Authors: Michelle Woods
Mia climbed out of the shower waving her hand over the mirror to make the sensors clear the fogged surface. Seconds later she was staring at her reflection. She glared at the mark that even after a week was still visible on her pale skin. It was almost gone, only a slight bruise now. Not the glaring red love bite it had been when he’d placed it there. She still couldn’t believe that she’d allowed him to mark her in such a manner. Only the passion he’d unleashed inside her with that one simple kiss made her almost blush.
She’d always known when she’d been with her boyfriends in the past that there was more that was just out of her reach. It wasn’t that she hadn’t enjoyed sex with them. It was that having sex with them didn’t seem to light her on fire. Unlike merely a simple kiss from Ratchet. It must be that raw sexual appeal the man had in spades. When he’d touched her, she’d lost her head. It hadn’t taken even a minute to be mindlessly allowing him to own her.
She wanted to say that it was only sexual frustration because it had been almost ten months since she’d had sex, but she knew better. It wasn’t that because she’d gone longer. She had only had three relationships where she’d felt comfortable enough with the man to have sex with him. She knew that had Ratchet stripped her naked yesterday in her office and banged her against the wall she would have allowed it, and that frightened her.
Not only because it was against her beliefs, but because she didn’t want to believe that she was acting like a damned sex starved hooker. She’d always known the men she’d bedded for months before allowing them to take her to bed. Now, she’d wanted to allow a man to screw her brains out against a freaking wall. She sighed. What was done was done, she’d have to try to not allow it to happen again. She began getting ready to go to the bar where she met Tray the rebel’s leader.
When she entered the bar twenty-five minutes later she was still contemplating the dilemma of wanting a biker named Ratchet. She saw Tray a thin, pretty man sitting in the corner booth in the back. Seeing her Tray waved her over. She sat down at the table ordering a beer.
“I’m so glad you’re here. We were just discussing the ten crates you’d gotten us this month. It’s a start, but we need more.” He didn’t bother with pleasantries. It was one of the things she’d liked about him at first but over the last month with his demands that she get more crates it had gotten annoying.
“I told you I have to be careful so I don’t get caught, Tray.” Mia said, gritting her teeth to keep her voice from rising.
Tray straightened his shoulders, staring at her over his beer. His two friends, large bruisers that always seemed to be around whenever Tray was. She didn’t like them much. One had a crooked nose with beady eyes and always smelled like Juice. She recognized the smell from spending so much time with her brother the Juice addict. The other one had shifty eyes and a bad attitude. He had long greasy black hair and scars of some sort on his face. Tray in comparison was almost too pretty. His soft brown eyes and his almost feminine face lent to this illusion.
“I thought you wanted to help us, Mia?” Tray demanded making Mia want to scream. She did want to help, only she wanted to survive helping them too. That may make her selfish, but hell who wanted to die at twenty-four.
“I do, Tray. You know that or I wouldn’t be here. I also have to be careful. This could end badly for me, and then you wouldn’t be getting anymore. Is that what you want?” She demanded grimly.
“No, no. Don’t be silly of course you have to be careful.” Tray said jovially. Except she didn’t believe that anymore. She was beginning to think that maybe working with Tray, and his rebels wasn’t her brightest idea. Maybe she should have done this but worked with Marcus instead. At least she knew she could trust him. She wasn’t so sure about Tray anymore. Not that Marcus was willing to do this, but it would have worked out better she had a feeling.
“Only people they're hungry. The food is helping, but with more we could help so many more. That’s all I meant. I get a little impatient because I want to help them all. You understand.” Tray plastered a smile on his face. One that she was realizing was faked.
This might have been a mistake, but she was in it now and she did want to help. No, she needed to help. People were starving, and that was not something she could stomach as she sat in her ivory tower looking down on them. Nope, she needed to continue working with them for now until she worked out another option. She talked to him for another thirty minutes. She didn’t tell him that she might be able to get more if only this Bone guy agreed.
Ratchet climbed on his bike watching Tick wearily. Tick was on the edge, and he was not happy with the fact that he had to do this tonight, but Charity had asked him to help. Mark was lucky that he wasn’t dead. If they hadn’t gotten Charity out of that cellar alive there wouldn’t have been a single one of them who could save the man from Tick’s wrath. The man had already lost one woman to a tragic accident. He’d loved her, but Ratchet knew that Vivi, although she’d been amazing, hadn’t meant as much to Tick as Charity did.
They needed to find Mark’s sister and then get Tick back to Charity before he blew a gasket. It wasn’t going to be a fun night. Ratchet thought grimly as he followed Tick into the darkness where they met up with Bone and the rest of the club roaring into the night.
It took them about two hours to find the hole in the wall in Pepsky a town about three miles away from Devils Falls. He waited with Pretty Boy; Tank and Duck as Tick and Bone scouted the area. Tiny, Rock, Dog and Log were waiting on the other side of the place. While Slim, Trick, and Mark were at the back to be sure that the son of bitches didn’t try to run.
None of them were in the mood to play with these assholes tonight. Tank leaned over to ask.
“Think your boy’s gonna be okay?”
“Yeah, he’s good. She was alive, and that’s why he’s good.” Ratchet told the other man.
Tank nodded. “Yeah, I can understand that.”
“He also needs to be kept away from Mark though. Cause if he gets the chance, no matter why the man did it he will kill him.” Ratchet told him.
“I get that too. If it were my Annie. Fuck, I’m not sure anything could have stopped me from killing him.” Tank said.
Ratchet nodded.
“Shut up, idiot. We need to be ready to go when Bone signals.” Duck grumbled, smacking Tank in the back of the head.
“Stop it old man, or I will tell my old lady.” Tank growled, glaring at the older man.
“Pussy,” Duck hissed back. “Always hiding behind a woman.”
It was funny. Those two were almost always fighting. Except Annie had been trying to keep the peace between the two men. It worked for the most part, but Duck always found a way to do it when she wasn’t around. Tank never told on the old man, even though he always threatened to. Ratchet let out a soft snort of laughter, earning a glare from Tank. Bone gave the signal and he and Duck moved in. Tank stayed in position with his sniper rifle to watch their backs.
It took them half an hour to wrap up the warehouse. They found the girl huddled in a back room on a dirty mattress. She’d been beaten. Badly. Her face was swollen. She couldn’t even see out of her left eye. Seeing the way she jerked away from even her brother when he approached her made Ratchet want to revive the ten men they’d killed so that he could torture the sons of bitches first. They deserved to die screaming in pain. Their deaths had been too easy.
Tick was even a bit upset that he hadn’t planned to help until Bone had forced his hand. The man was damned glad he’d helped. If he’d refused and it had taken longer to find her, he’d have felt awful. Tick told Ratchet as they walked into Doc’s an hour later. They found Bone pacing in the room. Tank, Dog, and Pretty Boy were sitting in the chairs nearby watching. Marc was inside with his sister, and Doc. Rock was still at the warehouse where they’d held her with Log and Slim. They were cleaning out the weapons and Juice they’d found.
Trick and Duck were leaning against the wall. Tiny had gone over to get Racheal. Doc thought that a woman who had been through something similar might help.
“Has she spoken yet?” Ratchet asked Bone.
“Fuck…no. Why didn’t that idiot tell us?” He growled. “Fuck.”
Ratchet was a bit surprised. Bone didn’t use that cuss word much anymore unless he was really pissed off. Molly hated it, and nearly everything Bone did was to make Molly happy. He must be livid. Not that he could blame the man. The Jackal’s and the Headhunters had been a pain in the ass in the last few months.
They were all feeling the strain of their stupid little games. If the fuckers would only come at them straight instead of planting bombs and attacking cities that they held it would make them all happier. Those shitheads were fucking cowards though and that was why they pulled shit like this. Mark had been a dumb fuck for not coming to Bone when his sister was first kidnapped. All the man could say when they were getting his sister bundled into one of the Headhunters cars was that he’d been told they wouldn’t hurt her.
He just kept repeating that like it was a lifeline. The man was likely beating himself up because he’d thought his sister was safe only to find out she’d been beaten, and likely raped. She’d been so dirty and small. Huddled in the corner flinching at any noise when they entered. It had broken Ratchets heart when he’d walked into that room. Fuck. He’d been the first one to find her. He’d entered the room and gone straight to her, but when he’d knelt down beside her to tell her everything was going to be okay she’d huddle further into that corner, trembling.
He’d heard Pretty Boy enter behind him, and the explicit 'Fuck' that had come out of the man’s mouth had been an understatement. Pretty Boy had knelt beside her, his voice becoming softer than Ratchet had ever heard from the man. Then he’d looked up at Ratchet, and he couldn’t remember ever seeing the man so angry. He was usually very hard to anger; he was a pretty easy going guy. Only this had made him livid.
He’d muttered. “Get her brother,” through gritted teeth. Ratchet had moved out of the room to find Mark.
“This is so fucked up.” Pretty Boy thundered angrily, his fist slamming into the wall next to him.
“That about sums it up.” Dog who sat next to him grumbled.
“Why do these stupid fucks keep attacking innocent people? Why the fuck can’t they man up and attack us head on?” Pretty Boy demanded.
It surprised him that Ratchet that he was still so upset. They’d been dealing with shit like this for the past three years. Maybe this was the straw that broke his back, so to speak. He thought watching Pretty Boy jump up and pace with Bone.
“I don’t fucking know, but this shit has got to stop. We’re discussing taking this to the next level in church this week. I’ve had enough of this fucking bullshit. I am not going to have that be one of our women. Not ever again.” Bone’s cold voice broke across the room with a chill.
Ratchet couldn’t blame the man. He was right enough was enough. Looked like they were going to war. Fuck. This was going to fuck with his plans though. He wouldn’t be able to go to the city as much. They’d leave that to the prospects they trusted while the club handled the harder stuff. Fuck, he thought. Plopping down in a chair to wait on word about the girl's condition from Doc with the others.
Mia stood at her desk trying to figure out how seven crates of goods just this week were missing from the warehouse. She didn’t understand. She’d designated two crate to the rebels, but somehow seven were missing. How had this happened? She wondered desperately. Only she knew. Oh boy, did she know. She’d given Tray the key this time because she wasn’t able to get the crates out because Hilconn was on duty this week, and he had it out for her.
Ever since Ratchet had given her that stupid discount on the damned crates he and his club had brought, the man had been nothing but trouble. Fuck. What was she going to do? Hilconn was going to notice seven crates of missing food. Why had she agreed to do this again? What the fuck had she been thinking? She should have just made those idiots wait until she could work a deal with the suppliers. Then she wouldn’t be in this predicament. Shit, how was she going to get out of this mess?
If she could only talk to Ratchet, maybe he could help. She could pay him for some extra crates of supplies then put them in the warehouse. Maybe in a room normally not for food storage and “find” them. Shit, that wouldn’t work. She knew it wouldn’t. They weren’t due for two days and there was no way for her to get a message to him. She’d have to go see Tray. Tell him to give back the extra crates he’d taken last night. That could work. Yeah, that’s what she’d do. She sent him a coded message to meet her tonight.
She waited for over an hour until he finally sent her a message back agreeing to meet. Fuck, this was a nightmare.
“Hilmia, I just wanted you to know I had to report those missing crates. It wasn’t my choice of course, but procedure. You know how it is.” Hilconn sing-songed, a look of satisfaction on his face. Yes, and he hadn’t enjoyed that report at all she’d bet, she thought grimly. Asshole.
“I understand, Hilconn. It was necessary. I intended to report it myself today.” Mia told him even though she hadn’t been about to report it at all. She would get those crates back from Tray, and put them back. Then she’d be okay, and this time she’d do it right. She’d work on getting a deal from the three suppliers. That was her only way to help the rebels now.
“Of course, my dear, of course. Just didn’t want you in trouble for not reporting it. I know that it’s a lot of responsibility this job. You should really allow me to help you.” The little shit was telling her with a smug expression. She really hated him. The man was after her job, and today she was tempted to just let him have the damned thing.
It was nine thirty, and Tray still hadn’t shown at their meet. She sent him a message about ten minutes ago, after waiting for an hour for him to show. Where the hell was that little shit? The Slum bell was about to ring in twenty minutes and she knew that he wasn’t going to cut it that close. He was always out of the city well before last bell.
She took a deep drink of the whiskey she’d ordered ten minutes ago when she realized that he wasn’t coming. That he’d likely already given the supplies out to people in the Slums. She was so screwed. Her only hope was that he’d not given it all out yet. She heard her phone beep and check the incoming message which automatically decoded as it popped across her screen.
Got tied up. Will meet tomorrow night, same time. Sorry. T
Shit, that was just fucking great. She thought grimly. Just fucking great.
The next night, after a day of Hilconn’s musings about where those crates could have possibly disappeared to, and her nerves were making her nuts. She was sitting in the little dive she usually met Tray in waiting. If that little shit didn’t show tonight she was going into the slums after him, she thought grimly looking at the door. Finally Tray walked in with his two goons in tow. She wanted to jump up and demand to know what he was going to do to get those crates back.
The only thing stopping her was the fact that she didn’t want to draw attention to herself. She was in enough trouble as it was. Tray sat down with his usual smile.
“So what was so urgent that you needed to speak to me?” Tray asked.
“You know what was so urgent, Tray. You took too many. I told you the ones to take. I know you understand what two crates are. That’s how many I told you there were, you little shit!” Mia growled, managing to keep her voice low despite her anger.
“Well, sorry it just that there a lot of people going hungry. You said you wanted to help. So we took a few extra what’s the big deal?” He asked, not a bit concerned that what he’d done could get her thrown in jail, or worse killed.
“The big deal you little weasel is that I could get thrown in jail for this. If anyone finds out I am helping you they will be coming after me, not you!” She told him wanting to wring the little shits neck. “How much do you still have, Tray?”
“It’s fine your acting crazy. Nobody will know.” Tray tried to calm her down, only it wasn’t helping. Not at all.
“I’m the one whose ass is on the line. HOW MANY, Tray.” She growled.
“None.” Tray’s words almost made her heart stop. None. Had he just said none? She wanted to cry in dismay. How had they given out seven crates of food in a day? She wondered desperately.
What was she going to do now? She wondered. She knew one thing for sure she was done helping this idiot. She should have listened to Marcus. He’d tried to tell her this was a bad idea. Only she had been too stupid to listen and now look where she was at.
“Fine, but I’m done helping you, Tray.” Mia told him as she rose to her feet. “Find yourself another sucker to help you stick it to the council. I’m not helping you anymore.”
“Wait, Mia. Sweetheart, you have to help us. You know nobody else will care.” He said catching her arm in a tight grip as she made to walk away.
“Yes, and you’re the reason they will go hungry. Congratulations, Tray. You fucked up.” Mia jerked her arm free and began walking to the door. When she did movement off to her right caught her attention, and for a second her heart stopped. Then it resumed its steady beat. She thought for a moment that she’d seen Hilconn slipping into the crowd, but of course that was ridiculous. The man would never frequent a place like this, he was too stuck up to lower himself to drink with the commoners. She shook herself, and exited the bar headed home.
The next day she was still trying to figure out a way to explain the missing crates. Standing in the warehouse about to head to her office she heard the sound of heavy foot falls headed in the direction of her office. She didn’t really think anything of it until she heard Hilconn.
“What do you mean she’s not in there? She was in there a minute ago.”
“Sir, the prisoner isn’t here.” Mia froze. Who were they talking about? They couldn’t mean her could they?
“What the hell? Hilmia was in there. She must be in the warehouse.” Mia didn’t wait she ran towards the back door to the warehouse. She peeked outside seeing that there were no guards back here. She darted out into some bushes that ran alone the far side of the warehouse. If she could make it to the market she’d be able to escape in the crowds, she thought.
Moving along inside the bushes she crouched near the building moving until she could see the front of the building. Hearing shouts and seeing men running into the warehouse she felt her heart pounding in her ears. There was no way she’d make it across the yard. Not with that many guards.
That was when she heard the bikes. She waited, maybe she could make it to the market when they were dealing with the delivery she thought desperately.
Ratchet was already in a really shitty mood today. Pulling up to find five guards blocking their way didn’t make him very happy. Bone who’d come expecting to talk to Mia, wasn’t happy either. He walked up talking to the guards. He looked grim when he headed back to talk to him and Tank who was standing with him at the back of the truck.
“Shit, they’re fucking looking for that woman.” Bone growled angrily. “Something about stolen food.”
“What woman?” Ratchet asked, but he already knew. There was only one woman who worked here. Fuck, what had Mia done?
“The one I’m here to talk to, Hilmia I think.”
“Mia.” Ratchet automatically corrected. Bone looked at him.
“What?”
“Her name, it’s Mia. Not Hilmia.” He told him.
“Oh, well that’s who they’re looking for.”
“Fuck,” Ratchet said feeling a bit rabid. They weren’t taking her to jail. He wasn’t going to allow it he thought, dangerously.
“You armed?” He asked Tank.
“What the fuck Ratchet? We can’t start shooting people.” Bone said, glaring at him. Yeah, he didn’t fucking care how much trouble he got in for this. He wasn’t letting them take Mia anywhere. It wasn’t fucking happening.
He headed back to his bike ignoring Bone, who hissed. “Get your fucking ass back here.”
As he neared his bike which he’d parked near the back of the truck he heard the bushes move. He glanced over at them seeing Mia huddled in them. Fuck, well that was convenient, he thought. He knocked the stand on his bike up moving it behind the bushes, hissing.
“Get your tight ass out here, Mia.” She stared then moved to stand making him hiss again. “No, stay low but get over here.”
That was when Tank and Bone came up beside him. “What the fuck is the matter with you Ratchet?” Bone demanded, then he saw Mia who was crouched near the bushes.
“Fine, make it quick. We’ll distract them.” Bone growled, and Ratchet knew he was in for a shit storm later.
He parked his bike then moved over to Mia. Bone and Tank went to the front of the truck and began demanding that they be taken care of right away. They were yelling at the guards and being dicks. Ratchet yanked Mia behind the buildings edge.
“What are you doing?” She demanded.
“Getting you out of here.” Ratchet grabbed her bun and began unraveling it. Then he looked at her skirt, they’d never buy that was something that a Red Devils woman would wear, he thought grimly. Taking his knife out of his boot he began cutting off the skirt to just about mid-thigh. Hearing her gasp.
Mia was a bit shook up when Ratchet demanded that she get out of the bushes, and she’d thought he was going to turn her over to the guards. Only instead he’d told her to stay low, and then that he was going to help her. Even the two men who were yelling at the guards were helping. She didn’t understand why though. As she felt Ratchet’s hands in her hair, she wondered what the hell his plan was.
When he took out a knife and started to cut her skirt off really short she was so shocked that she let out a loud gasp. What the hell was he doing? She wondered. Her lips trembled as he finished cutting and put the knife away in his boot. Then he surveyed her again.
“Fuck, that’s still not enough. What are you wearing under this?” He demanded, tugging on her shirt.
“A bra, why?” She demanded feeling naked with her skirt cut off and lying on the ground nearby.
“Is it lacy, or one of those full cup things?” He demanded, making her question his sanity. He wanted to know what her underwear looked like now while they were looking for her to arrest her. Had he lost his mind?
“It’s not lacy, but why the hell are you asking me that now? We are not having sex right now, you realize that, right?” She demanded.
He glared at her like she was the one asking stupid questions when he was asking about her underwear while trying to rescue her. “Take off your shirt.” He told her.
She just stared at him. What the hell was wrong with him? “No,” She told him angrily.
“Look, we don’t have time for this modesty bullshit. Take the fucking shirt off now, Mia.” Mia didn’t know why, but the commanding tone made her start unbuttoning the shirt.
“Hurry, Beauty.” Then when she slid the shirt off her shoulders her face glowing a cherry red, and her whole body trembling she looked at him.
His eyes devoured her for several heartbeats before he let out a vicious “Fuck. That is not going to work.” Then he was taking off his cut. He shoved her into it buttoning the four buttons, then seemingly satisfied, he grabbed the skirt and her shirt stuffing them into his bikes saddlebags.
Seeing Mia’s bra almost made him explode. Fuck, that wasn’t a bra. The damned thing barely covered her breast, and the idea that anyone see it made him want to rip them limb from limb. Fuck it, he was already in deep shit. Taking off his cut he shoved it on her. Damn, this had never happened. He’d never disrespected his cut this way.
But someone looking at Mia in that bra was enough to make him commit murder. He needed her covered. He put her in it and buttoned it. Even though it was way too big it covered enough of her breasts that he wasn’t ready to kill anyone. Unless their eyes lingered there for too long, then all bets were off. Fuck, he was so damned screwed, he thought climbing on his bike.
“Get on, now.” He told her. He signaled Rock who whistled from the other side of the truck letting Bone and Tank know it was time to go. He could hear the guards moving around the back of the building and cranked his bike. Mia hesitated, looking at him.
“Either get on or they take you to jail. Your call.” Ratchet growled, knowing that even if she didn’t get on he wasn’t leaving her here. Mia moved then climbing on the bike her little hands landing on his shoulders to steady herself. Pulling her hands to his waist he pulled her forward until she wrapped her arms around him.