Page 139 of Malice and Surrender
I opened my mouth to answer when the sound of motorcycles could be heard a moment before the warning alarm went off. The red light and piercing siren sounded in the building.
“Inside it is,” Beast said and ran up the stairs. “You coming,” he asked when I didn’t follow.
I shook my head no. “Can’t have them trapping us and starting a fire,” I yelled over the alarm. “I’m staying on this level.”
“Fuck, why did you put that thought in my head,” Beast said and took off as the roar of the motorcycles got louder until the entire building was shaking. The guards pulled open the doors a moment later, their eyes wide with fear.
“Head up to the roof with the M4s and stay low,” I said, and they took off. I locked the door and brought the thick security bar down into place. It would hold for now. There were a few windows on this level that we never used, but if they got past those on the roof and couldn’t get in the front door, this was their next point of entry.
I’d already walked the building a million times and found all the weak spots. It didn’t matter if the rest of the club was here or not. We always ran the risk of being attacked. With them gone, I’d been extra diligent.
Marching into the back room we used for storage, I slipped through the piles of boxes and shelving units until I reached the three windows but stopped short when I felt a draft. Staring along the aisle, I spotted the open window and reached back for my gun. Movement caught the corner of my eye a moment before I was jumped.
The air was driven from my lungs as we collided with the unforgiving wall.
“Fuck,” I growled and drove my knee up and my elbow down at the same time. The guy grunted as my knee connected with his stomach and yelled as I drove my elbow into his back three more times before he stumbled away. He came at me again, and we sailed past the first window and landed hard on the ground. I was really sick of being tackled. It had happened more than once in prison, then Jace, and now this guy.
I was all for ending up on my back, but not with this guy and not like this. There was no room to maneuver, but I managed to connect with the side of his face and ear before he could land a blow.
“Ah fuck,” the guy yelled, and I recognized the voice as he rolled off, holding the side of his head.
“Sparky, what the fuck? Are you lost? I’m not a fucking intruder,” I growled out and stood up, letting Sparky get to his feet.
Sparky was here when I got out of prison. He fixed all the bikes and did other mechanical work. I’d always known him as a fun, easygoing guy and one of the most loyal assholes in the group.
“Seriously, what the fuck?” I dabbed at the back of my head, but there was no blood.
“You should’ve left when you had the chance Snake,” he said and held the side of his face as he stood up. I’d never seen him look so serious. If you wanted to laugh, you went to Sparky. “I actually liked you, but you should’ve just gone. I thought you had when you didn’t come back last night.”
“Leave the club? Why would I leave the club,” I asked.
“You said it yourself. It was only a matter of time before another club knocked on our door to kill us, and here they are.” He held his hand out toward the front of the building and the sound of gunfire. “I’m not dying like that. I know a losing side when I see one.”
My eyebrows shot up, and you could’ve knocked me over with a feather. I was so shocked. Of all the members, he was the last I would’ve ever thought to go turncoat. “So, you planned to sneak out a window and slink to the other side like a fucking traitorous piece of shit?”
“No, not quite.” Sparky pulled a gun and fired before I had time to flinch. The bullet hit center mass, and at this range, I flew off my feet and landed on the ground with a loud crash as I slammed into stacks of boxes. The contents went flying and littered the floor. My back arched up, and I gasped for air as I pulled at the front of my shirt. I couldn’t get a grip on the vest to relieve some of the weight that felt like it was crushing me. I now knew what it felt like to be hit by a sledgehammer.
Sparky walked closer as I rolled onto my side and managed to take a wheezing breath. I knew this was it. I’d already used my nine lives, and it was time to pay up for all the shit I’d done.
“I really didn’t want to kill anyone, and I liked you, Snake. I truly did.”
I watched the arm holding the gun raise and stared down the barrel. “Don’t do this, man.” I coughed and managed to drag in another breath that felt like knives piercing my chest. “You’re not a killer. It changes you,” I managed to get out.
“You’re leaving me no choice. I can’t let you live. I’m sorry, Snake.”
Taking a shuddering breath, I closed my eyes and pictured Raine’s face. The way her eyes crinkled at the corners when she smiled and how her cheeks would pink slightly just from looking at me. I could feel her in my arms, and I couldn’t get enough of the weight of her head lying on my chest as she held me tight. I wanted to take everything about her with me when my heart stopped beating. She was the only person I ever loved, and my only regret was that I wouldn’t get more time with her.
“Fuck, I’m sorry, Snake.”
Bang.
Kaivan
My heart stopped, and my whole body jerked with the sound of shattering glass. I rolled and covered my head as shards rained down. Something fell on top of me, and I turned to stare into Sparky’s wide and unblinking eyes, while his arm draped over my body.
His sightless eyes looked confused, but I knew what had happened. The perfectly placed hole at his temple was all the answer I needed to know that Wilder had been watching. It was only then that I could once more feel the beating of my own heart. Grabbing the gun from his hand, I winced and pulled myself out from under his arm.
No matter what crazy fucking Wilder needed from me, I owed him my life and would return the favor. That was how this place worked. Prison was a favor for a favor, and like a chip to be played, once it was used up, it was gone until you earned another.
