Page 1 of Phantom Riders MC: Hawk

Chapter 1

Audra

I took a deep breath and reluctantly opened the restroom door just enough so that I could peek out and make sure no one was around. Certain that I’d seen one of the men who worked for my fiancé, I’d ducked inside the service station bathroom to hide. A half an hour had to be enough time for him to determine that I wasn’t there, so he should have been gone by now.

The restroom was located at the back of the service station, so I hadn’t really expected to see anyone. My gaze took in the neat row of trees directly across from me and the highway on the other side. I could see flashes of vehicles speed by and knew that I had to gain access to a car in order to get away from there fast.

Dane wouldn’t give up. I knew he wouldn’t. He’d worked too hard to get to where he was. Though he professed to love me and wanted to take care of me, I wasn’t stupid enough to believe that he would put me above the empire he’d built. He was untouchable, or so I thought. I’d seen hints of his true darkness before but had brushed them off because I hadn’t wanted to believe that he was a monster.

I pulled my hoodie up and tucked my long hair inside. I’d have to think about dying it. Not too many people had my color red, it would be easy to spot, but when I’d made my decision to run there hadn’t been time to change my appearance in any way. It was enough to know that Dane and his men wouldn’t be searching for a woman wearing holey jeans and a black hoodie that was two sizes too big. That had been done in an attempt to hide the curves of my figure and to possibly pass for a boy.

Until this morning I’d never stolen anything in my life. The fact that I’d stopped at the town Laundromat and had rummaged through someone else’s dryer showed just how desperate I was, and to the more observant eye, how frightened. Because a frightened woman would be the only one stealing someone else’s clothes, right? At least I’d left behind a designer piece of my own that would more than pay for the clothes I’d taken. After making a quick change, I’d exited the building through the back entrance.

I kept my head down as I nervously made my way to the front of the station, glancing up every now and then to take a look around. Dane and I shared a penthouse apartment in Las Vegas and had taken his private plane to New Hampshire on a business trip. Because of that my options for escape were next to nothing except for the bus I’d hoped on just outside the small town of Last Hope in Coös County. Destination-Anywhere-Away-From-Dane. I would go as far as a hundred dollars cash would take me because I was afraid to use a credit card. The cash hadn’t taken me far, and the bus I’d taken was long gone.

When I rounded the corner to the building my eyes landed on the motorcycles that were parked at the gas pumps. There were three of them, huge, powerful Harleys, expensive, too, if my untrained gaze was correct. How hard would it be to steal a Harley? Maybe a better question would be, ‘How far would I make it before one of the other two riders caught up to me?’

A quick glance revealed there was no one around, and that the owners must have been inside the store. I looked toward the glass front of the store but I couldn’t make anything out that was going on inside. As I pulled my gaze back I noticed that there were two other vehicles parked at the side of the store. I nearly had a heart attack when I realized that one of them belonged to Dane’s men. I knew, because it was exactly the type of SUV that he always used when we went anywhere.

Why were they still there?

I quickly pulled the hoodie closer around my face and swung back to the bikes. I supposed it would be too much to hope for that the keys would still be in the ignition of one of them. I moved closer to one, trying to be nonchalant as I examined the huge machine, taking in the beautiful Phantom Riders MC logo painted on the tank. I’d never ridden on a motorcycle, much less driven one, but I was just desperate enough to try. How hard could it be? As my gaze moved casually over the dashboard, I saw them.

The keys!

A rush of excitement raced through me, and I acted without thinking. I swung my leg over the seat, which was no easy feat for my short stature, and reached for the keys. My gaze barely acknowledged the heavy metal skull hanging on the key ring as I turned it to start the bike.

“What the fuck—”

I barely had time to register the growl of rage behind me before a huge hand fell on my shoulder, bunched up the extra material there, and hauled me roughly off the bike as easily as if I were a child. As I was shaken like a rag doll, my hoodie fell off my head. I glanced up at the giant at the same time that he pulled back his tight fist to hit me. A loud gasp escaped me and I scrunched up my face, waiting for the explosion of pain and the sound of broken bones, that I was sure was coming.

“Fuck!”

I opened my eyes to see his huge fist paused just inches from connecting to my face. His expression was fierce, everything about it pulled taut over his cheek and jaw bones, eyes the color of black ice were glaring down at me, narrowing as I watched the man take in my features and hair. His gaze raked over my figure, and he frowned even more as if he were trying to figure out what I was. When his icy glare returned to my face, his fist relaxed and he reached forward, pulling my waist length hair forward.

“Who the fuck are you?” he snarled.

“No one,” I said softly. I couldn’t think clearly enough to make something up, only knowing I didn’t want him to know my name. The man was terrifying, and I was shaking like a leaf.

Movement near the store drew my gaze away to see that two other men were coming out. All three of them were dressed in the same way, in jeans, boots, black t-shirts and leather cuts that warned me that they probably belonged to a motorcycle club. The two men paused to light cigarettes, their interested gaze falling on me.

The giant that was holding me gave me a violent shake to get my attention again. “I almost destroyed your face, woman. What are you doing messing around with my bike?”

“Nothing,” I said in the same soft tone as before.

“It didn’t look like fucking nothing to me. Where did you think you were going?”

“Nowhere.” I watched as his friends began to walk toward us. At the same time another man walked out of the store, and my panic level grew as I recognized one of Dane’s bodyguards who’d traveled with us from Vegas. I quickly yanked the hoodie up and tucked my hair back into it, turning my face away as much as I could. “Please help me,” I begged.

The man scared the shit out of me, but at the moment, he was the lesser of two evils. I knew what I could expect from Dane, and would take my chances with the giant. I peeked at him from beneath my hoodie. His expression hadn’t changed. His eyes were narrowed on me like a scrutinizing hawk.

“Please…”

He glanced in the direction that I had. “Who are you running from?”

“Please take me away from here. We can talk later.” I held his gaze, trying not to cry, but the situation was starting to get to me. If Dane’s man recognized me and he forced me back to Las Vegas, God knew what would happen to me. “I’ll pay you,” I said in desperation.

The giant continued to scowl at me. I got the impression that my offer of money had peaked his interest, but when his gaze ran down the length of me again, I realized that he might want something more than money. Then he surprised me by reaching forward and grabbing and squeezing my breast. It was by sheer will power that I stood there and didn’t react. I couldn’t afford to.

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