Page 49 of Phantom Riders MC: Hawk

Chapter 18

Audra

I held on tight to Hawk enjoying the wind against me as we raced out of town. The look on his chiseled face when he’d seen me in that dress for the first time would stay with me for a long time. It was more than a man showing his approval. His eyes had been worshiping, making me feel wanted, and that was something for Hawk, who fought to keep his feelings in check. For a brief minute, as he’d just stared at me, he’d wanted me.

And not just for sex.

I wasn’t sure why I felt giddy. It wasn’t as if we had a chance for a future together. My future looked grim anyway. Dane would never give up looking for me, and even if he did, I’d never know it, because I knew that I was going to live out the rest of my life hiding in fear. Unless this wild and dangerous thing between Hawk and me turned into something more. Was I foolish for even thinking it? Probably. Hawk definitely had demons inside, and I feared that he’d been living with them for so long that he was lost.

“Hold on!”

What? I was holding on, but when the bike shot forward at an unbelievable rush of speed I felt a second of panic when my body jolted backwards. I instantly tightened my arms around Hawk with a curse. What the hell?

“We’re being followed!” he yelled above the noise of the bike, taking a turn in the road at a sharp angle that had my heart racing.

When we straightened I looked back. We were being followed by a black SUV, and they were accelerating to catch up to us. My eyes rounded with disbelief when I realized that if they continued at the speed that they were going, they were going to hit us. I swallowed my instinct to scream and buried my face against Hawk’s shoulder, waiting for contact. Just as I prepared for impact the motorcycle shot forward at an incredible speed.

I screamed when a shot rang out and hit the motorcycle somewhere in the front of Hawk. He cursed and fought to control his bike as it wobbled back and forth violently. I was sure that we were going to tumble, but he gained control and managed to stay on the road. The layout of the winding road wasn’t conducive to high speeds, yet Hawk gunned his engine and we shot forward once again. I clung to him, waiting in fear for the next sound of gun shots. As we took a particularly sharp turn, I glanced behind us to see that the SUV was still following.

Surely we’d reach his clubhouse, and help, soon? It had taken me hours to reach town the day before, but I hadn’t thought it was this far. We passed the intersection I’d come across and kept going in a different direction. That’s when I realized that Hawk wouldn’t bring trouble to his club. I couldn’t blame him for that, even while it left us in a dangerous situation. As we crested a hill, hope came when I saw several bikers waiting for us at the bottom. Familiar faces that, as we got closer, confirmed they were Hawk’s men. The hand gesture he gave them sent his men into instant action.

Several shots rang out in rapid succession. I expected to feel the bite of a bullet at any second, surprised when Hawk dropped his speed. My heart was racing as I buried my face against his shoulder, closing my eyes and praying that we made it through this, whatever this was. I willed myself somewhere else, but the sound of more gunfire and a crashing vehicle kept me in the present.

Then there was utter chaos.

I was afraid to look, afraid to release my death grip on Hawk. I felt him go through the motions of shutting his bike off and kicking down the stand, afraid of what that would mean. Before I was ready I felt Hawk pull away as he dismounted. Forced to face the situation, I reluctantly glanced at the activity going on, terrified of what I would see, of what the outcome would be, because I knew it wasn’t going to end well.

The SUV had crashed through a fence and into a tree. I saw Big John waving his gun, screaming at the driver to get out of the vehicle. The man appeared stunned, and there was blood running down the side of his face. Hawk’s men had closed in around the SUV with their weapons drawn, looking eager to kill. I was mesmerized by the speed in which Hawk moved toward the van. He didn’t wait for the driver to get out. He ripped the door open and reached inside for him. In the same heartbeat he curled his hand in the guy’s shirt, and punched him in the face several times as he dragged him out to the ground.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” Another man exited the SUV from the passenger side, throwing down a gun before raising his arms up in surrender. “Hold up there, man! Let’s work this out! We have no problems with Phantom Riders.” Keg, Painter, and Clay closed in on the guy, keeping their guns on him.

“I have a fucking problem with someone who tries to run me down,” Hawk snarled, hitting the driver one more time before letting his limp body hit the ground. He then turned and headed toward the second man with a murderous look in his eyes. “I have a problem when someone takes a fucking shot at me!”

“An accident,” the passenger explained quickly. “The driver got a little carried away.”

“Bullshit!” Hawk backed the guy, who was still holding his hands in the air, against the SUV. “You’ve been on my tail since I left town. Who do you work for so I’ll know who to notify after I fucking kill you?”

The man’s eyes bugged out. “No one I swear! My business card is in my top pocket.”

Hawk dug it out, read it over, and then threw it in the man’s face. “Fucking bounty hunters,” he sneered, getting in the man’s face. I caught my breath at what that could mean. “Who’s paying you?”

“Some big spender in Vegas.” He motioned toward me with a nod. “He wants her, man, we’re not here to kill anyone.”

Dane. My heart sank. I met Hawk’s gaze, wondering if my time was running out. Surely he’d get tired of having to deal with a bad situation that’s not of his making.

“You should have remembered that before you started shooting.” Hawk put his arm across the man’s neck and applied pressure until his face turned red. The driver began moaning, and Hawk shot Big John a look that spoke volumes, before turning back. “How did you find her?” His question went unanswered. “Fucking tell me,” he gritted into the man’s face.

He opened his mouth as if to speak. Hawk eased up a little so he could draw in air. What he didn’t see was the man’s hand slowly moving to something beneath his jacket. “A mutual friend saw her with you.”

Hawk’s brows furrowed, as if considering whom that could be, and I could tell the second that he figured it out. Grim resignation was evident in his expression and in the way his jaw clenched and his mouth tightened.

Movement brought my gaze back to the man’s hand, which was slowly sliding out from beneath his coat. I opened my mouth to warn Hawk about the knife but never got the chance. In a move faster than the blink of an eye, Hawk wrapped his hand around the man’s wrist and brought his arm up, causing him to bury the knife in his own gut.

I gasped loudly. Several heads swung my way before returning to the wounded man. His expression was one of surprise and shock, his eyes bulging. Hawk stepped back, allowing him to slowly slink to the ground. It didn’t take long for blood to start pooling on the ground, a valuable life-source we all needed to survive. As I watched the color drain from his face, I knew that I was watching his life slip away.

I said a silent prayer. Not for the man. No. For the fact that we were on a quiet country road. It was an insane thought. It was an insane situation. How had my world of peace and normalcy been twisted into this nightmare so easily? Oh yeah, my normal life had also included murder.

Only in this case it felt more like self-defense.

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