Logan
Man, we gotta get ourselves some new club girls. I’m not seeing anything I like right now, and too many of them are draped over their men; they’re off limits. And the ones who aren’t seem to have that glazed look in their eyes that weddings bring out in women, even those who don’t look like walking up any kinda aisle is their thing. It’s always their thing, these women, they want to be owned. But I’m not looking for that, that’s not happening.
I’m thinking of escaping this crap for a couple of hours now, maybe head into Vegas, find some action off the Strip. No-one’s gonna know I’ve gone, this place, it’s like some fucked up circus, they won’t miss me.
“Where you going?”
I look up as Bullet approaches my bike, his hands in his pockets, his long, filthy-blonde hair pulled back off his face. Brady ‘Bullet’ Hawkins. President of the Burbank chapter of the Death Knights. A man who’s been like a true brother to me since the day he took me in, and allowed me to find my feet in a world I’d been struggling to make sense of for a long time. I’m his V.P. now, which proves how much he trusts me ‘cause there are brothers in that chapter who’ve been there a hell of a lot longer than me, men who probably deserved that role more than I did, at the time. But I guess Bullet, he thought I needed that focus. And he was right, I did. And I haven’t let him down yet. I don’t intend to.
“Gonna hit a few bars off the Strip. This place has shit to offer me, and I need something…”
“Vanni wants us.”
“Now? I thought we weren’t meeting ‘til tomorrow morning?”
“He’s changed his mind.”
“Why?”
“Jesus, Logan, you’re questioning Vanni? That fucker changes his mind, we jump. Get off the bike and go grab a beer or something. Meeting’s in ten. Vanni’s office, over there.”
He jerks his head in the direction of an outbuilding to the side of the main house, which still looks bigger than my home back in Burbank, but Vanni Colletti has money. A lot of freakin’ money. Legitimate, and not so, but that’s the world we live in. And I’m guessing this meeting’s got something to do with the fact Vanni’s got wind of someone trying to threaten our piece of that world.
“Get off the bike, Logan. We ain’t hitting Vegas this visit.”
“Christ’s sake…” I climb off my Harley, throwing my helmet down on the seat. “I’ve really gotta endure this crap for two fucking days?”
“Quit whining and deal with it. Ten minutes. And don’t be fucking late.”
I watch him head back over to the house, man, I’m seriously pissed now. A couple of hours, that’s all I’d wanted. Hit a casino or two, sink some cheap whiskey in a dive bar I know just off the Strip; get laid by a couple of just-as-cheap whores, yeah, that’s all I’d wanted.
I lean against my bike and throw back my head, a heavy sigh of frustration escaping.
“That doesn’t sound like a man who’s having a good time.”
I drop my head forward and meet the eyes of a stunning young woman with dark-blonde hair and the brightest blue eyes I’ve ever seen, her cock-teasing curves poured into a pair of skin-tight jeans, her undoubtedly super-hot tits perfectly rounded beneath a T-shirt that has no business clinging to a body as beautiful as that in the way that it’s doing. She’s one I haven’t seen around before, but I’m also getting something from her that’s telling me to stay back. I’ll think about it, but I’m making no promises. “Yeah, well, weddings aren’t really my thing.”
She smiles slightly, and she is so damn pretty, but I’m still getting something from her. Something different. Something – I dunno. An almost complicated vibe, and I don’t do different, or complicated, or any shit like that. I do simple. I like to know where I stand. I like to call the shots. “They never used to be mine, either.”
“And now?”
Her smile widens a little, and then she starts to back away. “Now I like them. You have a good weekend, OK? Or, as good as you can make it, huh?”
I watch as she turns and heads back into the crowd, and I frown. What the hell was that? And who was she?
“Hey! Logan! Come on, brother!”
Bullet’s voice reminds me I’m supposed to be somewhere else and I haul myself away from my bike and stride briskly toward the outbuilding, where a handful of chapter presidents and their V.P.s are now heading inside. This is what we’re here to do. This is what Vanni’s really called us all here for. His wedding’s just a useful distraction.
“We all here?”
Vanni’s voice booms out across the room, and I look over at the man himself because his presence, it’s quite startling, considering he isn’t the tallest of men, or the most well-built. That’s why, to look at him, you wouldn’t think he was capable of half the shit he’s done. It’s only when you get close enough to look right into his eyes, to see the evil in there, the mistrust, that’s when you know, that he’s capable of anything. And I still can’t help wondering about the woman who’s this close to becoming his ultimate property. Is she as stone-cold as he is?
“We got issues, brothers, OK? We got ourselves some real serious issues. I got wind of people looking to do me outta what’s mine, and that’s not making me happy. And this is my wedding weekend, I want to be happy. And you boys, you’re gonna make me happy.”
I’m wondering about that woman again, Vanni Colletti’s bride-to-be. She must be one hell of a girl, that’s all I can say. I’m imagining someone like Della, Bullet’s old lady. Someone from the rougher side of the tracks; someone with a smart mouth and an ability to look after herself, ‘cause I’m not sure Vanni does princesses.
“You all familiar with the Devil Hounds? Got chapters in L.A., Miami, Arizona, Ohio and New Jersey. All places we operate in, all places we own a lot of business; do a lot of business. That’s why I called you all in here. That MC, it’s a fairly new club, but they’re ambitious. They just haven’t learned the right kinda etiquette yet, is all. And that’s giving me one hell of a headache I don’t need, so I think a little lesson in manners is in order. They need to know they can’t fuck with me and my club, they don’t fuck with me and my club. ‘Cause it’s us they’re coming for. Our territory. Our business. And I’m not having that. So, we’re gonna deal with it. My way.”
Jesus. The crazy fucker’s gonna go all-out psycho, ‘cause that’s the only way he knows.
“Our biggest problem? Burbank.”
Ah, shit! Here we go. Been a while since we had any real big kick-off going down, but I’m sensing one’s about to happen.
“So, Bullet, we’re gonna deal with that, right?”
“You got it, Vanni.”
“You know what to do.”
He looks around the room, fixing each and every president of the chapters involved in this upcoming turf war with a look that tells them all that Vanni Colletti isn’t taking any shit. We deal with this, or we all fucking pay.
“Burbank’s the main problem. They’re gunning for our territory big time in California, but the rest of you – we all gotta keep an eye on those fuckers. We gotta be out there, watching them, making sure they get the message. I gotta consignment of weapons arriving from Eastern Europe on Tuesday, I want a couple of members from all the chapters involved to hang around in Vegas ‘til that arrives, take them back to their respective clubs. And use them.” He turns his attention back to me and Bullet. “I got word they been selling crystal and coke on our patch. And that’s affecting us, it’s taking business away, from us. Losing me money. Sort it out.”
We both nod, we get the message. We know what we gotta do. And now I’m hoping that’s it. That we can go back outside and start getting this weekend over with.
“Right. Get out, go enjoy yourselves. I’m paying for this shit, so be grateful.”
Bullet looks at me as everyone starts to stream outside. “You want to stay here?”
“What? ‘Til the shipment arrives?”
“You said you wanted to hit Vegas. You get to do that, for a day or two, if you hang around here. I’ll leave Dragon with you, he needs to see some real club shit happening. Be good for him to get involved now he’s fully patched in.”
“Fine. I got nothing else going on.”
“Good. Now change the face and start enjoying yourself, ‘cause the second we get back home all kindsa crap could be going down.”
“Did you know? About the Devil Hounds?”
“I knew of ‘em. Knew they hadn’t been around all that long. Just didn’t figure they’d be stupid enough to try this kinda shit so early on. Guess they’re gonna pay for that now, huh?”
Bullet slaps me on the shoulder, and then heads outside. I stay where I am for a second or two before I follow him. And it’s full-on out here now. The music’s louder, the noise level’s risen ten-fold, and the smell of drugs and charred meat is all-consuming. But Bullet’s right. I might as well start making the most of it, there isn’t another option on the table right now.
“Bullet tells me we’re hanging around in Vegas ‘til Tuesday.”
I turn to see Dragon approach, all cocky young swagger and misplaced arrogance. He’ll learn. The fact he’s Vanni’s cousin means shit, in fact, it probably means he has to work that little bit harder to prove himself worthy of his place in this club. He’s got a lot to live up to. “Yeah. We’ll take the crash truck back with us.”
“Transporting weapons, huh?”
I narrow my eyes slightly as I light up another joint. It helps take the edge off this shit. “Transporting weapons for your batshit crazy cousin, Dragon. Weapons he expects us to use, to keep our territory back home safe. A new MC – the Devil Hounds – they’re threatening our turf. The second our brothers set foot back in Burbank we’re at war, you understand? Been nothing this big happen since Vanni sent you to us, so you’re gonna need to step up now, kiddo.”
“I can do it.”
See? Misplaced arrogance.
“Yeah. Sure you can.” I drag deep on my joint and hold it out to him. “Here. Kick back while you can.”
“I gotta do some ink in a little while.”
“One drag isn’t gonna hurt, Jesus, you’ve inked me high on freakin’ coke.”
He takes a long drag on the joint before handing it back to me, and we both sit down on a low wall at the edge of Vanni’s ridiculously huge back yard.
“We’ll stay in Vegas. I know a place just outside of Henderson, there’s a brother there who always takes me in when I’m here and need somewhere to stay. He runs an underground casino and bar a mile or so from the main Strip. You’ll like it.”
“Lottsa naked girls, huh?”
I look at him through narrowed eyes. “You think that’s all being one of us involves, Dragon? You being able to get your rocks off with anything that breathes just ‘cause you’re a fully patched in brother now?”
“It’s a perk.”
“Jesus,” I sigh, shaking my head and looking out around me. It’s dark now, and this place isn’t showing any signs of slowing down. Sleep’s a long way off for anyone yet. And then I see her, over by Dragon’s makeshift tattoo studio, talking to a couple of old ladies from our chapter. She’s got a can of beer in one hand, a cigarette in the other, and I’ve never seen a woman look so fucking hot.
“You know which chapter she belongs to?”
“Who?” Dragon asks, following my gaze.
“Her. Over there, talking to Jake’s old lady.”
Dragon squints slightly, and then his expression suddenly changes. “Shit, Logan. You don’t know who she is?”
“Should I?”
“By now you should, yeah.” He looks at me. “You haven’t been, y’know…?”
I raise my eyebrows in question. “What? What the fuck are you talking about?”
“She’s Vanni’s old lady. That’s Piper.”
“Piper?” I glance back over, and I feel my stomach sink as Vanni joins her, sliding a proprietorial arm around her waist, his hand resting on her hip and as she turns her head to kiss him he raises a hand to her neck, pushing her head back slightly, kissing her harder, those tits I assumed were so perfect pressing against that mad motherfucker’s chest. “Punching above his weight, isn’t he?”
“You haven’t done anything…?”
“She spoke to me, Dragon. We said about three words to each other.”
“But you didn’t, y’know, touch her, right?”
“Can’t say I didn’t want to. I mean, come on, look at her! How’d that crazy shithead bag something like that?”
“He found her.”
I laugh, I mean, what? “He found her?”
“She was in his bar, the one the club owns in Vegas. She was on her own, apart from all the horny brothers swarming round her like flies on shit, but Vanni saw them off…”
“And took her for himself.”
“Something like that. She’s crazy about him, apparently.”
“Is she now. He drugging her or something?”
“Don’t let him hear you talking like that, Logan. From all accounts he freakin’ worships the ground she walks on, and if he catches you even looking in her direction…”
He lets that sentence trail off, he doesn’t have to finish it. We all know what Vanni would do if he caught anyone checking out his girl.
“She looks younger than him. She’s just a kid.”
“She’s old enough. Logan, I’m serious. You can’t be seen talking to her, so if she comes to you again…”
“Yeah, yeah, I get it. She’s off limits.”
And she is. Now. Before I knew who she was I was thinking about seeing how far I could take it. One night, two, maybe three if I’m sticking around ‘til Tuesday. But she’s Vanni Colletti’s girl. She’s untouchable.
It’s back to plan A, to those cheap whores and bitches. Fucking them won’t get me killed. Just looking at Piper will.
Piper
I don’t feel like a bride should probably feel the night before her wedding. I was brought up in a family where weddings were huge occasions, the kind of celebration that brought everyone together; temporarily healed rifts. And the kind of rifts my family had, well, if you knew that you’d know how important weddings could be, acting as a kind of no-man’s-land, a neutral zone. But those rifts never healed permanently. They were always sorted. Always dealt with. Always. No exceptions. Not yet…
“You sleeping in my bed tonight, baby girl?” Vanni whispers in my ear, and I breathe in deep as his warm breath hits that space just below my ear. “Or you going all traditional and sleeping alone?”
“Never alone.” I smile, and his face breaks into a grin. “And do you want to tell me anything that’s traditional about our wedding?”
“You’ll be wearing white,” he murmurs, his grin widening, and I laugh as he kisses me, his hand falling onto my ass.
“I gotta go pee, Van.”
“Go out here. I can watch.”
“Then you’ll want to fuck.”
“Then I’ll want to fuck... man, you know me so well.”
He takes my hand and we head round the back of the house, it’s quiet there. We’re alone, although, there are times when Vanni doesn’t care who’s watching. And times when he’s fiercely private. Tonight, I don’t think he has a preference.
As I wriggle out of my jeans, slipping my boots back on – I know that’s one thing he does want – he crouches down in front of an old discarded crate and sets up a few lines of coke, snorting a couple as I squat to pee.
“Some there for you too, baby.” He rises to his feet and lights up a joint as I finish up, wiping myself with the handkerchief he hands me before I squat back down and take that hit of pure white powder. Vanni doesn’t deal in shit, only the best for him. He prides himself on the fact his club deals only in the highest quality coke, it’s how he makes so much money. And drugs, that’s only the tip of the iceberg as far as his business dealings go, I’m guessing. He doesn’t talk to me much about that side of things. He tells me what I need to know, which is very little. And I know my place.
“Come here, baby girl.”
I stand up, quickly wiping my nose with my forearm as I sashay toward him, naked from the waist down, bar those boots, the way he’s looking at me, and the effects of the coke making me feel insanely horny. And then he reaches out and grabs my hand, yanking me toward him, swinging me around and slamming me back against the wall, his mouth on mine in a ferocious kiss that swipes the breath right out of me. And I don’t even have time to catch it before he’s plunged his fingers inside me, and I cry out in pain, but that only lasts the briefest of seconds as he finds that place within me that makes me forget everything else, except this.
“Pretend you said no,” he murmurs, his mouth still touching mine, his fingers still inside me. “Pretend you don’t want this.”
I’m not new to this game, even though it’s one of his more twisted, fucked up ones. I said he doesn’t need permission, but the one thing Vanni has never done is take me when I don’t want him to, and I trust that he never would. He just likes to play messed-up shit sometimes. And I know, as a woman, that using rape as a game is so utterly wrong, it makes me sick to my stomach because it’s… I can control this. He lets me. If I say no he’ll drop this game, move onto something else. But I can control it.
“I don’t want this,” I whisper, but when he looks at me he knows, whether I really mean that or whether I’m accepting his game. He knows, it’s the latter.
“Then let’s play, baby girl.”
Let’s play. A dangerous, dangerous game…
Logan
“Is he gonna be OK? Dragon, I mean. You gonna be all right keeping an eye on him?”
“I’m not babysitting him, if that’s what you mean. And it was your idea to leave him here, but, hey, if you don’t think he’s ready to handle this yet, pull him. Leave someone else. Shit, I could do it on my own, I’m only driving the truck back to California.”
“Two people are better than one, Logan. It’s safer. Those weapons Vanni’s having delivered, we’re not just talking a few hand pistols here, he knows some real dangerous people over in Europe.”
“I can handle it alone, Bullet. Jesus, you know the shit I’ve been through, you think this scares me? This is nothing compared to what I saw out there… It’s freakin’ kindergarten crap.”
“Just take the second man, all right? Let’s not mess this up. ‘Cause I ain’t in no mood to face the wrath of Vanni Colletti.”
“He’s got plenty of distractions.”
“Takes more than a piece of tight young ass to distract Vanni. He could have his dick rammed right inside her and still know if someone’s fucked up somewhere.”
“You seen her?”
“Who?”
“Vanni’s girl.”
“Piper? Yeah. I seen her. Not my type, but if she wasn’t marrying that crazy motherfucker…” He shrugs, “I’d probably do her.”
“Probably?” I laugh, ‘cause I can’t believe he used the word probably. “Man, Della’s really got a screw on your balls, huh?”
“Ready to tighten the second she suspects I’m even thinking about another woman. And if Vanni catches you even thinking about Piper…”
“Yeah, yeah, I already had that conversation with Dragon.”
“Listen to the kid. He’s Vanni’s cousin, he knows better than anyone what that brother’s capable of… Hey… did you hear that?”
We stop walking, both of us standing perfectly still as we try to make out a faint noise nearby, I think it’s coming from the back of the house, it’s hard to tell, the noise of the party is still everywhere.
“Could be someone trying to break in,” Bullet says, sliding a hand round behind him to make sure his gun’s in place.
“Nah. Vanni’s got cameras everywhere, and those freakin’ devil dogs of his…”
“We should check it out anyway. Just in case.”
We walk slowly around the side of the house, and it’s clear now, what that sound is. What’s happening.
“Jesus Christ, Bullet, is he…?”
“Keep it down, OK? We don’t know it’s him.”
“Doesn’t matter who the fuck it is, that’s wrong, man.”
Bullet edges a little further forward, and then he looks back at me. “Yeah, it’s Vanni. It’s just him and Piper, it’s fine.”
“That doesn’t sound like fine, what the fuck’s he doing to her?”
I squint slightly as I try to focus on what’s happening. She’s half-naked, backed up against the wall, and she’s fighting him, but he’s winning, and I watch as he rams his dick into her, over and over again, he’s getting off on that shit, big time. He’s one sick motherfucker. And I don’t feel good about this.
“She don’t look like she wants that, Bullet.”
“Leave it, Logan. The last thing you do – the last thing anyone does – is get involved with Vanni’s messed-up shit.”
“You’re just letting him get away with that?”
“Walk away, Logan. Don’t fucking go there. Come on.”
“Jesus… And she’s still gonna marry the guy?”
“I said, leave it. OK? It ain’t our business. Besides, you know the kinda crap that goes on in our own clubhouse, don’t pretend we treat our women like princesses. You don’t give a shit about any of ‘em.”
“I don’t take without permission, either.”
“Well don’t that make you the good guy, huh?”
“Piss off, Bullet. Shit! I’m gonna go get wasted. This whole freakin’ set-up is fucking twisted, man.”
And I’ve seen some seriously twisted shit in my time. I’ve seen torture and pain, I’ve inflicted things on others that I thought had desensitized me to anything. I’ve killed, I’ve seen people close to me die for no reason, I’ve seen lives taken and wasted and I’ve dealt with it. I had to. But the one thing I have never done is take a woman when she didn’t want me. Never. So I guess I’m not really as emotionless as I thought I was. And that scares the shit outta me.