Page 56 of Phantom Riders MC: Hawk

What?

I swallowed nervously and tried to pull away. He slapped me hard across the face. “Hawk will kill you for this!” It was the only thing I could think to say.

“He’ll have to find me first. With the money I’m gonna get for you I can afford to buy a fucking island to hide out on.” His sneer was said against my ear as he twisted me around and wrapped his arms around me. “He wasn’t even smart enough to figure out I’d fucking switched to the other side.”

My heart sank with dread. I knew what that meant without having to ask. I flung my head back, hitting him as hard as I could in the face. I’d seen it work in the movies and I was desperate. A snarl escaped him, but he didn’t turn me loose as I’d hoped. Instead he wrapped a hand in my hair and twisted, snapping my head back until I was nearly forced onto my toes. The stretch of my neck caused me to cry out.

“You bitch! I’m being paid to deliver you alive, but he didn’t say in what condition.”

I ignored the threat in his tone. “Why?” There was nothing I could do as Keg forced me over to his bike. He was just too strong for me. He swung me around to face him, keeping my wrists clenched in one of his. He reached inside his saddlebag and pulled out a short piece of rope.

Seeing that rope sent a new surge of fear through me. I jerked as hard as I could, gaining my freedom, but not for long. All Keg had to do was reach out and grab me by the back of my shirt. The sound of seams ripping sounded almost as loud as the gunshot had earlier, and my eyes widened when I felt my t-shirt pulling off my body. I knew I had a choice of giving in and salvaging what was left of my shirt or being left naked from the waist up.

Keg took the choice from me. With a grunt his hand came down on my shoulder like a clamp, jerking me around. Angry eyes glared down into mine, his mouth a straight white line across his face.

“Keep this shit up and I’ll break your fucking arm,” he threatened. His gaze moved over the blood covering my neck and shoulder. When we returned to his bike he dug around for something in the saddle bag, withdrawing a wrinkled t-shirt. “Change.”

I wanted to resist but knew it would be useless. I snatched the shirt from Keg and swung around, ignoring his snicker at my attempt at modesty. The ruined shirt hit the ground and I quickly slipped the other one on before reluctantly turning to face him. I could see the lust in his eyes as he stepped up to me. I held my breath, but all he did was reach for the bloody shirt. He then draped it over the handlebar of Popcorn’s downed bike.

“Maybe Hawk will think that you’re dead,” he smiled cruelly.

“And believe that you just took my body?” I shot back sarcastically.

Keg shrugged. “He’ll think your ex wants to see proof that he doesn’t have to worry about you anymore.”

He seemed to have an answer to everything and I felt sick because it made sense, yet I was certain that Hawk was not that easy to fool. Keg’s mistake was in forgetting that Dane wanted me back alive, and Hawk knew it. I didn’t bother reminding him of that fact, though. “Fuck you, Keg!” I exploded, surprising myself as much as him at my outburst. I had nothing to lose.

His brow lifted high on his forehead. “I plan on it, baby. Here or later doesn’t fucking matter to me.” He grabbed the front of his pants crudely.

I made the mistake of glancing down. Oh, God! He had a hard-on.I didn’t know if his words were just meant to subdue me, or if he actually meant them, but his erection made the possibility all too real. Tears welled in my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. I wouldn’t give that small victory to the bastard. “Why, Keg?” I asked, struggling to remain calm and level-headed.

He took my wrists in one of his hands. “Money, baby.” He looked into my eyes. “Freedom.” He wrapped the rope tightly around my wrists. “And fucking power.” He then had the nerve to wink.

“You know what Dane will do to me,” I said in a frantic tone, wincing at the tension of the rope. “He’ll beat me again, maybe even kill me, for running away.”

“Yeah, that sucks,” Keg admitted, picking me up and sitting me on his bike. “But I’ll get over it,” he chuckled. “Now put your arms over my head and around my waist so you can hold on.”

I thought about it for a second, looking down at my bound wrists. Could I club him in the back of the head hard enough to knock him out? Or do what he wanted, and then strangle him? I glanced over at Popcorn’s lifeless body. He hadn’t stood a chance, while I still had one. We weren’t that far from the club. Wouldn’t Hawk send someone else to see what was taking us so long to get there?

“Don’t even think about it, unless you want to get to the fucking airport bruised and bleeding.”

Airport! I hadn’t been expecting that. Would Dane be there, or would I be put on one of his private jets and flown to Vegas, left alone to wonder what kind of reception would greet me. I shivered and slowly lifted my arms to do as Keg commanded. Maybe I’d have another opportunity to escape along the way. Airports meant there would be people present.

It wasn’t long before we were racing in the opposite direction from the clubhouse. When we hit the highway new hope for a rescue came as we merged into traffic. Surely someone would see that my hands were tied and call the police. But anytime another vehicle got close Keg reached down and covered my bound hands with one of his. I clenched my teeth and resolved myself to the situation, for now, anyway. When the time came I wouldn’t go down without a fight.

The only airports I knew of in Maine were Bangor and Portland. I doubted Keg was going to be taking me to either one. All my years of flying with Dane had prepared me to expect a small, privately owned airport somewhere. He kept several planes in various locations around the country, always at the ready in case he needed them.

We couldn’t have been on the interstate for an hour when Keg took an exit, continuing at a speed that told me that he knew where he was going. Following several twisting, winding roads where there was nothing but trees on either side, we eventually turned down a smaller road only big enough for one vehicle at a time. Recalling the narrow stretch of Hawk’s driveway I assumed that we were on driveway that would end at a small airport. I was surprised when we pulled up in front of large house with a private air strip.

There weren’t any vehicles present, yet the house looked lived in. I hadn’t known that Dane had a place in Maine, but then, there was a lot that I was just now learning about him. Keg turned off his bike and kicked down the stand. I lifted my arms without being told and sat back, taking in my surroundings. It was quiet, isolated, the perfect place to kill someone, and there were acres and acres of burial ground.

“Get off, and if you run you’ll be sorry.” His phone was ringing and he dug it out of his pocket after I dismounted.

As if I weren’t already sorry. Keg had to be crazy to think that I wasn’t going to try and escape, especially when no one else was around, and there were plenty of woods to get lost in. I watched him for a minute. His eyes were on me but I got the impression that he wasn’t really seeing me. He was too absorbed in a conversation that I didn’t even try to listen to. I was occupied with thoughts of getting away and nothing else. First I had to figure out how.

Keg released a deep sigh and pocketed his phone when he was done. I didn’t like the way his eyes were suddenly moving over me with purpose. “Looks like lover boy won’t be here for half an hour. I wonder what we can do to kill some time.” He reached forward and ran a hand over my breast. “Nice tits. I always thought Hawk was a lucky son-of-a-bitch, keeping you for himself.”

I stepped back so that his hand dropped from my body. “I need to, ah, pee, please.” My mind began to race.

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