Page 22 of Taming the Demon

“Darrow,” Mara whispered.

Darrow moved his hand up to the middle of her back and gave her a soft push toward a table. The door shut behind them. A heavy thud. A slight echo. Mara spun around, trapped in a grease smelling garage with a bunch of outlaws who hated her because of what Fitz had done to them.

“You’re an inked woman,” Cyrus said. “An old lady. Married. But your old man is a rat. Dead to us. A man who will be dead. But you’re part of this club even more now.”

Cyrus pointed to Mara’s stomach.

She placed her hands on her stomach. “And…?”

“And we fix the problems at hand,” Slade said as he walked by her.

Darrow grabbed her right arm and turned her back to face him. She looked up at him. Her chin began to quiver. Darrow touched her chin and leaned down to whisper into her ear.

“Too bad you can’t drink, babe…”

“Why?” Mara whispered back.

“Because this is going to hurt.”

“Drop your pants,” Cyrus said to Mara.

“Something you’ve heard before, right?” Linc asked.

Darrow lunged for Linc and connected with a right fist to Linc’s hard jaw.

“You deserved that one,” Custer said in his aged voice.

Slade grabbed Darrow and pulled him away from getting any closer to Linc.

“What the fuck,” Slade growled. “We don’t need this shit right now!”

Linc rubbed his jaw and wiped blood from the corner of his mouth. He grinned.

“Get this over with before I change my fucking mind,” Cyrus said.

Mara stood with her hands on a chair. Slightly bent forward. Watching the chaos ensue.

“You’re all set up, brother,” Slade said to Darrow. “Just get this going.”

Darrow moved in on Mara. He touched her hips.

“Pants and panties down, babe,” Darrow said.

Mara curled her lip. “Are you fucking serious?”

“You already did this once.”

“What are you going to do to me, Darrow?”

“Black out the ink. It’s the only way to undo what’s been done.”

Mara caught herself glancing back at Cyrus, who stood with his tree trunk sized arms folded.

It made perfect sense, even if she hated it.

She had to get rid of Fitz’s initials off her body. Undo his claim. The only other option was her death. Mara tightened her grip on the sides of the chair.

“Go for it,” she said to Darrow, wanting to feel some sense of power.

---