Desolate Souls (Forgotten Souls MC, #1) (2 page)

Living on the streets will tear you down. Trying to stay warm, finding food, and remaining safe have been my main priorities. I have been lucky, but I’ve had a few close calls.

I hear voices nearby, causing me to knife upright. One thing I've learned is to stay out of sight as much as possible. An eighteen year old girl on the streets becomes prey to the monsters that lurk in the darkness. I am all too familiar with evil and have no intention of acquainting myself with it once again.

Phil Martin could be the poster child for evil. Sadistic, cruel, and uncaring doesn’t fully define the monster he was. The things he did to me I will never forget. He ruined my life, taking everything from me including my pride and dignity.

You did it for Jax
, I remind myself. I would go through every bit of torture all over again if it meant he remained safe. After that first night, Phil kept his word and never laid a hand on him again. I wasn’t proud of what I had done, but my priority had been protecting the boy that meant more to me than anything. And then he left me, abandoning me with that monster. No phone call, no note - nothing.

Then it all ended. Two men broke into the house one night and brutally killed both Janet and Phil, slitting their throats. By some miracle they spared my life, not harming a single hair on my head. The night is still a blur, only bits and pieces are clear. I remember wanting to run, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. Instead, I called the cops out of fear. When the police arrived, I became their primary suspect. At the age of sixteen, I was arrested and charged with murder.

“If you change your mind, you know where to find me,” a man calls out, bringing me back to the present. I watch as one man continues walking in my direction while the other heads for the opposite side of the park. I pull my knees up to my chin, trying to stay camouflaged against the tree as the man approaches, silently praying he doesn't see me.

He is just about to pass by the tree when he stops. Turning, he looks directly at me. “Hey,” he says quietly.

I pull my legs up tighter, hoping he will just go away. Instead, he walks closer to me, stopping inches from me and crouches down. “What are you doing out here?” he asks.

I lift my eyes to his, feeling nothing but fear at this moment. “Nothing,” I mutter.

“Nothing, huh? You look cold.”

“I’m fine,” I reply, my teeth chattering.

He nods, looking around. “You don't look fine. How old are you?”

“None of your business!” I snap.

“OK, I’ll give you that.” He sits down beside me, and while looking straight ahead, he begins to talk to no one in particular. “I remember being out here on my own too. I had run away from home and thought anything was better than being there with my fuckin’ parents and I was right. It was better to freeze to death than to deal with the things they did to me, but the longer I stayed out here, the harder it got. I was hungry, cold and starting to get sick. Luckily, there was this guy that came along and offered to help me out. I didn't know him so I damn sure didn't trust him and he saw it. He sat down beside me and talked for hours until finally I had heard enough and decided to take a chance. What was the worst that could happen? He took me home that night. Gave me a hot shower, a warm bed, and food, never asking for anything in return.”

“Why are you telling me this?” I ask.

“Because I believe in paying it forward,” he says, turning his head towards me. His eyes meet mine and there isn’t a hint of malice in them. “My name’s Paul by the way. That story was about me when I was sixteen. A man named Jasper took me in.”

“Good for you,” I mutter, turning away from him.

“So that didn't work, huh? Well how about this? I can offer you the same thing he did for me, or I can stay here with you all night and make sure you don’t freeze to death.”

“I don’t need your help,” I tell him, wishing he would just go away.

“Bullshit! You need someone’s help and trust me, I'm a lot better than some of the people you’re gonna meet out here. When’s the last time you ate?”

I sigh, trying to remember. I stole an apple the other day. Was that three or four days ago?

“I’d guess it’s been at least a few days if not longer,” he says, as if reading my mind. “Look, let me at least feed you.”

My stomach rumbles at the mention of food. I am so hungry, but I can’t trust this guy. For all I know, he could be a serial killer.

“Here,” he says, pulling a pistol from the back of his pants. He drops the magazine and shows me the bullets inside before closing it and racking a load. “You hold onto this,” he says, passing the gun to me. “I’ll take you to my place, let you clean up a little and get something to eat. If you want, you can sleep on my couch for the night. If I try anything, you can shoot me. Deal?”

Did he just tell me I can shoot him? “Are you serious?”

“Dead serious. Look, you’re a young, pretty girl sleeping in the park. There are some people out here that would love to get their hands on you. I don’t want that to happen to you, so yes, I’m serious. Let me help you, even if it’s just for tonight.”

His eyes bore into mine, and my gut is telling me I can trust him. Slowly, I nod my head. He smiles at me and then stands, reaching his hand out to me. Reluctantly, I place my hand in his and he lifts me off the ground. He bends over to pick up my bag and tosses it over his shoulder. “You might want to stick that in your pocket for now. Don’t want anybody throwing you in jail for holding me at gunpoint,” he nods at the pistol I have pointed straight at him.

Quickly, I shove the gun into my coat pocket and follow him as he walks me towards his place.

H
awk grins as soon as he sees me walk through the front door of the club, no doubt seeing dollar signs. “You got good news for me?” he asks as I take the vacant seat across from him.

“When do I ever have bad news?” Yeah, I’m a cocky bastard but I have every right to be. If it wasn’t for me, this entire operation would have shut down a long time ago.

“I’m waiting,” he says, leaning back in his chair, a smug look on his face.

Reaching into my jacket pocket, I pull out a wad of cash, slamming it onto the table in front of him. “Fifty G’s. Not bad for a week’s worth of work.” I can’t help but smirk. No way in hell was he expecting this kind of turnaround. “I’ve got a couple leads on potential buyers. Gonna be meeting with them tomorrow and that will be doubled.”

“Is that all?” he asks, raising his brow at me.

“Actually, I’ve got a present for you.” As if on cue, the door opens and Chuck leads the three girls inside.

“Well, well, well...” he says, eying the girls as they approach. “What have we got here?”

“You want me to take them to the room?” Chuck asks, stopping a few feet from the table.

“Except for Nina,” I instruct him, smiling over at the blonde girl. Chuck walks away with the others, leaving Nina standing alone. “Nina, sweetheart, this is Hawk, the man I was telling you about.”

Her face instantly relaxes, no doubt remembering the story I handed her. I have many that I tell the girls, and not once have they let me down. Maybe I should have thought about becoming an actor instead of settling on a career as a human trafficker and drug dealer.

“Paul said you could help me,” she says, looking frightened.

“I sure can, darlin’ and I will. Why don’t you head into my office? Third door on the left. Make yourself comfortable and when Paul and I are done here, we’ll talk,” he says, the smile on his face kind. Damn, he’s good. Not as good as me, but a close second. She nods her head, looking at me one last time with gratitude before she walks down the hallway.

When we hear the door shut, Hawk leans forward in his chair. “You’ve been busy.”

“Always,” I chuckle. I pride myself in bringing in at least five girls a month, and with the addition of these three, I may just break my all-time record this time.

“What can you tell me?”

“Nina, the blonde, she’s a runaway. Thinks mommy and daddy are unfair. Need to get her shipped out as soon as possible.” She would have made one hell of an addition to the club, but not at sixteen and definitely not with her parents actively searching for her.

“Virgin?”

“No,” I say, shaking my head. “Gives one hell of a blowjob for her age and I a natural submissive. Should be able to get a good ten to fifteen grand for her.”

“Liking the sound of that. What about the other two?”

“Cheryl’s the redhead. Junkie by trade. Will do anything for a quick fix. Thinking we could put her on the south side. Got a gaping pussy and ass from selling herself already, so won’t be much of an adjustment.”

He nods his head in agreement.

“Tami I found outside the shelter with her six year old. Desperate for money and a roof over her head. Husband beat the shit out of her and the kid. Think she’d be suited to work in the north. Put her up in an apartment and give her enough supply to get her going. She’s got a natural ability to draw ‘em in so she can dump the shit at higher than retail. Isn’t opposed to putting out either. She’s not a great lay, but pussy is pussy.” Sometimes I luck out, like with Nina. Cheryl and Tami will bring in cash in the long run, but we won’t be seeing an immediate return.

“Sounds good. Put it in motion,” he says as he counts out three grand, passing it to me. “You’ll get your cut off the other two when they start delivering. In the meantime, what about the other girl? You said she’d bring in a few grand a week.”

“Alana’s gonna make this club,” I tell him with confidence. She’s not only gorgeous, with her raven colored hair and bright blue eyes, she’s got a porn star body: tiny waist, big tits and the tightest ass I’ve ever seen.

“That’s what you keep telling me, but so far she’s costing me money, not making me any. Is there a reason I have yet to see this girl?”

I let out a ragged breath, unsure how I should explain this situation. Normally I am not affected by any woman, no matter how fuckin’ hot she is, but Alana is different. She’s damaged in a way I can relate to. She hasn’t told me her entire story yet, but she’s opening up to me, beginning to trust me, but I know enough without her uttering a word.

“Alana’s different than the other girls. She’s gonna take a little more work.”
That’s an understatement
. We’ve been living under the same roof for nearly three months and I have yet to get lucky. In fact, she refuses to sleep in the same bed as me, opting to slumber on the ragged couch in that shitty ass apartment instead. I’ve never spent more than two nights in that place before meeting her, and now I find myself calling the place home.

“You losing your touch?” he asks, raising his brow.

“Fuck you,” I mutter, but deep down I am wondering. I’ve never had to wait to test out the merchandise before, so this is a first for me. The problem is that it doesn’t bother me like I thought it would. Alana’s... different. I don’t know how else to explain it.

“I’ll give you a week to get her in here or we’re dumping her for what we can get. Ain’t no pussy worth this much bullshit.”

A deadline? I’ve never been given a time frame to complete any task, so this is all new to me, but I am confident in my abilities. I’ll just need to up my game a little. “Alright,” I say as I rise from the chair. “I can have her onstage in a week, but the backrooms will have to wait.”

“I won’t wait forever. If she can’t handle it, we’ll find someone who can,” he calls out as I head for the door.

“H
ey,” I mutter as I step inside our tiny apartment, my eyes landing on Paul as he stands at the kitchen counter, his back to me. “What’s wrong?” I ask when he turns, a worried expression on his face.

He says nothing, passing me the slip of paper in his hand. I take it from his grasp, unfolding the sheet and staring down at it - an eviction notice.

“What are we gonna do?” I ask, looking up at him with pleading eyes. This is all my fault. If I hadn’t moved in with him, this wouldn’t be happening. He’s taken on too much and now he’s paying the price.

It’s not like I haven’t been trying. My days are spent pounding the pavement looking for any kind of work, but so far I’ve come up empty handed. No one is hiring, at least they aren’t hiring me, but what did I expect? I’ve never even had a job.