“Excuse me?” Cara asked as she shuffled back a step.
“You heard me.”
“What’s your problem? I don’t even know you. Back off.”
Brandi and Kristy, sensing drama, perked up.
“My problem, skank, is that you think you’re better than us just ’cause you’ve got Hawk’s cock in your pussy.”
“I don’t think that’s any of your business.”
“The fuck it ain’t. You can’t come here, acting like you own the place, fuckin’ Hawk like you’re his woman. You ain’t shit, bitch.”
“I’m not going to stand here arguing with you. You’re jealous of my relationship with Hawk. That’s your problem, not mine.”
“You fuckin’ slut. You think ’cause you got yourself a high-class pussy that you’re woman enough for Hawk? You ain’t, bitch!”
Cara turned away from Lola.
“Don’t you turn your back on me, slut! Let me tell you something: Hawk’s been in my pussy; he ain’t a one-woman man. He’ll get tired of your girlie-ass cunt, and he’ll be comin’ to me when he craves a real woman’s pussy. Got that, slut?”
Banger, Ruben, and Billy stood in the doorway and watched as Lola, red-faced from anger, yelled at Cara as she turned toward the door.
Lurching, Lola grabbed Cara’s shoulders and dragged her forward while Lola screamed, “I told you not to fuckin’ turn your back on me, bitch!” Shaking her, Lola drew her face close to Cara’s and hollered, “Get the fuck outta here! You don’t fit in!”
Watching in amusement, Brandi encouraged Lola, “You tell her, girlfriend. This thinking-I’m-better-than-you skank needs to be taught a lesson. Fuck, her weak pussy will never keep Hawk satisfied.”
Kristy laughed.
Lola hissed, “Bitch, none of us are gonna give up Hawk’s cock in our pussies, especially to a whore like you.” Lola pushed Cara hard. She fell against one of the tables as all the women laughed.
With her hand raised, Lola rushed toward Cara, but before she struck her, Cara lifted her right hand and whack! The force of Cara’s slap threw Lola off-balance as she stumbled backward, landing on her round ass. The right side of her face bored Cara’s red handprint, and her tender flesh swelled.
Shocked, Brandi and Kristy stared at Cara. Lola, holding her face in her hands, glanced at Banger as he and the brothers cracked up. With twinkling blue eyes, he said, “You got what you had comin’ to you, slut.”
Brandi brought an ice pack over to Lola, who put it on her swelling face as she threw dirty looks at Cara. Cara, mortified she’d succumbed to a brawl with a woman Hawk banged, scurried out of the kitchen, up the stairs, and locked herself in Hawk’s room.
Cara replayed the scenario again in her mind. How could Hawk have slept with that horrible, vulgar woman? How many times had he been with her? As hard as she tried, Cara couldn’t stop the images of Lola and Hawk together in the bed she shared with him. What if Lola’s right? Will Hawk get tired of me and go back to her? Cara couldn’t bear it if he betrayed her. Having allowed herself to become too wrapped up with Hawk, she couldn’t turn back. She had guarded her heart for so long, but since she had given it to him, he’d probably hurt her more than any other man ever had.
How stupid could she be to think Hawk would ever be satisfied with just one woman, let alone one like her who wasn’t experienced or adventuresome? Even though he said he was cool, she knew he was disappointed because she wouldn’t screw him in public the night before. Her stomach roiled and she laughed dryly. She’d never satisfy him or be enough for him. Loneliness surrounded her like a shroud, and she just wanted to go back to her house.
Pressing her throbbing temples, Cara tried to dispel images of the last few days with Hawk. At that moment, she wanted to run far away from him, the Insurgents, the Deadly Demons, and the women who serviced all the men anytime, anywhere.
Cara sat by the window and stared at the pine trees clustered around the clubhouse grounds, their frost-covered needles sparkling like diamonds. The dying leaves of the almost-bare trees around the compound swirled in the icy wind. As the sun hid behind the gray clouds, the dreary weather complemented her mood. Her body craved Hawk’s protective arms, yet her common sense told her to run away. A knot of desire and fear consumed her.
In order to quell the mounting inner stress, she decided to give Hawk the benefit of the doubt and speak with him when he came back. Curling up in the recliner, Cara covered herself with one of Hawk’s jackets, his sandalwood scent filling her nostrils. Bringing the garment around her chin, she burrowed deeper into the chair, apprehension seizing her as she wondered if the club business Hawk was taking care of was dangerous.
* * *
Hawk, Jax, Axe, and Chas stayed in the brush and watched the Nomads’ clubhouse. It was an old three-story farmhouse with a barn and a whole lot of barbed wire around the structures. Parked to the left of the barn was a large truck.
Hawk surveyed the area to see the layout of the clubhouse and to get an idea of how many Nomads were in there. The Nomads had owned a clubhouse for several years, and even though they were independent, they still answered to the national president of the Deadly Demons. The Insurgents never had trouble with the Nomads because when they moved into the county next to Insurgents territory, Hawk and Banger told them, in no uncertain terms, that if they didn’t want trouble, they had to stay low and out of Insurgents’ fucking business.
For many years, the Insurgents and the Deadly Demons used to be rival clubs, and club wars were the norm. After years of killing each other and having brothers on both sides locked up, the two clubs called a truce. They both recognized that neither side was winning, but they were all losing, so for the past five years, the Deadly Demons did their thing and the Insurgents did theirs. As long as the Deadly Demons respected the Insurgents and their territory, the Insurgents had no reason to mess with them.
The Nomads seemed like they respected the truce between their mother club and the Insurgents, but they didn’t—they’d overstepped the line, and some retribution was necessary. The Nomads not only trafficked women and meth through Insurgents territory, they had also placed a thief at Dream House, had the fucking badges focused on the Insurgents, and their asshole president, Viper, had messed with Cara. Whether the national president, Reaper, condoned the betrayal was unclear, but what was clear was that the assholes needed to be set straight.
Viper came out of the clubhouse and walked toward the truck, and it took all of Hawk’s resolve not to shoot him on the spot. Seeing Viper’s hands, he pictured them on Cara’s body, and he grunted angrily. Jax, hearing Hawk’s short breaths, whispered, “Easy, now, you got time for all that. We’re here to scout.”
“I know. I just can’t wait to stomp on that fucker’s balls,” Hawk hissed.
Viper opened the back of the truck, and two Nomads jumped into the back. “Out, get the fuck out. Now. Come on sluts, out!”
Fifteen young, terrified ladies jumped out the back of the truck. Viper touched each woman as they passed him, grabbing their tits, asses, and pussies. The women recoiled from his touch, and a pretty blonde girl with ice blue eyes sobbed. Viper pulled her from the group. “Put this one in the basement in the Dungeon Room,” he said to one of the members. As she twisted in Viper’s grip, he backhanded her, then dragged her to the cellar door.
A brunette dressed in leather shorts and a tight top stood shivering in the late-morning air. Viper pulled her to him and squeezed her tits. Yelping, the woman struggled to break free of him, and a cruel smile played on Viper’s lips. “You’re a fighter. I like that. We’re gonna have some fun before I send you to Phoenix.” Viper shoved her into a side door, saying, “Take her to my room.”
For half an hour, the women were checked in, groped, slapped, and shoved through various doors. Each time one of the Nomads abused a woman, the Insurgents clenched their jaws. They would’ve liked nothing better than to take out those motherfuckers and free the women, but the Nomads overpowered them in numbers—there were twelve members including Viper. Hawk didn’t want to jeopardize their lives, but he hated to see the women mistreated. Although, he knew after the women left the clubhouse, a dire fate faced them as they’d be smuggled to various massage parlors and brothels across state lines.
“You two stay here to see when the women leave. These assholes won’t risk keeping them here overnight. My guess is they’ll move them out soon. Jax, give Banger a call with the details. I’ll send some more brothers. Once the women are out, riddle the club.” Several assault weapons and grenades accompanied the group on their scouting mission. “Blow it to fuckin’ Hell,” he said.
“Can’t wait,” Jax said while Chas nodded. Everyone’s adrenaline pumped.
“We’ll get a few members to intercept the truck and let the women go. This trafficking is pussy bullshit. I knew the Nomads were nothin’ but bitches,” Hawk sneered. “Keep Viper alive until I get back. That fucker is mine.”
Hawk rolled his Harley down a ways so as not to create suspicion among the Nomads. Then he jumped on and hauled ass to Pinewood Springs.