Written words have the power to punch you in the gut and knock the air right out of you if they are delivered correctly.

And as I sat in my favorite black leather chair on the second story of Spiked Roses, I felt as if I had been beaten repeatedly until all signs of life had left my body. Holding the letter in my hand, as I sipped an aged rye, I struggled to regain my composure.

What the fuck just happened?

How did this happen?

I had left that life behind, but now it was staring back at me in my old business partner, and best friend’s handwriting. Was I a fool in thinking I could run away and leave it all behind me? That I could leave Athens, Georgia, to start a new life in New Orleans owning a members- only, exclusive men’s club called Spiked Roses and start anew?

Yes, I was a damn fool.

I took a sip of my drink and ignored all the scantily-clad women who worked my high-end establishment. I usually paid closer attention to how their bodies moved—a perk of my ownership—but tonight I had other things on my mind. Glancing back down at the letter, I read it again, hoping the words had somehow changed and the news before me wasn’t as nightmarish to read the second time around.

Alec,

My dear and oldest friend. Yes, I know it has been a long time. Too long. But you were wise in getting away when you did. You warned me. Hell, you all but begged me to step away gracefully with you while I had the chance. But I couldn’t. The pull was too great.

That blue blood runs too strong inside of me, and I will forever be haunted by the past. And I’m sure you heard the rumors that the past has finally caught up with me.

She’s gone. But you know that, and you know what I did to try to stop it.

Though I knew the day would come—most likely come too fucking soon—it doesn’t ease the pain in the slightest. I miss her every single day and have not been able to move on. Losing a wife is the greatest pain a man could experience, and I hope to God you never have to experience such agony.

Was her death enough to have me step away from the dark temptation of my own demons? Should I stop and think what losing two parents would do to Makayla?

Yes.

I should.

But, I have never claimed to be a wise man.

I did my best by Makayla. I sheltered her the best I could—maybe too much. I protected her, guarded her, and damn near suffocated her. I tried to keep the shadows of my past from seeping into the twisted haven I tried to create… but clearly have failed in doing so.

You are my last hope for her. Makayla has no one else.

I have no one else.

I first sent her to New Orleans to find you and to secure a job at Spiked Roses. I thought this would give her the opportunity to be on her own, finally live life as an adult, and to break free from her gilded cage. She would be free from my prison, but still have you—her Uncle Alec—close by to keep an eye on her as she discovered her new freedom.

But like everything in my life, it isn’t that simple. Setting her free only puts her life at risk, and I know that.

They know. They know where she is.

Her name was on the stone.

I beg of you, Alec. Please help.

I don’t want to pull you back into their grasp, and I wouldn’t involve you if I had any other choice. But her life depends on it. Depends on you.

You know I am a dead man, even as I still breathe, for my answer to them was no.

They will never have my daughter.

I will still try to fight. To see if there is anything I can do, but you and I both know…

I fear there is nothing I can do to change my fate, but I sure as hell hope to change Makayla’s. But I turn to you to help me make that happen. Please keep her safe from them. Give me the time I require to cast off those dark shadows that threaten to take her away. I will not make Makayla pay for the crimes of her father and her father’s father and all the fathers before.

So, Alec, I beg of you. If our friendship meant anything to you—which I believe it truly did before I got myself deeper into this mess—take her to our place. It’s safe there and it hasn’t been used for a decade. Makayla will recognize it and feel a sense of home. I think it will help comfort her in what could be a challenging time. I don’t know for how long, but I will send word. You know I wouldn’t ask this of you if there were any other way.

When I sent Makayla to Spiked Roses to find you, she was excited for her new adventure. This was her chance to finally experience life as a young woman should. No doubt, when you hand her the letter attached to this one for her, she will not be happy. The idea of being locked away in her gilded cage again will devastate her, but I know she will still do as I ask. The question remains, will you?

If anyone can keep her safe and protected, I know it is you. Step in and be the protector that I no longer can be.

Until my next correspondence,

~Rhett

Fuck.

It was just as nightmarish as the first time I’d read the letter. Even worse. My friend was a dead man. I knew this. He knew this.

Fuck.

I had warned him. I had begged him to leave.

Fuck.

Finishing my drink with one long swig, I fought the overwhelming urge to puke. There was nothing I could do. Nothing. My ears rang and my vision dimmed. If I didn’t get my shit together, I was going to faint like a damn southern belle wearing a corset that was too tight.

I had to focus.

Makayla. Fucking Makayla needed me.

Me. What the hell was Rhett thinking? I was as far from the knight in shining armor as one could get. Saving the pretty damsel in distress wasn’t my thing.

“You all right, dude?” Harley Crow—a friend and current business partner—asked as he sat down next to me with a glass of vodka in his hand. “Your ass looks like it has seen a ghost.”

Glancing at the man, but lost in all the swirling thoughts going on in my mind, I mumbled, “Yeah, a fucking ghost.”

Harley glanced at the letter in my shaking hand. “Bad news?”

“Something like that.”

“Anything I can help with?”

I was half tempted to say yes. Having the notorious Harley Crow get involved could possibly fix it all, but I also knew that even a ruthless assassin such as Harley couldn’t kill them all. Demons have a way of multiplying. And I couldn’t get the man involved, even if he could wipe them all out. Asking anyone to step into that dark and twisted world of my past was a different kind of murder.

“I wish. Just my past coming back to haunt me.”

“This have anything to do with your niece we just hired?”

I shook my head side to side slowly and closed my eyes as if I could shut away the nightmare. “She’s not my niece. I told you all that at the meeting.”

“Whatever, dude. She calls you Uncle Alec. So she clearly thinks she’s your niece.”

“Yeah, it’s complicated.”

Complicated wasn’t a strong enough word to describe the situation we were now in.

“Where is she, by the way?” I asked as I opened my eyes to find Harley scrutinizing me with his dark and narrowed eyes.

Harley shrugged. “Haven’t seen her. My guess is with Tennessee, training.” Harley took a slow drink, never breaking his stare. “You sure you are all right?”

I stood up with a heavy sigh. “I have some things I’m going to need to handle. I need to go away for a while. Do you mind letting the other guys know? I’ll keep you all posted once I have a better feel of what I need to do and how long I need to be away.”

“Yeah, no problem. But why don’t you just tell them yourselves at the member’s meeting in fifteen minutes?” Harley said.

Shit. The meeting. I had forgotten all about it.

“You look like hell,” Harley said. “If there’s anyone who can help you deal with your shit, it’s the men who will be at the meeting. There isn’t anything we wouldn’t do to help each other. You know that.”

“Yeah, well you all have enough shit to deal with on your own. Did Victor ever find the fuckers who attacked his dolls?”

Harley scowled. “No. The problem with that is the bounty was so fucking high on those dolls that it really could have been any shithead wanting to profit off the black market. Shutting down the dolls was really the best thing he could have done.” He took another sip of his drink. “But right now isn’t about Victor. It’s about you. What’s up?”

“I just have some fucked up demons lurking that I need to battle.” I stood, determined to face this head on. “I doubt I’ll be at the meeting. Just tell them that I had some family affairs to deal with and had to get out of town for a little bit. I’ll be in touch when I can.”

Without saying another word, I left Harley sitting with his vodka as I went to search for Makayla. No one could help me battle these demons, but sadly these same demons had Makayla by the throat and were squeezing the life out of her. She just didn’t know it yet.