Page 50 of Daughters of Chaos

“The other night, my sister got jumped leaving work,” I tell her, leaving out that it was a group of men who jumped her and that they’re likely part of a larger group who are looking to start a war between their MC and my Dad's. “It’s messing with my head.”

Kat’s jaw drops. “Holy shit. Is she okay?”

I nod. “Yeah, she’s fine. A little banged up, but she’s tough. Honestly, the guy who jumped her is probably in worse shape.”

Kat shakes her head. “Damn, no wonder you’re so spacy today. You sure you want to be here? Do you need to go be with your sister?”

It’s not that I don’t want to be with her, but Raven insisted that she was fine and told me if I fussed over her, it would drive her crazy. She insisted I go on like nothing happened but told Tweak and the prospects that if anything happened to me on their watch, she’d castrate them.

I know she’s right. I can’t let what happened drive me into hiding, not when I’m so close to the end of the semester. If I give up now, the last few months will have been a waste. Another couple of weeks, and I’ll have a break; I can worry then.

I shake my head. “It’s okay. She doesn’t like it when people hover, and she knows the end of the semester is close. She said I need to worry about that right now.”

Kat nods as we continue walking. I cast a side glance at my entourage, who are following inconspicuously. My nerves immediately start to relax. Since we left the library, the feeling I had before has lessened. I no longer feel like I’m under a microscope which is a huge relief. The only way I could feel safer right now was if Mason was here, but Dad pulled him for a job and sent Tweak to back up the prospects for my watch duty. Mason tried to argue his way out of it, but Dad was insistent.

Kat loops an arm through mine as I finish sending Mason and Raven a quick text, letting them know things are still all goodhere. “You know what we need?” she says, pulling me along to our next class.

“What?”

“A night out. Something fun and chill to let loose a bit, especially after what happened to your sister. You need something fun to take your mind off it.”

I tilt my head. “Like what?”

She smiles at me. “How about a double date? You and your man and me and Martin.”

I bite my lip.Would Mason go for that? Is that something we should be doing right now with everything going on?

As if sensing my hesitation, Kat grabs my hand. “Come on, it’ll be fun. At least think about it.”

“Okay, I’ll think about it.”

Kat lets out an excited squeal. “Good. I’ll tell Martin.”

A chuckle spills from my lips as I shake my head. “I didn’t agree to anything yet.”

She waves me off. “Oh, you know you will. It’ll be fun, and you know you could use it,” she says confidently.

I can’t help but smile at her enthusiasm. “I’ll think about it,” I reply, giving her side a little pinch. Maybe she’s right. So far, it doesn’t seem like I’m on Dom’s radar. Maybe it would be alright to do something like that. A double date is something normal people do, and I could use a dose of that in my life.

It would give me an excuse to dress up for Mason, too.A smile starts to curl on my lips. Maybe Kat’s idea isn’t so bad after all.

28

Raven

My hand quakes as I slam my fist hard against the hanging bag. Over and over, I swing, needing to feel the release that never comes. I’m so angry, angrier than I’ve ever been and there seems to be no end in sight.

Since the night we got jumped at the bar, I’ve felt this way. How dare Dom and his cronies burst into my life like this and turn everything upside down. I was finally happy or at least getting there. I liked the way things were before he stumbled in and messed everything up.

Now, my nerves are fried, I’m losing sleep, and nothing can curb my frustration—nothing. Believe me, I’ve tried. So has Jesse, but eventhathasn’t helped lately. I’m not sure what will,not till this mess is cleaned up and the war between the Sons and the Bastards is over.

I whirl around and land a hard kick to the center of the bag. I need more, need a live opponent, someone to help curb this roaring energy inside me. Stitch and Reaper are tailing me today, working out their own frustrations in another part of the gym. With a huff, I step away from my bag and wander to where they’re sparring, leaning myself against the ring to watch them work.

Reaper hits harder and has a good five inches and twenty pounds of muscle on Stitch, but Stitch is fast. He dodges a fist from Reaper, countering with a hard punch to his unguarded ribs. I watch as they shuffle around the ring, exchanging hits back and forth.

When they pick up the tempo, I lean in, trying to anticipate each man’s next move, trying to learn how they fight. Every grunt and smack that sounds with a landed hit has my blood pumping. It’s a thrill, one that may finally calm my raging emotions once I take my turn fighting the winner of this round.

I watch as Stitch lands another hit on Reaper. They’re taking their time, and I’m running out of patience. “I take the winner,” I call out.

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