Sacred by Caitlyn Dare
Rhett
Ray is still in Church when I make my way back there, but the second I slip inside, I realize he’s alone. He’s got his head in his hands and his shoulders are slumped in defeat.
“It’s going to be okay,” I say, taking the seat beside him. Micky’s seat.
He sits back, his eyes locked on the Savage Falls Sinners banner hanging on the wall opposite him.
I hate the look on his face, the hopelessness, the grief. He’s always so strong. So put together. But today, our recent losses, they’ve really hit him.
“I’m sorry, son.”
“None of this is your fault,” I assure him.
“You’ve already lost so much at the hand of the Reapers.”
“This is different. That was then, this is now. It’s not the same.” I can’t accept that I’ve lost my brother to the Reapers as well as my father. I just can’t.
Dane is too smart to get caught up in all that. And if Darren has him, then I know he’s smart enough to outwit that cunt.
“I don’t know where to go from here,” he confesses, and my chest constricts at the defeat in his tone. “I want to get out there and find him, bring him home. But we can’t leave this place vulnerable. We can’t risk all the lives under this roof.”
“Dane will get out of this,” I say, sounding more confident than I really feel, but I have to believe it right now.
“How didn’t we know this?” Ray mutters to himself, scrubbing his hand down his face. “He’s a Creed. A fucking Creed.”
“What happens next with that?”
“I guess that’s up to Dane once we wipe Darren of the face of the fucking Earth.”
“He won’t want to be a Reaper. I won’t let him be a fucking Reaper.”
Ray shrugs. “That’s up to Dane. We get rid of Darren, and he’s next in line to take charge over there. They could patch him in as Prez the second Nolan’s heart stops beating.”
“Jesus.” The realization that I could lose him even if he does survive this slams into me.
He wouldn’t want that though… would he?
The shrill of Prez’s cell cuts through the heavy silence. He rushes to pull it from his pocket and immediately answers it. “Dalton,” he barks as my heart jumps into my throat in the hope it’s news about Dane.
A woman speaks on the other end, but I can’t make out what she actually says.
“Right. Yes. Okay.” He listens a little longer. “I’ll bring her up myself shortly. Thank you.”
He lets out a long breath the second he hangs up. “Micky,” he says before I get the chance to ask. “He’s had a cardiac arrest. We need to get Dee up to Red Ridge General.”
“Fucking hell,” I mutter, rubbing the back of my neck. As if this day can get any worse.
“I’ll take her. Pacman can come with us. You stay here in case we hear anything.”
“Is he… is he going to make it?”
“I don’t know, son. I don’t know anything right now.” Ray pushes the chair out from behind him and pockets his cell once more. “Look after my daughter. Do not let her out of the compound,” he warns, clearly feeling as nervous as I am about what Sadie might do in her desperation to find Dane.
“You got it, Prez. Whatever you need.”
He claps me on the shoulder. “One day, you’re going to do a fine job sitting at the head of this table, Rhett.”
“I-I… Uh…”
“You and Dane could take over the world,” he adds with a knowing look.
Yeah, if he’s able to, maybe we could.
For just a second, I allow myself to think about a future that might involve us both sitting at this very table. The next Ray and Micky. But I shut it down before it blossoms into hope, because right now, hope is a very dangerous thing.
By the time I step out of the room, Ray is walking out with his sister and niece tucked into his side, with Pacman holding the door open, ready to escort them to Red Ridge. The solemn faces of my brothers and their families, who are sitting around in the clubhouse nursing drinks and mourning our losses with a heavy heart, follow their every step.
Death is a part of being in an MC. But it’s not meant to be like this. We shouldn’t lose this many brothers in a matter of twenty-four hours because of one psychotic Reaper.
Rosita notices me and unwraps her arm from around Kenny’s old lady, but I shake my head. Sarah needs her more than me right now. Grabbing a couple of beers from behind the bar, I make my way back down to Dane’s room. Everything inside me screams to go and be alone, to try to deal with this the only way I know how. But I can’t. Not when Sadie is hurting just as much as I am.
The second I step into the room, she jumps up from the bed where she was lying with Pretty. Jealousy surges through me, but as much as I might want to be the one to comfort her, I also need to be the guy Ray needs me to be.
I never quite realized how club life and family life can tear brothers apart, but for the first time, I’m understanding the constant battle they fight.
“Any news?” she asks hopefully, her concerned eyes searching mine for answers I don’t have.
Shaking my head, I take her hand and lead her back to the bed. “Nothing on Dane. But Micky isn’t in a good way.”
“Oh God,” she sobs, fisting her mouth as her eyes fill with tears.
“Your dad has taken Dee to be with him.”
“Is it safe for him to be out there?”
“He’s taken Pacman. They’ll be fine. If what we suspect is true and Darren has Dane, then he won’t be watching us.”
“If that’s meant to make me feel better, then you failed miserably.”
“Fuck. I know, I’m sorry… I don’t know how to—”
“It’s okay,” she says, taking both my hands in hers. “None of us know how to deal with this.”
“We’re going to get through this, princess. Whatever the outcome.”
“I know,” she whispers. “Just please don’t put yourself in danger. I can’t handle the thought of losing you too.”
“I’m not going anywhere, Sadie. Nor is Noble. He’s too pretty to take a bullet.”
“Hey,” he complains. “I’m more than willing to help out here, man.”
“I saw your shot. You’d be more useful here with the old ladies.”
“Fuck you.”
I’m about to say more when his cell starts ringing.
“Fuck. It’s my mom,” Noble says. “I bet she’s heard that shit’s going down.”
“It’s probably all over the news by now,” I say.
“Great. Sorry, I need to…” He holds up his cell and disappears out into the hallway.
Silence settles around us, and I pull Sadie into my arms, holding her trembling body against me, hoping that somehow I can give her the strength to get through this should the worst happen.
“He’s going to be okay.” I kiss her head. “He has to be.”
She nods against my chest, holding me tighter.
Long minutes pass as we sit there silently, listening to Pretty talk to his mom on the other side of the door, although we can’t actually hear what he’s saying.
“Is Micky going to make it?” Sadie asks suddenly, sitting up a little straighter.
“I don’t know. But from the look on Prez’s face when he took the call, I wouldn’t say it’s very positive.”
“Shit. I need to find Quinn.”
“She went with them.”
She nods, falling silent for a moment. “I need to do something, Rhett. I can’t just sit around here and wait for bad news. I can’t.”
“I know, but until we find out for sure that he’s with Darren, there’s nothing—”
“We can go out, we can search. Look for signs.”
“He could be anywhere, princess.”
“Have you called all the hospitals? Maybe he—”
The door bursts open, cutting off her words. “I need to go home,” Pretty says sadly.
“Oh God,” Sadie sobs again.
“I’m so sorry,” he says, dropping to his knees before her and taking her hands. “Dad’s got wind of what’s going on. I can’t risk him finding out I’m here. I just need to show my face. Keep appearances up.”
“He’s going to find out, Wes,” Sadie warns.
“I know. I’ll tell him myself. But not until all of this has blown over.”
“You can’t, Wes. He’ll kil—”
“He won’t touch me. I won’t let him, I promise.”
“He won’t accept it.” She shakes her head.
“I don’t give a shit. It’s not his life. You’re not his life.”
Sadie slides away from me and sinks to her knees in front of him. “I’m scared, Wes.”
“I know. But I promise I’ll be okay. And if it goes badly, we’ll let Savage at him with his gun, seeing as he’s a better shot than me.”
“You’d let me kill your old man?” I ask, astounded by his confession.
“Don’t take it to heart. I’d probably let anyone kill him for how he treats my mom.” Indecision flickers in his eyes, and I wonder if he really means that.
“Fair enough,” I mutter, keeping my eyes on the two of them.
“Do you need a ride?” Sadie asks him.
Pretty shakes his head. “I’ll walk. You’re not leaving this compound, Sadie Ray. Not until it’s safe for you to do so.”
Sadie shakes her head again while Pretty looks up at me. “I hate this,” she whispers.
“I know. But you’ve got Rhett. He won’t let anything happen to you. And as soon as I can get back, I will. Nothing can keep me away from you now, princess.”
“Oh, Wes, I hate this,” she cries, throwing her arms around him and tucking her face into his neck.
Pretty’s eyes hold mine. There’s fierceness within his blue depths that I haven’t seen before. “Look after her,” he mouths.
I understand the warning loud and clear. What he’s really warning me against is pushing her away like I usually do when shit is getting too serious.
I won’t fall back to that coping mechanism right now and leave her alone, I nod, fully prepared to keep the promise.
“I’ll be back.”
“You’d better, or Savage’s gun will be pointing in your direction.”
“I’m sure he’d love that,” he deadpans, shooting a glance up at me again. “Okay. Kiss me then I’m going.”
He captures her lips and drags her against his body. I stare at them, unable to look away as desperation pours from both of them.
For a moment, I forget our reality and my cock swells as I watch Sadie’s tongue slide against Pretty’s.
Fuck. Dane is rubbing off on me.
But the thought of my best friend is like a bucket of ice water over me, and I soon forget about any dirty thoughts.
“Call me,” Sadie demands as Wes stands and backs toward the door.
“I’ll see you real soon, Sadie Ray.”
“You’d better.”
“Savage,” he says, nodding at me.
“Pretty.”
The second the door shuts behind him, Sadie finally breaks down. She clings onto my cut as she cries into my chest.
It’s something I never thought I’d see, but as I hold her tight, I can’t help but feel incredibly lucky that she trusts me enough to allow me to support her right now.
Scooting us back in the bed, I lay us down, unable to miss Dane’s scent that surrounds us. My chest aches for my brother. Pulling Sadie against me, I hold her tight as I squeeze my eyes closed and pray that he’s going to get through this…
Whatever this is.
* * *
Sadie sobbed in my arms for the longest time. I hated that there was nothing I could do but hold her.
I want to fix this. I want to get Dane back. But right now, I don’t even know where to begin.
With her finally asleep in my arms, the need to use the bathroom gets the better of me and I slip myself from beneath her. She moans, rolling onto her stomach, but she doesn’t wake as I stand from the bed.
Padding through to Dane’s bathroom, I keep my eyes on Sadie, not wanting her to wake alone. I leave the door open so I can hear her and make quick work of taking a piss and washing my hands. Staring at my reflection in the mirror, I wince at the darkness in my eyes. My fists curl at my sides with my need to find that cunt and rip him limb from limb for ever laying a finger on my brother.
I’m startled by my cell buzzing in my pocket, and my heart jumps into my throat, it could be him, he could have found a way to reach out.
That hope only grows when I find an unknown number staring back at me.
Hitting accept, I lift my cell to my ear and wait.
