Page 5 of Angel

I put the half sucked-on citrus back into Tank’s drink. “Needs more lime.” I wink and walk off. Thoughts are already stirring inside my head. I’ll just have to accept whatever shit Chain is going to serve me. Besides, I’ve been through a hell of a lot worse.

TWO

Venom

Flick. Flick. Flick.

A basement.

Why did it have to be a basement? This place makes me weak. Makes me ache, and I fucking hate it. How do you mentally survive your most terrifying, crippling fear? One that can have a grown-ass man crumbling to his knees, taking every last breath from him?

During those first few hours down here, my body wanted out. I started losing control over myself. The hyperventilating, the shortness of breath, the choking on pure terror, it all rippled through me. But I focused my attention on the leaky pipe in the corner of the room, and the feeling eventually passed. One by one, I counted the drips and my nerves began to calm themselves. With each counted number, the air returned to my lungs. Whenever the sheer panic would return, I would look at that stupid leaky pipe, and again count the drips. If the fucking thing were to ever stop, I’d probably lose my goddamn mind.

My head throbs from the adrenaline depleting my body, and I’m exhausted. I haven’t been able to really sleep since I checked in to the basement B and B. Spending my nights lying my face on the cold, damp cement is not ideal for sweet dreams and slumber parties. Especially as the room spins like a fucking carnival ride. It’s ironic though, ending up in the same place I’m ever so familiar with. The place I fear the most.

A cold. Dark. Basement. The haunting memory forever drilled into the depths of my brain. The way it smelled of mold and must, and the chill of the icy ground touching the bottoms of my feet.

Welcome home, Venom.

I close my eyes, hoping to cure the hangover from my panic attack. This is not how I wanted to spend the remainder of my summer. I would have preferred to be on my Harley, basking in the sun. But I guess the adage rings true: you don’t always get what you want.

My fists tighten as I think about everything that went down. I’m the fucking Vice President of the Steel Valley Skulls and my new mission—if I ever get the hell out of here—is to find Scorpion and end him. He kept his plan from me, and it boils my blood in ways that are mentally and physically suffocating. I had to fake being his loyal brother for way too long, and the incident at the cabin was the icing on the fucking cake.

The room still swirls from side to side and back again, and I’m craving water like a damn dry sponge. I hope it’s the lack of hydration and not the anxiety returning to wreak havoc on me. But this is what I get for trying to save Jules. When I saw that fuck drag her off into the room, I almost lost it. I can still feel the rage that sizzled inside me. But she made it out, and she wasn’t touched… I should have kept going, followed Scorpion, and never looked back. I would have avoided this shit hole. Will they kill me? I don’t even know, and at this point, I don’t even care. It’s not like I lived the life of a saint. It’s not like I went around with holy water, splashing people with kindness.

I’m sorry, Mom. I couldn’t grant your dying wish... I couldn’t figure out how to be a good man.

Flick. Flick. Flick.

I try to imagine my body being engulfed by a nice hot shower. The steam wrapping around me. The warmth pouring down over my sore, feeble body. I moan just thinking about it, because at this point, it would even be better than sinking my dick into a snatch’s pussy.

Rubbing my neck, I try to work out the knots and tension. That dude Tank sure knows how to manhandle someone. Damn, I can still feel the twinge of pain in my back and shoulders. Has it really been two days? At least, I think that’s how long it’s been. I release a sigh and stare at the daylight in front of me, flicking my ring with my thumb. With each spin of the skull, I count the drips again, and if it wasn’t for the tiny-ass window, I wouldn’t know my face from my asshole.

I massage the tops of my stiff thighs as I stretch them out in front of me, and the tug of the muscles is fucking divine. I reach toward the ceiling, and the clank of iron echoes around me as the cold metal dangles from my wrists. I feel like a dog chained up like this.

Jules’s innocent smile churns around in my mind, and for what it’s worth, I’d say she was the only woman who meant an ounce to me. But I cheated on her… because… well… I’m me. I’m no good, no good for her, and no good for someone like her. I didn’t deserve Jules. Or anyone for that matter. And cheating on her was the best solution.

I needed her to hate me. Then, of course, seeing her with him… made me fucking insane.

I’m better off alone. It’s worked for me all this time, and if I hadn’t been through the shit I’ve been through, this here would be more of a challenge. But being locked up in small quarters, with nothing but a pot to piss in, isn’t something new to me.

Flick, Flick, Flick. My ring’s loose. Looser than before, but it’s probably just from the frigid fucking temperatures. Sunlight casts through the small window, brightening the ground in front of me. It looks warm, which makes me shiver even more. I fucking hate the cold, hate the snow, hate anything that reminds me of…

I lay my head back on the uneven, damp cement wall and cross my arms over my chest, tucking my frozen hands beneath them. Closing my eyes, I let the exhaustion take over, and try to ignore the undeniable thirst.

They’re late this morning.

Just as I’m about to drift off, the upstairs door creaks open. And the footsteps grow closer. Not the usual heavy thumps. Hmm, they’re lighter, more feminine. I keep my eyes closed, but inhale the sweet, salivating scent of strawberries… no, more like peaches. It’s a familiar scent. One that chips away at the ice and sends the nice warmth circulating back into my blood, making this place more bearable at this very second.

The smell of peaches hits home for me. Like I’m right back in the kitchen of a life I once had. A good life. But it’s nothing more than a distant memory.

When the footsteps stop and I can feel a body standing in front of me, I slowly open my eyes. I have to blink a few times to make sure the perfect image in front of me is real. Between her beauty and the delicious aroma of heaven, my heart beats a little faster for the first time. In a long time.

Her slender body is toned, but curvy in all the right places. And fuck, how it’s begging to be touched... Her long, flowy, blonde locks shimmer from the small rays of light. I wonder what her hair would feel like if I ran my fingers through it. I bet it’s softer than silk…

Her crystal blue eyes remind me of an angel, which makes the tattooed wing on her sexy ankle more fitting. And Christ, she’s wearing nothing but tight workout shorts and a sports bra, showing off her toned abs and sleek waist. A bra that makes her cleavage spill out.

Fucking Christ, my dick is getting hard.

---