelms me. It’s all-consuming. I take off running. I need to get to her. I can hear the others on my ass; I can’t even feel my feet hitting the ground.
After running inside of the gate to the backyard, I stop for a second, trying to find Michaela, my heart beating so hard.
I don't see her, nor do I see Lani.
“Where is Lani!” Trey yells so loudly, I can hear the slight panic in his voice. Opening the door to the house, Konrad puts his hand on my back as we run through the rooms trying to find Michaela.
Looking out of the window to the front of the house, I see Lani holding onto Michaela, who is getting dragged by the father of the kid in Caleb’s class. They’re halfway across the huge-ass field where the parking lot is.
Oh my God!
Michaela is screaming at the top of her lungs. I rip open the door, and Konrad lifts me out of the way of Trey who runs past me.
A motorcycle comes to a stop across the field. Tristan gets off of his bike, coming to the party. “Tristan, help!” I scream at the top of my lungs. His head whips in our direction and takes in the scene; he is the closest to them.
I take off running behind Trey. Lynn passes me the fear for her child, spurring me to move faster. Everyone pushes past me as Lynn tries to get to Michaela and Lani.
Tristan rips the guy off of Michaela and starts beating the shit out of him right in front of everyone.
Lynn falls to the ground by her daughter, her legs not holding her up anymore. Trey picks up Lani, holding her, and Vinny is holding their kids.
I can’t breathe with the terror I’m feeling. I would die if they had taken her. I would have murdered everyone in my path.
“Look at me.” Konrad stands in front of me, cupping my face. “Breathe for me. She is safe,” he repeats over and over until I finally connect the words he’s saying.
“Oh my God, my baby,” Lynn whispers over and over, holding onto Michaela, who is frozen in fear.
“Thank you,” I tell Konrad, squeezing his hands on my face. I walk over to Tristan. He goes on every mission with me whenever he’s home.
He’s a Navy SEAL, and this was his last mission in the military before he retired. Now he’s home for good. His eyes are glued on my sister and my niece. “Thank you for saving my niece.” I don’t bother to hide my emotions.
He gives me a hug. “I’m so fucking thankful. I just got back from my last mission.”
Lynn looks up at him. “Thank you so much.” Her eyes fill with tears as she rocks her daughter.
Tristan puts his hand on his chest, taking a step back. Lynn doesn’t notice, all of her focus on Michaela.
“I need to get her home.” Lynn stands up, struggling to carry her daughter.
“I’ll take you home,” Tristan volunteers. “Can I carry her for you?”
Michaela looks at Tristan before she nods. He lifts her and she cuddles into his chest. “Lynn, we will fix this shit,” Trey tells her and Lynn nods, fire in her eyes.
We will not rest until every single person involved in this is dead, but that will never ever be enough.
They will suffer for this.
Etta
I help Tristan get Michaela into the car. She’s in total shock, but I know without a doubt that she will pull completely through this.
Lani saved her life. Lani held onto her and didn’t let go. That fucker hit her, kicked her, and tried his best to dislodge her so he could run.
“Wait, what happened to the little boy with them?” I ask Lynn. She looks around and shrugs. “I didn’t see him with any of them.”
Konrad says, “I’ll go find him.” He takes off running to the backyard, where everyone has left but the MC.
“I’m going to take them home,” Tristan tells me, taking Lynn’s hand and helping her inside the passenger seat.