Total pages in book: 75
Estimated words: 74655 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 373(@200wpm)___ 299(@250wpm)___ 249(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 74655 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 373(@200wpm)___ 299(@250wpm)___ 249(@300wpm)
Yeah.
Not sure that’s goin’ to matter.
Hell, I’m not sure I’m fully aware of what I’m about to get myself into.
But for blood, anything goes.
-11-
NOW – CHARLIE
“Stop being such a baby,” I say, curling my fingers back around Koda’s arm and tugging it toward myself. “The more you flinch, the harder it is for me to clean this up.”
“Quit fuckin’ bossin’ me around,” he growls, panting with pain.
I glare at him. “I’d happily let you bleed to death, but I’m not going to do that because you risked your life for us. So, you can either sit here and carry on, or you can let me sort this out.”
“How do you even know what you’re fuckin’ doin’? For all I know, I could walk away armless.”
“Tempting,” I smile at him, and it’s full of sarcasm. “But, I actually know what I’m doing. Do you forget who I grew up with? I’ve seen worse. I’ve helped worse. Now sit still.”
He sits still, one arm toward me, the other gripping a bottle of scotch that he’s swigging down every few seconds. I dab at his arm, trying to remove any dried blood but not irritate the wound too much that it starts bleeding again. By the time we got into Scarlett’s ranch on the hidden path, Koda’s wound had dried up. Which is good, because the bleeding slowed, but it also meant that I now have to gently try and clean it.
I dab it over and over with a warm, salty cloth. Cleaning the skin around it. I slowly remove the dried-up blood, revealing the wound beneath. Fleshy, straight through and out the other side. He still has full movement of his arm and hand, which means there is a good chance it didn’t hit anything important. That’s a good sign.
I think about what happened tonight and how incredibly stupid I was. Not only could I have gotten myself killed but everyone else, too. Using that phone, answering it, hell even bringing it, was absolutely idiotic. Of course my father could track it, of course he could. I’m only lucky that it doesn’t seem to be him that got hold of the number but someone else wanting to cash in the hit. At least, that’s what Malakai said. Those two men didn’t seem to be involved, but they’re questioning them thoroughly anyway.
In other words, they torturing them until they tell them what they need to hear.
I know, I’ve seen how this all works, been in this situation before.
It’s brutal, but it’s the way of life for them.
“Tell me something, Koda,” I say, still cleaning Koda’s arm, trying not to stare too long at his biceps, and the way the muscle curves so beautifully to make his arm.
Incredible.
“What?” he grumbles, head turning, eyes locking with mine.
My heart jumps.
It literally skips a beat.
“How come you’re so adamant on taking my father down?”
His eyes flash with a pain and rage that I’ve not seen in another’s eyes before. Not even my own. It’s the kind of pain that goes right to your soul. There is more to the story—somehow, there is more. I just don’t know what it is. Has it got to do with his brother? Scarlett told me he had a brother who died. Did something happen in his life to make him obsessed with bringing people like my father down?
Or does he know my father?
That’s a terrifying thought.
One I didn’t consider before.
My lips part slightly, and I whisper, “You know him, don’t you?”
He grunts and turns away. “No, I do not. I just fuckin’ hate people like that. Monsters that hide behind their power. They do more harm than good. They take innocent lives. They tangle people in their filthy fuckin’ web until there is nothin’ left. Wouldn’t matter if it was your father, or any other man, I’d want the same blood.”
I’m not so sure I fully believe him.
But it does make sense.
“What happened to your brother?”
It’s risky.
An extremely risky question.
But I had to share my entire story with him and his entire club tonight, so I’m sure he can give me a little information.
“None of your fuckin’ business,” he grunts.
Anger bubbles in my chest.
I squeeze his bicep, and he hisses. I know it hurts, but I’m also done being treated like crap from this man.
“I don’t know why you hate me so much, Dakoda,” I growl. “I don’t know, and I don’t care to know, but what I don’t appreciate is the way you treat me. For whatever reason, you have it out for me. I’ve done nothing. Nothing but help your club. I sat there tonight, and I bled my fucking heart out, do you think that wasn’t my business? That maybe I didn’t want to fucking share ...”
My voice hitches and I release his arm, looking away.
I will not cry.