Chapter Fourteen
“He’s what?” I stammered.
Skins hit me with a sympathetic look. “Yup.”
“They can’t let him do that. Why haven’t they taken him out yet?”
He shook his head. “He’s got them convinced that he’s stronger with the Shadows behind him. He’s killing off every gang in the city. To them he’s doing a great job, and because he’s undercover with real gang members, he doesn’t have to give up all of the profits he makes because it would put him under suspicion.”
“Jesus Christ, he’s a criminal mastermind with the backing of the government,” Leo growled.
My mouth was dry, I tried to swallow, but it was tight and scratchy.
“So what do you have, that he wants?” Optimus asked seriously, his eyes burning into me. “He seems to have his shit sorted. Why’s he coming after you now?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know. I’ve tried to file for a divorce. But as far as I can tell he’s refusing to sign. And it isn’t exactly easy to get him to court to contest it.”
“I don’t get it. He just up and left you, not a second thought?” Leo asked, his dark eyes boring into me like he could see inside my soul.
“He wanted me to go with him,” I answered quietly.
Skins scoffed. “He tried to force her to go with him. Dragged her through the house by her hair, if I remember correctly.”
I cringed at the memory. Simon had been the man I thought I’d spend the rest of my life with. I’d been so excited for him to come home after that time away, but the moment he walked through the door I knew there was something wrong.
I heard the front door open and rushed out of the bedroom and down the hallway to meet him. I couldn’t stop smiling. I froze in the foyer, a wide grin on my face, waiting for him to turn and see me as he closed the door.
When he turned around, I can’t explain the shudder that ran through my body. It felt like I was watching the Exorcist or some alien invasion movie. Because when I finally saw his face, I knew within a second that this wasn’t my husband. It was his body, his face, his clothes. But the man I knew was no longer inside them.
He didn’t smile when he saw me. Instead, his face curled up into a smug smirk. His eyes were no longer bright and full of life. It was like he was possessed.
He held his arms out. “Hey baby, you just gonna stand there?”
His voice sounded the same, so deep and smooth with just a hint of a southern accent. I tried to convince myself that I was just being silly. It was him, he was home. I swallowed my fears and ran into his arms, wrapping mine around his slim waist and laying my cheek against his chest.
The first thing I noticed was the lack of leather. Simon had been a part of Satan’s Sanctuary ever since I’d known him. And he never left the house without his club cut on.
“Where’s your cut?” I asked, pulling back my face to look up at him.
His strange twisted smile only grew as he drew back and took my hand, leading me into the living room. We sat down on the sofa, and I turned my body toward him, waiting for him to explain. Maybe he was finally done with all this undercover stuff, and we could live a normal life somewhere.
My body filled with excitement and I prompted him to hurry and explain. “So…”
He let out a dark, scratchy laugh before he met my eyes again. I swallowed back my apprehension, confused by how this man in front of me could seem like such a stranger after we’d been together for close to five years.
“We’re moving,” he answered.
“Where?”
“Las Vegas.”
My smile dropped instantly. “What? You just came from there.”
He nodded. “I’m moving on from the club. The agency wants me down there working with the Shadow Syndicate full time.”
I shook my head. “Simon, they’re criminals. You’re going to go in alone? That’s ridiculous.”
“Won’t be alone. I’ll have you,” he answered, his hand tightening around my wrist. His eyes flashed in anger.