Page 13 of Claimed

The ride to the penitentiary was niceenough.He checked in the visitor’s section and it didn’t take toolong before he got to see Torque in the family room.His presidentand leader didn’t look too thrilled that he’d come to see him, butSilver overlooked that aspect.

“Do I want to know whyyou’re here?”Torque asked, taking a seat in the ugly brown plasticchair.

“It’s about Layla.”Silverleaned back in his chair not quite sure how Torque wouldreact.

“Why are you visiting meabout my daughter?”

Silver took a deep breath.“A few days agoshe came to me asking the club for money.”

“You told her no,right?”

“Yes.”He licked his lips.“I gave her themoney,though.From me.”

Torque folded his arms over his chest.“Areyou telling me that you’ve been fucking my daughter even though Ispecifically told you to stay the fuck away from her?”

Silver blew out a breath.“She was going tobe thrown out on the streets.What the fuck was I supposed todo?”

“You come to me.That’swhat the fuck you were supposed to do.”Torque’s hard jaw set as heshook his head, staring down at the floor.“Fuck, Silver.She’s mydaughter.Not some fucking toy for you to use.I don’t want herinvolved in this life.She doesn’t belong.”

“I know.I’m sorry.Ididn’t think it through.”

Torque looked at him.“So what are you goingto do about it now?”

“I don’t know.”Hecontemplated it on the ride to the prison.“I like her.You’veknown that for years.She’s different.She’s…”

Silver stopped when Torque’s expression wentfrom sour to worse.He couldn’t sum up anything about Layla thatTorque didn’t already know.She was his pride and joy.Silverrubbed a hand over his face.

“End it.”Torque said itwith such vehemence that Silver found himself nodding in agreement.Instead of saying anything else, Torque stood and went to the guardwho led him back to his cell.

Silver sat there until Torque was completelyout of sight.He basically considered Torque the father figure henever had.They were friends and brothers.It hurt to disrespecthim and with the way Torque reacted, he knew that an ass kickingwas in his near future.

He stood and checked out.Breaking it offwith Layla wouldn’t be easy.She was an addiction, a drug.Therewas no other woman like her and he knew no one could replaceher.

He’d fucked himself over royally and therewasn’t much chance that he could save himself from thedestruction.

****

“The girls want to staywithyou,” Layla’s aunt, Miranda, told heron the phone.“They miss you.”

“I know.I miss them too.I can’t right now.You know that.I kept them when Mom died becausethey didn’t need to go into the system.Chrissy would never get hertreatments and the girls wouldn’t havefamilyto look afterthem.I simply can’t do it anymore.”

It killed her to say that.Her aunt Mirandadidn’t have any kids and she had always been in their life as asecond mom.She could take care of them better than Layla everdreamed.She switched her phone to her other ear.

“Miranda, thank you fortaking them in.Maybe you should have taken them in the first placeafter Mom died.At least it would be easier now onthem.”

“Nothing about their lifeis easy, Layla.They lost their mom and now they’ve lost theirsister.They’re worried they’re going to lose Chrissytoo.”

As if the guilt didn’t already eat at her.“They didn’t lose me.I can’t afford to take care of them.”

“Julie at the salon saidone of those motorcycle guys stopped by your apartment.Did youcall your father to help you?”

“No.”She was not gettinginto that with her aunt.Torque was not a good subject to talkabout in her family.“My break is almost over.I need to go.I’llcall you later.”

She hung up from her and ran a hand throughher hair.Right now, there was no way she could take in her sistersagain.She didn’t have a place to live.Her jobs barely supportedall of them.She simply couldn’t do it.

After working nearly five hours after herlunch break, Layla’s shift finally ended.She’d made fifty bucks intips which would normally go toward Chrissy’s treatments.She hadradiation coming up and the price was not cheap.She blew out abreath and walked out to the parking lot where Silver sat on hismotorcycle, waiting for her.

A do-rag covered his headwhileleathercovered the rest of his body.She walked towardhim, glad that she could go home.

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