Page 41 of Disturbed Lucidity

The sweet serenity of fire raced through my veins, numbing the terror that threatened to overtake me. In the midst of darkness, I found solace in the knowledge that I was not alone. I just wanted to forget. I wasn’t asking for much. Nothing I did would erase the stain.

The lingering anguish consumed me, its relentless grip pulled me down into an ever-deepening void. I was no one. Nothing but the vessel for his perversions.

He was everywhere.

There was no escape.

With each step deeper into the void, my vision became obscured by the graceful descent of delicate kaleidoscope colors, momentarily distracting me from the nightmarish reality that consumed me. The corners of my mouth twitched, but my jaw muscles clenched as I fought against the numbness. The kaleidoscope transformed into a grotesque sight, their once sparkling edges now tainted with blackened pus, resembling large pearls of blood rain as they fell. The storm clouds, pregnant with precipitation, loomed ominously close to the Earth’s surface. I extended my hand, yearning to touch them, and I could feel the tainted tears seeping into the crevices of my fingertips.

I sank further into the darkness, savoring the comforting touch of her hand as it gently brushed the hair away from my forehead. Deep down, I knew she was a figment of my imagination. Throughout my life, she had been a constant presence by my side.

Watching, waiting, protecting me.

Like a steady rhythm, my teardrops fell onto the floor, their sound resonating in the room. The sound, with its eerie tone, created a chilling atmosphere. A warning. I had to get out of there. Only, I wasn’t going anywhere. In her embrace, a void of black velvet transfixed me, embellished by microscopic bursts of white light that ignited at the rims of my eyes.

My fear gave way, and I screamed.

And that’s when she emerged from the darkness.

Chapter Twelve

Luc

Slash was losing his shit. He’d gotten a call from his mother regarding Ivy and fucking kicked dirt when he raced out of the clubhouse. When he returned, my brother was furious, kicking over tables and chairs, even taking a fucking swing at one of the Plebs.

When Frost tried to get him to calm the fuck down, the irate brother did an about-face and stormed out again.

None of us knew what the fuck was going on with him, but we knew it had to do with our bartender. Needing Slash on his game for the upcoming meet, I sent Hannibal with a few of the brothers to head to the woman’s apartment to see what they could learn. If the bitch up and did a runner, there was nothing any of us could do, and Slash needed to get the fuck over it.

I told him the bitch was trouble, and I was right.

I didn’t need any more drama, not with the shit heating up with Los Santanas. I still didn’t know what that fucking asshole wanted, and honestly, he didn’t say shit. Not that I gave a fuck either way. If he even stepped one foot in my territory, I had no problem unleashing my men.

Fucker wanted a war.

I would give him one. One he wouldn’t walk away from.

A knock at my door had me looking up when Frost stuck his head in. “Luc, you need to get out here. Slash found Ivy.”

“So?”

“Bitch is high as a kite.”

Fucking figures.

The one fucking time I show a modicum of interest in a woman, the bitch is a fucking druggie. Groaning, I got to my feet. I was so done with this shit. I didn’t care if the bitch meant something to my brother. The cunt was getting kicked.

One less thing I had to worry about.

Following Frost, I walked into the main room to find Slash shoving the bitch into a chair. The woman looked calm.

Too fucking calm for someone hyped up on drugs.

“Do you have any fucking idea what I’ve been through looking for you? I went to the morgue, Ivy. The fucking morgue!”

“I’m not suicidal.”

“My mom is worried sick. She’s been blowing up my phone all day!”

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