One Hundred & Thirty-Six Scars (The Devil's Own #1)

  Lisha is getting up off the floor, holding her mangled nose when Phoebe comes over, kicking her back down to the floor again. “Get the fuck out, Lisha! Now!” she yells in her face.

  Lisha quickly stands from her position on the floor. “I don’t have to go anywhere. Travis wants me here,” she answers behind a snark. I have to give it to her, for someone who’s in a bad state right now, she still holds her ground.

  Phoebe turns around to look at Lisha’s friend who’s still recording. “Are you recording this?” Phoebe asks her level of crazy at an all-time high.

  The friend shakes her head, swallowing down nervously and dropping the phone. “I’ll delete it, Phoebe. I didn’t want any trouble.”

  “You can all leave. Every single whore in this room is not welcome here,” Phoebe states.

  The door that leads to the back room swings open and Alaina walks out. Alaina is Zane’s Old Lady, she’s the boss around here. The crowd falls silent in her presence.

  “What the fuck is going on out here? I’m trying to put all the kids down!” she yells from her spot.

  Phoebe begins explaining and Alaina brings her eyes to Lisha. “Pack your shit, Lisha. Don’t come back until we’re out of lock.”

  “But Travis said—”

  ”I don’t give a flying fuck what Travis said.” Alaina begins walking up to her and the rest of us step back, making way for her to get through. Once she reaches Lisha’s face, she points at her chest. “You are a whore. Nothing about you is important to Travis but your pussy, and trust me, I hear it’s not that great so it won’t be missed. Leave,” Alaina seethes. Lisha quickly rushes out of the room, her shoulders still squared, trying to keep her pride intact.

  Alaina turns to face me, her features softening. She takes my hand in hers. “Come on, babe. I’ll clean you up.” I follow behind her, my mouth sealed shut. We stop in the back kitchen where she opens up a cupboard above the counter, taking down a first aid kit.

  “Sit,” she points to the seat that’s pushed under the kitchen table. I take a seat, my legs throbbing at the pressure being taken off of them.

  Alaina comes across, placing the first aid kit on the table and handing me a towel. I take it off her and bring it up to my nose, eying her closely as she pulls out some wet wipes.

  “Okay, take it down and let me clean you up.” Pulling my hand down, I let her wipe away at the blood.

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to cause problems,” I mumble to her.

  She shakes her head and smiles. “Don’t be silly. She started that and got what she deserved. I am interested to know how Beast is going to react. Hella seems ruthless with Melissa, too.” She shakes her head around a chuckle. “When men who ride motorcycles find the girl they want, there’s no letting up. You’re both claimed and you don’t even know it yet. Ah, the early days…” She laughs to herself, her cheeks going red. I’m not quite sure how I feel with the term claimed. Beast and I are very early days to be throwing around such a permanent label.

  “Hella and Melissa?” I ask, swallowing the metallic laced saliva.

  She pauses her wiping, throwing the wet wipe into the bin. “Yeah, although they both couldn’t walk straight,” she scoffs, shaking her head.

  “They got together?”

  She smirks. “I didn’t see it, but we all saw them disappear for an hour at the bonfire. Whether either of them remember is a different story, though, considering they ignored each other for the rest of the night. Who knows, maybe it’s nothing.” Jesus, what the hell is Melissa doing. Beast is scary, that’s a given. But Hella is the kind of scary that sends unsettling shivers down my spine. Jason X scary. And Melissa let him put his chainsaw in her huha. I’ll talk to her as soon as I get the chance to.

  “Sorry, I don’t mean to gossip,” she adds. Alaina is beautiful. She has long blonde hair and big green eyes. She’s exotic looking, though, very different features which adds to her appeal.

  “I don’t know what to do about that claiming statement,” I say shyly.

  She stops her wiping, pulling out a little thin plaster and placing it onto my nose. “Well…” she begins, “…there’s not much you can do. Just go with it and see how it pans out. Of course, if you feel something for him. If not? You will need to run, and run far.” She laughs, placing everything back into the plastic container.

  I chuckle. “It’s mutual, but I’m confused is all. I don’t know if you know much about my past, but it’s very complicated. I don’t know what to expect, but I know that when I’m with him, it feels right.”

  She sighs, tucking the plastic container under her arm. “Well, that’s all you need, dear. Stick with that. I better go and check on the kids, make sure they’re all settled and let Vicky have a break.”

  I nod my head. “Thank you for cl—” The ground under me shakes before a loud crack of explosions ring out. Diving under the kitchen table, I begin coughing from all the dust that has fallen around me from the roof.

  This is not good.

  “Alaina?” I call out, moving around the fallen rubble.

  “Meadow, I’m over here. I’m good. But I need to leave and check the kids.” She rushes around the kitchen until she finds the door. Glancing around, my vision is severely clouded by the thick residue of dust floating around in the air. Touching around in front of me, I feel for the wall that I know is somewhere right there. When my hands land on the smooth surface of the wall, I begin following it across to find the door Alaina went through. Once I reach it, I pull it open to more thick clouds of dust. Coughing, I cover my mouth with my hand and narrow my eyes attempting to see clearer without getting the particles in my eye. Throbbing begins pulsing through my right arm, weighing it down in pain. There’s a large cut starting from my shoulder blade going down to my elbow, the blood dripping and running down the rest of my arm in bright red streaks of discomfort.

  “Shit. Shit. Hello?” I call out, stepping over the fallen rubble with the concrete crunching under the soles of my feet.

  “Meadow?” Phoebe calls out. “Meadow, follow my voice.”

  My pace picks up, attempting to follow her calling. “Keep talking, where are you?”

  “Still by the bar. I can’t get Melissa out from under this concrete and she’s not waking up.” When I finally trek through all the broken masses of mess and thick clouds, I reach Phoebe and kneel down to their spot.

  “Melissa!” She doesn’t stir. I push my fallen hair out of my face with my arm, smudging sticky red blood through the tresses, holding it back.

  “It’s her legs, they’re trapped.”

  “Shit. Okay. Let me help.” The air is still thick, but I can see a couple inches in front of me now. Reaching down, I feel for her legs that are pinned under the bar light which sat above the bar.

  “Meadow? Your arm doesn’t look good. Go and get help,” Phoebe insists from beside Melissa.

  “I’m fine. I need to get you guys out.”

  “No, Meadow. Go and get some help. I’ll stay here with her.”

  “Phoebe! What if it falls? I can’t leave you here. No!” My heart pounds against my chest at the possibility of something bad happening to either of these girls.

  Rounding Melissa’s body, I make my way down to her feet and see why she can’t move. There’s a large block of cement holding down one end of the lights.

  Coughing, I ball my fists together, trying to get the feeling back in my hand. “Okay, we need to lift this part, Phoebe.” Phoebe rounds me, placing her hand on the other side. “One, two…” We both try to push it up to no avail.

  “Fuck!” I yell, scanning around the room. “We need to find a long piece of wood, something we can place underneath it to lever it off.”

  Phoebe looks around before laying her eyes back on me. “Do you have your phone?”

  I shake my head. “It was on the table with my handbag. All right,” I say, placing my hand on my forehead. “I’m going to be three seconds.” Turning on my feet, I narrow my eyes and wave o
ut the clouds. When some of the smoke clears, I see one or two bodies on the ground. I know I should check them, but I need to get help and see who else is outside.

  Pushing my hands out in front of me, I feel for the wall and when I find it, I make my way to where the door once stood. Running out, I gasp for air. The crisp, fresh air soothing my lungs instantly.

  “Meadow!” Alaina screeches from the crowd of injured people that made it out, and from where I can see the kids are not harmed.

  I begin walking to her when the loud roar of bikes sound from down the street, vibrating the concrete under my feet.

  The high gates open and in roars both clubs. The Sinful Souls’ men run to where Alaina and Vicky are located, checking to see if they’re okay, and when I look up, I see Beast, Hella, and their crew running up toward me.

  Once Beast reaches me, he wraps me in his arms, engulfing me in his presence.

  “Fuck! What the fuck happened? Are you okay?” he asks, checking me all over.

  I push back. “We need to go back in there! Melissa is trapped. Phoebe and I tried to—” Hella was already storming off into the building before I could finish my sentence.

  Beast kisses my forehead. “Wait here, I’ll go with him.” Nodding my head, I slowly let go of his hand as he follows Hella inside the, what was once, a perfect building.

  I begin pace walking up and down, the rest of the guys watching my movements carefully.

  “Meadow? I’m Hannibal. This is Ripper, Nyx, and Toke.” He points to the other men standing beside him. I nod my head with a small smile. “Hi. Okay, I’m going in,” I say, walking off toward the building.

  “No. No, you can’t,” Hannibal says, pulling me back. “They won’t be long.”

  Blake runs past me, storming into the building with Zane on his tail. I turn around to see Alaina, so I walk to her. “Hey, everyone okay?”

  She nods. “Yeah, kids are a little shook up, though.”

  “Has anyone called this in?” I ask, wrapping my arms around myself.

  “Yeah, they have. In a few minutes, this place will be crawling with Feds, firefighters and bomb squad,” she answers, picking up a little girl.

  Her body stills as she eyes the entryway to the bar. I turn around and see Hella carrying Melissa down with her wrapped in his cut.

  Well, if that’s not owned, I don’t know what is. Phoebe is closely tucked into Blake while Zane and Beast walk beside Hella.

  Beast scans the area for me and when his eyes find mine, his shoulders relax.

  “Thanks for everything, Alaina.”

  “No problem,” she smiles weakly at me.

  I start walking back to Beast when he meets me halfway, wrapping his massive arms around me tightly. “Beast, that’s a little tight.”

  His arms relax a little, pulling me into him. I watch as Hella takes a seat at the picnic table with Melissa on his knee. “She’s breathing. It’s like she’s asleep. What the hell happened to her?”

  Walking to Hella, I take Melissa’s hand in mine. “What, you didn’t know?” I ask with a little venom in my tone.

  Bringing his eyes up to mine, he narrows them. “No. Enlighten me.”

  I take a seat beside him, keeping her hand in mine. “It seems Lisha got a little jealous tonight. Before the explosion happened, she put something in Melissa’s drink, had her dancing on the pole and everything. Anyway, she and her friend were videoing it and laughing at Melissa from across the room. So, I… um…” I pause, looking at Beast when he rounds the table and walks to me.

  “You what?” he asks, eyebrows raised. My chest heaves as a sinking feeling pulls in my gut. Feels like I’m in trouble. Why does he have to be so sexy? Even my voice box submits to him.

  “She whipped her ass that’s what,” Melissa coughs from her position.

  Beast’s eyes narrow with a smirk.

  “Melissa!” Standing, I scan her face.

  “I’m fine, Meadow. What happened?” she asks, pushing away from Hella slightly. He doesn’t let go, and when I see the look he’s giving her, even I cringe.

  She rolls her eyes. “Let me go, Hella.”

  “Not happening.”

  Rolling her eyes again, she readjusts her position, wrapping his cut around her tightly.

  “There was an explosion. When Alaina took me out back to clean up my nose,” I begin, a hiss escaping Beasts lips and I flinch.

  Jesus, what’s his problem, he’s far too intense.

  “That’s when it happened.”

  She tilts her head. “I only remember bits. I remember Lisha pulling you back by your hair, and I remember you jumping on top of her and pounding her face, but everything went blank after Phoebe arrived.” Her eyebrows drew in before looking up at Hella from her spot. Beast pulls me into him, taking a seat next to Hella and placing me on his lap. “Baby, you did what to Lisha’s face?” He laughs into my neck.

  “She deserved it. She was out for Melissa… over you.” I narrow my eyes to Hella.

  His jaw clenches. “Where is she?”

  I shrug. “I don’t know. Alaina told her and the rest of the whores to pack their shit and leave. Do you know who this was? Who did this?”

  Beast shakes his head. “Nah, I don’t know. Now that both our chapters have joined, it could be about anything. The Russians are settled, it wasn’t them. That’s all we really know.” His hand rests on my upper thigh and my breathing hitches. He must feel me tense because he brings his hand back down on my knee and I relax instantly. I’m comfortable around Beast, there’s no doubt about that, but I’m a work in progress.

  Running his lips over my back, he whispers, “Relax baby.” His breath skimming off my skin lightly.

  Hella coughs from his position. “All right, since no-one else is going to ask, when did this become a thing?” he asks, raised eyebrows.

  Flashing red and blue lights light up the area, bringing my attention back to the mess in front of me.

  I shake my head while peering over my shoulder at Beast. “I don’t know. Good question?”

  A smirk pulls across his lips, his eyes drifting down to my lips before traveling back to my eyes. His stare darkens, summoning a collection of lust to come rushing up from between my thighs before resting in my chest where it contracts tightly. He’s hot, it’s ridiculous. He’s all man, though. He’s not pretty, he’s strikingly handsome with an edge of danger. Not with me, but you can see it in his eyes. There’s a lonely emptiness inside those dark depths.

  Throwing up his hood, he shakes his head. “Shut up, Hella.”

  Is this what this is? A thing? We haven’t even kissed yet. As much as every time his large hands join with mine, it makes me want to jump his bones, but something tells me my body is a liar. I couldn’t jump anyone’s bones, it’s just not in my nature—I don’t think. Tapping my leg, he lays a soft kiss on my shoulder. “Hop up, baby. We need to get that arm looked at.”

  I forgot all about my arm, I glance down and see the dried blood that has crusted over the wound and shrug. “It’s okay, I’ll get Alaina to stitch me up,” I answer, getting off his knee and scanning the crowd for Alaina. Phoebe is pacing up and down on the phone, probably talking to Ryder. She needs to get out of here before the media eat this place up.

  “Arm up. Not the cut one, it needs to breathe,” Beast demands from behind me. I’m so new to feeling things for a man that I don’t know what is too much. I need to talk to the girls about it when this club stuff flies over. Raising my arm up, he drops his hoodie over me, the warmness of it blanketing me in warmth and the smell of sweet, musky man engulfing my senses. I smile because it smells of him, this is all him. He even smells like a man. He turns me around and tucks me under his arm. “Come on, we need to go and sort this out.”

  I nod my head and cast a quick glance over at Melissa to see her and Hella arguing. Oh dear, I have no idea what the hell those two are trying to defy by being together but it’s not going to work. They are either too similar in things or polar oppo
sites. You know that saying, ‘She be but little, but she be fierce.’ Yeah, that’s Melissa to a T. She dances to her own beat, no-one else’s, especially not to the deep growl of a blood red Harley. Good luck to alpha domineering dark and alluring Hella. He and Beast are so similar it’s scary. Only Beast has more muscle on him and has dark hair, where Hella has mouse blond hair.

  Walking to Zane and Alaina, Beast nods his head. “The fucking Feds are crawling all over.”

  “Yeah, I know. Meadow, Alaina can take care of that arm.”

  “Okay, thank you.” I look at Alaina as she points to her car.

  “Come on, the second time I’ll be cleaning you up tonight and I don’t think you’ll be the last. It’s a good thing Vicky took the kids home.”

  Yeah, I don’t think I’m going to be her last either. I need to ask her some pointers on President alpha males. I feel I may have bitten off more than I can chew.

  Watching Meadow walk toward Alaina’s car with her side-by-side has me itchy. I don’t fucking like what the fuck is going on. Of all times for shit to hit the fan, it has to be when I have Meadow. If I have her, I don’t know why I don’t just fucking kiss the girl. If I’m reading the signals right, she wants me to. No, I know why. It’s because I need to tread carefully. If I come on too strong, I might scare her. But if I don’t make a move at all she might think I’m not interested. What a fucking mind fuck.

  “Brother? You okay?” Zane is smirking at me, looking between Meadow and me.

  Shaking my head, I rub my fingers over my face. “No. Fuck, I don’t know what I’m doing anymore.”

  “We can get to that later. Right now, we need to sort this shit out.”

  “Who you thinking?” I ask, swinging a chair around and sitting on it backward.

  Zane shakes his head. “Well, it’s not Russian. We have enemies, though, it could be any of them. But then so do you, with The Army, so it could be them too. We need to play this safe and keep everyone close together. I think for here, I’m going to have to separate everyone into three groups. Each group goes to mine, Blake and Ade’s house until Blake can have his boys working the construction back here,” he answers, looking over at his compound. I follow his gaze, goose bumps prickling over my skin because I’m only wearing my white T-shirt under my cut with jeans and army boots on.