“T-Rex.” The guns wavered in his hands and Evie’s heart sank. He couldn’t pull the trigger, couldn’t cross the line that Zane had clearly managed to cross. And Viper knew it.
“T-Rex.” Viper chuckled. “I like it, although you don’t look like a T-Rex to me. Well, T-Rex, why the hell would I want a junior patch with more balls than brains?”
“We got your old lady.”
“Hmmm. And you think they’ll trade her for you?”
Oh, God. Viper was actually considering the trade. She clawed at Viper’s hand, trying to get her mouth free to warn T-Rex not to deal with Viper, to run while he still had the chance.
Please don’t sacrifice yourself for me.
“What do you think, kitten?” Viper’s breath in her ear sent a chill down her spine. “Can you wait another day for my dick? ’Course by then I’ll have been fucking hard for you for so long, I won’t be able to go slow and gentle. We’ll have to skip the foreplay and get straight to the tears and screaming.”
Evie shook her head, but Viper caught her earlobe between his teeth and bit, stilling her. “I’ll bet if I took my hand off your mouth,” he murmured against her ear, “you’d beg me to fuck you to save him. But this will be so much more fun. I get a Sinner to play with in my dungeon, and then I get to hunt you down all over again and make a sinner of you, too. Nothing is more exciting than the chase.” He released her and pushed her away so hard, she stumbled toward Connie.
“Today’s your lucky day, T-Rex. You got a deal.”
“No. I don’t want this. I don’t agree.” Evie moved to intercept T-Rex, and Viper yanked her back by the hair.
“Bitches don’t deal. Now shut the fuck up and appreciate what young T-Rex has done for you. Gotta respect a man who will sacrifice his life to save a woman who doesn’t even belong to him.”
One of the Jacks took T-Rex’s weapons and two more grabbed his arms.
“T-Rex!” Evie lunged toward forward as they dragged him through the store. “I’ll call Jagger. He’ll get you back. I’ll make him do the trade.”
“There won’t be any trade.” Viper tucked his weapon into his holster. “I don’t give a damn about the old lady. If the bitch is stupid enough to get herself caught, then I’ve got no place for her in my club. Jagger can do whatever he wants with her.”
“But … that was the deal.”
“The deal was him for you,” Viper said. “What I do with him is my business. And the deal was for today. Nothing was agreed about tomorrow when I’m coming for you. He bought you a day, kitten. Better enjoy it.”
He brushed past her and jerked his chin at the remaining Jacks. “Burn the shop down.”
“No!” She stared at him aghast. “Please. It’s all I have to make a living.”
“After tomorrow, you won’t need a job.” Viper licked his lips and the darkness in his eyes made her skin crawl.
“You’ll be making a living pleasuring me.”
TWELVE
When repairing a bike, always expect the unexpected. This goes for life, too.
—SINNER’S TRIBE MOTORCYCLE REPAIR MANUAL
Zane saw the smoke before he saw the flames, a great pillar of black rising up into the clear blue sky. Already pushing one hundred miles an hour, he accelerated his bike down the highway and prayed they weren’t too late. Jagger matched his speed, and in the distance he could hear the rumble of the Sinner bikes behind them.
Thank fuck for T-Rex. He had been the first to volunteer when Zane had put out a call for brothers to watch Evie’s house last night, and he must have followed her to the shop. How else would he have been able to send that warning text?
Viper and 6 Jacks at Big Bill’s. Evie in danger.
Within minutes, Zane had rounded up every brother in the clubhouse and then he hit the road at full throttle. He could only hope T-Rex hadn’t done anything rash. The junior patch had courage beyond his years but often his sense of honor and duty were misguided in the context of the biker world. More than once he’d questioned T-Rex’s decision to follow the outlaw life.
The world became a blur as he raced toward the burning shop. Was this Viper’s payback for the restaurant, or something else? The Sinners had no ties to Big Bill’s business except through Evie.
A wave of heat hit him as they pulled into the parking lot. The fire was well and truly out of control, no doubt accelerated by the gasoline in the bikes, and the various paints and lubricants in Evie’s shop. Sirens wailed in the distance, and Zane’s heart thrummed in his chest. Evie’s car was at the far end of the parking lot alongside T-Rex’s bike, safe from the flames. But where were they?
“Evie!” He parked his bike and ran toward the burning building.
“T-Rex!” Jagger headed to the back of the garage at a safe distance from the flames.