Bitter Kind of Love: Prairie Devils MC Romance (Outlaw Love) (26 page)

I held my hand up and shielded my eyes. Blaze caught up and ran into me.

“Oh, Christ. Shit!” Brushing glass shards off my arm, I cracked my eyes open. My fucking heart almost stopped when I saw what was on the ground underneath the escaping Slinger.

Fuck!
Moose was on the floor, his cut a total mess over his gut, head lolled back at a sick angle. Blood pooled all over his beard and ran into his hair, red death spilling outta his right eye socket, the same place that psycho fucking jackal jammed a knife into his head.

Blaze gagged and I hit the floor, shoving my hands through sticky blood, feeling for his pulse. Before I could get a good read, our brother groaned. It was the kinda weak, sickly tremor I'd heard a hundred times from men dying.

Fuck, fuck fuck...

“Hold on, brother. Just hold the fuck on. Prez's gonna get help.” I was babbling like a fucking idiot, knowing the odds of living more than a few minutes with a freak injury like this were pretty damned close to zero.

Blaze was back in the main room, screaming at the rest of the brothers. More guys ran to the spot where I was holding the man who'd helped shape my ass into Stinger, trying not to move him too much. But fuck, there was so much blood, still flowing right outta his poor brain.

“Fucking shit, boss. This is way beyond Em's skills...” Tank said to Blaze, sucking on a sharp breath.

“I don't give a shit! Get on the goddamned horn and call her. Get her to bring in the old bird from the hospital who helped our asses out when we were poisoned.” Blaze's fists were trembling at his sides, and then he looked toward us again. “Shit, can't you see he's turning white as a sheet? He's gonna fucking die!”

My heart sunk like granite. The Prez wasn't bullshitting. Moose wasn't groaning anymore, and his skin was going paler by the second, his life draining away with his blood.

The cabin went deadly silent. I forgot all about the shitheads outside we still had to put down and the dying brother in my hands. I just wanted to find Alice and hold her close. When I did, I was never gonna let her sweet ass go, never gonna let her end up like this.

“Come on, VP. We gotta get him to the van. Let us in there...” Smokey put his hand on my shoulder. I looked up to see him, Stone, and Roller standing there, wondering how much time had gone by.

I nodded. “Just be fucking careful. He's not gonna survive the trip home if you jostle him around too much.”

Take care, brother,
I prayed silently, watching as the boys struggled to lift his heavy body.
You gotta fucking pull through. You just gotta.

Your family's waiting for you to come home. Connie, Becky, all your brothers...

Stepping aside, I got up, and started to wipe Moose's drying blood on my jeans. Gave up pretty damned fast, seeing as how it was all over my clothes, my skin, grisly reminders that the club had paid a price today for winning a battle. And the war wasn't fucking finished yet.

Blaze clapped me on the shoulder and pulled me aside when I got out. “Come on. Reb's untied my old lady. Yours too.”

My eyes went wide. Blaze caught himself and cleared his throat. “Alice, I mean. Come on. Move your ass.”

The Prez and I went into the backroom, stepping over the piece of shit Tank shot in the head. Saffron nearly smacked right into me in her mad rush to get to Blaze. Next thing I knew, I was surrounded by their grabbing, cooing, lip smacking reunion noise.

Then I saw her.

My girl was in the corner, crouched low, looking out the shitty fogged up window. She didn't turn when my footsteps approached. Took me sliding my fingers through her hair to get her attention. It was like the girl was in some kinda trance.

Shit!
The bruise on her pale cheek hit me right between the eyes. My jaw clenched so hard I nearly shattered the fucking thing, then ripped her up, pulling her into my arms.

Didn't take much to wake her up. Alice was already throwing herself into my arms. Her little fingers danced across my back, tensing on my muscles harder than ever, really clinging to me.

“Jesus, baby. Who the fuck did this? Huh?” I ran a finger over the tender place, and then followed up with my lips.

She didn't wince. Girl had a different kinda fire in her eyes, hotter and wilder than I'd seen it before, like she'd been cleansed of all the fucked up things clouding up her beautiful irises.

“It doesn't matter. I fought them, Sting. Kicked, bit, and scratched when they drove us in here. I had to after what they did to Saffron.” She swallowed. “My only regret is playing pretend when that bastard held a gun to her head...I wouldn't have said shit if it was just me. I wouldn't have put you guys in danger.”

Blaze growled, overhearing us. I turned my head, just in time to see him pull Saffron to the wall, asking if that was true. His hand stretched her collar down. When he saw the messy cut around her neck, he started to shake. I ground my teeth to nubs.

Right then, we were more than just brothers wearing the same patch. We were hell bound to take out every last fucking demon who'd done this. There couldn't be any loose ends.

Christ, it was a small miracle they hadn't hurt them as bad as Moose...

It took all my energy not to tremble. Alice looked deep into my eyes. The crazy determination there was almost spooky. She was amazing before, but the woman looking at me now was like something that had hatched outta its cocoon, reborn in pure brimstone.

“Baby...”

“They were gonna set you up,” she whispered. “I wanted to stop them so bad. If it wasn't for the gun...God, I hate being helpless!”

“I know. Don't you worry about that shit. It's almost done. Most of the fuckers responsible are dead. Just wish I could kill some of those motherfuckers several times over...”

Alice curled her fingers down my back in long strokes, sending tingles straight up my spine, soothing the neon red need to kill. Damned good timing too, because the beast inside me was screaming for blood. My anger shot higher when I realized it was just a matter of time before I had to step away from her again to finish the two fucks who'd escaped.

“Jesus! You're bleeding!” She finally noticed all the blood on me, stumbling back.

“It's not mine. They got Moose. The boys are hauling him home for treatment as fast as they can. Same little wily shit I shot at the first night in your old apartment did the deed. Fuck, do I regret missing his ass the first time around. Hate it even more he crawled away
again.
”

“You mean, there's still a few out there?” Her eyes narrowed, and then she leaned up, making me feel those crazy fucking tingles all over again as hot whispers passed into my ear. “Stop standing around with me. You have to kill them. Every last one.”

I grabbed her by the arms and held her close. Alice looked at me with ice and fire mingling in her expression, everything sharp and harsh and nasty.

In one tug, I jerked her into my embrace one more time, crushing my lips to hers. Christ, I loved this girl, just as much as I hated crawling across these knives to chisel our love just right. But finally – fucking
finally –
she fit perfect, part of my world forever, the last goddamned piece that ever mattered.

I kissed her. Hard.

Kissed her 'til she rocked on her heels and then pushed my chest for support, meeting me with an equal ferocity.

If it wasn't for all the bullshit that had just gone down, my cock would've been unstoppable. Even now, the urge to throw her down on the floor, tear off her clothes, and fuck her right on this battlefield was lighting up my blood.

I broke the kiss with a shudder. She drew herself away slowly, giving my bicep one last squeeze.

“I'll be here when the job's done, Lucas. Do it. Do it for me. They need to pay for my Dad too.”

The look she gave me – holy fucking shit. I'd never seen her so cold, so determined, and the same killer bitch gaze told me it was time. I nodded, turning to Reb.

“Make sure the brothers keep her and Saffron safe while we're gone. Don't leave this place 'til you get the word from me or Blaze.”

“You got it, Veep,” he said, digging in his pocket for a light to spark the fresh cig hanging outta his mouth.

I had to practically drag Blaze away from Saffron. But each time his eyes saw the cut around her throat, I wasn't sure who's eyes were crazier, more obsessed with murder.

We were about to go when I turned around and took one last look at Alice. Fuck, she was beautiful. Even with her hair all tangled and the blemish some bastard left on her perfect skin, she was perfect, the only woman I'd ever want 'til I drew my last fucking breath.

I couldn't move another step. Not without doing something first.

“Hang on, Prez. I need you to see this. You and Saffron both.” Blaze eyed me warily as I took his old lady's hand. She seemed to welcome the distraction, anything to push the shit they'd done to her behind them. “I need a couple witnesses.”

Reb nodded, chewing his tobacco. He knew what was coming. Had a feeling everybody in the room did except Alice, who just stood there as I pressed her into my arms again, wondering what the hell came over me.

“Baby, I can't go out there without doing what I should've done a months ago. We've had a lotta fucked up shit behind us, and we both know there's more ahead. Doesn't matter to me. Not a single damn. I'm not gonna let any crap get in the way of what I've been meaning to do for a second longer.”

She drew a breath. I waited 'til her eyes were bright, totally focused on me, starting to understand.

“You're mine, baby,” I growled. “Knew it from the second I saw you. Took me all these months to get my head screwed on straight, but now it's tighter than ever, hard as the way I wanna throw you to the floor and let everybody know who you belong to.”

“Sting...it's been so long.”

“Too fucking long.” I looked up, staring at Blaze. “We got business to do, so I'm gonna make this quick, long as it's heard loud and clear. You're not walking outta here shaken and cold after dealing with those fucking animals. You're leaving this shitty cabin my old lady, Alice, and the whole fucking world's gonna figure it out fast.”

Blaze gave a firm nod of approval. Saffron smiled, wiping her eyes, overwhelmed with something happy after we'd all stared down the reaper. I grabbed both Alice's hands and moved my lips across them, then pushed between them as they wound around my neck.

If the kisses I gave her a minute ago were fierce, then these were pure fucking lightning. I swung her low to the ground, grabbing her ass, kissing her like an old man should when he tastes the best thing worth living for.

I kissed away the hurt, the misunderstandings, the untamed demons ahead. I kissed her 'til she gasped and scratched at my neck, right in front of Blaze's ferocious eyes and Reb's chuckle, kissed her 'til my lips were numb as the ice covering the ground outside.

“Jesus, Stinger,” she whimpered, tottering backward when I finally let her go. It took her a few tense seconds to regain her balance, and then we locked eyes. “Finish it. Go wrap this shit up so I can treat you like an old lady should.”

“You heard the girl,” Blaze growled, throwing one hand on my shoulder, giving it friendlier squeeze than I expected. “First thing you'll learn about an old lady is it's hell disappointing her. Let's move the fuck out so that doesn't happen.”

We turned and started to walk, dead set on doing exactly what Alice said.

The Prez didn't say another word as he followed me outside into the snow. Tank was already crawling on the ground, tracing the blood they'd left.

“Fuck. Looks like the trail ends about here.” We followed him to the point where he stomped his boot in the snow, around the side of the building, not far from several bikes the dead Slingers left parked against the wall.

Both assholes were wounded, but they'd somehow made their escape, taking a dirt path going down the mountain. Dead brush and packed snow said the route they'd chosen was the most fucked up place for two wounded dudes ever.

I started to walk without asking. Blaze cupped his hands around his mouth when I'd gotten several feet and yelled after me. “Hey! Where the fuck do you think you're going?”

“Going on foot's a lot safer than tracking 'em on our bikes. Those bastards couldn't have gotten far...”

For a minute, I wondered if either brother was coming. Honestly, I was past giving a shit. Hurling a bullet through both Slingers' skulls when I found their frozen asses would be even more satisfying alone.

Then I heard the crunch of boots quickly plowing through the snow. Blaze and Tank were right behind me.

My heart was dive bombing in my chest when we finally caught up to our targets. I was starting to wonder if those fucks had actually made it to the highway, but then I saw the smoke, heard a roar, and smelled the unmistakable stink of a straining engine.

Not a Harley after all. The fucks had taken a truck, and plowed right through several small glaciers in the process, snapping ice and rocks and branches, tossing their debris everywhere.

“You wanna take this shit from here?” Tank asked, drawing his gun.

“Fuck no. We hit 'em both earlier. They've gotta be wounded by now, disoriented. It's time to put their sick fucking faces outta commission.” My fingers tightened on my Magnum.

I had just enough bullets left for these assholes. And that was if we didn't slam them into the snow first, finishing things up slowly and painfully.

We all saw them at the same time.

Their bastard President growled orders at the junkie psychopath next to him, both trying to free the truck's rear tire from where it had gotten stuck. We stepped up, steady and determined, ready to lay into them long before they saw us.

Not how I wanted it to go down. I wanted these assholes to turn around and see how fucked they were, drop to their bloody knees and beg for their lives, then tell us if cutting their throats would put an end to their entire fucked up MC before we went ahead and did it.

Too bad all this shit was destined to wrap up a lot quicker.

The way Blaze was aiming, he wanted it over now. Couldn't say I blamed him.