Karma (Kings of Rebellion MC Book 1) (9 page)

“Grease!” Grim shouts and Elise’s dad appears. “Take them to the cars. We need to get them out of here.”

Both Natasha and Elise follow him but I stay by Grim. “Thank you.” I whisper and he smiles back at me.

“Don’t thank me yet.” He stares at me for a few seconds and then rushes off in the same direction as the rest of his club.

I don’t make a move. I know I should because Demon could run back in here and take me, but I can’t look away from Chatter as she lies on the floor. I should know her real name. She should be alive and walking away with us.

I start to cry and arms wrap around me. I smell the scent of man and his aftershave. I sink my nose in and take a deep inhale and look up to see Grim. I pull away from embarrassment.

“You ok?” He asks. “You should be outside.”

“She didn’t deserve that.” I cry, looking back down to Chatter.

I turn and cry into his chest. She didn’t deserve this, none of them did really. Why have they done this?

“Come on, you don’t look so great.” Grim is careful as he gently lifts me into his arms and because I don’t feel so great, and I’m that tired, I let him. He carries me out of my nightmare and into the fresh air I have craved for so long.

I sit in between Elise and Natasha in the back of a car that was waiting for us outside the club house. Elise’s dad and Grim drive us to god knows where, but Elise told us to trust her and that we will be safe. I don’t know these men, and the only bikers I have ever known were the Devil’s and they weren’t men I could ever trust, but I do trust Elise and the men do actually seem concerned for the way we’ve been treated.

“How did you find me?” Elise asks her dad.

“Been looking everywhere princess, but thanks to Bomber, he was able to get us inside the clubhouse.” He turns around to face us all, giving us a sympathetic look. “Thank god I got there when I did.”

The rest of the drive is quiet and Elise won’t stop looking at her dad the whole time. I feel so pleased for her, it’s nice to see her so happy to be back with her family. Lucky for her, she’s not like me. I don’t have any family to go back to, they don’t even know I’ve been missing and what I’ve been through. It’s best that way. I don’t want anything to come back on Maisy.

Like Natasha, I stay quiet and embrace the fact that I am away from that place. I wished for this, even prayed at desperate times but weirdly it hasn’t settled in that I am not property of the Devil’s Spawn anymore. Demon is still out there, but he can no longer abuse my body. No longer will I be beat so bad I can hardly move, but I need to let it settle in. Just over an hour ago I was strapped up and being tortured by Demon and now look where I am.

“Here we are.” Elise’s dad declares and I see that we’re entering another clubhouse. Two sets of large gates open for us and we pull up in the middle of a concrete courtyard. Natasha and I exchange a look, are we really free or have we traded in one nightmare for another?

“We’re finally safe.” Elise beams at us.

“I will make sure you will never have to go through that again.” Elise’s dad tells his daughter with certainty. “We will find them and put an end to this.”

I look up and catch Grim looking at me through the car mirror and immediately look away. He makes me feel on edge and I don’t like it. I can still smell his scent in the car and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t like it.

Elise eagerly leaves the car and I follow, making sure Natasha is at arm’s length. Everyone rushes outside and welcomes Elise back with open arms, and with Natasha, I watch them all. I’m completely fascinated as I watch huge tattooed men run out and hug her, all of them looking dangerous and menacing in their own unique way. This isn’t what I’m used to and it feels weird. That’s how fucked up the Devil’s have made me that I’m more used to danger than kindness.

Then, to add to my fascination, I see women joining us from inside the clubhouse. They aren’t dressed slutty and they are definitely not naked. These women are wearing their own clothes and are freely welcoming Elise with enjoyment. They are happy and after seeing to Elise, they hurry to Natasha and myself, their worry clear to see.

“Oh darlings.” One woman cries. “Look at you!”

“We need to get you two sorted.” Another fusses. “A bath will sort you out.”

They all continue to assure us that we are safe and I begin to cry. I think it’s finally settling in that I am no longer the Devil’s sex slave.

“Do you need anything?” I turn to see Grim looking down at me and I’m shocked. I can’t remember the last time someone asked me that.

“No.” I whisper.

I’ve been captured for I don’t know how long, fucked more times than I can remember and tortured more times than anyone should experience and somehow I have been lucky enough to be saved. I know that I’m not completely safe until Demon and Strike are dead, but this is a start.

Now this man is asking me if I need anything. Before I’m sure I would have had a list as long as my arm, but right now all I want to do is have a bath and sleep in a bed. I thought I would die in that room or by the hands of Demon and Strike. The sudden relief washes over me and I stumble.

“Oh my god,” Natasha gasps. “Lauren, you’re bleeding!”

I look down at myself and stare at the wet patches on the black shirt I am wearing.

“This from Demon?” Grim asks and I nod my head.

I don’t know if it’s because of my injuries, or the current events but I start to feel dizzy and my vision is blurred. My legs become weak and I feel arms wrap around me.

“She needs help!” He shouts.

The last thing I’m consciously aware of is the worrying cries from Elise and Natasha.

I open my eyes to the weirdest sensation and I realize that I’m lying on a bed. It’s nothing special either but it feels like the softest bed I have ever laid on. When you’re used to sleeping on a rock hard floor, any bed feels as soft as a cloud. It feels so strange!

I hear laughter and turn my head to see Natasha, she’s lying on a bed like me and she’s laughing at me. This is the best I’ve ever seen her, she’s clean and dressed in clean clothes, but it’s not just that. Her eyes are relaxed and her smile is genuine. I don’t think I’ve seen her look so happy and relaxed.

“Silly to appreciate a bed, huh?” She giggles.

I sink into the bed a little more. “After the shit we’ve been through, I don’t think so.”

“True.” She sighs and rolls around the bed.

Her hair falls around her shoulders, shining brightly. “You look great.”

She jumps from her bed and bounces onto mine. “I smell even better.” She squeals. “One of the biker’s old ladies let me use her products. God, I feel amazing!” She raises her hands above her head and kicks her legs in the air.

“Old ladies?” I ask. I thought these men were different?

“No, Lauren.” Natasha corrects me. “Old ladies here aren’t the same as they are at the Devil’s. Here they adore their old ladies, here it’s more like a marriage.”

“You’re sure?” I ask her.

She confidently nods her head. “Things are a lot different here.”

“How?” I’m curious.

“Well, for starters they don’t buy women and keep them locked up in a dark room.” She teases.

“That we know of.” I respond.

“Seriously Lauren, the people are good here.” Natasha insists. “Elise wouldn’t be so happy here otherwise. Anyway, how are you?”

“I’ll be fine.” I look down at my borrowed top and see stitches on my stomach. “Who did that?”

“The club has a few doctors. You didn’t look so great when you fainted, Lauren.” She sounds worried and I understand. If the roles were reversed I would be the same.

Elise finally joins us. When she sees that I’m awake she smiles and runs to my side. Just like Natasha, she’s fresh and clean, even the dried blood has been washed away. The showers back at the Devil’s Spawn clubhouse weren’t the best, so we were never fully clean. My heart swells for her, she finally looks happy to be back with her family. 

Wow! Check me out. Who would have thought that the bitch finally has a heart?

“I’m so glad you’re ok.” Elise gently hugs me.

“I’m glad to see you so happy.” I reply.

“I am,” Her smile falters a little. “But I can’t help but wonder that I cost Chatter her life.”

Her bottom lip trembles and I try to sit up, wincing when pain ripples through my stomach. Natasha and Elise lie me back down, ordering me to be careful.

“Don’t think like that Elise because it’s not true.” I hold tightly onto her hand. “That was Demon, everything falls onto him.”

After comforting each other, I drift back off to sleep feeling very drained.

***

When I open my eyes again, another woman has joined us. She’s round all over and gives me the warmest smile when she sees my open eyes. It’s the kind of smile your grandmother would give you.

“How are you feeling?” She asks me.

“Better.” I honestly reply.

Natasha and Elise return, and while the door is open I get a glimpse of Grim standing right outside. Elise turns around and gives me a smile when she sees who I’m looking at. “That’s Grim, our vice president. He wanted to see if you were ok because you kind of fainted on him.”

Oh shit, I forgot about that!

Grim pokes his head into the room, and gives me a small smile. “You can come in.” Elise tells him but he shakes his head.

“No, it’s ok.” He looks to me. “I just wanted to check in on you.”

“I’m ok.” I answer him. Grim looks me over, probably checking to see if I have any major injuries I’m lying about.

“Good. If you need anything, just ask. You’re in the care of The Kings now.” Those words somehow give me goose bumps and once he is satisfied, he gives me a quick nod and leaves us to it.

As soon as I feel good enough, I decide that I need a shower. I would love a bath, but because of my injuries I’m told not to soak for too long, which is a pity because soaking in a hot bubble bath is what I am craving. I’m offered shampoos, conditioners and shower gel of all sorts by the many women here and as I lather my hair in the shampoo I actually groan out loud. I massage my scalp, scratching and digging my fingers through my hair. When I look at some of the bubbles in my hand, I see they’re brown instead of white. I’m disgusted by the dirt hidden in my hair and wash repeat until the water runs clear. I use as much conditioner as I possibly can, needing my hair to feel as smooth as it used to before all this shit started. After I’ve taken care of my hair, I carefully wash myself and I even take down the shower head and angle it between my legs. I need to feel clean, I need to feel fresh and not feel Demon or Strike there anymore.

Once I’ve finished, I regrettably get out of the shower and wrap myself in the towel that was provided. Elise has laid out some jeans and a plain shirt for me from her own bag of clothes she originally brought out here when she came to visit with her dad. Usually, I’d imagine Elise’s clothes would be too small but that’s not a problem for me now due to the amount of weight I have lost.

Once dressed I feel so weird! My legs are covered and the shirt isn’t sexual in any way. I look at myself in the mirror and see how much I have changed, both inside and out. I dry my own hair, which I haven’t done for a while because that was either Tony’s or Chatter’s job. When I’ve finished I’m left in shock, my hair looks amazing. It’s smooth, glossy and falls down my back the way it always used to. Not in ugly knots or feeling rough from using only water. I can’t stop running my hands through my long black locks and when I go to lie down, I continue to play with my hair as I drift off to sleep.

I hear the door open and I see Elise walking in. “Sorry I woke you up.” She looks me over and grins. “You look great.”

“No it’s fine, I need to get up.” I’ve been doing far too much sleeping since I got here.

“No you need the rest. What Demon put you through, your body needs it.” Elise comes to sit on the edge of my bed. “Natasha’s making us a drink, and then my dad would like a chat, if that’s ok?”

I sit up, with my back to the wall. “That’s fine. I need to thank him anyway.”

“You don’t need to do that, Lauren. Everyone knows how grateful we are.” She takes a deep breath. “I just can’t stop reliving that last part.”

I know what she’s talking about and I’m the same. I can’t stop seeing Chatter’s face. The way she looked so scared and the terrible way she died. Chatter didn’t deserve to die like that.

There’s a knock, and in walks Natasha followed by Elise’s dad and Grim.

“Well don’t you look better?” Natasha places my drink on the table and sits on my other side.

“Thanks.” I smile back at her. “It’s amazing what water and shampoo can do.”

“Glad to see you awake.” Brace, Elise’s dad, greets me and even though Elise has told me that these are good men and they won’t hurt me, it feels weird to have them in this room.

“Thank you for all your help.” I thank him and he shakes his head.

“No need. You helped my daughter, so I’m helping you.” He smiles a great big smile and I relax just a little. I see tears appear in his eyes. “Elise told me how much you protected her. You put yourselves in their path for the sake of looking after my girl when I couldn’t.”

“I had to.” I reply. “I couldn’t stand by and watch.”

“No you didn’t.” Brace steps forward. ”But you did.”

I look over to Elise and see she has paled and is staring down at the floor. I reach for her hand and she looks up at me, a sad smile on her face and a single tear running down her cheek.

“I will take care of you, girls.” Brace declares. “After what you did for my baby girl, you’re more than welcome to stay. We will take care of you.”

“I will make sure Demon never gets his hands on you again.” Grim grinds out with dangerous authority and is looking right at me.

I have no doubt that these men will try to keep their promise, but I don’t know them. I do know Demon and his men though and they are dangerously determined men. They won’t let us get away that easy and I just know Demon will not rest until he has at least one of us back.