There was a table full of knives and other things within reach, so I snatched a knife, trying not to cringe at the blood crusting on the blade, and I sawed through the ropes binding his arms. Ashes grabbed the knife from my hand and cut his legs free, then picked up the gun and went after the two men I’d just attacked.
As much as I wanted to keep an eye on him, I knew it was better to free the others. I worked quickly, until I heard shots ring out. Freezing, my gaze darted everywhere. Had that been Ashes? No. He was frozen, gun clenched in his hand, and breathing hard. But both men he had cornered were still alive and without bullet holes. Then I saw a man in a suit standing on an upper landing. This was the man in charge. Power radiated off him.
“You were given one simple instruction. I should have known better than to hire an addict hooked on my product just because he was closer to the target. How could the two of you have fucked things up this much?” the man asked as he came down the stairs. He barely glanced my way, his focus on Ashes. Even the other bikers I’d freed didn’t seem to be a concern for him.
“Who the fuck are you?” Ashes asked.
“I’m merely a cog in a much bigger machine. A worker bee, if you will. It’s my boss who arranged this little meeting.”
Worker bee? All the worker bees were men. Did that mean there was a queen over all this mess and not a king?
“What’s all this about?” I asked.
They’d snatched me, probably to get Ashes to fall in line. But I didn’t see any other women here. Did that mean the other bikers were just in the way, but not the true target? I was so confused. I didn’t know why Ashes had come here, didn’t have the first clue what was happening. I just knew I didn’t want my son to be an orphan. We both needed to get out of here. I just didn’t know how.
The man in charge eyed me up and down, a slight smile curving his lips. “You’ve got a smart woman on your hands. I’m thinking that she’s already putting the pieces together.”
“This is about a woman, isn’t it?” I asked. “I just don’t understand who or why. What does Ashes have to do with any of this? Or me?”
The man chuckled. “Yes, indeed. Very smart. Your man here pissed off the wrong woman. My boss’s cousin is a bit… promiscuous to put it mildly. She thought your man here was going to show her a good time, but he wasn’t interested.”
My mouth opened and shut several times. “What does that have to do with all these other men?”
“Nothing. Unrelated. These men are simply in my boss’s way, but yours… it was just bad luck on his part that his club sent him to that warehouse. Anyone who went would have been jumped, but when MaryAnn saw the pictures of the Devil’s Boneyard member who’d fallen into the trap, she went nuclear. Ranting and raving about the asshole who wouldn’t fuck her, made her feel like trash.”
I fought to keep any expression off my face, but from the man’s laugh, I knew I hadn’t succeeded.
“Yes, MaryAnn is trash, but she doesn’t think so. She’d counted not only on your man fucking her, but she’d planned to get knocked-up. Then he shows up here, with the others bent on justice, and the opportunity was just too good to pass up. Make no mistake, anyone who came in his place would have met the same fate. The fact your man had someone at home who might make him fall in line was a pleasant surprise. MaryAnn exacted her justice on him, taking it from his hide so to speak, but I wouldn’t kill him as she demanded.”
“Are you telling me that my woman was kidnapped and I was beat to hell, again, because of some stupid club whore?” Ashes demanded. “Are you fucking kidding me?”
“I’m afraid not, Mr. Ashes. MaryAnn is quite determined to ruin your life, the way she seems to think you ruined hers. Her plan was for you to watch as your ol’ lady was violated six ways to Sunday, then dragged off to a brothel to serve out her days on her back. And you were going to be tortured and eventually killed.”
My gaze narrowed on the man in the suit. “Why did you say all that in the past tense?”
“Again, smart lady. My boss has a weak spot for his cousin, but I don’t give a rat’s ass about the woman. She’s a whore, plain and simple. But you… you’re something altogether different. I believe we can come to an agreement.”
I glanced at Ashes and saw that his gaze was focused on the man doing all the talking. The other two had disappeared at some point. I scanned the shadows and didn’t see them, but it didn’t mean they were truly gone. They could be lurking, waiting for a chance to strike out again. Or maybe they decided all this shit wasn’t worth the pay.
“Tell me, are all the Devil’s Boneyard women as delightful as yours?” the man asked Ashes. “Beauty, brains, and a bit of sass. I like it.”
“Jordan would eat you for breakfast,” Ashes said. “But yeah, we’ve struck gold when it comes to our women, and they’re off fucking limits. The one who snatched Nikki is mine, regardless of how this shit show goes down. That fucker is going to pay in blood.”
The man waved a hand. “You may have him. He’s of no consequence to me. Merely muscle for hire, and an incompetent one at that. There’s plenty more where he came from, as you’re well aware from your time here. As for our deal… We need to run some trucks through your area. If one of the crates happens to fall off in your territory, you look the other way. Same goes for every club represented here.”
“And if they don’t agree?” Nikki asked.
The man smiled. “Then we’ll have to hit them where it hurts. That’s where you come in, my dear. I’m hoping the club is protective of its women. Never fear, though. Now that I’ve met you, I couldn’t possibly let you die in a whorehouse. You’re much too special for that. Don’t worry. You’ll learn to love my touch over time, even if I have to keep you tied down the first few months and break a little bit of that spirit I so admire.”
Ashes growled and took a step closer to the man, and I fought down the bile that rose in my throat. I wouldn’t take the bait, though. I had a feeling he wanted me to react, and I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction.
“That’s all you want?” I asked. “To run illegal stuff through the Devil’s Boneyard territory and maybe lose a crate off each shipment? What happens to that crate?”
“Nik. Shut the fuck up,” Ashes said.
I folded my arms over my chest and refused to look at him, maintaining eye contact with the man in the suit. He really needed to give me a name. This was getting ridiculous.
“That’s all I want,” the man said. “As for the crate, that’s my business and mine alone. But never fear, it won’t get in the way of anything the club has going on. By the time my boss figures out shit is missing, he won’t be a problem anymore.”
And the rest of the pieces were falling into place. At least for me. The guys from the various clubs seemed a little confused. There were nearly a dozen of them, and I wondered how they’d been taken down so easily. I was honestly amazed the others had kept their mouths shut. Then again, some of them looked a bit rough. I didn’t know how they were standing. Two of them looked ready to pass the hell out.