Page 87 of The Devil's Redemption

He ruins you.

“Hello, princess,” he greets me once I’m fully upright. Running his fingers through my hair, he continues, “I’ve missed you. Did you miss me?”

I look him right in the eye, but say nothing. The look of disgust on my face says it all. If he wants me to speak, he’s going to have to force it out of me.

“What’s the matter? Don’t you have anything to say to me?” he sneers. Clicking his tongue, he continues. “Let’s get you into the barn. I know exactly how to loosen that tongue of yours.”

My stomach drops, and bile rises to my throat. He places his hand on my cheek and runs his thumb over my lips. The urge to bite him is strong, but the beating I received the last time we were together is still fresh in my mind. I’m barely healed from it, I’m not ready to go through it again.

I fight the nausea that’s beginning to claim me as he winks then nods to Rooster to escort me. Rooster grabs me by the arm and begins to pull me toward the barn. The moment his hand touches my arm, I tear it out of his hold. I take a step backward, and he must think I’m getting ready to run because he reaches for me again and throws me to the ground. He crouches down over me and shoves the gun into my face.

“Get your bony ass into the barn,” he orders.

When I don’t move, he reaches out and grabs a fistful of my hair, pulling me across the dirty ground. I scream out in pain, latching onto his wrist to try to keep him from tugging as hard. He stops and drops me back onto the ground before looking down at me.

“You going to cooperate?” he asks.

With tears in my eyes, I nod, and he waves his gun, telling me to get a move on. I quickly get back on my feet and walk into the barn. When I clear the threshold, I see Jasper waiting just inside the door. It’s a large barn full of hay bales that have long since gone bad. There is a musty smell in the air and dark brown and black spots all over the hay. Abandoned horse stalls line one side, and a wall containing old, rusty farming equipment lines the other. I can barely see to the far end of the barn as the only light is over the area where you first walk in. I see a coil of rope on the ground nearby, and I try desperately not to think about the last time these two had me tied up with one.

What the hell are we doing here?

I can’t figure out his endgame, other than to kill me. Does he think Blade is going to find me here? Is he hoping he will so he can kill him? Is he trying to lure the Skull here like he wanted to do the first time he grabbed me? I can’t play the part of the terrified girl that I did before. I swallow, trying to get the nerve to question him.

“Wh—what are we doing here?” I ask, barely loud enough for him to hear me.

“This is just temporary, princess. A place to get off of the road quickly before anyone is able to track us. There are too many eyes on the lookout for me around here. I can’t risk them finding us before it’s time.”

“Time for what?” I ask him, my voice shaking with fear.

“To take what was promised to me, once and for all.”

“You’re never going to get what you want. They’ll kill you.”

“They’re going to have to find me first, princess.”

“You no longer have an army. Not that you had much of one to begin with,” I spit.

“There’s that fire I missed. I’m looking forward to experiencing it until death do us part, princess. Tomorrow when we head on out of here, the first place we’re going is to the house of an associate of mine. I’ve been busy the past couple weeks. I had a wedding to plan.”

What the fuck is he talking about?

“I’m assuming you got my letter? That’s why the Skull and the Bastards were trailing me, right?”

I don’t answer him. I’m too dumbfounded. He starts walking toward me, and I step backward slowly.

“See, my Trixie was taken from me on the same night that you were. Once I got over the initial shock of her passing, I realized that I didn’t have anything to be upset about. I still had you. I just needed to get you back. So I went by your apartment, but you weren’t there. I figured it was only a matter of time before you returned.”

He steps toward me again, and I take another step back, but I can’t go anywhere. I’ve backed right into Rooster’s front. I try moving to the side to get away from him, but Jasper grabs a tight hold on my throat, keeping me in place. With his face too close to mine, he continues.

“Eye for an eye, they took her from me. I took you from them…Again.In all honesty, I enjoyed Trixie for a while. A long while. But her temper created a lot of issues within my club. I don’t see the same thing happening with you, princess. You’re more polished than Trixie was. More genteel.”

He leans in and inhales my scent as he traces his tongue over my cheek.

“You have qualities that befit a queen.”

He can’t be serious. There’s no way someone would marry us if we’re not both willing… Right?

What am I thinking? Look who I’m dealing with.

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