The MC had caused a lot of pain and terror, no doubt about it. But it could also be a fortress when it needed to be, a place for men and the women they claimed to find what they needed to survive.
Right now, I had everything I truly needed in my arms.
“I told you before, and for some fucked up reason, you keep doubting it. I'm gonna bring your old man back here alive. Then I'm gonna bust his fucking jaw myself for his mistakes. The Chinese won't get another piece of him.”
I swallowed the bitter lump in my throat, remembering how cold, disgusting, and alien his dismembered hand had seemed in mine.
“How can you make that promise? He might already be dead, Austin.”
“He's not, Elle. I've known fucks like the Black Dragons before. It's not all business to them. They're bastards, like big cats. They like to torture their prey nice and slow before making the kill, and they'll probably try to do it when somebody's watching.” Asphalt looked at me, his green eyes going dark as the Pacific tide. “Your old man's alive, and he's in hell.”
My face cracked again, but not before he reached up, cupped my chin, and pulled my face close until we were just inches apart.
“We'll bring him home. One week. I'll ride everybody in this fucking club 'til they do it, or fuck, I'll take off and deal with them myself. This is the last day you're ever gonna cry, Elle Jo, and I'm the man who's gonna make you stop.”
How could I argue with that confidence?
I couldn't. Not when he jerked me close to his chest, tipped my face, and kissed me so hard I thought I'd faint all over again.
The boys were away all evening after we got back. I heard rumblings from the big meeting room next door, and the occasional shout, Blackjack slamming something hard against the table, calling men to order.
Finally, the door popped open and hit the wall, and men came filing out into the bar, rumbling among themselves.
Asphalt opened my door, came in, and sank down into the worn loveseat next to me.
“Well?” I said, trying not to let too much hope creep into my voice.
“I shouldn't be talking club biz with you, babe, but I'm gonna make a single exception to say this.” He paused, and looked at me with a stare so intense it turned my blood cold. “We're sure the Dragons are holed up in an old plant just outside Portland. Intel says your old man's alive, just like we thought, though I'm not sure being handcuffed to a fucking radiator with one hand can be called living.”
I didn't care. Hearing confirmation that daddy's heart was still beating was enough for me. I jumped up, threw my arms around him, and kissed the stubble on his cheek.
Only problem with kissing this man – I always wanted another taste. No matter how dark or strained or dire things might get, he drew me like fire.
Familiar needles stabbed at my nerves. I ran my fingers down his back, remembering how amazing it felt to have his naked skin on mine the night before.
“Not so fast,” he said, pushing me away with a dark look on his face.
“What? What's wrong?”
“Busting in and decapitating the motherfuckers isn't as simple as it sounds. The Portland boys tell us this place they've got is built like a brick shithouse. Club's got their lawyers doing their damnedest to deflect the shit from the Feds after that warehouse went up like a small fucking nuke. Thank fuck everything around it was abandoned, or we'd really be up shit creek. We can't have another firefight go down like that. Our network with dirty cops in Portland doesn't run as deep, and we'll all end up behind bars if the Chinese trap this place like they did the last one, start blowing shit up when we tango...”
I wracked my brain. I wasn't even close to cut out for advising on strategy, but there had to be something they could do, some way to take down the bastards torturing my father without drawing too much attention.
“Does anybody in your Portland crew know Chinese?” I smiled as he looked at me like I'd lost my mind, already knowing the answer. “Thought so. Daddy was going to use me to make sure no tricks were going down when they talked among themselves, back when I thought they had a deal on paper. Maybe there's still some way I can help, figure out what they're really planning.”
“Elle, no. Fuck no.”
Asphalt grabbed me by the shoulders and gave me a hard shake. “You're not getting within a hundred fucking miles of that city, or between our guns. Besides, even if I lost my mind and let you show up there with us, they'd know something was up, bringing you back. I'm not gonna do it. That idea's completely fucked.”
“But –“
“No. We don't need to figure out what the assholes are saying to each other anyway. We just need to kill 'em dead without making too much racket.”