The woman shakes like we’re in the middle of an earthquake, her guilt makes her burst into tears.
“Now, are you Margaret or are you Mary?” King asks, his voice way too soft for the level of aggression in the room.
“Ma…Ma…Mary.” She stays in her seat.
“Ma…Ma…Mary, huh?” King taunts cruelly before flicking his hand to the seat in front of him. “Do you need a hand?”
She shakes her head but still doesn’t seem to have the ability to stand. Steel doesn’t wait for her to even try, closing the distance with frightening speed.
Joker follows behind Steel and the two of them literally pluck her off her seat, bringing her to the one in front of King. The President of The Fallen stays in front of her looking down at her, like he really does come from a line of royal nobility. He rubs his chin staring down at her before he looks at Joker, being a complete asshole. “Can’t say I remember her at fucking all. You?”
“Give me a second.” Joker’s tone is clipped, his mood frigid as he pulls her head back, shoving his fingers in her mouth. “Pretty sure I used this mouth a few times.”
And it is humiliating the way these two are feeding off each other but there is no way I’m jumping in to save this woman; she brought this on herself.
Joker continues jamming his fingers in her mouth and the only noise in the room is her gagging around them. He does it longer than necessary. This is a punishment but it is also a reminder. Once Joker is satisfied she’s regretting all her life choices he removes his fingers, wiping them dry on her face. “Ah, now I remember. Ma…Ma…Mary also goes by Ree Ree. Weirdest thing ever, I kicked her fucking out of our club because she had her hand in the till, stealing your money.”
King nods his head slowly, and then Steel stands next to him and kicks her legs wide to look up her skirt. He shudders before holding his hand to his mouth pretending to dry heave. “Sorry, King, but that is as offensive as it was the first time I saw this mutt flashing her gash at me from the back of the Death Riders’ President’s bike.”
This time it’s not just the women who make their shock known. There’s a rumbling of nervous energy as Steel outs himself as associated with the Death Riders. But King ignores them all, clapping him on the back. This time Steel comes over to me and puts his back to the room, dropping a hand on my leg before stealing my drink.
Yeah, there’s a dozen or so important things being shared in The Fallen clubhouse tonight; King’s got a queen, there’s new faces and those new faces are mine.
Steel rests his back on the bar and reaches out for my hand. Thankfully, because it’s about to get messy.
“Anything you want to say?” King asks her slowly. “Anyone you want to out? Anything before I send you on your way?”
Mary/Ree Ree shakes her head, but King scoops down low to look at her eyes, being as condescending as hell as he assesses her.
“See, I got it on good authority that there were two Club Sluts involved. Two skanks being shady as fuck behind my back,putting lives in danger, taking things that don’t belong to them. Hands out, Ma…Ma… Mary”
When she refuses to hold her hands out, King looks at me and I give him a small nod. He mouths off ‘I love you’ as he levels the gun he had tucked in his jeans and fires it without taking his eyes off me.
A couple of the women scream, a few start crying and Maverick starts clapping. Both King and I, along with half the crowd in the room look back at him.
“What? Dirty slut wronged my girl. Oh shit, you don’t think I’m clapping for her, do ya? Fuck that, I’m supporting your queen is all.” He stops and looks down at Mary, whose blood is now puddling under the seat she’s in, before he too comes to stand with Steel and me at the bar.
Much like Steel intentionally ratting himself out as an ex-Death Rider, Maverick is too, looking hot and seriously bloody lethal in a pair of training pants and a t-shirt that declares him winner of an MMA fight night not that long ago.
King shakes his head at Maverick, but he’s not pissed except then his mask slips back on again. For the last time hopefully for a while. He kicks Mary’s arms out before prodding her hands with his feet, looking for his ring.
“All right, boys if you don’t mind,” he flicks his head and two of the guys from dinner come over and drag Mary by the feet and out the door.
Yes, it is gratuitous and unnecessary demoralising, but I don’t think it is unwarranted. Once the two of them make a big song and dance dragging Mary’s body out of sight, King turns and faces the women still sitting.
“Momma Cass, anything?”
A woman jumps instantly to her feet. She’s fit but the heavy make-up isn’t thick enough to hide her age. “Only thing I know, King, is that Marnie’s always had it bad for you.”
Joker mutters under his breath, his eyes up at the ceiling before he shakes his head. “Fuckin’ serious? That sloppy bitch? Where is she, Cass?”
“Not sure. Apparently Joker approved a transfer for her to come stay with the Northern boys for a bit. She was due to arrive but never showed. The boys down there haven’t told me they’ve seen her either but…”
“We’re looking for Margaret,” King says, his back to being quiet in his anger. “Guess it ain’t a stretch if she’s a lying cunt. Boys, let all our associates know we’re on the lookout for our old barmaid. Send photos since she clearly uses a few names. I want her brought to me. And I want to know her connection to Ma…Ma…Mary.” King’s pissed off. “Right, anyone else got fucking anything to say, cause now is the fucking time.”
None of the women make a noise, they barely move at all. He takes his time to look at each one of them, before he looks further into the crowd. “What about your pricks? Anyone got news I need to know about?” He’s greeted by stony silence. “Anyone need a run down on the rules ofmyfucking club again?” he bellows. His voice is packing a punch, but it’s made that much worse because he drops the shields around his Alpha and the aggression that explodes out has men stumbling and women whimpering.
I hop off my seat, filling a shot for my Alpha before sashaying my way to him in skyscraper heels that make my hips flow from side to side. I can feel the press of his designation like a thick heavy presence cautioning the world, but it glides over my skin in a soft caress. “Hey, baby.” I bury my hand in his pocket to help stop the shakes before I take the shot for him, pulling him down for him to take it from my mouth. The difference in our size doesn’t matter when he picks me up and I wrap my legs around him, so I’m taller than he is.
