“See, this is what I’m talking about, daughter.” He takes another step closer, one leg slipping between mine as he leans forward and grabs me. Tears well up in my eyes as he holds my face in one hand and turns me to meet his eyes. “That is not any way to speak to your father.”
I shake my head, trying to free myself from his grip. “You’re not my father.”
His hold tightens, gripping me so hard that it feels like he might just crack my teeth in two. I want to scream. I want to spit in his disgusting face. I want to lift my knee and slam it into his old, shriveled-up balls, but instead, I just stare at him, waiting for his next move.
“What was that?” he growls, arching a brow. I stare back at him and say nothing, which pulls another chuckle out of him. “Nothing to say now?”
Maybe I’m an absolute idiot, but there is a large part of me that wants to deny him anything he asks for as the biggest “fuck you” of all. No, I don’t have anything to say to this piece of shit because he doesn’t even deserve to be in my presence. He’s made that much clear in the short time I’ve known him. Geno laughs, forcing my focus back on him as my stomach flips. He releases my face and moves his hand to my neck, squeezing hard enough that I struggle to draw air into my lungs.
“You don’t think I’m owed an apology for that little stunt?”
I grit my teeth and jerk my hands against the tape, desperate to free myself and rip his fingers from my throat. He squeezes harder, and panic grips my chest as I fight against my restraints, and a few tears trek down my cheeks. Spots dance in my vision, and my heartbeat thrashes in my ears as I gasp for breath. Oh God, he’s going to kill me. The smile I’m beginning to hate so very much makes an appearance as he finally releases my throat. I greedily suck in air as he arches a brow expectantly.
What the hell does he want now?
Oh.
The apology.
That’s what he wants, but God, I don’t want to give it to him. It’s insane that I’m even considering this, given my situation. I don’t know much about the man, but I’m not going to be naïve enough to assume that my being his daughter will save me if I push my luck too far. So, as much as I hate it, I have no choice but to give in to his request.
“Sorry.”
His fist comes out of nowhere, connecting with my cheek with more force than I’ve ever felt before and the chair under me rocks back. One of his men grabs it from behind, stopping it from toppling over completely, and sets it back on four legs as Geno takes a step back and shakes his head, disappointment shining in his eyes.
“That didn’t sound very sincere. Try again.”
Fuck.
Him.
I grit my teeth and meet his eyes, letting him see just how much I fucking hate his guts as I force out, “I’m sorry.”
“Oh, Hermoine,” he sighs, leaning forward again and wrapping his hand around my throat. “I didn’t think Bert and your whore of a mother had failed you this bad, but it’s clear you need me in your life. You need a father to teach you all the things a man is supposed to teach his children.”
“Go to hell,” I bite out without thought and immediately flinch at the blow I know is coming.
Jesus Christ.
Why can’t I just keep my thoughts to myself?
Geno sighs again as he releases my neck and slaps me across the face harder than before. I feel my cheek split open, and this time, I can’t stop myself from crying out at the agony that rocks through my head.
“There we go,” he says, stepping away from me. “Now we’re getting somewhere, and by the time we’re done here, Hermoine, two things will happen—you’ll finally admit what we both already know, and you will never disrespect me again.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
Falcon
I sent Hermoine a text message yesterday, but she never replied back. I haven’t been back around The Java Zone since I noticed it wasn’t open, but I have this inkling feeling like I need to go check on her. I meant to go over to her place yesterday, but everything with mom’s pipe bursting sort of kept me from doing that. By the time I wanted to go by her place and check in on her, it was already late, and I wasn’t going to make an unexpected visit like that around that time.
I woke up a bit past five this morning, and it’s almost six-thirty now. The Java Zone opens at seven every morning, so I decide to get dressed and head out. Maybe Hermoine will be at the shop today. I really just want to check in on her. I can’t describe the sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.
“I’m headin’ out. Make sure to shut the garage door behind me. Otherwise, it’ll be fuckin’ freezing in there when I get back, and I don’t want to have to repeat the same shit from the other day,” I tell Moneybags, who gives me a nod. Out of all the other brothers, he’s the one who’s the early bird.
I get all suited up in my winter gear and then head down to the garage attached to the club. I take my gloves and face mask out of my helmet, put them both on, and then put my helmet on. In a matter of minutes, I have my bike started up, and I’m rolling out of the driveway onto the state road out front. In ten minutes, I’m on the street that Hermoine’s coffee shop is on. I round the corner and stop in front of her shop, noticing a woman in a winter jacket standing out front. I pull into the parking lot and park my bike, take off my helmet and face mask, then head up. Immediately, I could tell this wasn’t Hermoine. I’d be able to see Hermoine’s dark curls from here.
I walk up to the woman who’s wrapping her arms around herself. She has her phone in her hands and is tapping away on the thing as I approach her. “Hey there, you work for Hermoine, right?” I try not to seem overly intimidating. A lot of people automatically assume the worst of me, or people like me, because we’re in clubs. I don’t blame most, given how the few can act . . . which always damages the reputation of the many. I’ve seen this woman behind the counter a couple of times.
“Yeah, I do. You’re her friend, Falcon, right?”
I nod and crack a smile. “Yeah, that’s me. Speaking of the devil, have you heard from her in the last day?”
The woman shakes her head and narrows her brows. “No, actually. She’s normally here by now. It’s very seldom she runs late, but she always texts when she’s running a little bit behind.”
“The shop was closed the day before yesterday because it’s our usual day that we’re closed, but yesterday Hermoine didn’t show up either. I called and texted, but I didn’t get any answer. I even drove by her house, but I’m sure you know sometimes she walks here since it’s only a couple of blocks away.” I do know Hermoine walks here from time to time, but her shop being closed for this long isn’t like her at all. She sighs and looks right at me, “I hope you won’t tell her I did this, but I scaled her fence at her house and didn’t see her there. I just . . . I figure if anyone can help figure out what’s going on, it’ll probably be you.”
The hairs on my arms stand up, and I give the woman a curt nod. I don’t want to freak her out, but I don’t like what she’s told me. “Hermoine has security cameras here, right?”