Shooter nodded thoughtfully. “We need protection on you at all times then. Gonna need someone staying with you so you’re not unprotected.”
“Protection?” I frowned. “I thought you were going to kill me.”
“We’ll deal with that shit later. Right now I need you to help me get the fucks that did this to my boy over there. Our brother Echo still needs revenge, and I have no doubt that you have a little anger broiling over for all the torment they’ve put you through, huh?” he said matter-of-factly.
“I’m not killing anyone,” I replied quickly. “I can’t do that! I’m not like all of you.” I looked between them all, my eyes frantic.
Casa looked over and smirked like I’d just paid him a compliment. “We’ve got your back on the killing shit, nurse.”
“Just need you to go on as normal. Wait for them to come to you, and when they do, we’ll be waiting. That’s your job—your role in all of this—and maybe, just maybe you’ll come out of this unscathed,” Shooter continued.
Unscathed! I blinked, relief and anger twisting inside of me. How could they think I would come out of this unscathed? I was already scarred to my core from these men and this club and all their drama.
“I won’t be unscathed, Shooter. I’ve already been broken, by them and by this club. But fine, I’ll do it, if nothing else but too be free of all of this—all of you.”
“Whatever helps you sleep at night,” he drolled.
Casa snickered and I turned and glared at him.
“What? What’s so funny?” My hands were on my hips and I knew I needed to calm down. This was good, and I should have at least been a little grateful for the fact that I wasn’t dead yet. Beast had shrugged Gauge and Casa off and was staring at me, his nostrils flared, an indecisive look on his face like he was being tormented.
Casa lit a cigarette, taking his sweet time before replying to me. “That you think you’ll ever be done with any of this. Any of us, nurse.”
“I will be.” My eyes narrowed at him but he continued to smirk around his cigarette, smoke trailing up past his face.
“Shut the fuck up, Casa,” Beast growled.
Casa shook his head. “Nah, girl, this club is in your blood now. Besides, you really think he’s about to let you walk out of his life for good?” He nodded toward Beast and I frowned.
“He won’t have a choice,” I bit out.
“Belle,” Beast warned, turning his attention back to me.
“I told you not to say my name,” I gritted. “We’re done. And when this is all over I want you out of my life for good. In fact, from now on I don’t want you anywhere near me.” I turned back to Shooter. “So who’s going to be my protection?”
It was his turn to smirk now, a coy smile that lit up his face, and I knew automatically who he planned to keep with me.
“You’ve got to be kidding,” I groaned, feeling even more annoyed.
“We wanna draw them out quick, get this shit over with. And the two of you together—you’ll be the best bait there ever could be,” he drawled, his eyebrows pulling in as he thought it over some more. “Yeah, Beast needs to be on you twenty-four/seven until this shit is done.”
I glared at Beast and he scowled right back, his look telling me that this wasn’t over. That we weren’t done. Little did he know that he didn’t get a say in the matter anymore. Because carved into my heart or not, I was done with Beast and this club, once and for all.
Chapter Eighteen
~ BEAST ~
Belle’s trailer was the absolute worst.
I mean, I’d stayed in some shitty places before, but this thing was the next best thing to a tent. It was drafty as hell, it creaked and rocked, the windows were busted and held together by tape, the floor felt like it was rotten and I was about to go through it at any minute…yet I kinda loved being there. Belle was all around it. Her floral scent clinging to the furniture and walls, her little knickknacks on the shelves and walls. She’d repurposed some wood for a table and it was sturdier than most of the stuff you could buy in IKEA.
I was staring down at the smallest double bed I’d ever seen in my life—I mean, it was the next best thing to a child’s bed—and wondering if she’d fucked Lorenzo in it, when she cleared her throat behind me. I spun around to find her glaring at me—that seemed to be her typical expression since that morning.
“You’re not sleeping in here,” she bit out like I’d just pissed on her pillow.
“Need to stay real close to you, Belle, in case they turn up,” I replied, even though I hadn’t planned on sleeping in that bed anyway, but fucking with her and trying to win her back around was becoming my number one priority. Especially since her pissed-off expression was particularly sexy.
Her eyes narrowed on me. “You can’t stay here with me.” And with that, she stormed off in the opposite direction. I snickered to myself, but the happiness faded real quick as I stared back at that piece-of-shit bed.
“I mean it!” she yelled like an old fish wife from the other end of the trailer.
I followed the sound of her angry muttering, having to bow my head to accommodate my height. God, I fucking hated this trailer. Needed to get her somewhere better than this. Death was still in play for her in the club’s eyes, but I’d already come to the conclusion that this bitch was going to be mine now. I’d stared at the back of her head, imagining a bullet going in her skull and the feel of the ricochet from the gun going up my arm, and I didn’t like it. Traitor or not, I wasn’t letting her go to ground, and I’d told Shooter and Rider as much. From everything she’d told us, what information she had given to Carlos and Mateo had been bullshit anyway, and it had been under duress. Sure, she should have told us still, but we should have kept a better eye on things.
She should have been under our protection in the first place—so that was on us.
I had one last chance to save her life from the club, and I had to give it everything I had. Unfortunately, she hated my guts.
“You cooking us dinner?” I asked to irritate her. Because I wasn’t going to win her around with charm, so my next best bet was to let her work through her hatred for me and hopefully come back around to something better. I moved to sit opposite her on the piece-of-shit sofa. It groaned under my weight and I braced myself to go through it.
Belle stared at me aghast. “Are you kidding me?”
My cold expression told her I wasn’t, and she spluttered and tried to stand up quickly, as if I was a virus she needed to get away from, but I grabbed her wrist and stopped that shit real quick.
“Calm yourself, Belle, I was kidding.” I scowled at her. “But I am hungry, so let’s go eat.”
She opened her mouth to respond and I let out a heavy sigh, already tired of her backtalk. Perhaps this hadn’t been such a good idea of mine.
“You go eat, Beast! On your own. Away from me!” she snapped, looking away. I could tell she had more to say but was holding it back, and that was good because her fierce tongue was going to get her in all kinds of trouble if she weren’t careful.
“Belle, it’s just food, not a proposal,” I gritted. My body was starting to ache, my skin feeling tight across my burns, but I ignored it in favor of our little back-and-forth argument.