Page 71 of Karma

My nausea is so strong I almost retch. But once I give the order, it fades quickly. The whole room reeks of gin, as does Eden. I wake her up gently, coax her to follow me, let her believe I’m Tyler—Joker—which in her drunken state she seems to. I can tell myself I’m doing it this way to make as little noise as possible. But the truth is much more sickening than that. I’m actually imagining that I’m doing her a favor by treating her kindly, answering all her dumb, drunken questions, making jokes and laughing so she won’t be scared. She’s too fucking innocent for this.

When I was abducted, at least I always knew it was a possibility with the way I’d been living. And I’d been through some shit before it happened, so I knew to always expect the worst. This woman—all she knows are her books, and pretty lights and pampered safety. This alone could break her.

What the hell kind of monster am I?

The kind that gets her all the way to the bottom of the stairs without having to use force to do it. Using lies and illusion to get it done. The worst kind, in other words.

The guys handling Ariel don’t take that kind of care. She’s screaming up a storm up there, calling Eden’s name which finally wakes her up as we reach the back door of the building.

I have the chloroform all ready and press the rag over her mouth before she can do more than call Ariel’s name a few times and fight to get free a little. I don’t want to hurt her. But I already have. It’s enough to make bile rise in the back of my throat.

“What’s with all the noise?” Manic hisses at the other two as they carry a lifeless Ariel down the stairs. “Is she dead?”

Doom shakes his head. “She’s just drugged. The bitch woke up while I was packing those clothes for the other one like Joker wanted. Why did he want that again?”

Because he’s in love with her.

I don’t say that. I just tell them to load the women up so we can get out of here. I need to get back to Karma and Grim and start forgetting all this shit. Although I can already see the nightmares coming.

But that’s fine.

Because after all this is done and our revenge is had, the nightmares will finally be gone too. Gone for good.

37

Karma

The place the Lost Sons are assembling at is a compound deep in the forest, made up of three buildings and surrounded by a tall wall. Scorpio said it was a fancy sort of place, but I didn’t expect this level of professionalism. There’s guards on the wall and everyone’s moving with purpose like clockwork. There’s no lounging around, smoking or drinking. Even Scorpio is different here. Harder somehow, more in control as he orders his guys around and makes sure things are getting done. There’s sides of him I have yet to get to know, and I’d be enjoying watching him be the VP a lot more if we weren’t planning to betray his MC the first chance we get.

Another thing I didn’t expect was to see so many guys wearing Lost Sons MC patches. We never could tell how many of them there were, but our best guess put their number at fifty, tops. There are well over a hundred guys here. They must’ve taken on a lot of new members in the last nine months or so. Joker doesn’t need us for whatever he’s planning, that’s for sure. He’s got plenty of men. Maybe even enough to win the war after all.

But we’re here to prevent it altogether and that’s the better plan.

The betrayal we’re planning has been eating at me all night and I feel well and truly chewed up by now. I can hardly look Scorpio in the eye, certain he’ll see we’re planning to double cross him and hate me forever.

But it’ll be different as soon as I see the girl they’ve abducted. Then I’ll know the risk we’re taking is worth it. For her sake. And for Scorpio’s too. He’ll see it our way. He’s gotta. He knows as well as I do what it’s like to be held against your will, thinking your only escape will be death. But only after a whole lot of pain first.

I haven’t seen the girl yet. They must be holding her in one of the imposing, windowless buildings that we don’t have access to.

“We should be out of here in the next hour or so,” Scorpio says behind my back. I didn’t see or hear him approach and I barely managed to stifle a squawk of fear.

“Are we leaving all at once?” I ask, looking at the narrow forest road leading out of here.

He follows my gaze. “You’ll be riding with the main body.”

I check around to make sure no one’s watching then slide my arm around his waist. “Your body?”

The more the betrayal eats away at me, the more I want him. Right here and now. One last time? God, I hope not. The betrayal is also clearly making me corny as hell, so I deserve that mocking smile he’s giving me.

“I’ll be leaving last, with Joker,” he says. “You’ll be going ahead.”

“Going where? To Roaring Brook?”

“You’ll see.” He winks at me like he just shared a secret.

But before I can ask what that secret was, he pulls me behind a black van with a logo of a florist’s shop on the sides.

And as he kisses me, all the darkness of imminent betrayal just floats away, like storm clouds chased away by strong winds. He feels firmer in my arms somehow, more solid, more like something I’ll lose if I let go of him now. Maybe we should call the whole thing off. Maybe we should just ride with them and make sure that girl comes to no harm some other way.

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