Page 14 of Mace

“I’ll send Grit and Celt to stay here for added security.”

“I don’t need help, we’ll be fine. I’ll be back on my feet tomorrow,” I told him.

My club president gave me a long, hard stare. I guessed if he decided I needed a babysitter then I was gonna get one whether I wanted it or not. He stood up and paced around the small living area, “The big question is, what do you want to do about finding that burial ground? We talked amongst ourselves and have no idea what we’re looking for. I’d hate for us to go trampling through it without realizing what in the hell it is.”

“It would probably be better to wait a bit until I can go with you,” I told him. “I’m really anxious about those interlopers finding the site but I doubt they’d know what they were looking at, even if they were standing on top of it.”

When the medic was finished with me, Alicia and I sat down with the club officers, and I talked about everything that we went through. I went into details about what drew me to their encampment and how her father was screaming at her and jerking her around to the point that she ended up bruised. Thenabout how the man her father chose for her threatened to rape her and had his hand around her throat.

Alicia moved closer to me as she told them about being pulled out of bed in Mexico and brought to America. She told us that she’d been born in the US and her father took her to his home back in Mexico when she really young. She’s been mostly raised on a farm until he decided that to bring her to the States three months ago, where he’d been making her take care of him and his men under pretty primitive conditions.

When everyone cleared out, and it was just the two of us, she got emotional. I put my arm around for her moral support. “I know that was a lot. It probably felt like getting interrogated, but the good part is you only had to do it once.”

She nodded through tear filled eyes. “Thank God for small favors.”

She glanced up at me and then away before asking timidly, “Can you hold me. I mean really hold me?”

I nodded and pulled her against my bare chest. The only thing left to indicate my injury was a bandage and clear protective covering. What once seemed like the end of my life as I knew it, now looked pretty minor. David even gave me something for the pain, so that was no problem either. Truth be told, that was probably why I felt fantastic right now.

We sat together on the sofa, curled up together for what seemed like a long time, not talking or anything. Nine laid at our feet, sensing that now wasn’t the time to be jumping all over me. I swear that he had almost a sixth sense when it came to shit like this.

By the time night came, I was too exhausted to think of anything except sleep. Alicia insisted that I take the bed. I wanted to argue, because I should be the one looking after her, but I found I didn’t have the strength. My dreams were filled with danger, fighting, and protecting Alicia. I woke up still exhausted, knowing those dreams were because I ended up getting shot trying to protect her. I rolled over and went back to sleep, thinking the medications our medic gave me might be the reason I didn’t feel compelled to get up bright and early like I normally did.

Hours later, I finally crawled out of bed when I smelled food. I stumbled to the small kitchen and found Alicia making bacon, eggs, and toast. I’d give anything for a nice big piece of my grandma’s frybread, but I didn’t say that. A man should be grateful for the food he’s given. Those were wise words from my grandfather.

Alicia glanced over her shoulder at me and asked, “Are you feeling better today? How’s your side?”

“It’s okay. I’m doing better,” I said without really thinking about it. I’d been injured many times over the years and this injury didn’t feel like the worst I’d had.

“How about yourself? Are you settling in here?”

She shrugged. “Yeah, I guess. I’m a bit worried because I tried to call my mom and couldn’t get her to answer.”

I eased down in a chair at the kitchen table and asked, “Do you think she might have gone to town or something like that?”

“Anything’s possible, but it was my understanding that she had been doing poorly after I left. My aunt said she wasn’t eating or sleeping and had lost a bunch of weight.”

“No wonder you’re worried. Can you call your aunt and get her to go check on her?”

She shook her head, “I last spoke to her when I was still with my father. I don’t want to call her in case it causes more trouble. I’ll just keep trying to get a hold of my mom. ” She put a platter full of food on the table and sat down. I watched her put food on my plate and then some on her own, before she asked, “Do you think we’re going to make it out of this alive?”

I frowned at her. “Yes, of course we will. You’re in good hands, Alicia.”

“I know. I guess I’m just nervous. My father’s very clever and manipulative. I just don’t see him giving me up quite this easily.”

“He likes to play dirty, does he?”

She nodded, looking all kinds of uncomfortable. “Yeah, I guess you could say that. It’s just that I’ve never known him not to get his way.”

“Well, he’s clearly not gone up against the Dark Slayers MC before. I think you’ll find we’re more than capable of giving him a run for his money.”

She glanced around the room before taking a bite off the end of her crispy bacon.

“You hate it here, don’t you?”

She barely nodded. “It just feels claustrophobic because we’re locked in and it’s underground. I know I’ve only been here just over a day, but I miss seeing the sky.”

“The only other option is the Dark Slayer’s clubhouse. I didn’t think you’d want to go there because it’s where all my club brothers congregate.”

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