Mason
I made my way downstairs feeling less relaxed than I did when I went up there with Cassie. She was so darn annoying, yet so fucking tempting at the same time. I asked myself over and over if it had been a mistake bringing her here. I had no regrets or second thoughts about buying her, but I was beginning to think I should put her on a bus and tell her to change her name, stay away and not talk to anyone.
That would be too easy though, and she was too sweet to give up that easily.
The first time at the auction house had been good. She had been expecting it, and had known what was happening the moment she begged not to go back on the block. I didn’t think she’d have enough fight in her after having worn herself out that first time. But Cassie had surprised me.
She still keeps surprising me.
I smirked. No matter how much she begged me to let her go and leave her alone, she wanted it. The way she moaned, and her body tensed and shook, told me more than enough to keep going with her. It would be easier next time. She'd be waiting and wanting me to have her.
As soon as I reached the bar area, Tye came over.
“Where you been?”
“Dealing with shit,” I told him. “What’s going on here?”
“Nothing. Usual shit,” he said. “Where’d Diesel go? And who’s the bitch?”
“Went out to organize a few things for me. And that’s my prize from the auction house.”
Tye’s jaw dropped.
“You’re shitting me.”
“Don’t want to hear any of it. I brought her in and Ruiz wanted her.”
“And?”
“She’d be dead or on a ship to Europe. She doesn’t need that.”
Tye laughed.
"Ah… Diesel was right, “Tye grinned. “The bitch has got something on you."
He tossed back his drink back and reached around for two more.
"So, what is it?" he asked. He handed me a glass and we headed out front.
I downed my drink in one gulp and dropped the glass on the bench next to me.
“It’s fucking nothing,” I told him. “I found her, knew she’d fetch a good price. I just didn’t want Ruiz bidding on her.”
“Well, when you’re done with her, I’d like to meet her,” Tye shrugged, “You know, to say hi and shit.”
I glared at him.
“She’s not up for…”
Bang!
A sudden impact to my shoulder knocked me down. Shots continued ringing out. The men were on their feet with weapons drawn in seconds.
Tye pulled me through the front doors and held me up against the wall. He looked over my wounded shoulder.
"It's just a flesh wound. You'll live."
I nodded and pulled my gun.
"Let me guess. This where Diesel went?" Tye asked, nodding in the direction the gunfire was coming from.
“Yeah, it’s the Cartel. Because of…”
“The bitch you took upstairs?”
“Yeah.”
I had been right about the Cartel coming, but I thought the wait would have been a little longer. At least long enough for Diesel to rally up enough men and weapons for us to stand a chance.
After holding them off for ten minutes, I made the call to retreat. The men scattered on their bikes, and I ran upstairs to grab Cassie.
I thought she would have come down looking for me or something, but she was upstairs looking around in my room. Probably for a gun to shoot me with. I grabbed her and hightailed it downstairs, practically dragging her along behind me until we had made it outside.
The compound was outside of Eden, surrounded by the desert. But there was more than one place to hide. I took Cassie through the back and waited. The Cartel wasn't stupid. They wouldn't wander into the desert after everyone they saw leave through the main entry points. And it was Cassie and I they’d come for anyway. They would terminate all the Ghost Riders, but it was me they wanted to kill first and Cassie they wanted to take.
“Ruiz! They're gone!” a voice shouted.
"What you mean, they're gone?" Ruiz shouted. "Fucking find them!"
"All of them, they all cleared out! The house is empty along with all the sheds."
Ruiz kicked up some of the gravel and cursed before he retreated to the black SUV he had arrived in.
"Burn the place down. Kill anyone you see, but make sure you bring me Mason's head!"
"Yes, boss."
“And the girl. I want the girl untouched. She’s mine. You pendejos can have the scraps.”
I felt Cassie shift next to me. I looked down at her. She was shaking, terrified, and kept her head down. I heard a few sniffles and realized she was crying.
They torched the place, and I watched until the Cartel had left. Cassie still hadn't looked up. But I was relieved she wasn't sniffling anymore, as it had been seriously starting to piss me right off.
“Stay here.”
She nodded, and I went in to grab my bike.
It took me a couple of minutes. When I drove out and pulled up next to Cassie, she didn't hurry, but she didn't protest at getting on the back of the bike either.
I waited just long enough for her to wrap her arms around me before I took off.