Free Read Novels Online Home

The Traitor’s Baby: Reaper’s Hearts MC by Nicole Fox (21)


Xavier

 

Asphalt stood by the bar, waiting for the crowd to settle down. The Reapers hadn’t been drinking yet, but they didn’t need to be in order to feel the excitement and tension that filled the room. They had tuned their bikes, cleaned their guns, and gathered any weapons they wanted to use. The plans had been distributed, and the clan had been divided into different parties, each with their separate purpose. The bikers punched each other in the arm and exchanged dirty jokes, everyone waiting for the final call to ride out.

 

The president called for silence. “Men, I know what this means to all of you. I hope you’ll come to know what it means to me. When I left the army, I thought I would never again get the chance to lead a brave group of men into battle. You’ve shown me otherwise.”

 

Shouts and cheers rose up from the tables, and he waited patiently until they died down.

 

“What we’re about to do today is a mission of extreme importance. We all know that the Reapers are a far better thing for this town than the Labriolas. Sure, we do our fair share of illicit trading, but when was the last time you heard about a Reaper raping a woman or kidnapping a child? Never, because it doesn’t happen. We do our thing, but we’re respectful to the citizens. That’s a lot more than anyone can say for the crime family.”

 

“Over the years, they’ve taken more and more business from us. It didn’t matter that we’ve been here longer. We’ve gone and taken some of that business back, and how do they repay us? By trying to blackmail us into giving them what we’ve worked so hard for. They’re nothing but a bunch of pussies, and we’re not going to stand for it!”

 

The rallying cries were thunderous now. Xavier had known this was going to be big. He knew the men were enthusiastic. But this was amazing. Planning the attack had been nerve-wracking, but now he couldn’t wait to get started. The enthusiasm of his brethren was an echo of his own.

 

“You each have specific jobs you’re supposed to do. I expect you to follow the plans as they’re laid out, but be ready to think on your feet if need be. The primary objective of our club as a whole is a dual one: to destroy as much Labriola property as possible, and to save Kenzie Labriola from the clutches of her evil father. I want you to get out there and show the world just who the Reaper’s Hearts are!” He threw his fist in the air for emphasis.

 

The men followed suit, screaming their fervor as they charged out of the bar and jumped on their bikes. The sound in the parking lot was deafening as their engines roared as one. They split off in packs to different parts of the city, spreading out to claim what had rightfully been theirs in the first place.

 

Xavier felt alive with the vibration of his iron horse underneath him and the wind rippling in his hair. They rode fast and recklessly, and it felt damn good. He led his pack to the same bar where he had first seen Kenzie. He glanced at his watch as he dismounted, seeing that the timing should be working out perfectly. Throttle’s group would have already destroyed the dry cleaner’s, his bomb sending the half the town’s button-down shirts up in flames. Matteo’s men would head there, but by the time they arrived, Throttle and his men would be gone.

 

It would be a perfect distraction for the mafiosos while Xavier and his men tore the bar down piece by piece. They had decided not to go with a bomb for this place, since there were still patrons inside. They didn’t want to risk hurting anyone who wasn’t part of the Labriola family, and it would be impossible to separate them out. He ripped the ax from the back of his bike and marched up to the porch of the bar, swinging it hard and smashing out the window in the door.

 

The people inside screamed, and he stepped back while patrons went flooding out the exits. He grinned to his men; things were about to get ugly. When the place was nearly empty, one man poured gasoline on top of the bar and lit it on fire. The waitresses who hadn’t yet left screamed as they headed into the kitchen. Xavier smashed the remaining windows, and he turned when the manager came running out of his office.

 

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” He clutched at his hair, his eyes wide as he stared around him. The men were turning over the tables, ripping signs from the wall, and smashing bottles of liquor.

 

Xavier turned to him with a smile. He pointed his ax at the dweeb, leveling the blade of it only a few inches from his nose. “This bar is owned by Matteo Labriola, right?”

 

The man looked terrified, and his chin trembled as he nodded. “Y-Yes. It is.”

 

“Tell him the Reapers said hello.” Xavier swung his ax and smashed the big mirror behind the bar. The manager left, and the club members continued waging destruction. It only seemed fitting to Xavier that he should be taking part in destroying the bar. He had met Kenzie there, but he couldn’t be sentimental about it. It seemed to him that it was that night that had changed both of their lives, and burning the old building down to the ground was a suitable symbol for starting something new. He would get her out of her old life and help her build a new one, whether she wanted him to be in it or not. He would take everything that had held her back and destroy it. If that didn’t make him good enough in her eyes, then nothing ever would.

 

It was crazy to think that the only thing he had been looking for that night was some easy pussy. He hadn’t been interested in becoming a father or rescuing a woman from a terrible situation. He was a simple man, and he wanted a simple life. Or at least, he had wanted that. Now he wasn’t sure what he wanted. Clearly, Kenzie needed him to be something more, something bigger. As much as he was enjoying what he was doing to the bar, he couldn’t wait to find Kenzie and ask her what she thought about everything. Had she ever really been involved in the blackmail, or was she just an innocent victim? What did she want from him, other than safety? And then there was the baby. There were too many things to think about, to figure out.

 

When the flames were rising high and the thin wail of fire engines sounded in the distance, it was time to head to their next destination. Xavier and the other men headed back toward the heart of the city, noting the black columns of smoke that rose up on both sides of them as they went. That would be the Chinese restaurant, the nail salon, and the bookie’s office. Then there was another warehouse off in the distance that was burning as well. He smiled to himself. Not only would the individualized attacks keep the mob men running, it would have the emergency services completely tied up. He didn’t need to worry about his men getting caught and arrested for what they were doing.

 

It was two in the morning, and the city was in chaos. Xavier had to admit he felt a certain sense of power for being part of such a thing. He buzzed at the head of his pack to their next destination: the Labriola mansion. They parked out of the way in the shadows, waiting and watching.

 

There was little doubt that they had created a problem for Labriola. Cars zoomed in and out of the driveway, tearing around the corner and out onto the street. Most of the windows of the big mansion were completely lit up; the entire house was awake and moving. Xavier grinned; they had achieved the first part of their mission. Hopefully, it would make the second and most important part go better.

 

“We ready to move in?” Throttle stood just behind him as they waited, their bikes silenced for the moment. Xavier looked over his shoulder and saw the hairy man’s teeth flash in the night. “I’ve blown up half this city in one night. I’m ready to finish it off.”

 

Xavier shook his head. “I know, but not yet.” His focus was on the one window that was still dark, and he knew it belonged to Kenzie’s room. Either she was in there and pretending not to hear all that was going on around her, or she still wasn’t there at all. “I’ve got to figure out where Kenzie is.”

 

“So let’s just go,” Chrome urged. He was practically dancing in place as he tried to control his excitement. “We’ll find her once we’re in there.”

 

But Xavier wasn’t so sure. His men were dying to make this final siege, and he didn’t want someone pulling the trigger too early. There was always a chance she had been moved to one of the other buildings and had already been killed, but he pushed that thought away. Then, as though someone had known he was waiting for a beacon, a basement light came on. The window was a small one, and it wouldn’t even have been visible if they had been there during the day. But the basement was one place he hadn’t been during his time in the Labriola mansion, and it was as good of a shot as any.

 

“All right, listen up.” His voice was urgent, commanding. “You know what you need to do. I’ve shown you all the rough layout of the house, and you each have your jobs. Make sure you cause as much damage as possible, but be sure to watch each other’s backs as well as your own. We think most of the mobsters have moved off to help out with the other buildings, but it’s doubtful Matteo would have left Kenzie here completely alone.” Xavier looked to Throttle, his pale eyes sharp. “Don’t blow that bomb until everyone is safely out. This is the most difficult building on our agenda tonight, and we have to pull this off without a hitch.”

 

Throttle gave him a short nod. “You’ve got it, boss.”

 

“I have a feeling Kenzie is in the basement, so that’s where I’m going. Let’s do this.”

 

The Reaper’s Hearts spilled like ants into the entrance of the Labriola property, splitting off to attack from all sides. Chrome and his group went straight to the front door, while Throttle took others around the side to come in through the kitchen. Several more went through the windows, and Xavier headed around the back.

 

He cursed himself for not thinking about a basement. It hadn’t been an obvious choice, but any big house like this was guaranteed to have an underground level that was more secure than the rest. He only hoped he could find it in time, and that Matteo wasn’t concentrating his forces around his daughter.

 

Most of the mafiosos that were stationed at the house were going in and out of the garage, leaving one guard near the back door. He was a skinny man whose messy hair suggested he had been roused from his sleep and put on duty. Xavier moved down the fence line until he had the perfect shot, where no tree branches or other landscaping would be in the way. He pulled his pistol from its holster and removed a silencer from the back of his belt. The Labriolas would know soon enough that the Reapers were inside, but he needed the advantage of surprise for the moment.

 

It was difficult to slow down his breathing and ensure he had the correct aim. Xavier wanted to run up, knock him off, and be on his way in the door, but that was only going to draw attention. Instead, he squatted in the shadow of the wall and aimed carefully. The guard yawned, reaching his arms above his head to stretch. His head bounced backward slightly as the bullet entered his skull, and he fell to his knees. The body toppled forward, leaving the back door free for Xavier to enter.

 

The biker ran forward and stepped over the guard, expecting the door to be locked again. But the guard had left it undone, probably with the hope of returning to bed soon, and had left Xavier easy access. This time, instead of heading toward the front of the house, where he knew he could go upstairs, Xavier stayed toward the back. The basement door was likely to be over here somewhere, near the kitchen and the garage. It made sense, and he hoped he was right.

 

As he advanced down the back hall, weapon at the ready, he could hear the other bikers making their entrances. They smashed windows and toppled furniture. Their shouts carried through the big house as they encountered Matteo’s men. A chill went down Xavier’s spine as he fought the urge to go help them. They were his brothers, and they were doing this for him. He only hoped he didn’t owe them too much by the time they returned to The Scythe.

 

The first door he tried was a pantry, but Xavier stepped inside for a moment to check for any trap doors. With no results, he moved on and found another closet, this one for cleaning supplies. Logic dictated that there would be a guard at the top of the basement stairs, but he had yet to see anyone other than the man who lay dead on the back porch. They had probably all taken off to investigate the other blown buildings, as he had hoped.

 

Finally, as he reached the far back corner of the house, he found a door that was a little wider than the rest. He held his breath as he flung it open, revealing a staircase that led down into a concrete walled basement. Xavier knew that as soon as he started down, he would be seen. He would be at a disadvantage until he was at least halfway down, because he couldn’t see into the rest of the basement. There was nothing for it but to go, and he did, running down the stairs as fast as he could.

 

The basement wasn’t a finished one, and there were stacks of boxes off to the left and right. Some of them were marked innocently as toys or dishes, but Xavier knew better. Most of them probably held black market items that the Labriolas sold at a high markup. One crate lay open near his feet, the handles of several knives sticking out of the Styrofoam packaging. The lid had been labeled as canned goods.

 

The far end of the basement was walled off, leaving a thick steel door for access. This was either where Kenzie was being kept, or it was Matteo’s underground bunker. Maybe it was both. A man stood in front of the door. Xavier recognized him instantly as the man who had been staring at Kenzie back at the bar on that first night. He had also been around when Xavier had come back to the house to confront Matteo and his daughter. A stab of jealousy ripped through Xavier as he wondered what kind of connection this gangster had with Kenzie and why he always seemed to be the one guarding her.

 

Angelo’s eyes suddenly grew wide with alarm as he reached for the weapon at his side. “Well, well. If it isn’t Xavier Flynn. I’ve been waiting for you to show up. For a minute there, I thought you might be too chicken.”

 

“I’ll give you one chance to leave with your life.” Xavier didn’t care if this man lived or died; he was too busy assessing whether his bullet would go through the wall behind Angelo. He knew he would have to shoot, and he didn’t want to risk hurting Kenzie.

 

The other man narrowed his dark eyes, the scar that ran down his face giving him a wicked look. “Why would you be so generous? I wouldn’t afford you the same courtesy.”

 

Xavier squeezed the trigger. “All right. Then I won’t, either.” Blood spattered on the steel door behind Angelo, and he sank to the hard floor. Xavier strode forward and reached for the knob.

Search

Search

Friend:

Popular Free Online Books

Read books online free novels

Hot Authors

Sam Crescent, Zoe Chant, Flora Ferrari, Mia Madison, Alexa Riley, Lexy Timms, Claire Adams, Sophie Stern, Elizabeth Lennox, Leslie North, Amy Brent, C.M. Steele, Frankie Love, Jordan Silver, Jenika Snow, Bella Forrest, Madison Faye, Mia Ford, Kathi S. Barton, Michelle Love, Dale Mayer, Delilah Devlin, Sloane Meyers, Amelia Jade, Piper Davenport,

Random Novels

The Bride Price (Civil War Brides Series, #1) by Piper Davenport

Vortex (SAI Book 1) by Lea Hart

Chance Encounters by Jessica Prince

Snowed in With the Alien Doctor: Warriors of Etlon by Abigail Myst, Starr Huntress

by Cassandra Dee

Gemini Keeps Capricorn (Signs of Love Book 3) by Anyta Sunday

Touch Me by Jenika Snow

Passion: A Single Dad Small Town Romance by Bella Winters

Neighbors: A Dark Romance (Soulmates Series Book 7) by Hazel Kelly

A Shadow of Doubt (Texas Oil Book 1) by Dakota Black

CHANCE: SciFi Cyborg Romance (Cyn City Cyborgs Book 1) by Pearl Foxx

The Surprise: Secret Baby by Amy Faye

The Gilded Cuff by Smith, Lauren

Christmas at the Falling-Down Guesthouse: Plus Michele Gorman's Christmas Carol by Lilly Bartlett, Michele Gorman

Rule You (Vegas Knights Book 3) by Bella Love-Wins, Shiloh Walker

Thrust Under by Michelle A. Valentine, Emily Snow

Clutch (Significant Brothers Book 5) by E. Davies

Rust (King's Harlots MC Book 6) by J.M. Walker

One Night Bride (Only Pretend Book 2) by Snow, Nicole

Devil (Savage MC--Tennessee Book 1) by Jordan Marie