Page 38 of Gentleman Wanted
Chapter Fourteen
Gemma
The sound of a gunshot echoed from the darkness, making me jump. In my arms, Bobby let out a wail. I clutched him closer to my chest. My hands reached up to cover his tiny little ears.
“It’s ok, it’s ok.” I wasn’t sure who I was speaking to. Him or me. But it was a mantra I kept mumbling in the back of Young Blood’s car.
I had expected him to take us out of town and fast when he forced us from my tiny flat. So it was a surprise when he pulled up in front of the Black Aces compound.
The man on the gate, someone I didn’t recognise, had seen the cut on Young Blood’s back and waved him forward with a friendly smile. Just one brother welcoming another. He didn’t see the gun until too late.
Young Blood shot him without warning. There was no other sound but that loud boom. It echoed in the empty road.
But it gave me hope. Surely someone in the clubhouse would have heard it. They would have realised that something was happening and they would be ready. They would help Bobby and me.
“Can you stop that brat crying?” Young Blood swung himself back into the car, and even in the darkness, I could see the blood on his face and hands.
I clutched Bobby a little tighter, holding his face against my chest. Like it would somehow protect him from the monster in the front seat.
“He’s hungry. And scared from the gunshot. Did you really have to shoot that man? He thought you were a friend.” I scooted back against the locked door as he turned to me with a snarl.
“I thought you were a friend.”
For a second, something flickered across his handsome young features. But just as quickly as it appeared, it disappeared. “It doesn’t matter, Gemma. If you had stayed gone, you wouldn’t have been involved. But Gent had to bring you back. And do you know why he did that?” He didn’t wait for my answer. “Because you and the kid aren’t enough for him. He will always choose the Aces over you. That’s why you are here.” He gave a shrug. “You can blame me if you like, but it’s his fault, really. If he cared about you, either of you, he would have kept you far away from here, from them. But he chose murderers over you and your son. That’s how much you mean to him.”
I turned my face away. I knew he was trying to get me to doubt Gent. To blame him. It was all just one big mind game to Young Blood. I hated to admit it, but he did have a point. Not about any of this being Gent’s fault. But about the Black Aces being his life.
“They aren’t all murderers, Young Blood. They are good men. Men who fucking loved you.”
He slammed the brakes on so hard that I slammed forward into the front seat. Only my arms around Bobby saved him from slamming into it.
“They are murderers, Gem. All of them. They killed my mum. My mum...”
“It was an accident, Young Blood. One that Fender-”
He cut me off. “Do not mention that monster to me. He took her away from me.”
“And you took his life. Call it quits and move on. Don’t do this. Please,” I pleaded.
“You know I can’t do that, Gem.” He sighed. “Get out of the car. It’s time to get this show on the road.”
My jaw clenched as I ground my teeth together. “They are going to kill you. You do realise that don’t you? Someone would have heard the shot. They will put you down before you even take a step inside the building.”
Why wouldn’t he listen to me? Couldn’t he tell I was telling the truth? That I was trying to help him?
His laugh took me by surprise. “Everyone rode out to check on you and Bobby. It will be a while before the fire brigade tell them that you aren’t in the building. By then, it will be too late.”
My heart sank. “You set fire to my building?”
He didn’t answer. “Get out the car, Gem, or the next person I’ll shoot will be your baby.”
“I hope Gent kills you. I hope he peels the skin from your fucking bones.”
Young Blood chuckled. “So do I Gem, so do I.”
It hit me then. Young Blood wanted to die. This wasn’t just a revenge spree. It was his suicide. He never expected to get out of this alive, which made him even more dangerous because he had nothing to lose.
“It’s a shame you won’t be around to see it.”
