Page 63 of Scorched King

I flipped the lock with my thumb and snaked my finger around the trigger. I then lifted it to Cash’s forehead and pressed it tight against his skull.

“No fucking deal. Mother fucker.” I pulled the trigger and the sound echoed loudly in the mostly empty cavernous room. This place wasn’t quiet, but it served our purposes well. Blood splattered from the back of his head and for a second he stared at me as if it actually hadn’t happened before his entire body went limp.

I handed the gun back to Axel and took the towel offered by Zook. Silently, we went about the process of cleaning up the mess. This wasn’t our first operation like this, and there would be no crew called in for this one.

Cain and Zook unbuckled the cuffs from Cash’s wrists and carried the body to the plastic sheets already laid out. There would already be a truck parked out back to haul off the body and any and all evidence and then the guys would drive the body out into the mountains where we already knew no one would find it.

There a hole would be dug and what was left of this piece of shit dropped inside it along with a match. The body and evidence would burn, leaving only bones no one could ever find.

Cash would disappear from this world with no one the wiser. No one would ever look for him or wonder where he’d went. Chel might guess, but she would soon be dealt with too. Even his child was too young to remember him.

This was the end of his miserable fucking road…

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

Sasha

Another long restless night had me clicking through channels in the pre-dawn hours, finding nothing to hold my interest. Reality shows, infomercials, reruns of sitcoms I’d seen a hundred times before—it was all mind-numbing garbage. I was about ready to fling the little piece of plastic across the room, my frustration building with each useless press of the buttons. Even the news channels were recycling the same stories I’d watched yesterday.

I'd fallen asleep under Jeanne's watchful eye. Now she dozed in the chair across from the bed, her medical bag still perched at her feet. Her head was tilted at what had to be an uncomfortable angle, and a small frown creased her forehead even in sleep. I felt a twinge of guilt knowing she was only here because of me, forced to sleep in that stiff-backed chair instead of her own bed at home.

I still couldn’t believe I was in JD’s bed. It seemed like a momentous occasion that he’d allowed me into his inner sanctum like this, but without him here it felt—hollow. The sheets still smelled like him, a mix of leather and that spicycologne he always wore, but it only served to remind me how absent he was. I ran my fingers over the soft cotton, wondering how many nights he’d spent here alone, planning and scheming for the club. The room itself was surprisingly sparse for a man of his position, but then again, JD had never been one for unnecessary luxuries.

I pushed the covers away and swung my legs over the side, wincing slightly at the movement before looking down at my side. The memory hit me like a slap— I’d been buck fucking naked when the entire MC had basically crashed into my bathroom and stopped Cash from killing me. I flushed deeply at the picture I must have presented, vulnerable and exposed in every possible way.

It shouldn’t have bothered me, not really. As a former stripper at the MC’s club, each and every one of them had seen me without clothes many times, dollar bills tucked into g-strings and all. But this still seemed different, more raw and intimate with my scars on full gory display.

Back then I’d been in control of how and who saw me. I took the job, I chose the outfits, designed the choreography and made damn sure that what they saw of me was the very best— all glitter and grace under carefully controlled lighting. Tonight had been something else entirely.

I glanced at the clock to see it was after five in the morning, the red digital numbers glowing accusingly in the darkness. Make that last night. We were now well into the next day and JD had yet to return from his club business. The silence in his cabin felt heavy, making every small sound seem amplified. I tiptoed across the room into the bathroom, wincing as my bare feet hit the cold tile floor, and quickly took care of business before washing my hands. The face that stared back at me in the mirrorlooked tired, with dark circles beginning to form under my eyes from the lack of sleep.

When I looked closer, I got the first real look at what had happened to me as evidenced by the ugly purple and blue bruise marks wrapping around my neck like a macabre necklace.

My stomach lurched at how close I'd come to dying, bile burning the back of my throat. I remembered that terrible feeling of not being able to breathe, my lungs burning for air, and the pure, primal fear that came with knowing these might be my final moments. But I also remembered being pissed as hell that it was Cash’s smug, betraying face that I would last see in this world. The memory of his cold eyes and twisted smile made my hands shake with rage, even now.

I'd almost died without telling JD how I really felt. Who was I kidding though—he knew. Had to. I was the worst at keeping secrets, especially when it came to my emotions. I’d always worn them on my sleeve for everyone to see.

All the club ladies used to tease me mercilessly about how my face would light up whenever JD walked into a room, or how I’d stutter and fumble my words if he got too close. Even while working the poker club floor as the perfect hostess, one look from those intense eyes had me blushing like a schoolgirl.

But there was a difference between him knowing and me actually saying the words out loud, letting them hang in the air between us, making them real.

Life was too short for fear. I'd cheated death enough times to know better than to waste it. After the explosion at the casino, and barely making it out alive, I’d realized just how fragile everything was. Each breath was a gift, and here I was, stilldancing around my feelings like some timid little mouse. The scars on my body were a constant reminder that tomorrow wasn’t guaranteed, and I was tired of letting fear hold me back.

“You okay, baby girl?”

I sucked in a breath at the sound of JD’s voice as he knocked on the closed bathroom door. My hands gripped the edge of the sink, knuckles turning white as his deep, gravelly tone sent shivers racing down my spine. Even through the solid wood barrier between us, his presence was overwhelming, making my heart race like it always did when he was near.

“Come in here,” I called out, my voice shakier than I wanted it to be.

The door creaked open and JD filled the frame, his massive shoulders blocking most of the light from the bedroom. Blood stained his white t-shirt, and his knuckles were raw and split. The sight of him, dangerous and powerful, should have scared me. Instead, my heart raced for entirely different reasons.

“Cash won’t be a problem anymore.” His eyes fixed on the bruises circling my neck, jaw clenching tight enough to crack teeth.

“Good.” I turned to face him fully. “Are we finally going to talk about us now?”

JD’s shoulders slumped, the tough exterior cracking just enough to show the exhausted man beneath. “Sasha…”

“No.I’m done dancing around this. And if we’ve learned anything today, it’s that we can’t wait anymore. I love you. I’ve loved you since that first night in the club kitchen when you made me that sandwich. Maybe even before that.” I steppedcloser, close enough to smell the leather and gunpowder on him. “And I know you feel something too. But it’s time to do something about it. Either we cut and run or stand and face it. Which one is it going to be?”

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