Cash nods over at Axel. “Go with her. I’ll get the tow dolly hooked up and we’ll head out right after. Dread and Prez should be back within the next couple of hours,” he warns. I wrap my arms around the large Alpha, giving him a hug before Axel and I make our way to the sweet house.
My biggest hope is that Leon will be here with Shelby, and it will be a two-birds-with-one-stone situation. I can tell Axel is itching to hold my hand, but he’s holding back until we’re off the compound. We’re silent as we make the walk. I feel like I’m too deep in my own thoughts, while Axel looks more on alert, making sure no one suspects anything.
I don’t even make it to the sweet house as Shelby walks our way. She’s wearing tight workout shorts and a sports bra. Her dirty blonde hair is piled in a bun on the top of her head, and her cheeks are flushed as she approaches us.
“Hey you two,” she greets with a smile, and I do my best to return it. “Where y’all headed?”
“Have you seen my brother?” I ask her, not knowing how to answer the question.
“Not since a few nights ago. Why? What’s up?”
I exhale and hold out my left hand. Shelby gasps and nearly drags me toward her chest to get a better look at the ring. Axel has given us a wide berth to speak, and I’m grateful for it.
“No fucking way. You married him?” she gushes, her mouth open wide in shock.
“I sure did.”
Shelby grins. “Good. Fuck following the rules. What are you gonna do now? Tell dear old dad?” she asks, and her smile fadesaway as she reads my expression. “You’re leaving, aren’t you?” she questions sadly.
I nod my head and wrap my arms around her; she smells like sweat and home, and I’m going to miss her so fucking much.
“Hey,” she interrupts. “This isn’t goodbye, okay? You have my number. I don’t care how these assholes deal with club business, but we aren’t patched in. We’ll stay in touch.”
I swallow and nod, hoping that’s the case, but I can’t risk Axel and Cash’s safety like that. The club will see them leaving as breaking the pledge they made when they patched in. You don’t leave the Dead Palms alive.
“Yeah, Shelby, we’ll stay in touch. If you see my brother before I do, can you have him call me?”
She nods her head again and hugs me when the screeching of tires startles us. At first, I think it’s Cash pulling the van around. It’s the same nondescript black van he was packing before, but there’s no hitch with his and Axel’s bikes on it.
“Fuck!” Axel shouts. “Get into the fuckin’ house now!” he barks at us, his feet eating up the distance as he runs in our direction. Shelby and I are fast, but not fast enough. The back door slides open and gunshots are fired.
I watch in devastating horror as one of them connects with Axel. I’m not sure where it hits him, but it’s enough to send his body flat on the dirt.
There’s screaming, such loud screaming. I want it to stop, but I don’t know where the source is coming from. It’s not until a man grabs me by the hair that I realize they’re my screams.
“Get the fuck off of me!” Shelby spits.
She’s fighting, kicking, swinging her arms, and even attempting to bite one of the unfamiliar men.
Yet, I’m frozen.
My body and mind fail me, shutting down as I let myself get taken away. The last image I see before they throw a hood overmy head is Axel leaning on his elbow, aiming his gun at the tires of the vehicle.
They’re rough with me, shoving me into the van, my cheek hitting the seat before I’m manhandled to sit upright. There are no seatbelts, just two men bracketing me on each side. The van smells stale and unfamiliar, and I swallow thickly as the realization of what’s happening to me sets in.
The slam of the van door is jarring. Shelby’s muffled struggling is the only thing I can hear. The men are grunting in frustration, and all I wish is that I had some of the fire she did.
Why can’t I fight? Why can’t I say anything? What the fuck is wrong with me?
The loud pop of gunfire is clear, but the van doesn’t stop moving. My body sways between two large bodies that hold my upper arms firmly.
“They’re gonna fucking kill you,” Shelby seethes.
She’s so fucking brave while I’m hopeless. There are no sounds of motorcycles or vehicles following us and every second that passes feels like an eternity. Doom sits heavy in my stomach as I wonder what exactly is going to happen to us.
“Not before I’m done with you,” one man growls at Shelby, making me swallow thickly with panic.
It’s pathetic,I’mpathetic. I didn’t even fight, didn’t even say a word. I just let myself get fucking taken, and now I might never see Axel, Cash… or Tate ever again.
