Konrad by LeAnn Ashers
11
Konrad
A weeklater
I have searched and searched for Mr. Thompson, but he has dropped off the face of the earth.
I look at the fucking cabin where I almost lost her.
The girl’s body is still inside. I don’t have an ounce of guilt for what happened to her.
Maverick is with me and we are staring at the house. “Ready?” he asks.
I nod, pushing the button. The house explodes instantly. I take satisfaction in the fact that he won’t have a home to come to.
“How is Etta?” Maverick asks.
I smile at the memory of her getting ready tonight. “She’s good. She’s having a girls’ night tonight with the ole ladies.”
Maverick eyes widen. “Oh fuck, I forgot about that. Bell is going too.”
I laugh. “I wonder what trouble they’re getting into?”
Etta
“Go Lani!”I scream as she takes a shot. She swallows it down, shaking her head side to side from the burn.
Shaylin smacks her on the back, laughing at her expression of disgust. We’re at one of the bars in Raleigh, Texas that one of the MCs own.
We have all of the Grim Sinners girls and the Devils, Adeline and Bell are watching over everyone with watchful eyes.
Jean was drunk when she walked in the door. She is an absolute nut and now she’s lying over on the table.
“What is one thing you have always wanted to do?” I ask them.
Lynn is beside me taking everything in. She is shyer than most of the girls. Jean lifts her head, grinning. “I feel like busting some mailboxes and causing some hell.” She lifts her arm like it’s a baseball bat, swinging it.
“I do know of some houses in town that are cult members,” I throw out, my brain kind of fuzzy from the alcohol and I really don’t care if I fuck up their life.
Jean throws back another drink. “What are we waiting for!” she screams, turning in her seat and trying to hop down.
“Prospect, you are driving us!” I point to the one watching us. The guys may have let us have girls’ night, but we are not without guards.
We’re all in a huge-ass party bus that picked us up at home since there were so many of us.
We all file out of the bar, Adeline and Bell babying us all, making sure we can even walk outside, fixing our hair and clothes.
They are precious. They are the mom I never had. My mind wanders to my mother and if she is even alive, if she got remarried or what happened to her.
She didn’t stop the abuse that we all suffered, but I also have a little sympathy for her because she married so young.
Maybe I’ll make a trip to go see her?
Lynn sits beside me, taking in everyone. Lynn is quiet when she’s around groups of people and that’s why she’s against the window, people watching.
“How is Michaela?” I ask.
She smiles widely. “Honestly she is doing great. She bounced back really well. Tristan is with her tonight for a movie night.” Her smile gets even wider after she mentions Tristan. “Have you gone out a date yet?” I ask her. Her face reddens and she looks out of the window.
“We have one tomorrow night. I am so nervous, Etta,” she admits, looking back at me, but I can see the happiness in her eyes, the kind of happiness she more than deserves.
I wrap my arm around her shoulders, hugging her. “I was nervous too around Konrad, but I took that chance and it’s the best thing that ever happened to me.”
She nods. “I trust him. He has been living with us since that night. We’ve become close; he makes me feel safe, Etta.” She stops, her eyes misting a little from unshed tears. “I never expected to feel that.”
My heart hurts that she has never experienced that before, but I also know how she feels. “I felt the exact same way. Enjoy the ride, sister. I know Tristan, and I know he will be good for you, but if he’s not, I will cut off his dick.” I leave the threat hanging.
River turns around and looks at us. She and Shaylin are sitting in front of us. “I will help, but Tristan is good.”
Shaylin gets that crazy grin. “I’m always down to cause some pain.” She pats her gun at her side.
One by one the girls on the bus throw out their agreement. Lynn looks at all of them and I know she is touched by their support.
Jean laughs hysterically in the front. “I think the guys should just let us take over the punishments.” Then she stands up. “WAIT, we need to get some toys!” she yells, pointing at a Walmart.
The prospect pulls in, letting us off at the door. Two of the prospects are with us in the back—and probably in hell from the talks everyone is having.
The second we walk through the doors, we get some wild looks. “Let’s wiener their yards too,” Amelia jokes, and we laugh at the prospect.
I jump up and down. “Let’s get some toilet paper!”
We make the prospects push the buggy for us as we throw in random items, little sticks for the hot dog wieners, forks so we can fork their yard, a few baseball bats.
The more we pile into the buggy, the more the prospect sweats. I know that he’s going to need a week off after this. I smack him on the shoulder. “Cheer up, buttercup!” I throw in some glitter and paint.
Once we have everything loaded into the bus, I stand to the front. “All of these houses are guys whose wives we have rescued and taken in. So let’s have some fun.” I grin, sitting in the front and giving the prospects directions.
When I say cults are everywhere, I mean they are everywhere and they are so hidden because they live in normal society like most people, but inside of the walls of their houses, it’s not normal at all.
The first one comes into view. All of the lights are off, but a vehicle is home. “Turn off the lights,” I urge the prospect and he turns to the side of the road.
We run off the bus, laughing at the top of our lungs. I start putting forks in the ground, with Adeline helping me, which makes it even better.
Shaylin opens his truck door, throwing in glitter everywhere. Kayla has the toilet paper and she and Amelia get busy throwing it all over the house and trees.
Jean walks straight to the mailbox with the baseball bat and sends it up the driveway. She stops and studies it before grinning to herself.
A light comes on inside of the house, and we all take off running, laughing so hard we can barely manage to do so.
Alisha falls face-first and snorts with laughter. We pick her up, dragging her to the bus. She can’t even walk from laughing so hard.
The prospect takes off speeding, now laughing with us. Our faces are glued to the window, watching him walk outside and seeing what his front yard looks like.
“Next house!” Jean screams, still holding her bat.
The next house is literally right up the road. I am the first one out of the bus, throwing toilet paper over the house.
Joslyn is throwing nails under his truck and the driveway. I snort because that will be a bitch to get out.
Lani smears Vaseline across the windshield, then glitter on top of that, but the best part is everyone is completely silent.
Gracelyn has paint and is painting nasty words on his front door. She is the sweetest of us all and it makes me giggle.
I’m standing back watching everyone’s back when a light comes in the house. “Gracelyn!” I yell and she takes off running off of the porch. I take her arm, along with Paisley, who is next to me, putting forks in the ground.
I pull both of them behind a bush, which is partially hidden behind a tree so we can stay covered.
The other girls made it onto the bus, but we were so far away from the others that we couldn’t have made it back in time.
“What the fuck is this?” a man yells, and I almost fall to the ground at his voice.
It can’t be. There is no way. I almost throw up, my heart pounding so hard in my chest.
Then a women’s voice is next gasping. “Oh my God, who did this?”
Everything goes dark for a second. I can’t breathe. I don’t even think I can move, but I have to see. I have to see if this who I think it is.
I stand up, looking at the people on the porch. I go through so many emotions, but one thing is for certain—the people on the porch are not the old owners.
I am face to face with Michael, my ex-husband, and my mother, but they don’t see me because I’m hidden by the tree.
My mother kisses his cheek and rubs his chest like she’s trying to soothe him.
I almost throw up at the sight. And to think I had a bit of sympathy for her.
Paisley moves to stand up next to me. “What’s wrong, Etta?” she whispers in my ear, taking my hand.
I shake my head from side to side in disbelief at what I am seeing.
“Come on honey, come make me feel better.”
Paisley’s head snaps around at the sound of my ex-husband’s voice. My mother is wrapped around him like he’s the best thing that ever happened to her.
I told her how he hurt me, forced me to do horrible things and the way he took great pleasure in everything that he did to me.
He hated me but loved to hurt me more than anything. She told me that it was the way married life is, that it does get better in time once I’m used to it and it’s my job to pleasure him.
She said that to me and now she’s here with him. Did they plan this?
“Mr. Thompson!” Paisley gasps, looking at Michael.
I practically fall to the fucking floor. I turn around, gripping her arm. “What the fuck are you saying?” I ask her.
“That is Mr. Thompson, one of my old teachers.”
My head tries to wrap around what I just learned.
Oh fuck.