Page 2 of Savage Ends
Pat worked his body so he was exhausted come nighttime.Unfortunately, the gym was not open twenty-four hours, and working out at the club had the brothers worried.This is why he ended up here on some nights, drinking coffee, waiting to be exhausted enough to just sleep.
Ava returned, complete with cake and a smile.
“Here you go.I think that is the best cake of the day.”
“You like carrot cake?”he asked.
“Of course.”
“Why?”
She rolled her eyes.“Come on, cream-cheese frosting, that cake and that spice.It is heavenly.Now, don’t get me wrong, the chocolate fudge cake is mouthwatering, but all that chocolate can sometimes be a little too much, don’t you think?”
“Yeah, I do.”
“And vanilla is good as well.Carrot cake just has that edge to it.”She looked past his shoulder.“I’ve got to go.Enjoy, Sugar.”She often called him Sugar, or Sweetheart.
He was tempted to watch her again, but instead he slid the fork through the slice of carrot cake and took a bite.This is what he loved about this place.The cakes were made from scratch.It was said that all the cakes were homemade every day.
Each day, the menu of cakes, cookies, and sweet treats changed.Today was carrot cake, but tomorrow could be lemon drizzle, with possibly a scone.He liked that.He didn’t think he would, but it kept the variety he now loved.
Every day was exciting, which is why he had also started to come here daily.Apart from Sundays, the only day they were closed.
Glancing across the counter, he watched as Ava continued to serve coffee, chat with the customers, and just be her friendly self.He did have doubts, but his contact had told him to stop being so negative.
Ava Beckett was a regular twenty-four-year-old, with no record, no priors.She graduated high school, moved out of her mother’s house two years ago.She worked full-time at this place, and during the day, according to his contacts, she spent a great deal of time working on a sewing blog.On paper, Ava was just a normal girl.
She had nothing to worry about.No contacts that were dubious.Her mother, Hazel, owned a freaking fabric shop, where her other daughter, Ava’s sister, Violet, worked.While Ava had moved out, Violet still lived with her mother.The in-depth report he got told him that Ava’s dad, Benjamin, had died of a stroke ten years ago.
He knew everything that was important to know, along with a lot of things he probably shouldn’t know.She earned a decent wage at this job.Working from five in the evening until midnight did pay a pretty penny.
The coffee shop could afford it.He looked into The Late-Night Coffee Shop, which was owned by Lauren Robinson, a qualified baker, outstanding in her field.From what he could tell, she also catered a great deal of events and special occasions.She was never seen in the coffee shop up front, only Ava, along with two other employees, who were part-time.
The place was a success with no ties to MC, Mafia, Cartel, or even the fucking Bratva.It was clean.
Pat knew he had to stop going because he didn’t want to put the shop at risk.The patch he wore put a target on his back.For a short time, he’d been the VP, but that had been a ruse to try and keep Grant alive.Now, he was back to being Sergeant at Arms, which was more his style.He kept to the rules and boundaries Bull and the club set.No one stepped out of line and if they did, they answered to him.He took his role seriously.
No one was going to mess up on his watch.It was a role he enjoyed.Grant’s place was always meant to be by Bull’s side.Even though the brothers were a fucking nightmare and fought all the time, they were still brothers.Bull would die for Grant, and although Grant didn’t show it much, he would die for Bull as well.He knew both brothers would die for the club and every single member, but brothers were different.
This is why he loved the MC.He had his brothers and his family.Before he joined the military, he had been part of Chaos and Carnage MC.Joining up, serving his country, it was something he just had to do.When he got back and his time in the military was done, he came home.
Some people thought he was a good man.He wasn’t.Killing people in a war zone had come easy to him.
Chaos and Carnage MC had changed, but in essence, it wasn’t a good club.They were not good boys.They kept the town of Carnage clean, and that came at a cost.
Some people thought his nightmares were because of what happened in war.The truth was, it was at times because of shit hedidn’tdo.
The military had a code to be followed.Some of his men had been tortured, and Pat had no choice but to reel his shit in, but that had been hard to do.With every fiber of his being telling him to slaughter, he didn’t.He followed the fucking rules.
Pulling out of the memory, he took a long drink.
It was easy to allow him to let the club think he was messed up by the shit he had seen.And it was true—war zones were not for the faint of heart.But it didn’t mess with him in the way they thought.
Running fingers through his hair, he thought often about getting it cut, but something always held him back.
“You sure finished that carrot cake,” Ava said, coming back around.
“What can I say, it’s delicious.”
