“I need you to lower your panties over your buttocks. Several of the welts and scratches go beneath them and need to be treated. Will you let me finish this?”

  She nodded slightly before lowering her underwear just over her cheeks. No matter how hard he tried to make this impersonal, Sword winced every single time she did. Every single mark on her lovely body pained him like nothing else ever had. He smeared the antibiotic ointment over each break in the skin in a thin layer after cleaning the wounds with peroxide, trying his best to be gentle. Only two required a bandage. She made a small protest but settled with one look from him. The girl was definitely beaten down. The longer they stood there, more she trembled. When one tear overflowed, and she turned her head away immediately, Sword had had enough.

  “Put the sweats on. They’ll be way too big for you, but baggy will be good at this point. You need room to move and not hurt your legs any more than necessary.”

  She blinked up at him in confusion but did as he asked while Sword put away the first aid kit. “If you need to do your business after that long ride, do it. And don’t think about tryin’ to climb out the window either. Trucker is outside, and he sees and hears everything. You might make it outside, but you won’t get far.”

  He hated that he was adding to her distress, but he couldn’t have her running off. Not because she was afraid of them hurting her. Afterward, once he’d freed her completely from Black Reign, he’d give her the choice of a life with him or leaving club life altogether. At least, that was what he told himself.

  Chapter Four

  Magenta stood in the small but surprisingly clean, bathroom in the Bones RV. Sword had undressed her, had touched her body at will… and hadn’t molested her? Had that really just happened? He’d been given the use of her body by Black Reign, and had every right within their community to take what was offered whether she wanted him to or not. Yet he hadn’t. True, he’d forbidden her to leave, but she could understand that. Instead, he’d given her privacy and treated her with respect.

  Offering him the same in hopes they could continue with the truce, she hurried her business, washed up, and exited the bathroom as quickly as she could. She found the men at the table deep in quiet conversation. They stopped talking and looked at her when she closed the door. Instantly, her heart pounded and her mouth went dry. Was this all a preamble to a gangbang? Had she truly been stupid enough to be lulled by Sword’s tender touch?

  “Get that look off your face, girl,” Sword snarled at her, making her put a defensive hand to her throat and step back. “No one is going to hurt you.”

  “You growlin’ at her like that ain’t conducive to her believin’ you, Sword,” Torpedo said with a chuckle. “We’re not the big bad wolves, Magenta.”

  She raised her chin a fraction, needing to face this head-on. If they were like Black Reign, there was every possibility they’d kill her for her insubordination. Not the best of options, but better than being gang-raped by such powerful-looking men. She wouldn’t survive either encounter.

  “Why should I believe you? You brought me with you to use at your leisure. You accepted me as a whore from another club whether I wanted to be here or not. Why should I think anything different?”

  “Girl’s got a point, Sword. What did you expect her to think? I mean, this was all your idea. Torpedo was gonna just leave, but you wanted a girl for the night.”

  “Shut your fuckin’ mouth, Viper.” Sword snapped the command, to which the other man chuckled. “I brought you with me to get you out of that place, Magenta. Not to hurt you. I also ain’t takin’ you back.” He turned back to Viper. “She was the girl we saw that bastard Handlebar beatin’ the shit out of as they dragged her inside the clubhouse. She’s been beat more than once. She’s got welts all over her.”

  Magenta was surprised Sword didn’t describe it all in great detail, if for no other reason than to humiliate her. She was even more surprised when both Viper and Torpedo’s attention snapped squarely to her.

  “Was it all Handlebar or others?” Viper looked deadly. Like his namesake ready to strike.

  “There is no member of Black Reign in charge who doesn’t treat all the women badly. Some like it. Others tolerate it or figure out how to please the men without getting beaten. It’s not always possible, but they try.”

  “They. Not you.” Sword’s gaze never strayed from her face. Much as Magenta wanted to look away, she couldn’t. She’d started this. Apparently, these three men were going to make her finish it.

  “No. Not me. It’s why I’m always getting beaten.”

  “What did Handlebar mean when he said you and he needed to have a lesson in obedience?” Sword asked. “And I assume they have your mother prisoner, too.”

  “Handlebar will beat me again. He’s done so many times for the same reason, and I think he’s getting fed up. Never a good thing. As to my mother, she’s Crow’s ol’ lady. At least, she is until he gets tired of her. I suspect he’s reached that point.”

  “Does she have any influence over Crow regarding you? Are you Crow’s child?”

  “No! Crow isn’t my father, and I couldn’t be happier about it!” She wrapped her arms around her middle. She was giving away too much, letting her mouth run away with her. Deep inside, she knew her willingness to give away information about herself and Black Reign stemmed from her high after the motorcycle ride earlier. And it truly was a high. Even now she was still coming down, feeling shaky and strung out. What’s more, she resented it. Not because of anything Bones had done to her, but because Black Reign had restrained her. “I’m honestly not sure my mother knows or cares what Handlebar does. It doesn’t affect her so why would she bother?”

  “Crow indicated you’d come back to them because he had your mother. Why would he do that if you don’t get along with her? Why would he believe you’d do anything other than cut and run if you got the chance?”

  “I don’t have it in me to leave her. At least, not without giving her the option of going with me. If I do, she’ll tell Crow. Crow will tell Handlebar, and they’ll have me before I ever make it to the door. Unless Crow sets her aside, though, I know Ginger won’t leave. She believes her position with Crow is permanent, but I’m pretty sure Crow is just bleeding her for everything her parents gave her.”

  “Your grandparents are dead, then?”

  “Yeah. She was their only child, and they left her everything, including a substantial insurance policy.”

  “What about you?” This question came from Torpedo. All three men were focused intently on her, but Torpedo was the worst. Sword’s gaze shifted from her to the other two men, but he remained silent. “Did they leave you anything?”

  “No. But I don’t think Crow believes that.”

  “He’ll definitely want her back,” Sword said. “He’ll want to make sure she doesn’t have anything out there he can take.” He glanced at Magenta again. “You think he’ll try to move you into your mother’s place?”

  She shrugged. “Maybe. More likely he’ll just demand I give him anything I have. He may claim me, but it won’t be as an ol’ lady.”

  The men looked at each other for long moments. Finally, Viper sighed. “I’ll talk to Cain. Let him know the situation.” He looked back at Magenta. There was resignation and amusement in his eyes. “Lord knows he’s gonna kick your ass when we get back, Sword. Can’t say it won’t be worth a beatin’, though. Might plead your case for you just to have a shot at beatin’ the shit outta that fuck Handlebar my own damn self.”

  The three of them stood. “I’ll go relieve Trucker,” Viper said. “He’s the only one of us who ain’t had sleep. Well, except for Romeo over there. Maybe Arkham, but he don’t count since he’s balls deep in Black Reign women. We’ll have a long day tomorrow. Get as much sleep as you can.”

  Sword stood and strode back to Magenta. He guided her to his bunk and urged her onto it. She protested slightly, but he merely looked at her until she meekly crawled onto the narrow mattress. It was about as wide as a twin-sized bed, and she was relieved that there was no way he could fit in there with her. Likely he was going to sleep on the top bunk…

  Sword crawled into bed with her, turning her to her side and spooning against her. “This is all that’s happenin’ tonight, Magenta. Just relax and know that I’m watchin’ over you. No one is gonna hurt you. Anyone tries, they answer to me.”

  She was quiet for a while, thinking about her situation. Magenta had so many questions she had no real idea where to start.

  “Say what’s on your mind, girl.” Sword’s rough, gravelly voice was soft in her ear. His breath made her shiver, and chills erupted over her arms and neck.

  She cleared her throat, not sure how to start. “Did you ride me all over the place to disorient me? So I wouldn’t know where I was if I tried to escape?”

  Sword was silent for so long, Magenta thought he wouldn’t answer before he finally sighed, his body relaxing around hers. “No. I did it because you seemed to love it so much. I guess I’m a sucker because once I realized you did, I had to give it to you. I only pulled in here because my eyes felt like someone had thrown sand in them. I hadn’t had any sleep in forever. Otherwise, we’d probably still be out on the goddamned highway until you called it a fuckin’ night.”

  “What?” She whipped her head around to look at him the best she could in the dark. There was truth in his eyes. Magenta had long ago learned to read lies. Unless someone was extremely adept at it, she could tell when she was being played. Sword wasn’t trying to deceive her. In fact, he looked uncomfortable as hell.

  “You heard me,” he groused. “Now, can we fuckin’ get some sleep? I’m fuckin’ tired.”

  For some reason, Magenta had the urge to push him. See how far she could go before he got angry with her. She must be out of her mind. “You asked what was on my mind. I was telling you.”

  “Fine. What else?”

  “What are you going to do with me?”

  “Nothin’ until we take care of Black Reign.”

  “So, after that, then.”

  He gave an exasperated huff. Magenta could hear the weariness in that exhalation of breath even though she was sure he intended for her to only hear his annoyance. She was being a bitch for making him talk to her, but she wanted to know where she stood.

  “I just want to get you to safety. Is that so hard to believe?” When she said nothing, Sword continued. “Now, let me ask you a question. When you said Handlebar would beat you, you implied he might do worse.”

  “So?”

  “What’s the ‘worse’ he’d do?”

  Try as she might, even knowing he was going to ask this exact question, Magenta couldn’t suppress the shudder that went through her body. “Handlebar isn’t exactly known for his gentle handling of women. Especially when he fucks. He’s called Handlebar for a reason.” When he didn’t say anything she continued. “He fucks women over the handlebars of his bike. I once saw him tie a woman’s hands to the front wheel and her ankles to the pipes. He kept her there for days. Used her. It wasn’t so much the sex for him as the violence he got off on. He loved knowing he was hurting that woman. He even rode around the compound with her tied to his bike, him with his dick inside her. Her legs and feet were badly burned. Sometimes I can still hear her screaming.” Magenta had to stop and take a deep breath. Remembering the horror she’d witnessed was its own form of torture.

  “Why did you watch?” Sword’s arms snaked around her tightly, holding her to him in a protective embrace she hadn’t expected to enjoy. For whatever reason, it made her feel safe. Probably because of his confession that he’d ridden half the night because he knew she was enjoying it. No one had ever done something like that for her. Especially at the expense of their own comfort.

  “He always makes us watch. All the women. Well, except for Ginger. Her status as Crow’s ol’ lady keeps her from the worst of it, but she knows what goes on.”

  “She know he’s got something like that planned for you?”

  Magenta didn’t know for sure Handlebar did. But she suspected he was just biding his time. Likely after they brought her back to the clubhouse, he’d make his move. “Probably. She’s self-centered and doesn’t care much about anyone else in the club as long as she gets what she wants, but there isn’t much going on she doesn’t know about. She might not acknowledge it, but she knows. No man they’ve ever given me to has ever been satisfied with me. I fight too much. Even the ones who want their girls to fight say they feel cheated. I guess I just fight harder than some of them. The only thing I have they can’t take from me is my will. They may get what they want in the end, but I’ve never stopped fighting anytime it happens.”

  “It ends now, Magenta.” Sword whispered in her ear. “You don’t wanna go back, you don’t go back. If you want us to give your mother an out, we will, but you’re not goin’ back.”

  “Am I to trade one prison for another? You keeping me against my will, too?”

  “No. I’ll see you safely back to Bones territory. Where you go from there is up to you. Doesn’t mean you have to leave once we’re home, though. You can become part of Bones until you’re ready to make it on your own.”

  “Any pay I earn is mine. I’m not sharing with anybody.” That sounded harsh, but she wasn’t turning her earnings over to a club ever again. “I had my body used and abused more times than I want to think about after my mom got us mixed up with Black Reign. I took the punches, and they took the money. I leave there, it never happens again.”

  “Fine. Anything else?”

  “Wow. No argument over that?”

  “None. Mainly because you will never be whored out or sell yourself ever again. Not as long as you’re with Bones. We ain’t into that. There are plenty of things you can do to earn your keep and money to start a new life. Cain, our president, owns a paramilitary protection unit for hire. We make a decent living and so does the club. I’m sure he can find something for you to do in the office.”

  “You sound confident of that.”

  “There’s always work. Maybe not glamorous work, but work. If you’re willing, that is.”

  She thought about that for a while before responding. “I think that’s fair. Assuming you’re able to get me out of here. Word is Black Reign is out to destroy Bones. They’re coming at you all nice right now, but they know you have their drug shipment and they want it back. You don’t give it to them, they’ll kill every last one of you and your families.”

  “We expected nothing less.”

  “I hope you got a plan because I guarantee you Crow does. He’ll execute it brutally.”

  “None of us ever go anywhere without a plan.” He didn’t elaborate and Magenta didn’t ask further.

  Chapter Five

  A soft, cool breeze fanned over Magenta’s face. A soft heartbeat and the low hum of a fan were the only sounds around her. She was cocooned in warmth but couldn’t figure out where she was. The familiar fear that swamped her upon waking didn’t close around her. There was no feeling someone was watching her, ready to pounce. Of course, once she realized that, her pulse jumped and her mind warned her to be watchful and very afraid. The second her body tensed, the soothing cocoon tightened slightly. A deep, masculine grunt was the only other sound. That steady heartbeat didn’t waver even a moment.

  Sword.

  She was in Sword’s arms. In a ridiculously small bed. Fully clothed in his shirt and sweatpants. At some point, she’d sprawled out on top of him, her hair tangling them together like silk bindings. One of his big hands rubbed soothingly up and down her back in comfort. That hand seemed to span the entire width of her back as he moved it over her skin lazily.

  Magenta remembered him sliding into the bed with her, wrapping her up in his arms as they’d talked. Their conversation spun through her mind like a carousel. Did she believe everything he’d told her? She wanted to. Though she knew better, Magenta decided she’d believe him until he misplaced her trust. Didn’t mean she’d do it blindly, though. Maybe she should lay it all out for him.

  “You’re fine, girl,” he murmured sleepily. “We got an hour before we need to get up.”

  “You know, if you’re trying to make me give up information on Black Reign, I’m more than happy to do it without you making me empty promises. Just promise you won’t make me go back, and I’ll tell you everything I know. That’s the only promise I want or need.”

  He sighed, as if disappointed. “I just want another hour,” he grumbled. “Fine. Magenta, I promise I won’t make you go back. Think I said that earlier. Now, go back to sleep. You can spill it all later.”

  “You’re kind of a grumpy bear when you wake up, aren’t you?”

  Again, he grunted, but tightened his arms around her.

  “What are you going to do? You left a man in the clubhouse so you can’t just blaze.”

  With an exasperated grunt, Sword rolled them both, maneuvering so that he lay sprawled on top of her, his arms still wrapped around her. He nuzzled her neck, his lips grazing her skin in a soft caress. “Hush now. I need this last hour.” He didn’t stop moving his mouth over her neck.

  “Stop,” she whispered, even as she lifted her chin and tilted her head to give him better access. What was wrong with her? Was she going to let him take advantage of her? God, her body had suddenly come alive! Shivers coursed through her, and she realized that, for the first time in her life, she was welcoming a man’s touch.

  “Is that what you want?” Sword asked, even as he licked her flesh with one swipe of his flattened tongue. “You didn’t push me away. Instead, if I’m not mistaken, your little nails are diggin’ into my back like you’re trying to hold me to you.” He sounded drowsy. Sexy. Like he was her lover waking her for morning sex.

  “I -- I don’t know…”

  “It’s OK,” he said between nips and scrapes of his teeth. “I’m not gonna take too big a bite out of you. At least not here or now.” He let his lips wander from her neck to her collarbone and back, never venturing into forbidden territory but arousing her like she’d never been before. “When we go to confront Black Reign, you’re staying here with Trucker.”

 

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