“Don’t be a stubborn asshole, Z. You’re right, this is a waste of time. We should all just leave...all of us,” he says, grabbing my shirt. I knock his hand off of me and push him back. He stands there and holds his arms out. “Go ahead. You want to beat the shit out of me to feel better, do it. Come on, I’ll take the hits.”
“Fuck,” I yell and turn away from him. He answers his cell as he steps next to me. I already know what it is, but I wait for him to hang up. “Brooks.”
“Yep, we’re leaving,” he says.
I don’t even say anything. There’s nothing to say. Brooks runs this shit. We can fight on it all we want, but his word is final. Tonight though, he’s proved to me that he’s fucking scared of Kingsley. It’s the only explanation for this standoff shit. He’s always rushing in guns drawn. It just means, I’m on my own. Which is fine by me, because I’m not gonna sit around holding my dick. I’m gonna rip his beating heart out of his chest. I’ll come back after we all leave.
We all leave and Kace wants to go back to my place, but I tell him I need some time with Harper first. I ask him to go check on everyone for me, make sure no shit is going on. Make sure they’re safe. I figure that gives me enough time to either kill Kingsley and get home or at the very least be close to it before he realizes I didn’t go home. He’s pissed, but he’ll get over it.
I drive off and when everyone is out of sight, I cut my lights and pull over. I need a plan otherwise it’s no better than what we were just doing. I have to get inside to get him, but I know I’ll be met with a wall of bullets. I consider lighting it on fire, but that takes an accelerant and help. The only thing to do is do what I did as a kid, slash his tires and wait him out. I’m not sitting in the shadows though, I’ll be waiting by his fucking door.
I get on the road and head back to where I came from. I leave my bike off to the side and put on my hat, pulling it low over my eyes. There isn’t anyone in the parking lot, but I still keep my head down as I walk. I know exactly where Kingsley’s bike is, I’ve been staring at it for hours. When I’m almost to it, I pull my knife out and hold it. My mind is completely focused on the task at hand, so when I’m bodychecked, it takes me entirely off guard. My knife skids across the ground when I go down.
“Daring, coming back alone.” I jump up and I’m face to face with Dom, Kingsley’s number two. “Yeah, we were watching you all night too.”
My blood is boiling as I hit him with a left hook. He didn’t expect it, which is fucking satisfying when he stumbles back. I take advantage of it and take another swing. My anger is in total control, there’s no stopping me. I sweep my leg at his feet and he goes down. I jump on top of him, my body holding him down, my hands around his neck.
“Where the fuck is Kingsley?” He’s stronger than I thought and almost gets me off of him, but my adrenaline is off the charts. I push harder on his throat and he hisses. “Where’s all the Vegas Kings? No one wants to save your pathetic ass do they?”
“Fuck you,” he hisses.
The longer I stare at him the more the anger inside me burns. I think of all the things that have happened to Harper. All the things he knew about and didn’t stop. No real man would stand by any of it, I don’t give a shit what their president says.
He gains control and we start rolling around on the ground. Punches are thrown, connecting with whatever is within reach. We’re both bleeding and he’s struggling to keep going. I grab his shirt and stand up, slamming him against the brick building. His head bounces off and I can see he’s in pain. But it’s not good enough. Not until he’s begging to die.
“You stood by and did nothing to help Harper. I swear to you, I’m going to make you regret that decision with every breath you take until I fucking kill you,” I growl.
He spits blood at my face and when he smiles his teeth are red. “She loved it all. Especially when I fucked her, over and over through the years. She always begged for more.”
The rage that surges through me is like nothing before. I slam him against the building again and my fist connects with his jaw. He swings forward and I catch the glistening of my blade before it drags across my arm. I jump back, but not fast enough, because he stabs the knife into my leg, causing me to fall to the ground.
I reach for my gun, but he’s already on his bike. “Fuck,” I yell, taking a few shots in his direction.
I roll onto my side and try to sit up. The pain is brutal, but I need to get out of here. Those shots will have everyone running out. I stand up and before I pull the knife out, I feel someone at my back.
“You stupid son of a bitch,” Kace growls, wrapping his arms around me.
We rush to my bike and I see Finn there with the truck. Damn, he was prepared. The bike is already in the back and he drags me into the back seat with him. “Get the fuck out of here, Finn.”
I’m so pissed that I didn’t shoot him when I had the chance. I wanted him to feel pain before I ended his life. I wanted him to suffer, to regret the things he’s done. I wanted him to endure for a minute the agony that Harper has been in. I fucking blew my chance and now I’ve started a war. Brooks is gonna kill me before Kingsley gets the chance.
“What the fuck, Z?”
“This hurts, brother,” I say, truly starting to feel the pain.
“Knives usually do. Why the fuck did you go back alone? You should’ve called me,” he hisses.
I close my eyes against the pain and nod. “Yeah that’s my bad.”
“You’re a fucking asshole. I know you want Kingsley, but we need to be smart. That was some of the dumbest shit I’ve ever seen you do.”
I pull the knife from my leg and grunt when Kace ties a bandana around it. I definitely need stitches, but Kingsley’s guys will be waiting at the hospital. I’m gonna have to take care of the wounds myself.
“I fucked up, alright? I know I did, but I can’t just wait for him to kill her. I needed to make the first move,” I try to explain.
“Well you did that. This shit is bad, Z.”
I close my eyes against the pain from the truck bouncing over bumps. “I know.”