Page 65 of Ox

Maze ignored the dig and said, “You know what happens to a Brother who betrays his Club, don’t you Ghost?”

Summoning just enough strength to nod, I told him silently that I did.

“Any last words?” the large man pressed, slowly unscrewing the cap to the canister.

I wasn’t much for conversation, so I just sat mute, waiting as Maze began to pour the noxious fluid all over and around me.

Digging into his pocket, he produced a matchbook. “Good. I hate speeches. Save it for the Devil. He’s the only one who cares about your sins now.”

Walking toward the stairs, he trailed the remaining gas in a line until the last of the fluid ran out.

“You sure you don’t want me to tune him up before you light the match?” Snake offered, a gleam of hope in his muddy brown eyes.

Maze shook his head before striking the match. “What a waste,” he returned, before letting it drop.

I watched the beautiful red glow float to the ground as though it were lighter than air. Like it had a mind of its own, it danced seductively toward me. I’d never seen anything morebeautiful in my whole life. And, like all beautiful things, it came with a price. Pain and misery.

When it reached out for my pant leg, I bit down on my tongue to stop the scream lodged in my throat. Despite all the sedatives, my nerves and body jolted to life the instant its heat kissed my skin. When it reached my thighs, I screamed like an animal that was being gutted from the inside out. And when it crawled up my stomach, arms, and head, I was caught somewhere between agony and euphoria. A state that felt akin to God to me.

The last thing I saw before I erupted brightly like a Roman candle, was the door to the cellar shutting behind my Prez and Snake. And then I saw no more.

Kayla

I’d been hauledinto what looked like an old farmhouse after being dragged from the car. We entered through the kitchen where three women of various ages were preparing a large breakfast. Spices wafted into the air as pans of food merrily steamed away on all four burners.

Nobody even spared me a glance as my captor demanded I “move faster”. Ushering me through the tidy kitchen, I willed the women to look at me. But it soon became clear they weren’t going to help me in any way. They weren’t my saviors. They were passive bystanders at best, and willing accomplices at worst.

I was led upstairs into a small room before the door was shut and locked behind me. To my surprise, my hands and feet had been left unbound. As soon as my captor retreated downstairs, I shot up from the bed and began to circle the space, looking for a makeshift weapon or way out. Unfortunately for me, this roomwas spartan and contained even less than the one Ghost had locked me in yesterday. There wasn’t even a window I could look out of. Or, if times became desperate enough, jump from.

About twenty minutes later, I heard the key in the lock and I immediately panicked. Was it Ghost coming to retrieve me? Someone else? Before I could think of what to do, my captor from earlier ushered the oldest woman from the kitchen into my room.

I smelled the food before I even saw it. Aromatic rice and eggs were piled high on a plate, with two thick, homemade slices of buttered bread stacked like the cherry on top. I hadn’t eaten in close to twenty four hours, and my stomach instantly awoke and grumbled for relief when it got a whiff of the homey meal.

The older woman smiled reassuringly as she handed me the plate and spoon, motioning for me to start eating when I just stood there dumbly for too long.

Needing my strength, I decided it was in my best interest to eat. Reasoning, if they’d wanted to poison me, they didn’t need to hide it in my food. They could simply force the issue. They clearly had the strength to compel my compliance one way or another. Trickery, at this stage in the game, was wholly unnecessary.

My captor and his female accomplice left then and I ate in relative peace. When I was done, I held onto my spoon, as it was the closest thing to a weapon I could get my hands on. I soon felt the exhaustion and fatigue setting in as my body began to process the filling repast. Crawling onto the bed, I decided to rest my eyes for a few moments, but I fell asleep instead.

The sound of the door opening dragged me awake. Shooting out of bed, I held my spoon in front of me like a sword. Before I’d tumbled into unconsciousness, I’d decided I’d fight to the death before suffering whatever disturbed fate my captors had planned for me.

My kidnapper stepped inside the room and said, “Easy there, Senorita. I won’t hurt you,” like he was trying to calm a spooked horse.

Not believing him for a second, my gaze widened crazily as I calculated my chances of running by him and making it outside. Before I could react, a large man stepped into the room and pushed past my guard. To my absolute shock, and relief, it was Ox.

I was in his arms before I’d even blinked. Crushing me so tightly to his chest it hurt, Ox whispered, “I’m here now, Babe. You’re safe.”

Dissolving into tears, I leaned against his warm, muscled chest and finally allowed myself to fall to pieces in the comfort of his strong embrace.

TWENTY-ONE

Ox

The momentI saw her I let out the breath I hadn’t known I’d been holding. I needed her in my arms like a dying man needed a cure to his fatal disease. Vowing never to let her go, I whispered every soothing word I could think of to calm my terrified woman.

My Brothers were standing behind me, watching my six as I picked up Kayla and transported her down the steps to my SUV. German, who’d been riding with me earlier, got into Hawk’s vehicle and told me he’d see me back at the hotel.

Gently, I set Kayla into my SUV. Leaning over, she placed her head in my lap as I rode for the border. We didn’t have far to go, because we weren’t ready to make the trek back to Nevada yet. We’d be staying the night in Arizona so Kayla could decide what she wanted to do next.

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