Page 60 of Hap

“Mother fucker,” Ghost growls. “Sit tight and don’t give them any reason to hurt you,” he warns.

I glare at Star, but she just shrugs. “Okay, love you,” she whispers, and then I disconnect the call.

“Sorry, can I?” I ask, gesturing to her chest, so I can bury the phone back in her bra.

“Knock yourself out.” She winks. “Oh, that hurts. Guessing I’m due a black eye, as well as a busted lip.” She tuts.

Once I think it’s hidden enough, I sit back. “Do you think Rage is okay?” I ask as the memory of him being shot replays in my mind. He had charged at them like a man possessed.

Star nods. “Rage is incapable of dying. Plus, I’m not sure, but I think he hacked off one of the guys’ hands,” she says, shuddering. I shudder with her, but before I can say anything else, the sound of voices and footsteps approaching the barn. “Don’t show them any fear,” she whispers before they enter. We sit shoulder to shoulder waiting for them, whoever they are, to come in.

The large doors open, and in walks a man. He has a cane, and as he gets closer, I realise he has a patch covering one eye. I also notice that his hair is the same colour as Elsie’s. How can this frail-looking man cause so much pain and destruction? His one working eye looks from me to Star, and when I look at his hand, I notice there are also fingers missing.

What kind of accident was he in to look like that?I think to myself.

“You are admiring my scars, I see. Courtesy of the Black Hearts MC.” I gasp in horror, but Star doesn’t react. “Oh, you didn’t know what they are capable of? How naïve of you. They tortured me, kidnapped my daughter, and then when I escaped, they hunted me down to kill me,” he states.

I stay quiet, assessing him. I’m not stupid in believing that they are angels, but I’ve come to know them well enough to knowtheir stories. What he did to Elsie, to Scar, and to Acid, maybe he deserved all of it.

“You deserved everything and more that they gave you. You don’t deserve to be breathing,” Star hisses.

“We are supposed to not want them to hit us,” I murmur in her ear.

“He killed Bambi, a young kid. He had his whole fucking life ahead of him, and you fucking killed him,” Star spits with such hurt and hatred in her voice. I instinctively place my hands on her leg in comfort. She swallows and blinks before looking at me.

“Ahh yes, he was an idiot. That’s what happens to idiots. Now I’m a smart man, and I can tell that Star here is the stupid one; therefore, she should be disposed of first.” He grins. One of the men at his side steps towards her, and she kicks and screams, threatening him, but he overpowers her easily and drags her to her feet.

I move to step in, but Star gives me a subtle shake of her head not to move. He moves her to a large hay bale and forces her face down. Her eyes stay on me, causing tears to sting my eyes. My heart thumps in my chest as panic and ice-cold fear run along my spine.

“You see, since your men tortured me, I have been unable to pleasure myself. Unable to get an erection,” he states.

I curl my lip in disgust, my stomach tightening at where he’s going with this.

“Pfft, don’t worry. I doubt anyone will notice the difference,” Star quips.

How the hell is she still able to do that? I’d be a mess of tears and begging if I were in the position she is in right now. She keeps her eyes on me, giving me a soft wink, as if she’s reassuring me it’s going to be okay.

“Yes, very funny. Well, don’t worry, because Ninety-Nine here is going to make up for that. I don’t know if you knowTerrance, but he is currently wanted for rapes up and down the country.” Eugene grins. “Actually, come to think of it Ninety-Nine, you’ll have to change your name after this.” Eugene laughs at his own joke.

I feel sick to the pit of my stomach. The guy he calls Ninety-Nine smiles as he glides his hand over Star’s behind. No, no, no. This can’t happen. I won’t let this happen to her. Ninety-Nine pulls a huge blade from behind his back and runs it up the top of her thigh. As he runs the tip under the edge of her shorts, Star continues to remain completely still with her gaze on me. She’s not there. She’s already mentally checked out. With a flick of his hand, he slices through her shorts and underwear, baring all of her to him.

My heart is thumping in my ears. I have to act, do something. I can’t just sit here and let her suffer through this. My gaze flits to Eugene and his cane, observing his unsteady gait. Before I can think too much about it, I launch myself up and charge toward Eugene, roaring like a Viking at war. I ram him with my shoulder, making him tumble to the ground. Not sparing a moment, I quickly snatch the cane with my hand and charge across to Ninety-Nine. I manage to throw him off as I slam the cane down on him over and over.

It’s as if it’s all happening in slow motion. Star yells and kicks him in the balls. As I’m grabbed from around my waist and dragged back by another guy, I scream, kick, and throw my head back in an effort to break free. He doesn’t let go, but instead he slams me into the wall.

All air escapes my lungs from the impact, and I drop to the floor with a thud. Star screams my name, and I blink, turning my attention to look at her being held back. Eugene is holding a gun to her head, and as large booted feet enter my vision, I look up and see an angry Ninety-Nine looking down at me with his largeknife in his hand. I roll myself to crawl away, my body aching in pain, and it’s then that I hear Star’s desperate scream.

I look back, and her eyes are wide with fear. It’s then that I feel the searing, blinding hot pain that impales my upper back as he slams his blade into me. A blood-curdling scream erupts from my throat, and I feel the moment he yanks it free. My vision blurs as I try to continue to drag myself to the exit, but the pain is too much. My head spins, and I don’t make it very far as he presses his booted foot onto where he stabbed me.

A scream rips from me again, and he releases his foot, only to then kick me onto my back to face him. I pant, fighting to stay awake, fighting to survive for me and my baby. He smirks as he lifts the blade up high. I close my eyes, not wanting him to be my last memory.

My mind fills with memories of Hap holding me, laughing with me, bossing me around, protecting me, and loving me. It’s then that utter regret washes over me. I never told him that I love him. He will never know that no matter how much I tried to fight it, no matter how much I tried to shelter my heart from him, it is completely and irrevocably his.

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

HAP

I had been therefrom the beginning, witnessing Ghost fight for Star, Cash with Maggie, against all odds, Dixie and Rage, Hawk overcoming loss to find love in Josie and being a father, Beast battling a fucking mob family for Belle, Spider after fucking everything falling for Nova, Acid falling for his best friend, and Scar surviving hell only to find the one. I had grown with the club, and I may still be the youngest, but I’ve watched, and I’ve fucking learnt. I have found her, and I wasn’t about to lose her now.

---