CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
B-ry
The air grew thick and time seemed to hit the pause button.
No.
I couldn’t believe she’d said that. And by the way her chin jutted out and her eyes were dead-set on Iron, I knew she wasn’t about to back down. Oh, I would have fucking bet there was more coming.
“I don’t want to hear ‘this is club business.’ This involves me. Me! It happened. To. Me. I get to know what is going on because I deserve to know what happens to this guy. So, don’t give me some its club business… bullshit.”
I had never seen Iron so stunned in my life. To be fair, it was hard to notice. But I could tell. It was the way his brows went up just a hair. And his eyes didn’t blink for a long time. And the way he was frozen as stiff as a statue.
It was the kind of shock that said he wasn’t quite sure what to do with what just happened.
Me?
Well, I was hard as hell. I mean, damn. That woman had just stood up to the president of a motorcycle club. I knew it was really inappropriate, but all I could think of was pulling her onto my lap and letting her ride that pissed off fire right out of her.
Oh, and she said bullshit. Which had me trying my hardest to stifle a damn laugh.
I cleared my throat because it seemed I was starting to fail at that last part.
“I’m sorry, princess,” I said as coolly as I could manage. “Did I just hear the word bullshit come from those lips?”
She cut her eyes over to me and I couldn’t help but smirk as that fire was aimed at me.
“Bullshit. Say it with me, biker boy. Bull-shit.”
I saw a fraction of softness slip into her eyes and the fact that the corners of her lips were twitching told me she was having trouble keeping her guard up right now. And because of that, I couldn’t even stop the words as they went from my brain to my mouth.
“I was so scared that I’d never see you again.”
I didn’t care that it was awkward. Or that she might not have thought something along those lines about me. Or, ya know, the big one, that Iron was right there and there was shit that needed to be dealt with.
“Okay, well, I’ll just…” Iron said.
“Oh, no. Both of you. Horrible, people. I will not let you walk all over me. And I demand answers.” Laurel’s face looked stern but I could tell that she was flustered.
“I gotta be honest, I don’t know what to do with you,” Iron said to her and I may have snorted. Because, yeah, I felt like that most of the time. “If I tell you the less you know the safer you are, will that work?”
Laurel shook her head at the Prez and I was a little worried for her.
“Laurel,” I said softly but with an edge of warning to it.
“Don’t you Laurel me,” she practically growled.
“We’re still trying to put all the pieces in place,” Iron said with a sigh. “We think we might know who took you. But that’s all I’m going to say on the matter. We are going to track him down. That I will promise you.”
It looked like he was going to add something else but the sound of his phone ringing halted him.
After he answered it I heard one word ring out.
Explosion.
Iron’s eyes cut to mine for a split second, then he was walking out the door. I jumped up to follow him.
Outside he stood tall, the phone to his ear and the other hand resting on the top bar to the balcony railing.
It killed me to stand there and wait to find out what the hell was going on.
“Meet you at the hospital,” he said then ended the call.
His eyes met mine. His jaw clenched as he shook his head.
“Who?” I asked trying to push down my panic.
“The house was rigged. One of the prospects walked right into a tripwire. Blade pushed Mouse out of the way. He’s trapped under the rubble and I don’t know how bad it is. Mouse said help just got there. Two prospects and Dade were inside.”
“Fuck!” I roared.
“I’m going. Get Mason updated then get your ass to the hospital.”
Then he was gone.
“Stay here,” I said as I opened the door.
Only she wasn’t where I’d left her in the bed.
No, she was trying to jam her feet into some shoes while she pulled at the tape holding the needle of the IV in.
“Laurel,” I said with that edge of a warning. “I need you to stay here. I’m going to get your sister to stay with you and I’m having some brothers watch the room.
“I’m going. Don’t try and stop me. I can either get a ride with you or I will find another way.”
“Pain in my ass,” I mumbled under my breath knowing full well that I wouldn’t be able to stop her. “Sit and stop messing with it.”
I went to the bathroom and got the first aid kit under the sink. Then I went and sat on the bed beside her. As gently as I could, I removed the needle and held the gauze tightly against her skin. I smoothed a piece of tape over it and then tossed everything back into the box.
“Your face,” I said after I’d gotten to my feet and looked down at her.
“Oh, right,” she said and her body sagged like she had forgotten for a moment.
“Go to my room and grab a hat and a hoodie. You remember which one it is?” I pulled out my keys and handed them to her in a hurry. She gave me a nod and I was a little shocked that she remembered. “Meet me out front.”
I took off to the front, dialing Mason’s number as I ran.
“There was an explosion and Iron’s on his way to the hospital,” I said before he could even get a word out.
“Shit,” he said. “How bad?”
“Not sure yet. Know they are trying to pull Blade out now.”
“Alright, I’ll call everyone in and meet you there.”
I ended the call as I pulled open the back door to the main part of the compound.
“What’s going on?” Lake asked as he saw the look on my face.
“There was an explosion. Iron is on his way to the hospital. I need you to get Brand and Cable and fill them in. And if you see Fitz and Charming, tell them too.”
“Fuck,” he said running his fingers through his hair.
“Mase will get everyone else. I’m taking Laurel. Tell Brand to let Cami know so she’s not worried.”
With that, I ran out to the front.
I wish that things hadn’t gotten insane, for more reasons than one. But the thing that stuck out the most right now, was how sexy Laurel looked in my club hoodie that I usually wore to the gym, and my black ball cap. There were things that went though my mind that were not appropriate given the situation that surrounded us. The thing that really got me though, was that she looked like she was ready to go. She hadn’t taken long to get where I needed her to be. Which was good, because there wasn’t a second to waste.
“You good to go on the bike?” I asked because I needed to get there as fast as possible but I also wanted to keep her safe.
“Yes,” she replied then turned the hat around so she could fit the helmet on.
Damn, that was cute.
She wasted no time climbing on behind me and wrapping her arms around my waist.
Once we got there, I parked and bolted to the doors. I was half worried about leaving Laurel behind, but I heard her shoes pounding the pavement behind me.
Iron wasn’t in the first emergency waiting room. I dragged Laurel down the hall and found him tucked away in a corner of the second waiting room on his phone, his eyes watching the doorway.
“Can you tell me what exactly happened? I mean I heard the explosion part,” Laurel said in a hushed voice as her eyes swept the surrounding area.
“Some brothers were checking out the house where you were kept. Someone hit a tripwire and the place blew up. But I don’t know how bad it is.”
“Oh, God,” she said and her hand came up to cover her mouth. “I…”
“No, don’t fall apart on me now, baby.”
“Okay. Alright.” By the bobbing nod she was giving me, I didn’t think she was going to be able to hold it together.
“Sit here.”
I pointed to a chair and helped her lower down into it. I could tell she was still hurting and I hated that she’d come along. She needed to be in the damn bed, recovering and getting as much rest as possible. But I knew she’d never listen to me if I said such things.
“They got Blade out but it doesn’t look good. Mouse is riding with him. Fire and rescue said it didn’t look good for the others, but they are trying to find them.”
Other brothers started coming in about that point. Cami ran right over to Laurel and wrapped her in a tight hug. I was glad she wasn’t alone.
Over the next hour, we didn’t learn much. Mouse came into the room looking more shaken than I’d ever seen him before. Tripp had been outside when it happened and looked much the same. One of the prospects was pronounced dead at the scene and the other didn’t even make it to the hospital. Dade arrived in critical condition. As far as we knew, he was in surgery, fighting for his life just like Blade was.
“He saved my fucking life,” Mouse said to no one in particular. “It should have been me. Fuck.”
“Go get some air, brother. Don’t think about that shit now. He’s gonna make it,” I said placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.
“You didn’t see him,” he whispered.
I sent a chin lift to Lake and he made his way like he knew what I needed right away. Then all but forced Mouse to take a walk outside with him.
Alone, at least partially, I let out a heavy sigh. We were scattered all over the waiting room and the hall. Some of the brothers were down in the cafeteria trying to find some coffee and drinks for everyone.
I felt her delicate hand on my back the moment her sweet scent hit my nose.
“Hey,” she said softly then wrapped me up in her arms.
It was everything I needed at the moment and yet, I felt I didn’t deserve it at all.
“Lost at least two people tonight. Might lose two more.”
I wasn’t sure why I had the need to say it out loud. I had a feeling that she already knew this.
“I know,” she said softly. “I’m so sorry.”
I may have been a selfish bastard right then, but I didn’t give a damn as I pulled her body tighter into me and buried my face in her neck. I felt a sense of strength as her scent filled my nose. And when her thumb gently brushed back and forth against the back of my neck, there was a calm that settled all the way into my bones.
“It could have been you,” I breathed out against her neck.
That house had been rigged. She could have been in it when shit went down. What if she hadn’t escaped on her own? What if we had been there to rescue her? She would have been trapped in a cage and blown to bits. Or crushed by the crumbling house.
“It could have been you,” she said and then held me tighter.
Well, that was very true too.
I didn’t want to think about it but it was like I couldn’t shut the thoughts down once they were there.
My fingers threaded through her hair and I held her so tightly against me that I was afraid I might crush her. I didn’t want to let her go. Not now. Not ever.
“I thought about you,” she admitted and I closed my eyes because it hurt so bad. “There were so many things I would have done differently. I’m sorry.”
It tore my heart open to think about everything that she went through.
It killed me to know that I had failed at finding her.
And it gutted my soul to realize that I had been so stupid all along. I was a fool, but it wasn’t because I was in love with a woman that was toying with me. I was a fucking idiot because it took all of this for me to see just how wrong I’d been all along.
While I should have just been grateful that she was here, in my arms and holding me tightly, I couldn’t help but feel a jab of hatred towards myself. And I couldn’t blame her for having the same.
I pulled her head back so I could look into her eyes. I wasn’t surprised to find them shining with pools of wetness.
My forehead fell against hers.
“You have nothing to be sorry for,” I said looking into her eyes. “I wanted you the moment I saw you. And I was such a fucking dumbass that I didn’t let you know that every single fucking day. I will never let you down again. Please. Please, let me back in again.”
It might not have been fair to beg her like that. Especially when I knew she was on the fence between hating me and needing me. I wasn’t going to give up. Ever. Fighting hadn’t gotten us anywhere good. So I chose to fight for her in a different way. I dropped everything and let her in. Let her see that I wasn’t playing around. Let her see just how weak I was for her.
My emotions might have been running a little high but everything I said was true. I meant it from the deepest part of my soul and I hoped she could see that.
I kissed her then. Because I needed her to feel how deeply I cared about her. Right there. In a room full of family and strangers. I didn’t give a fuck who saw. She was mine, dammit, and I needed her to see that I wanted the world to know.
It didn’t last long, just enough to remind her what it felt like.
She looked dazed for a second then shook her head.
She heard me. I knew she had but I could tell that she needed to step back and process it all. So I didn’t push anymore for right now. She didn’t pull away from me, so I took that as a good sign.
“What can I do?” she asked and then looked around at each one of my brothers.
“Just being here for us is everything.” I stood tall and tucked her into my side. “I’ll tell you a secret. It’s the heart of the women that really help us all get through times like this.”
“That is… a little bit cheesy for big, biker guys.”
“Yeah, well,” I said shaking my head and holding back a chuckle. It just didn’t seem right given the situation around us. “That’s why it’s a secret.”
I cut her off from anything else she might have said by asking if she was feeling okay and told her that if she needed to go back to the compound then I’d make it happen. I wasn’t all that happy that she was here. Not because I didn’t want her to be, but because she’d been through so much and needed time to heal. But there she was, keeping Cami calm and asking if anyone needed anything.
“I need to know who this guy is,” I said in a low tone to Iron once we had a semi-private moment alone. “I need to fucking find him.”
“I know. And I need you calm right now. I got info but this is not the place. Too many ears and eyes,” he replied back, his eyes skirting around the top edges of the room where the security cameras were set up.
He was right. There was too much around. Too many people. And though we didn’t know if the cameras picked up sound, it was still dumb to even risk it.
He looked torn. I could tell that he wanted to stay here and wait to hear something on Blade and Dade but at the same time, we needed to get this fucker.
“A little longer,” he said because he knew I got what he meant.
A little later, Blade was out of surgery and was in recovery. His left arm, leg, and pelvis had been crushed. He was being held together by a bunch of pins now. He had a small fracture on his cheek. And there was swelling around his spine. Which had us all really worried. The doctor said they wouldn’t know the extent of the damage until the swelling went down. He was still out and they weren’t sure when he’d wake up.
But the thing that got to us the most was that his heart had stopped twice while he was on the table.
He was alive and that was the thing we needed to focus on. Even if it was hard not to see the whole picture.
The room was quiet for a long time after that.
Mouse and Laurel looked the worst of all of us.
Mouse, I understood. I was sure he was blaming himself for everything that happened to Blade. But in my mind, Blade made his choice. He chose to put someone before himself. It was admirable and I had even more respect for the guy now.
Laurel, though, I couldn’t tell what was going through her mind. I wanted to ask her, but as she sat there tucked away in the corner, I could tell that she’d gone into her head. It would take a lot to pull her out right now. I wanted to, I did, but I was at a loss as to how.
Maybe she just needed to rest.
I needed to get her back to the compound.
“Hey,” I said softly after I walked over to her.
Her eyes blinked and her body jerked a bit.
“Hey,” she replied, jumping to her feet. “What do you need?”
Damn. That got my heart. Here I was coming to check on her and the first thing she thought was about what I needed.
“To know that you’re okay.”
She gave me a tight smile but didn’t answer.
“Get her back to the compound,” Iron said walking over. “Brand is taking Cami now. Get some shut-eye. I’ll head back after I hear about Dade and then I’ll call Church.”
“You sure?” I asked because I felt like shit taking off in the middle of everything.
“Yeah. I’m sending Mouse on too.”
He patted me on the back then walked off.
“Ready to go?” I asked.
She nodded and tucked herself into my side as we walked out of the hospital. She didn’t fight it or ask to stay which told me that she must have really been feeling tired. Or maybe she knew she wouldn’t be able to hold herself together much longer. Knowing her, she wouldn’t let herself break down in front of everyone.