But my two men alone were better trained and could easily take on four of them.
That was the problem with MCs. They relied too much on their bad reputation to force people around them to fall in line. Their strength was in numbers. Pissing one off brought them all out, but in the end, they were unskilled bullies who preyed on the vulnerable—like Sloane. But alone, they were powerless.
Roman had been staking out the club the last couple of weeks, documenting movement, discovering their patterns so we could make our move. Apparently, the timeline would have to be pushed up.
SLOANE
Sloane
A throbbing in my forehead woke me up
I slowly blinked open my eyes and looked around the bedroom. I was alone.
Still naked from the night before, I stretched with a groan and felt my muscles pop. I still had the bandage from my IV. The old scars on my wrist stood prominent on my dark skin. They told a story. One that was gloomy and painful. But it was still mine.
Up and moving about, I put on my robe and then, on bare feet, crossed the floors and pushed open the balcony doors. The cool, mountain breeze caressed my face. I stepped out into the morning, not caring that the stone was cold beneath my toes. I inhaled deeply and shut my eyes, closing out the world around me. The headache waned a bit.
When I was younger, and my father was still alive, my favorite pastime was sitting on the back porch with a cup of coffee, basking in my thoughts, planning my future. Now, I didn’t want to be alone with the darkness in my mind, dwelling on my past. I wanted to escape it. I wanted to run fast and far and finally be able to stop looking over my shoulder.
But there was no escape.
I opened my eyes. Sure, I could drop from the second story. No trellises I could climb down. No bushes below to break my fall should I jump. But it was possible. All I needed to do was get past the guards, then I could leave all of this behind, get out of this town before they came looking for me.
A decent human would leave, and not bring the wrath of the MC on the man she loved and his young ward.
Loved?
“Thinking of running?”
I gasped and spun around, surprised I had heard no one coming up behind me. Roman stood with a piping hot mug of what I hoped was coffee.
“N-no,” I lied.
He shrugged. “Sure, you weren’t.” He handed me the mug in his hand. “Come here for a second.” He motioned to the far side of the balcony.
I cautiously followed him.
He touched a button on the siding and an electronic whirring began revealing an outdoor patio swing.
“Holy shit! That’s cool.”
Roman shot me a beaming smile, and for once I could see the kid that he could be. We sat down and I took a sip of the drink he brought me. Disappointed to find out it was herbal tea. I looked at Roman and he gave me a knowing smirk.
“I read somewhere that pregnant women shouldn’t have caffeine.”
“We can have decaf coffee,” I hissed.
He shrugged. “Anyway, you shouldn’t want to leave. What is out there that is better than what you have here?”
I guess we had changed topics again. So much for coffee.
“Is that why you stay, Roman? Because you think there’s nothing better out there?”
He chuckled darkly. “I know there’s nothing better. I’ve seen worse. If you think Alexie is bad, then you haven’t seen what true evil looks like.” He looked deep into my eyes. “Not yet.”
With that, Roman got up and left.
As I sipped my tea, I thought of my relationship with Alexie. Sure, he’d allowed me to move about his home, but that was the extent of my freedom. I couldn’t leave the compound.