Precarious(67)

I hear the door open and heavy footfalls fill the quiet space.

“Still here, sweetheart.” He chuckles. “Didn’t think you’d go far. Don’t worry; your friend has decided to trade her life for yours. You’ll be free soon.”

“A-a-a-ash?” she croaks.

He laughs. “Yeah, Ash. Goin’ to have fun with her before I slit her throat.”

Claire makes a strangled sound and I clench my eyes shut, praying he doesn’t come too close.

“Maybe I’ll have fun with you before I let you go. I’m in need of some good pussy.”

Please, no.

I chant this over and over in my head.

Please don’t let him rape her. There’s no way I can sit through that.

“Please, don’t,” Claire croaks, echoing my thoughts.

“You’re too pitiful for a man like me, anyway,” he grunts. “I like them wild.”

I want to breathe a sigh of relief, but even the idea of breathing scares me right now. I don’t know how much time I have left, but I hope he leaves soon or I’m in trouble. Maddox will come back, and he’ll make a scene if I don’t contact him soon.

That’s the last thing we need.

“Speaking of pussy,” Howard says, “I might just go find some.”

Thank God.

He walks over towards the door, and I catch a glimpse of him. He’s a big man, with a long, dark beard and an old, wrinkled face. Faded tattoos run up his neck. He’s been at it a long time. He stares at Claire again, then he steps out and slams the door. Locking it.

I finally breathe.

My heart pounds fast as I wait for a few minutes, then I slip out from behind the desk. I open the drawer, take the keys and rush over to Claire. I lean down, whispering, “I’m coming back for you. I promise.”

She nods, her eyes watering.

I reach up and squeeze her hand before slipping out the window again. I pull my phone out and text Maddox.

S – I can get her out. It’s time.

M – Ten minutes, baby. We’ll be there.

I hate when he calls me baby; hate and love it. I shove the thought aside as I rush back inside the clubhouse. I see Howard again when I step through the back door, but he barely gives me a second glance as I shimmy down the hall. I slip into the room Jayger was in to find him already naked on the bed.

“Fuck, that took ages. What did you do in there?”

“I needed a smoke,” I mutter.

He takes hold of his cock and strokes it. He’s a good-looking man, sure, but I want to go over and bite that cock right off. It takes everything inside me not to gag. I force a smile, hoping Maddox hurries up and causes a distraction.

I take my time, swinging my hips and doing little spins. Jayger seems to appreciate my efforts, and it buys me some time. I slide my hands seductively over my body, grinning at him as I move. He grins back, jerking his cock harder and faster. At this rate, he’ll have nothing to offer.

That’s exactly how I want it.

Commotion breaks out in the lounge, and I hear someone bark, “Jokers’.”

I breathe a sigh of relief. I turn my eyes to Jayger, but he’s already up, pulling on some jeans. “Stay here,” he barks.

He rushes out of the room, and I wait a minute before following him. I step into the lounge, and all the bikers are loading guns. Shit. Fuck. What if they hurt them? I slide out the back door, my heart pounding as I run around to Claire’s room once more. I couldn’t get her out earlier, because I needed to know Maddox was here before I ran.

I climb through the window and rush to her bed, uncuffing her. “Can you run?” I ask.

She nods.

I help her out the window, and we press ourselves up against the side of the house, and listen for a moment.

“Just here to talk, Howard.”

Maddox.

“Ain’t nothin’ to talk to you about. You’re on my land, so I’ll give you five fuckin’ minutes to get off before I blow your brains out.”

“We got plenty to talk about,” Maddox barks, ignoring the threat. “Like why you’re takin’ shit that ain’t yours.”

“No idea what you’re talkin’ about,” Howard growls.

“Talkin’ about the little present you left me.”

Maddox isn’t giving away that he knows Howard has Claire. Smart. There’s a long silence.

“You liked that, huh?” Howard laughs.

I don’t stay around to listen. I take Claire’s hand and we dart forward. We come crashing into a hard form before we’ve even taken two steps. I cry out and stumble backwards, falling down. There’s a biker, one of Howard’s, looming over Claire.

“Where the fuck do you think you’re goin’?”