Hellbent Hero by Naomi Porter

14

Tara

JUST AS I’D figured, Storm wouldn’t let Maddy go to The Bullet to sing karaoke. If he couldn’t be with her, she wasn’t going. Overprotective much? Hell yes, he was, and for a good reason. Being the president’s old lady put a target on her back. I’d have been pissed if he let her go after what the Hunters had done to her.

So instead of giving Maddy a hard time about her overbearing biker husband, I agreed to hang out at the clubhouse while he was at the fight. I really wanted to be there to watch Boxer and Ire pummel their opponent. It would’ve been freaking awesome.

But without Maddy by my side, it would’ve been weird attending the event with a bunch of bikers.

They only reminded me of who I would never have.

On the bright side, Steph agreed to go with me to the club if I could wait to pick her up after her haircut appointment at six. She didn’t have any issues with Storm and his crew. My girl was an easy person to please. Nothing and no one bothered her. It was probably why I loved her so much.

I glanced out my rearview mirror, wishing there was a single headlight behind me. I missed Copper. Regretted yelling at him. To be honest, I was also a little nervous about seeing him at the club. Would he hate me for kicking him out of my house? God, I had acted like a bitch.

My phone startled me when the light from the screen illuminated the inside of my dark car. It was after seven, so it was pitch-dark. Kinda creepy. I should’ve turned the ringer on after school like usual. But I’d forgotten while playing with Luna before I left her for the night.

“Hellooo,” I answered on the Bluetooth without digging my cell out of the cupholder. Steph probably wondered why I was late.

Big, gargantuan mistake blindly taking the call.

“Dorothy? Know who this is? Of course, you do. How ya been?”

My heart seized. I slammed on the breaks right before I blew through a stop sign. The car rocked, my head hitting the headrest. Was this a nightmare? No, much, much worse. This was real.

I grabbed my phone like an idiot to check the number. Unknown. How stupid was I? As if his name would be on the screen.

“Are you so stunned to hear from me? Or maybe your cat got your tongue.”

A violent wave of tremors ripped through my body.

Wait. What did he say?

My eyes bulged out of their sockets as I gripped the steering wheel like it could protect me. How did he know I had a cat?

A horn blared, scaring the hell out of me. My eyes flicked to the rearview mirror.

Please don’t let it behim.

An annoyed woman appeared to be shouting at me to go. I read the curse words on her lips. Bitch.

I looked both ways before proceeding through the intersection. No words came to me as my pulse raced. How did he get my number? Why was he calling? Why, why, why, after all these years, why would he contact me now?

“Your silence is pissing me off, Dorothy. I expected a warmer greeting. I didn’t raise you to be rude. What happened to my obedient little Dorothy? Perhaps you need a reminder of what happens to naughty little girls who make their daddy angry.”

Bile shot into my throat. I haphazardly pulled off onto the side of the road, reached for the empty Taco Bell cup, ripped the plastic lid off, and vomited into it. I gagged and gagged, my vision blurring as tears filled my eyes. The mere sound of his evil voice made my throat constrict. I felt his fingers cutting off my air supply like before. Saw the hate in his brown eyes staring down out when he was tripping and wanting to end me.

The headlights of an oncoming car scared me. For a moment, I’d forgotten where I was. I gasped for air, heaving in gallons as my whole body shook at the onset of a panic attack.

Please help me, I silently pleaded with Maddy’s God. Please save me.

“Well, fuck, Dorothy. It’s just like old times.”

I slammed my hand on the button to end the call as tears dampened my cheeks. I dug my nails into my biceps, trying to gain control of my breathing. It was no use. My stupid coat was too thick.

“No, no, no! How did he find me? Is he in Winters?”

I rocked in my chair as a couple of cars drove past mine. Had I somehow conjured him after performing his sick ritual on myself?

The phone rang again, pulling a terrified scream out of me. Except it wasn’t the unknown number, it was Steph’s. I didn’t want to answer but had no choice. She’d call Maddy. God only knew what would happen if Mads was worried for my safety.

“Hey,” I answered, hand pressed to my chest as I tried to sound normal.

“You almost here?”

“Yeah. Just running late. Be there in five.” I dried my eyes with my sleeve.

“O-kay. You sound funny.”

“Allergies.”

“In the fall?”

Crap, I wasn’t good at thinking on my toes. “Maybe it’s Luna.” I winced at blaming my sweet baby, but she was the most logical excuse I could come up with on the spot.

“I hope not.”

“Me too. See you soon.”

“K.”

The call ended.

My hands shook like crazy. About as fast as my heart rate. Somehow I needed to push through the abject horror I felt hearing my father’s voice.

I couldn’t deal with him.

I had plans.

Friends depending on me for a girls’ night.

If I didn’t calm down, appear normal, Maddy’s canine senses would smell the terror permeating my insides. The terror only one person had ever instilled in me… Mr. Wizard, aka, my druggie dad.

Why? Why now? I had a peaceful life. Well, sort of… sans the biker shit. I had a job I loved. Friends. No drugs or crazy crap my father got off on.

Shaking my head and gritting my teeth, I pushed thoughts of him out of my head. I refused to think of him now… or ever.

You can do this.

God, I hoped so. The sooner I got Steph and me to the club, the safer I would feel.

Two hours later, four screwdrivers—double the vodka—and I didn’t have a care in the world. Maddy had asked Steph and me to spend the night. We agreed, so I didn’t need to stay sober.

Getting hammered was at the top of my to-do list.

My hooded eyes were trained on Steph singing an eighties song in the corner with Libby. Leave it to Mr. Perfect Biker Prez to make his woman deliriously happy after not approving her request to sing karaoke at The Bullet.

What had Storm done?

He bought his Angel her own karaoke machine and added spotlights in the corner of the room. She’d been beaming like a freaking beacon since I arrived. I didn’t think she could shine any brighter. But, boy, had I been wrong.

The clubhouse wasn’t packed, but there was a fair amount, likely on guard duty, along with kittens. Tina and Raul were here too. Their kids were at home with a babysitter… er, uh, a prospect they called Hollywood. I hadn’t talked to him before, only seen him once. He was a blue-eyed, blond hottie with a golden tan, surfer good looks, and a million-dollar smile. Hollywood fit him perfectly for a road name, even though he was born and raised in Missouri.

Sugar and Art—the hottest tattooist I’d ever seen—were sitting together at the bar. He’d put Storm’s mark on Maddy. I’d heard he took Justin’s position and recently moved upstairs into his old room.

I let my eyes flit up toward the ceiling. Directly above my head was Hero’s bedroom. I sighed wistfully. I loved sleeping with him. While he was gone on the run, I’d felt protected here—part of the club’s family.

“You belong here, Roja. Promise you won’t leave while I’m gone,” he whispered in my ear. It was morning. In an hour, he’d leave with the others. I didn’t want him to go.

I held onto him tighter, my face buried in the curve of his neck. We’d just finished making love. Like all the other times, it was a religious experience, as Hero liked to call it.

“I’ll be here, keeping your bed warm.”

He tilted my chin up and pressed his full lips to mine. “Do you understand how important you are to me?”

I nodded as tears stung my eyes. He was doing it again. Caressing my soul with his soulful depths, branding it with his passionate declarations.

“God sent you to me. I believe it with all my heart. Do you believe it too, baby?”

I didn’t grow up in a religious home as Hero had with his grandma… his abuelita. It explained the crucifix tattoo on the inside of his right bicep. There were three vines at the bottom: an inscription on each. I hadn’t gotten a close enough look to read them. Didn’t want to make him uncomfortable. But I wondered if it was like a memorial with the names of those he’d lost. Like his wife, if what Emilee had said was true the day we were in Dairy Queen.

I’d ask him about it another time. For now, I’d savor my time with him.

I kissed his scruffy chin. “Yes, I believe it.”

Hero fisted my hair and crushed his lips to mine. “I’m never letting you go, Roja.”

I blinked away the tears burning behind my eyes.

Madeline surprised me when she dropped into the chair next to mine. “I had no idea Libby could sing so well! And a Gretchen Wilson song at that!”

“Big vocals in a tiny body.” I swirled a cocktail straw in my glass. Could the blonde kitten be any more perfect? Too bad I liked her, or I’d hate her guts.

“Exactly.” Mads sipped her lemonade, her drink of choice these days, and eyed me. I knew her question was coming. “You doing okay? You seem off tonight.” She took a handful of peanuts and candy corn and filled her mouth.

Every year when October arrived, Maddy mixed up a bowl of the nasty combo and munched on them until November. Peanuts I could handle. Candy corn? No, thank you. But it was a thing Maddy loved, so I never complained so long as she didn’t ask me to eat some, which she never did. That girl was possessive over her treats.

“Just missing Luna.” A partial lie. I’d gotten my baby all set up for the night. She’d done well using her litter box all week while I was at work. I made sure she ate enough and had fresh water before I left. Luna pretty much stayed on the sofa, perched on a pillow. I felt a little guilty for leaving her alone so much, but Copper had assured me she would be fine.

He better be right.

“Aww. Of course, you do. I didn’t even think about her. Wish you brought her so I could get some cuddles.” Madeline fidgeted with a napkin, her smile fading fast. I needed to change the direction of this conversation.

“Well, it’s still new to me too. So do you think Boxer and Ire will win tonight?” I glanced toward the corner when the song ended. Steph and Libby danced around, waiting for the next one to start. I recognized the song right off the bat from the intro. Yup, “Hit Me with Your Best Shot.” I was down for Pat Benatar, especially this song, after Hero knocked me down.

I’d always get back up.

Maddy screwed up her face. It was better than seeing her sad. “Oh gosh, I hope they win after the way those guys acted all week. So intense and focused. They were like robots constantly training. I hardly saw Ire, which isn’t unusual… You know, since the attack at The Bullet. But Boxer? He was all business and no play.”

“Would’ve loved to see that. Boxer’s such a flirt. Not more than Lynx, though.” I finished off my drink, then second-guessed raising my empty glass so Copper would bring me another. I needed to make nice with him. Only I wasn’t ready. All evening, he acted as if he didn’t notice me. I knew better, though. We’d become friends. I highly doubted he’d cut me loose after one fight, or I hoped he wouldn’t.

“Yeah, Lynx outshines Boxer in the flirting department.” She turned toward the clock above the bar. “They should be here anytime.”

I followed her gaze. It was after ten o’clock. The time sure flew by when drinking and listening to music.

Maddy raised a quizzical brow. “You changed the subject. What’s going on? Something happened. Don’t lie to me either. I can read your eyes when you’re lying.”

Shit! Now, what was I to do? I never talked about my past. Well, I did, leaving out all the dark parts. Maddy knew the basics, nothing more.

“They’re back!” Heidi, one of the kittens, announced.

Maddy was on her feet, along with the rest of the room. I caught a moment of reprieve, but it might not last long. Maddy seemed suspicious, which was never good. I needed to prepare myself for her questions. I had no clue what I’d tell her.

The truth? That my dad had found me and was up to something. The wizard, as he called himself, always had an angle he worked. It usually involved drugs. Dealing was how he afforded his own heroin habit. If dear old dad brought his shit into Knight’s Legion territory, the club would take him out.

I wouldn’t shed a single tear if they did.