Page 53 of Angel

Running. I don’t want to leave them, leave all this, my brothers. But what other choice do I have? He’s not going to let tonight go. And as much as I dislike who I’ve become, I do want to make it to my twenty-ninth birthday. And eventually, he will find me and take down anyone in his way. I have to keep my club safe.

“All right, so here’s the deal. Our favorite Skulls member called. Seems Scorpion is hiding out in Florida. Venom leaves tomorrow morning—got him running bitch errands. And to top it off, our other favorite mob boss knows his dearest brother was shot fucking dead. Thanks to Bullet, a job well done.” Chain gestures toward Bullet, who’s sitting across from me.

“Glad to be of service.” Bullet clears his throat and bows in his chair. The room erupts in laughter.

“He also got a name for the dead corpse: Galiente. Guess his brother is Victor.”

I quit bouncing my leg, my body freezes, and my heart stops beating—I swear it does.

The nausea swirls, taunting me like a bad habit. The room spins, and my vision blurs. I slowly plant my sweaty, cold, clammy hands on the table. And I can hear my own shallow breaths, my pulse thumping in my ears. Anything else is drown out by my heart, and it’s excessive hammering in my chest elicits an ache. A tightness.

There’s no way. Can it really be him? Is my life really so fucked up?

I can’t stay now. There’s no fucking way. And my brothers will never trust me again if they find out. They will hate me, take my patch for sure. Or maybe worse… no, they wouldn’t do that.

The bile continues to rise, and I swallow back anything wanting to resurface. When I finally lock eyes with Chain, he’s already studying my mysterious reaction, watching as I scare myself into another panic attack.

“Scorpion is still very much involved in the trafficking. I want him found, and I want him buried. And keep your eyes and ears open for this Victor Galiente person. Hopefully he doesn’t become a problem for us. But for now, our only mission is to see to it that Scorpion goes six feet under, and Venom gave me his word that he’s going to help with that.”

Charger speaks up. “And let me guess, you trust his word?”

Chain sighs. “To be honest, I think I do. He hasn’t given us an indication otherwise, not yet at least. I know that grinds your pickle, son, but I don’t really give a shit. He didn’t have to call and give us the heads up, but he did.” Charger nods, but I see the muscles in his chiseled jaw move. As much as they all hate the guy, Chain is right. And they know it. “Angel, you good?” Chain asks, while everyone else stares in silence.

“Y-yeah, sure.” I smile awkwardly, trying to shut down my anxiety.

Venom’s leaving for Florida? Maybe that’s where I’ll go, because I definitely can’t stay here. Having Victor that close to my club… If he figures out we killed his brother, he’ll hurt them. And if he figures out I’m part of an MC club, it won’t end well.

The next morning, I make sure to disappear before anyone wakes up. I leave a note, vaguely saying I’ll be all right, I think, and that maybe I’ll be back. But I know in my heart I won’t. I throw a few clothes into the small saddle bags hooked to my Harley and take one last look at the club I call my family. Will I ever see them again? I’m not sure. But I will miss the hell out of them.

My heart aches as I take off and head for Venom’s place. I hope he didn’t already leave.

I must be crazy for doing this. Leaving with him. So, why am I? He has rendered me completely incapable of explaining my actions.

When I arrive, I ride up to his garage and wait. It doesn’t look like he left yet, and Chain said he wasn’t leaving until seven or so. I don’t know how long I’m going to have to wait, but I’ll sit here for as long as it takes. It’s peaceful. No neighbors. Just the sounds of birds, rustling trees, and quiet. I breathe in the morning summer air and close my eyes. I would love to live somewhere like this. Oh, how I crave it.

Finally, an hour and a half later, the garage door creaks open. It takes a couple of minutes for him to notice me leaning against my ride, but when he does, he stops dead in his tracks.

“Geez, it’s about time. I was beginning to think you left without me.”

He furrows his brows and slowly stalks toward me and my bike. “What. The. Fuck are you doing here?”

“I’m coming with you.” I push off my Harley to stand toe-to-toe with him. It’s crazy how casual I can be after last night. But I’m good at hiding embarrassment and shame. Expert level, in fact.

“Like hell you are.” He stomps off, throwing some items into his saddle bag.

I follow him and lean down to where he’s crouched. “Sorry to tell you, but I am.” He pauses and slowly rises, leaving only inches of space between us. And chills travel down my spine and hit a certain sex spot.

Dead center. Bullseye.

He must have just showered because he smells good, like soap. This man makes me hot, and I can’t stop it, even if I tried. So, when I ask myself why I’m here, I already know the answer to that.

I’ve been bitten, injected with venom, and now I’m addicted.

“Listen, I don’t know what kind of plan you have here, but you are not coming with me. It’s too dangerous. Now, get on your bike and drive back to your little club.”

Too dangerous? He has no clue how dangerous it is if I stay. “No can do. I’m coming with you.”

“No, you’re fucking not.”

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