“Yeah, Benji, I need Dani.”
Hearing his frantic barking, I turn just in time for Bowie to run and leap at me. If not for Benji being behind me, Iwould have tumbled down on my ass. Somehow our dog knows something is up. Seeing Enzo walking in with Ollie, he comes directly to me, ignoring people saying hello to him.
“Dottie, anything you need, girl, I’m here. Now Bowie isn’t a search and rescue dog but he’s loyal so if you need to use him when you have a hit on Dani, do it. He’ll find her, I have no doubt.”
I look down into the most beautiful brown eyes ever as he licks my face. When Enzo tells him“Sitzen”Bowie immediately gets off me and sits down at full alert. Enzo did that so I look at Bowie as a working dog not just a pet. I give him a small smile and look around. So many people are here in the clubhouse and outside in the parking lot and on the patio. God, we have to find her because I can’t even think of the alternative, though that dark fucker from hell is lurking around every corner.
Benji leads me to a small table off the great room and I sit just as Peanut brings me an ice-cold bottle of water. She grabs my hand and places two pills in it.
“I know your head is splitting, take them, just some Tylenol. Let me know if you need anything else. Here, Halo, brought you a water too. Take a minute, you two, try to chill. Something’s going to break soon, I can feel it.”
She squeezes my shoulder then walks away. I don’t know what to do and seems like there are so many people doing things, I take Peanut’s advice and try to refocus myself.
“Dottie, why would your father, after all this time, come looking for you guys? I’m trying to make sense of it, and something isn’t right. How long have you been up here in Montana? And how in the hell would he even know where to look? Who’s this brotherhood and would they have known that you two were part of the Devil’s Handmaidens club? I’m getting the feeling your father is being used without even knowing it.Like you know, dangling a carrot in front of a starving donkey or however the saying goes.”
Benji’s comment has that switch move in my brain. Holy fuck, he’s right. This has probably nothing to do with Dani and my father but with that crazy as shit brotherhood we keep coming up against and knocking the fuck down. Somehow two insane groups of people found each other and we are now living in their union. Looking around, I see Tink and Glory so I wave them to me.
“Benji just said something that helped clear the fog from my mind. What if this isn’t our father’s doing but a payback from the Thunder Cloud Knuckle Brotherhood? We’ve been busting their balls for a long while now, and the last time we collided, in the end we forced them to get the hell out of and away from Timber-Ghost. Maybe they did their homework to find a way to make us pay and found out about Dani and my past. I know I’m reaching, but after so long I can’t see our father wasting valuable time, let alone his money, to go to this extreme.”
Tink’s eyes never leave my face, and it’s times like this I know why she’s our prez. She always takes the time to really think shit through. She turns to Glory, telling her to bring Raven to us. Then my prez grabs a chair and pulls it next to me, making me move closer to Benji. He immediately places his arm around my shoulders, which has me leaning into him. His body heat comforts me, which I need right now. Tink starts throwing out different scenarios about our father and the brotherhood. When she comes up empty-handed, Benji leans forward and shocks both of us.
“I know I’m not up to speed on everything you all do, but if you’ve been a thorn in this, what are they called? Yeah, the Thunder Cloud Knuckle Brotherhood which, just sayin’, is a really stupid-ass name. Maybe they’re trying to distract your club from what they really are doing and are using theconnection with Dottie and Dani’s relationship with their father. I mean, you haven’t spoken to anyone from South Dakota in how long, Dottie?”
I think for a second, then tell him we ran when we were almost twenty and ended up in Montana when we had just turned twenty-one. Found the Devil’s Handmaidens like, I think, six or nine months later when we drove into Timber-Ghost Montana and strolled into The Wooden Spirits Bar & Grill.
Thinking about it, since we are twenty-four now, we’ve been with the club for over two years.Yeah, still prospects, I think to myself because of one stupid idea when we took that trip to Texas for that book signing Hannah kind of dragged us to. Thinking about it brings a sad smile to my face, as Dani was never so happy as she was at that signing. Shaking my head, I try to remember what we were talking about. Benji squeezes my shoulder so I look up at him, and immediately he places a gentle kiss on the tip of my nose. Hearing a throat clear, I look to see Raven standing there with a shit-eating grin on her face. Great, just what I need, the club comedian, though she doesn’t say a thing, just looks at Tink.
“Raven, need you to backtrack on any information you can find on the brotherhood and their recent involvement with anyone. See how close they are to town and how many they’ve rebuilt their numbers up to. Also, have Freak check any of the known members to get an idea what they’ve been up too. Halo and Dottie came up with a theory that has some merit. Thanks, sister.”
Glory grabs a chair and pulls up next to Benji. Having my prez and VP sitting with me at my time of need makes my heart feel almost full, though not quite, as one huge piece of it is missing—my twin sister. The longer she is gone the more I worry that we won’t find her in time. Feeling two people grab myhands, I’m shocked when first Benji then Tink both tell me that “Yeah, we will find her.”
Then Tink gently reminds me how after all those years we found Hannah, better known now as Squirt. She watches me with those green eyes of hers that seem to be reaching inside me, giving my heart a gentle hug, and I can almost believe her. I want to but am so scared to put all my faith into letting myself hope, and then something goes terribly wrong and I lose Dani forever. That is something I won’t survive, no matter how many people surround me with love and support. Losing my other half will literally kill me.
SIXTEEN
DANI
Curled up in the tightest ball I can possibly hold my body in, my mind simply can’t comprehend the pain running throughout my body from my head to the bottom of my feet. From the minute I saw Samson in the Devils on Wheels garage, it felt like my heart was slowly on the path to dying. All of my hopes and dreams are slowly evaporating as it dawns on me that I’m totally fucked. My thoughts immediately go to Dottie, and I feel that crack getting bigger in my heart. Twins do have that special bond and when the club finds me, I pray they will be able to hold my sister together with the help from Halo. Dottie was right, he was sent for a reason and that was to be there for her when I die. I’ve accepted it and have tried very hard not to say a word or cry out every time those bastards come into this dark, dank room and lay hands on me or beat the hell out of me, piss on me, and call me filthy names. I have no concept of time, day, or where I’m at. Life as I have known it has ceased to exist. My head is pounding and I can feel my skin getting tighter as the blood dries and the swelling continues to happen. I’m almost a hundred-percent sure I have a mid-grade concussion, along with some broken ribs, besides the deep incision where the white stuff I’m seeing might be a bone in my calf. That was from the first injury, whichwas their attempt to make sure I’m unable to even try to run and get away.
Hearing the lock engage, my body tightens within its protective ball, trying to shield myself, which is a joke. I’m at these assholes’ mercy and that is totally pissing me off. Right before the door swings open, I hear Dottie’s voice in my head like she is whispering right in my ear next to me.
Hang tight, little sister, we’re on the way. Do whatever you have to, just stay alive. I’m serious, Dani, anything, just make sure you’re breathing when I find you. Love ya, little sister.
Fighting the tears filling my eyes, I refuse to show any pain, no matter how much I’m in. Men like this get off on the suffering they inflict on their victims. Keeping my eyes tightly closed, I don’t know how many men are entering the room but it’s more than two as the room is pretty large and from the vibe of it, the room is filling up. Then I hear the voice of the man I’m quickly wishing would drop dead. Samson.
“How much of that shit did you give her, Omar? She shouldn’t still be out. Motherfucker, those jagoffs are on the way and I wanted some time to play with their new toy before she’s moved to her next ‘home.’ From what I’ve been told, her new owner, not sure what to call him—her ‘daddy or master’—is a total motherfucker. Hey, whore, wake up.”
Hearing the sole of his boot dragging on the concrete floor, I try my best not to brace as Samson kicks me in my lower back again. Not sure how I manage but no noise comes from my swollen lips.
“Son of a bitch. Noah, get that hose working. We need to clean this bitch up. She smells like piss, fear, and blood. Cain, go get some clothes, even if you have to give her a shirt or something from your shit. And bring a brush so we can untangle her nest of fucking hair. Damn, what happened to her? She used to be beautiful, though at least she didn’t mark herself up like theother one. Before we hand her over, I’m gettin’ my piece of flesh for all the trouble she’s caused me. I’m hoping her dad gets here before those other assholes, as I know he’s wanting his piece too. That’s all I’ve heard about is what he’s going to do to her again. What pissed him off more than anything is that his ‘girls’ ran before he could personally train them properly.”
Feeling nauseated just by the mention of our sperm donor because it brings back so many bad memories, including that demon never says anything he doesn’t mean. One of the main reasons we ran is because he took both Dottie and me into one of his sheds one night, after he beat our mother within an inch from her own death. What was waiting for us was a nightmare neither of us have ever talked about, even to this day. I’ve pushed that night so far back into the recesses of my mind, I pray it never makes its way to the front. I’m not sure what I’d do if I remember all that took place on that horrendous night. So deep in thought when the first spray of cold water hits my body, I hiss under my breath but quickly suck it in. A memory hits me and it’s when Dottie and I first started prospecting for the Devil’s Handmaidens club. We had to spend time with Shadow because no one else had the capability to make sure we would be able to be a club sister. Back then the club’s situation was dark. Tink had her mission of finding Squirt, then Shadow’s past finally caught up with her, and it almost brought our club to its knees. From then each and every sister who found love had to deal with their pasts, including their nightmares too. Should have known we were up, as anyone can see Dottie is falling hard for Halo, which is good ’cause that man is totally in love with my sister. Feeling hands on me trying to pull me out of my ball, I can’t hold it in any longer and let out a cry of pain. Suddenly, the water shuts off and instead of viciousness I feel gentle hands pushing the hair out of my face and whispering kind words by my ears. Slowly opening my eyes, all I see are gunmetal eyes looking down on me.
“Hey, it’s okay, Dani. Probably don’t remember me, it’s Noah. Shush, don’t say anything; they’ll be back in a minute. Try and hang on as this should all be over shortly. I know it’s asking a lot, but you gotta trust me. If I do anything to hurt you or say shit to upset you, as crazy as this sounds, don’t take any of it to heart. I’m on your side, swear to Christ. Shit, here they come, gotta put the water back on, but I’ll add a little warm so it’s not so brutal. Don’t let them know though. Here we go.”
True to his word, Noah must have put the hot water on too, because this time it’s not an arctic-cold stream of water, though nowhere near warm, but still he kept his word. I remember both Shadow and Rebel telling all of us prospects to never trust anyone if you are taken captive. As much as my kind naïve heart wants to believe Noah, I’ve put my life in the hands of my club sisters and they have kept me safe. So keeping my expression blank, I lie on the cement floor while I’m hosed down. Cain comes back with a T-shirt, a flannel shirt, along with some sweats. I know they aren’t any of theirs because none of them are as small as my clothes, but I don’t ask any questions. Cain throws the clothes to Noah while Samson tells his youngest brother to change me and not to get any ideas. Samson tells Noah he has first dibs with me. Then Samson leaves, taking his men with him to go and find some food. As much as I don’t want to, I have to eat so I can keep my strength up. Not sure who will get here first, my dad or the brotherhood, but no matter what, I won’t die before my club finds me. Hopefully, before the other men get here to take what is owed to them. Guess I’m paying the debt our club owes the brotherhood, not to mention what my sister and I are beholden to our father.
Shivering, my eyes meet Noah’s as he carefully as possible helps me to my feet and hangs on while I try to steady myself. The bottom of my feet hurt so bad from being hit by Omar with a hard covered book. The irony isn’t lost on me, being thebookworm I am. Not sure they know that but even as I kid, all I wanted to do was read. Seeing how warped these guys are, I’m pretty sure Omar planned it that way to make me hate something I truly love. He’s almost as bad as Samson. Cain and Noah I’m still on the fence about.
