Hostage (Predators MC #3) (7 page)

“
W
e’re five minutes away
.” Jackal raised his voice so Penni could hear him above the wind. He felt her perk up at his back.

He was as relieved as she was. If her ass was as numb as his was, she was going to be in bad shape. Should he offer to massage it for her? He laughed, knowing she couldn’t hear him. Since the first night they had stopped, he had made sure to treat her the same way he had seen her girlfriends behave when they were together.

Suspicious at first, she had gradually become more comfortable around him.
Riding a motorcycle practically nonstop would do that for you
, Jackal thought sardonically. He didn’t know why he hadn’t tried the friend trap before.

Parking his bike next to Cruz, Jackal helped Penni off. When she would have fallen, Jackal caught her by the waist.

“Thank you.”

Jackal kept her at arm’s length, solicitously releasing her as soon as she caught her balance.

“You’re welcome.”

He was wound so tightly from being near Penni it was everything he could do not to throw her down on the nearest bed. Jesus, he was being a fucking saint. The Road Kingz and the Predators would laugh their asses off at the dick-less way he was treating her. He was doing everything but painting her fingernails. He had never put so much work into getting a bitch in his bed, and he couldn’t explain to himself why he was now.

He had learned at an early age not to become a dependent on a particular woman. Jackal’s father had beaten that into him when his mother had left.

His mother had disappeared one day when he had gone to school. At eight years old, he had waited for her to come back. His father had told him that she wasn’t going to, that she had taken off with another man. Jackal hadn’t believed him at first. Then, as the days and months had passed, he had finally accepted that she wasn’t returning.

His father hadn’t seemed to miss her. Women would show up and stay a day or two then leave after an argument. Jackal was ten when he had begun calling him the nickname his drinking buddies called him. Bulldog had been waiting for him one day after school. From his furious expression, Jackal had known he was going to get a beating.

He had received a letter from school that he had been late three times. It hadn’t been surprising since Jackal had been the only one responsible for getting himself dressed and walking to school since he had usually missed the school bus. It had been a blessing in disguise when Bulldog had broken his arm. An ER physician had reported his father to the cops, and Jackal had been placed in foster care. It had taken Bulldog three months to get custody back. What had followed were years of being in and out of foster care. Then, when the beatings had become severe enough to send him back to the ER, Jackal had asked his father why he had even bothered to get him back from foster care. His answer had run chills down his back.

“I made sure that bitch you called a mother didn’t take you when she tried to leave me, and I’m fucking sure as shit not letting you leave me unless you’re in a casket.”

Bulldog had done his damnedest to keep his word. The scar that marked his face was the reason his father had received a prison sentence that was almost over.

“We’re not going to a hotel?”

“No, Hennessy wants to take a break.”

“Don’t make me regret my decision to let you take her in with us,” Hennessy warned.

Jackal wrapped his arm around Penni’s waist as they walked toward the restaurant to keep her from replying to Hennessy’s warning.

The town was filled with motorcycle clubs showing off during the Spring Rally. Several bikers eyed them as they neared the doorway of the restaurant, but none of them spoke. Jackal wondered which of their group they were most cautious of starting a fight with: his scarred face was a hostile mask; Hennessy’s height easily towered over the rest of them; and Cruz at the rear was no slouch, his muscular build drawing their attention.

Inside, Jackal led Penni to a booth near the front door. She slid in, and then he slid in after her. Hennessy and Cruz sat down across from them while the rest of the Road Kingz took two other booths beside them.

Jackal ignored Penni’s attempt to put more space between them, sliding another inch to pin her closer against the wall. If shit went down inside the restaurant, he would be able to block her from getting hurt.

“Do you mind?” Penni tried to push him back.

“No. I have plenty of room.”

“Good for you,” she snapped. “But you’re squishing me.”

“You could come over here and sit next to me,” Hennessey offered. “Cruz can sit at another table.”

“Never mind.” Penni quickly looked down at the menu she took from the waitress.

Jackal and Hennessy shared a grin across the table. It reminded him of the old times from before Hennessy had become consumed with watching out for DJ.

“What can I get you?” the waitress asked.

“I’ll take a steak and baked potato,” Jackal ordered.

“I’ll take the same,” Hennessy ordered, leaning back against the booth. “You’re buying.”

“Me, too,” Cruz repeated.

“I hope I have enough in my account to pay,” Jackal complained.

When Penni didn’t order, he looked at her then almost laughed out loud. She had kept up her pretense of being a vegetarian. He had taken several of her meals that they had ordered for them, but he had eaten his last veggie burger or bean burrito. She was on her own.

She pushed her short, blonde hair back from her cheek as she studied her menu, frowning. When she bit her lip, Jackal broke. Damn, he was a sucker when she did that. It sent a lightning bolt to his dick.

“Give her the same as me. You can blame me later. You’re going to need the protein for what I’m going to do to you tonight.”

Her mouth dropped open as the waitress snickered while she walked away. Penni’s face turned a bright red.

Leaning down, he brushed her hair back. “You want me to order you something else?” he teased then jerked back when she dug her nails into his thigh under the table.

“I can order for myself.”

He stared back at her, finally understanding why Penni had claimed to be a vegetarian. She had resented them making the choice for her instead of being asked what she wanted to eat. Penni was a control freak. Jackal wasn’t surprised. Penni and Shade didn’t share the same father, but they did have the same mother. The apple must not have fallen far from that particular tree.

“Aw, don’t feel bad about last night. I’m sure it happens to all men,” Penni cooed with a malicious glint in her eye.

Hennessy and Cruz shook their heads. “Not me,” they spoke at the same time.

When the Road Kingz looked with sympathy at him while they shook their heads, Jackal was tempted to spank her ass in front of the whole restaurant.

If he hadn’t been pretending as if he were her BFF, he would show her exactly …

The door opening distracted him from planning his revenge. The Predators filed inside as if they owned the restaurant.

“What the fuck!” Hennessy growled as he and the Road Kingz moved to stand up.

“Back down,” Jackal hissed. “The Road Kingz aren’t the only club here for the rally. The Predators are as tired as we are.”

Jackal laid his hand over Penni’s on his thigh. She was looking at Ice, Max, and Colton as if they could save her. It was the way he had wanted her to look at him. Jackal’s hurt pride had him pulling away from her.

“Ice doesn’t want any trouble. He just wants to feed his men and give them a chance to rest.”

“If he gets near Penni …” Hennessy sat back down.

“You keep your word to give her back, and Ice will keep his. Besides, if anyone starts some shit, Ice can help out.”

“I don’t need the Predators’ help.”

Jackal believed him. The Road Kingz weren’t cowards, and they all appeared ready to fight. Hennessy seemed to be returning the Road Kingz to their former glory.

The waitress arrived with their plates, and Jackal didn’t miss the beseeching look Penni shot her. When she lowered hurt-filled eyes as the waitress walked away, Jackal swallowed his hurt pride.

“You’re going to be okay.”

She nodded but didn’t look up, beginning to eat her food. He was a freaking sucker where she was concerned. He didn’t want her sitting there, disappointed that the Predators weren’t making a stand to force her release.

He wanted Penni as his woman. He wanted her to learn that, if anything happened to him, the Predators would take care of her.

“As soon you show me Striker, you can go. I don’t get my kicks from threatening women.”

“That’s not how it seemed when you took me hostage.”

“Don’t get me wrong; I’ll do what I have to in order to keep my men safe. To do that, I have to find Striker. Finish eating and let’s get out of here. The Predators are ruining my appetite.”

His word had the desired effect, and she began eating. Jackal spared Hennessy a grateful look for reassuring Penni.

Penni was one of the most confident women he had ever met, but even she had to be worried about her safety surrounded by so many outlaw motorcycle clubs. Hell, he was worried. The restaurant was filled with at least four different outlaw clubs that he recognized from their colors and patches.

When the waitress returned, Penni turned her head away. Jackal took the check when Hennessy mockingly handed it to him.

“If Jackal keeps feeding us like this, we might need decide to keep him,” he joked.

“If you would give me my purse back, I’d pay.”

“That’s not going to happen. I almost lost my hand when I searched it, and I should have sent Cruz to the ER for the cut on his finger.”

“I told you not to open it.”

“Yes, you did.”

Hennessy and Cruz stood up as Jackal reached out his hand to help Penni slip out of the booth. The Predators stared at them coldly as they filed out the door. Hennessy acknowledged Ice’s cold stare, saluting him mockingly.

Penni sat down on his bike. As he was about to get on, though, she stopped him.

“Ice did that for me, didn’t he?”

“Yes, he did.” he answered, knowing she had referred to Ice’s menacing attitude.

Sitting down, Penni perched her chin on his shoulder. “I’ll have to make him a cake when I get home. Grace said he loves cake.”

“You’re not making Ice a fucking cake.” Jackal started his bike, revving the motor then backing out of the parking spot.

“Why not?”

He wanted to snarl jealously at her, but he reminded himself to play it cool. “He’s on a diet.”

“Really? He doesn’t look like he needs to be on a diet. He looks really good to me.”

Jackal, backing up, planted his leather boots on the pavement.
Did she just say that to me?

He’d had more of the BFF bullshit than he could stand. The thought of her staring at Ice’s body had him wanting to hit the nearest wall.

“Yeah, Grace is complaining he’s getting a big gut,” Jackal lied without remorse.

“I don’t want to break his diet.”

He nodded, relieved he wouldn’t have to kill his president because of Penni making him a fucking cake. He lifted his boot to the foot peg, accelerating toward the busy street.

“I’ll have to give him a big hug.”

His bike jerked when she yelled in his ear.

When he came to a stop at a red light, he turned back to her.

“I know something you can give him.”

“What?”

“Buy him his favorite liquor.”

“That’s a good idea. What is it?”

“Hennessy.” Jackal revved his engine. “And put a big ol’ bow on it.”

“
W
e’re not staying
. Hennessy’s only giving us time to shower. He wants to find Striker.”

Penni paused as she was about to lie down on the hotel bed. “I’m not going to argue with that. The sooner, the better.” She brushed her fingers through her tousled hair. “I want a shower, but I don’t have any clean clothes to put on. The clothes I washed last night are still damp, and the ones I’m wearing are the only other pair I have.”

“I can go and buy you some clothes while you shower …”

A sharp knock on the door had Jackal opening the door, only to see no one there. Penni watched as he leaned down to pick something up. She almost jumped up and down in excitement when she watched Jackal lay her overnight bag and purse on the bed.

“Hennessy must like you.”

“What?” Penni unzipped her suitcase, pulling clean clothes and underwear into her arms.

“He gave your things back. He would have tossed them in a dumpster if he didn’t like you.”

“He must not like me too much; my purse is practically empty.” Penni searched the purse which now had a busted zipper. “He didn’t even give my wallet back.”

“At least you have your clothes back.”

She was too thrilled to have clothes again to get upset. If anyone tried to use her credit cards, they would be disappointed. Her new home had put a big dent in her checking account and credit limit. She had sacrificed everything but the bare necessities since she had moved in, and then she had found she couldn’t really enjoy the backyard she had been looking forward to because of the damn bees.

“I’m going to take a shower.”

Jackal lay down on the bed, turning on the television. His T-shirt rode up his waist, exposing his tan skin. How could he be that dark when it was still early spring? Penni felt her mouth go dry and unconsciously wet her bottom lip.

When she didn’t move, Jackal turned from the television. “You need something else?”

Penni shook her head, escaping into the bathroom before she did something she would regret.

Leaning back against the closed door, she took several deep breaths, calming her rioting nerves.

It was easy to see why the women who worked at King’s former bar were all at his beck and call. Jackal had a lazy sensuality that drew women in. He wasn’t a man whom women would run over. With Jackal, you knew exactly what you were getting—a male chauvinist who called all the shots in the short-term relationships he had.

Could they even be called relationships? According to her friends, they were nights of sexual excesses that had them begging for repeat performances.

Penni began to question the futility of her virginity. The man she had been saving herself for treated her like a little sister. Shade had told her over and over again she was wasting her time, and Penni had huffily told him that he had waited for Lily and hadn’t given up hope. Her brother was now happily married with a baby boy. Giving up hope wasn’t in their DNA.

She removed her clothes then stepped into the shower. The warm spray didn’t cool the heat that Jackal had built.

“Jesus,” Penni mumbled, shoving positive thoughts through her mind instead of focusing on the picture of Jackal sprawled out body on the bed on the other side of the door.

She hurried through her shower. She needed to find Striker and get the hell out of Dodge before she attacked Jackal and was arrested. He had astonished her by being well-behaved, showing a sense of humor she hadn’t known he possessed. Penni had begun to like his friendly overtures when he would ask about her work with Mouth2Mouth. At first, she had believed he was trying to find out if she had any relationships with the band. The more they had talked, the more he had seemed interested in whether she enjoyed the work she did. Even Lily and Grace became bored when she discussed her work. She found out that he grasped the concept of the huge amount of work and attention to detail it took to pull off a concert with thousands of screaming fans.

Penni dried off then got dressed. Then, using whatever makeup Hennessy had left inside her purse, she made herself feel almost normal again. If she ever got home, she promised herself to pack a larger suitcase and to keep it in her car. Changing her mind, she promised herself to ride the bus from now on. She believed in learning from her mistakes, and not following Kaden’s orders had been a doozy.

It didn’t take long for Jackal to shower. Penni waited patiently, trying not to imagine his naked body on the other side the door. She was all about being friends with the opposite sex, but Jackal was a temptation who was becoming a fasciation she was having difficulty resisting, and the man didn’t even realize she was becoming attracted to him. It was like watching a car wreck in slow motion and knowing it would end in disaster, but you still couldn’t look away.

She thought they would drive, but when she moved toward Jackal’s bike, he took her hand and pulled her through the crowd, walking through the parking lot. Hennessy and Cruz walked next to them.

“Thank you for letting me have my things back,” she muttered to Hennessy, unsure how to talk to the imposing man, but she couldn’t resist criticism on the way her things were returned. “It would have been nice if I had my wallet in case I wanted to buy something.”

“If you want something, Jackal can buy it. He has all kinds of money.”

Penni couldn’t understand his mysterious comment, though she didn’t miss the sharp look Jackal gave Hennessy. It would have been nice to have her wallet if she managed to slip away from the Road Kingz. Obviously, Hennessy had thought of that, which was why he hadn’t given it back.

Like escaping is going to happen, anyway!
Penni snorted to herself. She was surrounded by Hennessy and his men.

“Where are we going?” Penni asked Jackal, curious about how Hennessy planned to find Striker.

Hennessy was the one who answered. “To the Night Owl. It’s a bar where most of the clubs hang out. Cruz and I will be next to you the entire time, so don’t think you can sneak away. The men there won’t give a shit that you don’t want to be there.” He turned toward her, giving her a calculated glance. “Hell, it’ll make their fucking night, and you’ll find yourself in more trouble than you bargained for. The clubs there are one percenters, and they aren’t squeamish about slitting our throats and raping you before they buy everyone at the bar a round of beers.”

In other words, they weren’t The Last Riders. Penni wondered how the Predators behaved when they were away from Grace, Vida, and Casey. Their husbands seemed happily married, but did they act like the men who were lining the streets?

Flushing, Penni saw women within the groups wearing shorts and tops. She was wearing jeans and a sweatshirt, and she was freaking cold. These women didn’t even look chilled.

Penni was relieved and terrified when she saw the huge sign for the Night Owl on top of a building that had a massive crowd out front.

“I can’t believe there aren’t any signs of the police.”

“Believe it,” Jackal replied sardonically. “It would take the National Guard to get a squad car through this part of town.”

Both Jackal and Hennessy shifted closer to her side as they entered bar with the Road Kingz at their heels. Penni felt the room sizing them up as Jackal found an empty spot at the corner of the bar.

She shook her head when the bartender asked if she wanted a drink, too disgusted at the behavior taking place in the bar. If the women had been scantily clad in the street outside, the women inside were wearing next to nothing. There were even three dancing on a stage in the front of the packed bar.

Jackal took his beer, not paying attention to the women nearby who were doing their best to get his attention.

“Do you see him?” Hennessy spoke softly into her ear.

Penni pried her eyes away from one pretty blonde woman who was speaking to Jackal out of her earshot. She forced herself to concentrate on the males in the bar. Once or twice, she caught her breath, thinking she saw him, only to realize it wasn’t Striker.

Her shoulders drooped. “I don’t see him.”

Hennessy’s mouth quirked in a smile. “It’s early. Don’t worry; he’ll show tonight or tomorrow.”

“Are you sure he’ll show?”

He ignored her question. “I’ll take a Hennessy,” he told the bartender before turning back to answer her question. “He has nowhere else to go.” Hennessy waved his hand around the bar. “Everyone he does business with is here.”

“You could stop all of this and let me go. Is the reason you’re trying to find Striker worth dying for?”

Hennessy stared at her, his eyes going hard. “I am trying to stay alive. If I don’t find Striker, my men and I will be eating dirt.”

Penni turned away and toward the bartender. “I’ll take what he’s having.”

Jackal and Hennessy watched as the bartender poured her the drink she had requested. Penni took a sip of the amber liquor, enjoying the taste. It wasn’t as strong as she had expected, but it wasn’t bad.

“I’ll have to buy a bottle of this for Shade when I buy one for Ice.”

Hennessy choked on his drink. “Ice hates Hennessy. It’s an acquired taste.”

“Really? Then why did Jackal tell me he likes it?”

Suspiciously, Penni glared at Jackal’s innocent expression.

“He’s acquired the taste for it since you left the Predators.”

Hennessy didn’t seem to believe him anymore than she did.

She took another sip of her own drink then motioned for the bartender to give her another one.

“Take it easy on those. I want you to be sober enough to recognize Striker when you see him,” Jackal warned, reaching out to take her drink away.

“I don’t get drunk,” Penni bragged, moving out of the way.

Jackal helped the man seated next to her, who looked like he’d had too much drink, slip off the bar stool.

“What? I was tired of standing.” Jackal leaned back against the counter, his thigh brushing against hers.

Penni finished her drink in one swallow. How could his leg against hers feel so good? She tapped her glass with a fingernail.

“I don’t have time to keep filling her glass.” The bartender set the bottle down in front of her. “Who’s paying?”

Jackal reached into his back pocket, pulling out his wallet. Penni laughed at his disgruntled expression when Hennessy poured himself another drink.

“Will you two remember why we’re here? I’m going to be broke before I get back to Queen City.”

“Was Jackal always such a sour puss when you were in the Predators?”

“Depends.”

“On what?”

“On which bitch he had in his bed or who he was fighting.”

Penni wished she had keep her mouth shut. She really didn’t want to hear about even more of Jackal’s women or his criminal activities. The more she spent time with him, the more she wanted to know him better, especially when he was sweet, like sleeping on the floor or waking up early to get her a cup of coffee. The man she was beginning to care about didn’t match the image she had been given from others who knew him better.

Suddenly, her stool was spun around.

“Is that him?” Hennessy hissed.

Penni narrowed her eyes. It was difficult to see through the smoke-filled room. She had thought smoking in bars was a thing of the past. Then she recognized the smell assailing her nostrils, and it had her giving an appreciative sniff.

“Greer should come here. He would love to know what green they’re smoking.”

“Your bitch has the attention of a gnat.”

“Did you just insult me?”

“Yes. Is. That. Striker?”

Did he seriously just talk to me like I’m a child?
Penni fumed, refusing to answer.

When he clenched his hands into fists, Jackal stepped from his stool, blocking Hennessy.

“Penni, in case you didn’t notice, Hennessy isn’t playing.”

“I’m not, either. It wasn’t Striker.”

“She couldn’t have answered that when I asked her?” Hennessy snarled at Jackal as if she weren’t there.

“Next time, don’t make me mad. Don’t call me a bitch, and especially don’t refer to me as Jackal’s woman.”

“Bitch, I’ll call you what—”

“She’ll be gone as soon we find Striker. Get Cruz to buy you a bud.” Jackal wound his arm around her waist.

“I need more than one to deal with her.”

Penni was so aggravated with Hennessy she almost didn’t tell him the man he was searching for had come into the bar. Jackal, providing a barrier from the Road Kingz, reminded her of the Predators who were waiting to go home, too. They were here because of Grace. As much as she hated the Road Kingz and didn’t want to help them, she despised Striker. He had left her without a second glance when she had begged for help. If the Road Kingz hadn’t shown up, Ricky would have raped and killed her, leaving her family and friends wondering for the rest of their lives what had happened to her.

“Let someone else have the table. Striker just came through the door.”

“Where?”

Penni was lifted off her feet before Jackal could block him again. The Road Kingz surrounded them.

“Don’t draw attention to yourself. I don’t want him taking off.”

Penni nodded at Hennessy. “He’s wearing a black jacket …” She kept trying to spot Striker again and couldn’t see him. “I can’t find him.” Frustrated, she tried to peer over Cruz and Jackal’s shoulders.

“What color was his shirt?”

“I didn’t notice,” Penni admitted.

“Fuck.” He glared warningly at her. “Here’s what we’re going to do. We’ll walk around the bar, and as soon as you see Striker, show me, and then Jackal will get you out of here. Understand?”

“I do understand English.”

Penni became afraid. Hennessy looked like Killyama when Penni had visited her in the hospital after the incident.

“Cool down, Hennessy.” Jackal gripped Hennessy’s hand. His knuckles were white as he tried to exert pressure to get her released from his hold. The men were fighting over her like two dogs fighting over a bone.

“We can stand here all night to see who wins this argument, or we can go find Striker. I’m going to get another drink. Let me know when you two goons make up your minds.”