Page 52 of Mace

Of course, he fucking knows. He knows, and he doesn’t give a shit, which is the worst part of all this. Crank is a coward. To lead a chapter, you have to be willing to do things others wouldn’t.

“Does Rav know?” I ask.

Ravage has zero love for Crank. He sees him exactly for what he is—a liability, a weak link in the chain. For us to be solid as a club, every chapter has a part to play.

“Yeah, I let him know.”

I see the unease that ripples across my best friend’s face. Nicky is one of the most loyal men I have ever met,and I know standing against Crank like this will affect him.

But if the club is at risk, I don’t know that either me or Nicky will be able to stand by and do nothing. Not this time. We made that mistake already, and unlike others, I fucking learned from my past.

“You know, whatever happens, I have your back, right?” I ask him. “You and me, we stick together. Nate too. The others… I ain’t sure who’s on our side, but I don’t reckon half the brothers in that building support the shit Crank is doing.”

“Neither do I, but one wrong move here, Mace, and we end up dead. We’ve got to tread carefully.”

That, I completely agree with.

Crank may be useless, but he still has support.

THIRTEEN

MAYLIE

I knowI shouldn’t be here. It’s only going to inflame the situation between me and my sister, but I don’t know what else to do. Toby said she’s come home a few times while I’ve been at work, and I try not to let her avoidance of me sting, but her distance from me makes it hard for us to talk, and we really need to talk.

I found out Link’s address from one of Ivy’s friends. Well, one of herformerfriends. She told me that she and Ivy no longer speak and haven’t for months. How have I become so disconnected from my sister’s life that I had no idea she’d already cut off people who are important to her? Mollie didn’t have a lot of good things to say about Link, and I got the impression she doesn’t like him at all.

You and me both.

Surprisingly, his building is nice and in a better part of town. As I approach the apartment, the back of my neck feels clammy, and as I lift my hand to rap on the door, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little apprehensive. I don’t dovery well with conflict, and I’m pretty sure this is about to be the mother of all conflicts.

There’s movement behind the door as I wait, and then a moment later, it’s pulled open. Link is standing in the doorway wearing only a pair of boxers. My stomach sinks.

He better be here alone dressed like that.

A smile creeps across his face, but it isn’t a pleasant one. “If it isn’t the annoying sister. How did you find me?”

Considering that isn’t the most pertinent piece of information here, my mouth pulls into a tight line. “Is Ivy here?”

“Where Ivy may or may not be is none of your business,” he tells me as if he’s the one who spent years taking care of my sister. As if he’s the one who loves her the way I do.

“Ivy,” I yell around him, catching a glimpse of the hallway beyond.

He steps out, closing the door behind him, just as I had with Bernie. I’m about to give him a mouthful of abuse when his fingers latch around my arm in a vice-like grip. I barely get out my yelp of surprise before he shoves me against the opposite wall with so much force, it pushes the air from my lungs.

Pain ripples up my spine and settles around my shoulders as he presses me between his thick body and the wall. This isn’t like when Mace cornered me in the office at Temptation. I feel no heat, no desire, nothing but consuming panic as it bubbles up my throat.

It’s instinct rather than a conscious decision that has me shoving his chest as hard as I can, but he’s a fucking giant and barely moves an inch. Instead, he laughs at mypathetic attempts, sending waves of terror rolling through me.

I’m an idiot for coming here alone. I can’t fight him. He’s so much bigger than me, and when he holds my shoulders, pinning me to the wall, there’s nothing I can do to fend him off.

He leans into me, and I press my skull into the wall behind me, seeking some distance as his mouth contorts into the most savage snarl I’ve ever seen.

“I’m going to say this once and once only. Ivy ain’t your concern. You keep trying to get between us and I’m going to make your life hard.”

There is no trace of smiles or humour in his tone. I truly believe this man will hurt me if I don’t back off.

But I’m not leaving here without my sister, and I’m not allowing him to scare me away. The more I see into their relationship, the more concerns I have. This man makes all my instincts fire to life. Something is seriously wrong with him.

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