Twisted Asphalt (Asphalt Outlaw Series Book 1) (20 page)

Amy hadn’t expected his declaration of love. It had taken
her completely off guard. She knew then why their lovemaking had been so needy.
He needed to take that with him tomorrow. This deal was important to the club,
and if anything went wrong, it would affect everyone in different ways.

“I love you, too, Mace. I probably have since I decked your
sexy ass.” Yes, she was going to make light of it. She had to. If anything
happened to him, she wasn’t sure she could make it. He had become important to
her, to her life. That was how she knew she loved him. It was the tiny thrills
she got when she saw him, how she was always thinking of him when she was away
from his side.

She couldn’t see herself with anyone else and didn’t want
to.

It wasn’t something she wanted to think about.

“Want to head back, grab some food and go rumple your sheets
some more before you leave?” Amy’s tongue swept over her bottom lip, trying not
to gasp when his eyes grew hungered watching her speak

“Yeah, but I’m hungry for you.”

“You can have me for dessert then.” She swatted his arm
playfully and climbed out of the spring to grab a towel. She watched him follow
her out, tossing him a towel to dry off with. “I don’t know why, but a burger
sounds good right now.”

He burst out laughing, rich and deep. “You just want some meat
between your buns.”

“Mace!” Amy squeaked in surprise, followed by laughter. “You
are horrible!”

“And?”

Amy shook her head, pulling on her pants. She tugged them
over her hips. “Be nice or no whipped cream bathing suit.”

“Oh damn, okay. I’ll be good.”

Getting dressed was quicker than getting undressed. They
stopped at the desk, turning in the towels and saying their thanks. Once back
to the bike, she leaned against it for a moment.

“You know my dad is going to shit bricks over this, right?”

“Stone already knows.” Mace lifted his brows and shrugged.

Amy’s jaw dropped as she stared at him. “How? When? You told
him?” That took her totally by surprise. No one had ever gone to her father
before. Amazing.

“Why wouldn’t I? I respect you, Amy and I respect him. I
wanted him to know how I felt, I don’t want to hide it.”

“I don’t want you to either.” She pushed off the seat of the
bike, lifted up to brush her lips lightly against his. “This is why I adore
you.”

Suiting up, she climbed onto the bike behind him and relaxed
against his rock solid frame. She hadn’t felt this free in a long time. She
could love someone unconditionally and not be afraid of what her family
thought.

The lulling hum of the road must have put her to sleep, the
quick swerve and skidding of tires roused her out of whatever dreamland she was
in. Eyes quickly adapted to the darkness, seeing they were on the back road
leading to Old Orcutt. Instinct screamed to grab his waist tight in case they
went down, her brain registering once they hit to let go and roll with the
ground, not to stiffen or fight the outcome.

What she saw did not register at first. Not until Mace
nearly laid the bike on its side. He was able to upright it before they tipped
completely over and turn the bike around.

“What the hell?” She screamed in his ear, over the sound of
the throttling engine as he sped back toward whatever it was they almost hit in
the road.

They came to a stop next to something wrapped up in a
blanket. It was large and long enough to be a body.

“Amy, get off.” Mace ordered her and she was all too happy
to follow it.

Hopping off the bike, she stepped aside as he maneuvered the
bike to shine its headlight on the mysterious object in the road. Cutting the
engine, he jumped off the bike and darted over to Amy.

“Look out.”

Amy moved back as he gently pushed her to the side. She
wasn’t sure what it was, but if it was a dead body, she wasn’t so sure she
wanted to see it. She watched him kneel down and lift up the blanket.

“Oh sweet Jesus, Amy go to the bike.”

“Mace?” His tone scared her, chilled her to the bone. She
moved around him, something telling her to look at whatever it was that lay
there.

“Amy! Go to the bike!” Mace rose, trying to hide the object
from her line of sight.

Too late.

Amy heard screaming.

It came from her. She couldn’t stop as it grew difficult to
breathe. She sank to her knees as sobs wracked her body.

“Maggie!”

CHAPTER 26

Amy fought against Mace. He scooped her up and pushed her
back toward the bike, but she was having none of it. That was her best friend
lying there and she needed to be with her.

“Amy! Don’t make me fucking smack sense into you!”

It was too late; she already squirmed away from him and was
running back toward Maggie. She probably needed a good slap to shake her out of
this nightmare. Sinking to her knees, she gently pushed the blanket away from
her friend’s face, while hearing Mace calling for an ambulance in the
background.

Nearly unrecognizable, Maggie’s eyes were swollen shut, lips
torn and bleeding, skin split at her cheek bones, teeth knocked out and her
breathing ragged. The only way she knew who Maggie was, was by the necklace she
wore. It was one Amy bought her when she was sixteen. Maggie never took it off.

Tenderly lifting Maggie’s head, she laid it on her lap, careful
not to hurt her any further. “Who did this to you, Maggie?” Her voice was
choked with tears, unable to keep them from falling into Maggie’s face. “I’m
here, baby.” Amy whispered, perhaps more for herself than anything.

“Don’t take the blanket off of her. She is in shock and that
will keep her warm until they get here.” Mace knelt next to Amy, and reached
out to brush the hair from her face.

Amy looked at Mace, rapidly blinking, pushing the tears from
her eyes. “Who would do this to her? Why would they leave her here? She’s never
hurt anyone.”

“It’s a pretty deserted road, Amy. Whoever did this, didn’t
want her found right away. They left her here to die.” Mace looked at Maggie,
then back to Amy. “She got lucky tonight.”

Amy knew Mace was trying to make her feel better, but
nothing could lift her spirits, not while Maggie lay in a pool of blood. She
heard sirens approaching, red and blue blips of light bouncing off of the
asphalt and surrounding trees.

“Mace, bro?” Saber ran up with his medic kit, his face
registering shock when he saw Amy covered in blood.

“It’s not mine, it’s Maggie’s.” Amy lifted her tear stained
eyes to look at her club brother, shifting her weight slightly so he could see
Maggie lying against her.

“We almost hit her. I’m not sure if she’s been hit or what
the hell happened. We found her this way.”

Saber nodded, setting the kit down as his partner ran up
with the gurney. “Go grab the backboard and spinal collar.” Pulling out gloves,
he yanked them on. “Amy, sweetie, you’re going to have to move. I’ve got to be
able to look Maggie over before I get her on the gurney.”

“No.” Amy frantically shook her head as she felt Mace
wrapping his arms under her arm pits and pulling her away from Maggie. “Mace!
No!”

Mace spun her around and grabbed her by her shoulders and
shook her, almost violently. “Amy, snap the fuck out of it! Get a fucking grip
on yourself!”

Amy drew in a shattered breath, air felt like glass shards
in her lungs. “I can’t lose her, Mace.” She fell into his arms, resting her cheek
against his chest, listening to his heartbeat.

Mace tightened his arms around her, holding her to him. “I
wish I could tell you it’s going to be all right, but I can’t.”

“Sweet Jesus. Branson, grab a bag of saline, start an IV
drip.”

Amy pushed away from Mace when she heard Saber. Turning to
see what he was surprised about, she couldn’t stop the gasp. Maggie’s clothes
were torn and tattered, her body just as beaten and bruised as her face.

Branson did as Saber instructed. “She’s coding!”

Saber bolted for the wagon, running back with a box.
Dropping to his knees, he yanked the box open and grabbed out two pads. He
stuck one to the side of her ribs, the other in the middle of her chest. “Go to
four.” A high pitched sound filled the night’s air. “Clear!” He set paddles to
the pads and pressed down the buttons. Maggie’s body jolted, then slammed back
to the ground. “Go up one.” Another wail filled the air. “Clear!” He repeated
the action. Maggie’s body arched, then slammed back down.

“Got a heartbeat. Intubate her while I get the monitor on
her.” Saber ordered his temporary partner.

Amy couldn’t stop shaking as she watched her best friend be
brought back to life. Her eyesight swam with black dots, until it completely
consumed her.

* * * *

Amy felt like she was moving.

Eyes fluttered open, closed, then opened again.

Inhaling a rather deep breath, her eyes finally focused on a
seat. Frowning, she groaned when she pushed up and glanced around. She must
have fainted.

“Dad?” She coughed, leaning toward the bench seat of her
father’s truck.

“We’re on our way to the hospital. Saber is up ahead. Mace
is behind us.” Stone glanced in the mirror, meeting her eyes. “Are you all
right?”

Swallowing the sob in her throat, she met her father’s gaze
and slowly shook her head. “No, I’m not.” It was whispered as she angrily wiped
at her eyes. “First Thorne, now Maggie?”

Stone turned into the hospital and parked on the other side
of the ambulance. He turned to face Amy. “We don’t know if this is related,
Amy. Don’t jump to conclusions, and we don’t need Thorne knowing about this
right now. She’s got enough on her plate.”

“How can it not be related?” She yelled at her father, not
meaning to, but it was ridiculous. “Did you see Maggie?”

“No, she was in the ambulance when I got there.”

“She was beaten beyond recognition, Dad. This was personal.”
She watched Saber and Branson lower the gurney and run with her toward the
emergency entrance. “We need to go in.”

She had to wait for her father to let her out, but once he
did, she bolted for the entrance, not stopping for anyone. Not paying attention
to what was in front of her, she slammed into a hard body. Grunting, she was
about to yell at whoever was in her way, but it was Mace. She threw her arms
around his neck and buried her face in his chest.

Mace held her, gently rocking her. “Let’s go sit down in the
waiting room. We’re no good here. Saber will come tell us what is going on.”

Sniffling, she nodded. “M’kay.” Amy let Mace guide her to
the couches, a replay of waiting for news on Thorne, same family, different
target. She silently prayed she made it through whatever trauma she was
experiencing.

The doors swished open; the bulky medic sulked, not speaking
until they closed behind him. Walking over to an open spot on a couch, he lowered
himself onto it, looking at the blood on his uniform. Sighing, he glanced at
the group.

Amy couldn’t stop shaking. She tried to still her body, but
tiny tremors refused to listen and kept her shivering involuntarily. She
pressed her hands over her face convulsively, not wanting to hear the news
Saber was about to share.

“We lost her twice in the wagon on the way here. She’s
bleeding internally and has several broken bones. Her right cheek bone was
shattered, her teeth were pulled out,” Saber paused as he looked over to Amy.
“Amy, you might want to step out. I don’t think you need to hear this.”

Her reply was muffled by her hands as she squeezed her eyes
shut from behind her palms. “Just tell us, Saber.”

Saber scratched at his head, looking around the room, then
back to Amy who was lowering her hands from her face. “By the extensive damage
done to her, the detectives, and the doctors think she was tortured. They also
found vaginal trauma.”

Amy felt her heart stop, try to beat, then stop again. A
sensation of intense sickness and desolation swept over her, bile rose in the
back of her throat. She felt her body being moved, cradled against something
solid and safe.

Saber sniffed as he stood, wringing his hands out, his face
a reflection of the emotions tearing through Amy. “They’re taking her to
surgery to stop the bleeding and repair the damage done to her face and groin.
They’ll let us know as soon as they’re done.”

“How bad is the damage, Saber?” Stone’s voice wavered when
he asked the question everyone was afraid to ask.

“They need to rebuild her cheek and do some reconstructive
surgery.”

Amy knew he was trying to be politically correct, but she
was far from dumb. Amy could easily figure out what he meant; she wasn’t so
sure she could stomach the knowledge. Allowing Mace to cradle her on his lap,
she faded in and out of a fitful sleep as they waited for news from the
surgeon.

She jerked awake from small nightmares, only to fall back
into a troubled sleep once more. Someone was shaking her awake. Blinking, she
roused herself back to awareness, blinded momentarily by bright lights.

“How is she, doctor?” Stone cleared his throat as he sat up
straighter in his seat.

“She’s unconscious, but in ICU for now. She has a broken
cheek we had to repair, all the fingers on her right hand were broken, as well
as a dislocated jaw.” The doctor glanced around, then spoke to Stone once more,
looking uncomfortable being around men that were as rough looking as they were.
“We had to fully reconstruct her vaginal area. She was,” he paused looking to
Amy, skipping over that nasty R word. “Several men attacked her and we acquired
quite a few DNA samples for the police. When they were through with her, they
cut her. If she makes it through tomorrow, she’ll be out of the woods. The internal
bleeding was severe and she lost a lot of blood.”

Stone shook the doctor’s hand. “Thank you. We appreciate
everything you’ve done for us and for Maggie.”

As the doctor left, Stone turned to everyone. “Axe, Talon,
stay tonight. I’ll call in some favors with our support and get them to send a
couple of guys by to watch her during the run. Mace, let’s get Amy home.”

* * * *

Numb.

She couldn’t feel a thing. Her mind was a blank slate that
failed to render anything coherent. It was as if she went through the motions
of showering, getting dressed and lying in a cold bed. The shivering wouldn’t
stop, nor would the tears.

How someone could be so fucking vicious was beyond anything
Amy could possibly understand. Maggie never deserved a life like this. When her
parents died, Stone always watched out for her. She deserved the life of a
princess, not to be left for dead like trash on the side of the road.

She felt Mace crawl into bed, curling up behind her. His arm
wrapped about her waist and drew her to him, tucking her into his body and warm
embrace. She didn’t need to speak. He knew she wanted silence, to just be held.
No lies that everything was going to be okay, because it wasn’t. Nothing was
okay.

If it was the Temer Gallo doing all of this, they were doing
nothing more than attacking women. That was an insult to their MC. She knew
about the president, but she also went to school with his ex Ol’Lady and he may
fit his name more than anyone ever had, but he treated his women like gold. She
couldn’t find it in her to believe he would sanction attacks on women. It
didn’t make sense, but it was several men who hurt Maggie, not one.

She didn’t remember falling asleep. She woke to an empty
bed. Sitting up, she heard Mace in the kitchen speaking in low tones with her
father and Romeo. She knew their voices well enough to know they were
discussing important matters not for her to hear.

Rolling out of bed, she slid on a pair of yoga pants and a
sweatshirt, tossed her hair into a messy ponytail and headed for a cup of coffee
or tea. She didn’t care as long as it was hot. Stepping into the kitchen, the
men quit talking about their business and looked to her expectantly.

Rolling her eyes, she grunted. “I’m not going to go all
crazy. I’m fine.”

Stone and Romeo put their dirty cups into the sink, walked
over and kissed her on the top of her head. “We’ll see you later tonight.”

“Okay, be safe.” She watched them walk out of the house,
then turned to look at Mace. “I’m fine. I promise.”

“I didn’t say you weren’t.”

“I know that look. It’s the ‘I may have to tiptoe around her
in case she decides to go all praying mantis on my ass and bite my head off’
look.”

Mace laughed as he pushed off the counter and walked toward
her. “I guess you’ll be at the hospital today?”

“You have to ask?” A single brow rose as she let her eyes
drag over him. Long sleeved shirt, cut, Wranglers, boots, bandanna. He looked
yummy and like a force to be reckoned with.

“Keep looking at me like that and we may never make it out
of the house today.”

Amy giggled and cast her eyes downward. “You’re horrible.”

“And you love it.”

“Yeah, yeah. Rub it in why don’t you.” Amy looked at him.

“I’ve got to get to the shop and get everything ready.” He
lifted his hand to cup her cheek. “Remember what I told you, Amy. Always.”

Amy leaned into the palm of his hand, finger hooking into
his belt loop to tug him closer. “That you love me no matter what happens.”

“Yeah. I do and you need to always keep that close.”

When his lips met hers, she sighed against them. Eyes
drifted closed as she welcomed the tender kiss, the tip of her tongue teasing
his with gentle abandon. She couldn’t stop the whimper of protest when he
pulled away. She pouted.

“Be safe, okay?”

“You know it.”

“I love you, Mace.”

Mace paused as he started to step past her, his smile
hesitant, then lighting up his face, though it never met the sadness behind his
eyes. “I love you more.”

When he shut the door behind him, she had a nagging feeling
in the back of her mind that something wasn’t right, but she couldn’t quite put
her finger on it.