Total pages in book: 31
Estimated words: 28170 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 141(@200wpm)___ 113(@250wpm)___ 94(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 28170 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 141(@200wpm)___ 113(@250wpm)___ 94(@300wpm)
Slamming my elbow down on his arm, I grabbed the gun from his hand. I didn’t even blink as I turned the gun on him and sent a bullet straight into his head. The asshole dropped, leaving me looking right at Trace. He was shaking with rage. “I fucking recruited you. Landry chose you over his soldiers who’d been with him longer, and you turned on us all, for what?”
“It’s bullshit,” I hissed out, blood and spit spraying from my mouth onto the ground. “It’s all bullshit.” I shook my head. “They just take in loser kids like us and fill our heads with bullshit.”
“Traitor,” Trace growled as he launched forward. He tried to grab me, but his hands slipped off my blood-soaked skin. His gun clattered to the ground, but when he came at me again, my strength faded and my gun slipped from my grip. Trace pulled a knife from the waistband of his jeans and launched himself at me. I stepped back, but it wasn’t enough to completely get away from the blade. The steel sank into my side, and I heard a hiss of satisfaction slip from Trace’s lips. The pain wasn’t as great this time; my body was getting numb.
“You ain’t gonna live,” Trace said. I clamped my hand over my gunshot wound to stop the blood. My head was getting light and my legs were giving way. Trace smiled. “Then I’m gonna blow this fucking place to the ground.” He banged his free hand over his chest, right over his 88 tattoo. “No one fucks with the Klan. Landry will see who the true soldiers are in his army. The purest brothers. Then he’ll let me in.” My eyes ran to his truck. The explosives would be in there. We’d done it to a fuck-ton of impure businesses before. Torched their premises to the ground, preferably with them locked inside.
I had to stop him. Beauty’s face popped into my mind. Her smile, her eyes, her fucking smart mouth. And I knew I had to stop him no matter what. The Hangmen liked her. I could see it. The old ladies loved her. They’d take her in. Look after her. Marie and Bone already thought of her as the daughter they never had.
I had to save my woman.
Trace tightened his grip on his knife. I reached into my pocket and grabbed the handle of the knife I’d taken from one of the pricks on the ground. Trace’s foot rocked, ready to lunge, but just as he did, a shot rang out. He hit the ground. I took a breath, then my legs gave the fuck out . . .
“Baby?”
I tried to blink. My throat was a damn desert.
“Darlin’? Tank, baby?” Beauty’s voice sailed into my ears and I felt her hands on my cheeks. I squeezed my eyes together before cracking them open, one at a time. Bright light scalded my eyeballs. I tried to move, but fire shot through my veins when I did.
“Fuck!” I hissed, my voice barely making a sound.
Beauty was there again. “Shh, baby. Careful.” It took me a minute to open my eyes properly. A room with wood on the walls came into view. I looked down at my arm; a tube in it led to an IV beside me. I had bandages all over me and a brown blanket over my bottom half. Beauty sat on the bed beside me. I looked up and saw tears fall from her eyes and down her cheeks. Her hair, normally styled and big, was flat to her head. Not a scrap of makeup was on her face. She had one of my hoodies on—it fucking drowned her. She looked like a little lost kid.
“Baby . . .” I rasped, and she fell against me, wrapping her arms around me. I could feel her tears dripping down my neck. Fuck, my chest pulled apart at my woman breaking her heart. I lifted my arm, ignoring the sting from my right shoulder, and wrapped it around her head. I kept her the fuck close as she cried.
Then I realized the dream hadn’t been a fucking dream at all . . . Trace . . . Trace had come after me and the Hangmen. I’d had to kill two of his men.
Beauty lifted her head. Taking hold of my face, she said, “I thought you’d died.” She sniffed and wiped at her bare eyes. “I thought you’d left me.” She hit me softly on my untouched shoulder, then dropped her head to mine. “Never fucking do that to me again. I don’t care what happens—never lock me in a room where I can’t get to you. Where I can’t help.”
“I wanted . . . you to be safe—”
“Fuck safe,” she interrupted, her face tight and pinched. She meant every word. I couldn’t help it. I smiled. Not just smiled—I fucking laughed. Beauty’s mouth dropped open, and she hit me again, harder this time. “You’re laughing?” But her lip twitched and then she was laughing too.