“It’s Crank.” I left the two men groaning on the ground and rushed to her side. Sliding the blindfold off her head, I ran my gaze over her. She had a pretty nasty bruise on her forehead, but I didn’t see any blood. “Are you hurt?”
She blinked against the light, then slowly focused on me. “It was the Savage Bones.”
“I know, baby.” Reaching into my pocket, I pulled out my knife and carefully sliced through the zip tie holding her wrists together.
The truck engine rolled over and gravel spun under the tires. “Don’t think this is over,” one of them yelled out the window as they drove away.
Poppy lifted her hand toward her head. “My hair. They shaved my head, didn’t they?”
I gathered her against me as sobs wracked her frame. Her tears soaked the front of my shirt, but I just wrapped my arms around her and held her tight. “They’re going to pay for what they’ve done to you. I promise.”
CHAPTER 7
POPPY
Crank handedme a cup of chamomile tea.
“I added a little honey. Do you want anything else in it?” he asked. His eyes were still full of concern, the same way they’d looked since he picked me up off the porch of the cabin and brought me to the Mustang Mountain Riders’ clubhouse.
“No, thank you. This is perfect.” I took it with a shaky hand. It had been hours since those assholes had dropped me at Ruby’s cabin, but I was still rattled. I’d been trying to work up the nerve to look in a mirror. Torn between wanting to see what they’d done to me and wanting to pretend it hadn’t happened at all, I wasn’t sure I had the courage to face my own reflection.
“Can I get you anything else?” Crank slid onto the chair next to me. He wasn’t a gentle man, yet his moves were slow and careful around me like he was afraid I might break. Maybe I would. It had been a long time since I’d felt so shattered.
Not trusting my voice, I shook my head. Then I lifted the mug to my lips and took a small sip.
“I hope you don’t mind, but I asked Miles’s girl, Kinley, to stop by. She works at the Best Little Hair House, and I figured she’d be the best person to fix your hair.” His hand on my shoulder grounded me. I glanced up and briefly locked eyes.
“Thank you.” It came out as a gruff whisper, full of the emotion I’d been trying to hold back.
He covered my hand with his and gave it a slight squeeze. “I’m sorry, Poppy. I’ll never forgive myself for not being there for you when you needed me most, but I swear those fuckers will never touch you again.”
“It’s not your fault. I don’t know why they came after me, but someone’s got to stop them. They think they’re untouchable. I can’t even imagine what they’re capable of.” My chest heaved as I sucked in a ragged breath.
Crank’s eyes filled with emotion. “I’m going to get them. I promise they’ll never be able to hurt you or anyone else..”
A soft knock sounded at the door. “Crank? You in there?”
“It’s Kinley. Are you okay with me letting her in?”
I nodded.
A wide-eyed brunette stepped into the room. “Hey, Crank. Can you grab the rest of my things? They’re in the hall.”
Crank gave me a lopsided smile and stepped out, returning with a big pink bag.
She turned to me, her big brown eyes soft and full of kindness. “Hi, I’m Kinley. Crank gave me a quick rundown of what happened. I’m so sorry about what they did to you, but it’s going to be okay.”
I didn’t know how she’d fix the fuzzy mess left on my head, but there was no way she could make it worse. “Thank you for coming.”
“I wish we were meeting under different circumstances. Those Savage Bones are getting out of control.” She rummaged through her bag and pulled out a large black cape.
“Will you be okay if I step out to brief the others?” Crank asked. “The sooner they get all of the info on what happened, the sooner we’ll be able to put together a plan.”
My stomach lurched at the thought of him leaving me, but I refused to let irrational fear win. I was safe in the Mustang Mountain Riders’ clubhouse, surrounded by men who’d lay down their lives to protect their loved ones. There was no reason for him to stay, so I nodded.
“I’ll take good care of your girl,” Kinley reassured him.
Heat swept over my cheeks at the suggestion I might ever belong to Crank. I was planning to get out of Mustang Mountain, not sit around and wait for another source of evil and destruction to descend on the town.
