“Something like that.” I step away from the bar with the bottle in my hand and find myself staring at the memorial wall. I take a drink in front of each brother whose fallen in honor of the Royal Bastards. Whose loyalty cost them their lives. When I get to the last cut with a picture of Alex, who wasn’t even here long enough to get a road name, I swallow hard. Derange, who was Alex’s sponsor, hasn’t said much about his death but I can tell he blames himself. Every night I’d see Derange over here either staring at his memorial or talking to him. I don’t know what their conversations entail, but it seems to help.
After the Salazar Cartel came here and tried to destroy us, Alex was the only one to die during the fight. They killed him immediately and he had no idea death was knocking on his door. We paid the Cartel back for killing one of our own. An eye for an eye. Except we obliterated their whole fucking operation and I was the one behind blowing their shit up.
A smirk appears on my face and I salute Alex’s memorial. “Here’s to you, brother.” I take a swig of Captain and let it burn all the way to my gut. I need liquid courage to execute my next plan and that’s claiming what’s mine before someone else does.
“Torch.” Capone stands next to me and I grunt. “Listen, brother. A lot of shit’s happening right now and I need your head in the game. Things are moving fast and by the looks of it, Razor is right in the middle.”
“Doesn’t surprise me, Prez. He always was a worthless piece of shit.” I growl. Razor is my half-brother and an original member of RBMC who brought me into the Royal Bastards years ago. His father fucked my mother and had me. He despised me from day one and I never understood why he brought me here. It never made sense.
“With him back, Five-O is going to be crawling up your ass. I need you to lay low for a few days.” Capone shifts from one foot to another.
“What else?”
“I need you to find out if Daisy recognizes him. If he was there when she was or if this is a new Black Market Railroad channel.”
Fuck, that’s the last thing I want to do. But I’ll do it for the safety of my brothers. “Consider it done.” I take another hefty swig of Captain and head up to Daisy’s room. This will be either a make-or-break time for us. I need more liquid courage to ask the woman who’s been driving me insane to remember details of a dark time of her life.
Fuck. My. Life.
Chapter 5
Daisy
I Am The Fire
I pick myself up off the floor and head into the shower. I need to find myself and be happy with who I am. The only problem with that is when you’re told your whole life you’re worthless and never amount to anything, it’s hard to find peace inside you. My birth parents were good at that. They didn’t want me around but didn’t want me to leave. If I did, they’d lose control over me and the government money they were getting by having me around. That’s why I ended up running away and in trouble with the Bloody Scorpions. I was trying to escape the hell the people who birthed me put me through and Drew from Bloody Scorpions found me. At first, it was everything I wanted, that’s how they lured me into their MC. Gave me promises of a good life when I was at my lowest and then snatched me up and chained me to a wall with other girls they took against their will. Fuck I was stupid.
Turning the shower on, I undress and stare at myself in the mirror. The scars marring my chest are the only flaws visible to the eye. When Monica and I went to rescue Danyella, Bloody Scorpions shot at us and I was caught in the crosshairs. Derange worked his magic and saved me. I owe him my life. No one can see the scars underneath though. The pain in my soul. I hide it the best I can. What J.J. did to me wasn’t necessary. The rape is something I’ll have to live with for the rest of my life. The way he took something from me that wasn’t his is something I have to cope with. And I have with the help from Torch and the rest of the Royal Bastards. If I could, I’d kill J.J. all over again for taking that power away from me, but Capone and Blayze did that for me. At the time I don’t think I’d be able to handle it. I wasn’t as strong as I am now.
I step into the shower and with as much as I don’t want to, I wash Torch’s scent off me. He brought me to life. He showed me how a real man should handle his woman. Am I his woman now? I don’t know where his head is at. I know he has feelings for Rose. They’ve been fucking for a couple of months while I sit in the shadows and wish it were me. But he also has feelings for me. Torch showed that tonight. His dick might be getting off with Rose, but his heart belongs to me. Now I need to turn it around and make him want me the way he wants her.
My palms flit over my skin and work their way down to my pussy. I close my eyes and remember Torch’s mouth skimming over my clit. His fingers diving into my greedy pussy and I moan. I work my fingers inside myself, mimicking the way Torch strummed my pussy. The palm of my hand rubbing my clit while I finger myself thinking of Torch. God that man knows how to work my body. I can only imagine what he can do with his cock. The places he can take me. Right when I’m on the verge of getting myself off, the shower curtain flings open and a scream rips from my lips.
“What are you thinking about, Precious?” Torch’s eyes rake over my body with a smirk on his lips. His eyes zero in on my pussy.
“Torch! What the fuck are you doing? You scared the crap out of me.” I cover myself the best I can but he pulls my hands away from my body, sucking the fingers that I just had inside my pussy. “How’d you get in?”
“A flimsy door won’t stop me, Daisy. Now finish your shower and meet me in your room.” He saunters out of the bathroom, leaving me standing here, dripping wet and stunned.
What in the actual fuck is going on? Why is he here? I thought for sure Torch would be with Rose right now, not waiting for me in my bedroom.
I grab the towel laying on the countertop and quickly dry myself off. I didn’t bring any clothes in with me so I wrap the towel around my body and take a deep breath before opening the door. Steam billows out behind me and I spot Torch sitting on my bed with a bottle of Captain carelessly dangling from his fingers between his open legs. He’s staring at the carpet like it has answers he’s seeking. I drink in his muscular body and tattoos trailing up his arms into his tight shirt. His blonde hair hanging in his eyes. He runs a hand through it, pushing it back.
I sway my hips a little more than usual, putting my plan to get Torch to want me, in place as I cross the room to grab some clothes. Torch’s head snaps up and his piercing blue eyes watch me. The look he’s giving me sends a jolt of lust to my core. I move with the grace of a dancer to my dresser and open the drawer. If he’s going to be in here, I’ll give him a little show of what he’s missing out on.
I select a pair of blue satin panties, a pair of blue silk shorts and a tiny silk tank top to wear. I take a deep breath, with my back to Torch and drop my towel. I hear Torch inhale a sharp breath as I get dressed. Once my clothes are on, I turn around and lean against the dresser.
“What’s going on Torch? Why are you here?” I push my chest out using what the good Lord gave me in making him tongue tied.
Torch takes a long pull of whiskey before holding the bottle out to me. I push off the dresser and step closer to him. Taking the bottle from his hand, I make sure to brush my fingers against his and he inhales another sharp breath, watching me. Torch’s eyes pierce into my soul and causes my body to tremble with need. I take a drink and hand it back to him. It burns down to my stomach but I hold it in, not showing any weakness. If Torch wants a strong woman to shoot whiskey with, I’ll keep up the best I can.
“Sit.” One word from his gravelly voice has me complying with no questions asked. I sit as close to him as I can without being on his lap. “We need to have a discussion. It’s not going to be pleasant but I need a straight answer from you.”
The seriousness in Torch’s voice sends a shiver of dread down my spine. His eyes turn hard when he pulls out his phone. After a few seconds, he turns it toward me and watches my reaction. Staring back at me is a man with similar features to Torch but years of a hard life etched on his face. He has a nasty burn scar running down the side of his face I would never forget. The eyes though. Those eyes haunt me at every turn. They’re not the piercing blue of Torch’s but a lighter shade and I’ll never forget them.
“By the look on your face, I’d say you recognize him.” Torch doesn’t ask. He doesn’t need to. The tremble of fear wracking my body gives it away.
“Who is it?” I whisper into the quiet room. I wrap my arms around my waist to stop shaking and fight off the memories of what this asshole did to me and other women.