I’d left everything behind when I ran. Now I had no phone, no money, no ID. Even if I could get out of the clubhouse, I wouldn’t make it very far, especially not with my arm feeling like it had been run over. For all I knew, it had. I tried to move it. Pain sliced through my shoulder and down my back.
Dammit. I eased the covers back and slid out of bed. Hoping the cracked doorway across the room led to a bathroom, I shuffled that way. Dark spots threatened the edges of my vision, but I refused to pass out. Fueled by a desperate will to survive, I forced myself to keep going. Reaching the doorway, I slid my hand up the wall until I found the light switch.
Reluctantly, I faced myself in the mirror. Sticks and leaves tangled in my hair. An ugly dark bruise spread along my jaw and another surrounded my right eye which was almost swollen shut. No wonder I’d had trouble focusing. I looked like absolute shit, but I’d survived worse.
I lowered my gaze to assess my shoulder. Unbuttoning the front of my shirt with one hand proved challenging, but I managed to work the top few buttons free. The fabric slid down, exposing the mottled blue and purple skin covering my shoulder along with a new bandage. My gaze slipped to the fresh ink that asshole had carved into my other shoulder. Fuck him and fuck my brother for using me as a bargaining chip. I’d get my revenge, but first, I needed to get out of my new hell as Six’s prisoner.
The door to the bedroom creaked open and heavy footsteps entered the room. “Breakfast is served.”
I wanted to slide down onto the floor and let the tears fall, but I wouldn’t let myself show any sign of weakness. If Six found a crack in my armor, he’d figure out a way to exploit it. My best chance of survival would be to stay tough.
“Can’t a woman piss in private?” I kicked the door closed and flipped the lock. With no window, the walls of the small space pressed in on me. Still, it was better than facing Six before I could pull myself together. His dark brown eyes didn’t seem to miss a thing.
CHAPTER3
SIX
“Take allthe time you need. Don’t pull off that bandage though. The stitches need to stay covered for at least twenty-four hours.” I set the tray holding a plate of scrambled eggs and toast on the bed. All I knew about the woman in my bathroom was that she had a fresh tattoo of the Savage Bones logo and one hell of an attitude.
She had to be an old lady or pass around girl associated with the club. The bastards had a reputation for treating their women worse than their dogs. Even though she seemed to hate my guts, my fists itched to beat the shit out of whoever had touched her.
I hadn’t had a chance to figure out which injuries she might have sustained from the run in with my truck versus at the hands of one of those degenerates. Didn’t matter. Bottom line was, she was safe with me, and I’d do whatever it would take to keep her out of the hands of whoever she was running from.
I went to my closet and pulled out a clean t-shirt and pair of sweats. Even with her curves, my stuff would fall off her. It would have to work until I could get ahold of my brother. His new wife seemed to be about the same size as Bambi. She’d better tell me her real name before I got used to calling her that.
The door to the bathroom opened and Bambi shuffled out. She eyed the tray of food and her tongue darted out of her mouth to run across her full bottom lip.
“Do you want to eat in here or are you up to heading out to the table?”
She cocked a hip and turned her attention on me. “Are you holding me hostage or am I free to go?”
“Why don’t you eat something first? Then we can figure out what to do with you.” She wasn’t going anywhere until she told me who she was and why she was running through the woods in the middle of the night.
I was up all night with some of my MC brothers, trying to figure out what the hell had been happening in Mustang Mountain. Ever since Dean met Holly last month, and she confirmed her stepfather was a member of Savage Bones, the target on our town had been growing bigger. I thought things would end when that piece of shit was put behind bars, but obviously the fuckheads were still hanging around. If I could get her to talk, Bambi might be able to give us more info on what the Savage Bones were planning.
She sat down on the edge of the bed and picked up a piece of toast. “Coffee?”
“I brought you some apple juice. Should be easier on your stomach and you need to hydrate.” Settling back into the chair I’d been sitting in earlier, I gestured toward the plastic cup full of juice. Hopefully her mood had improved a little since she’d tossed the water on me. I only kept a few clean shirts in my room at the clubhouse.
“I’d prefer coffee.”
I was starting to wish she’d careened across the road a few seconds after I’d passed last night instead of running straight into my truck, but I bit back the comment. “Let’s make a deal. I’ll go get you coffee and you tell me what you were doing out in the woods last night.”
Her eyes narrowed slightly. “Cream and sugar?”
Fuck me. Next, she’d probably be asking me for a silver spoon. “Sure. Coffee with cream and sugar.”
“A big cup.”
I got up from the chair and headed back to the kitchen. My buddy Bear stood in front of the stove. Out of all my MC brothers, he was the best cook, and we usually conned him into making meals when we were holed up at the clubhouse.
“Does she need more eggs already?” His meaty paw dwarfed the spatula in his hand.
“She wants coffee.” I jerked the carafe from its place and reached for the biggest mug I could find. “Please tell me we have cream and sugar around here somewhere.”
“No cream, but I can steam some milk if you want,” Bear offered.
“You’re a regular Betty Crocker, aren’t you?” I elbowed him in the side as I filled the mug. The bond of brotherhood we shared flowed deeper than blood, but that didn’t mean I’d ever pass up the opportunity to give him shit.
