Hellraiser (The Devil's Own #2) (27 page)

“Hey!” someone growls. His hand gripped around my chin, tipping my head up. “Tell your man that Kurr isn’t playing around. We’re his soldiers now, and we will slice you from ear to ear the next time they search for us.”

He draws his fist back before the darkness of the nothingness draws me in deeper and my pain dissipates.

Hella

“When all is gone, and the only thing left of your mere existence is the embers which fell from the flames you created, I’ll be the one clutching my bundle of wool…”

Ripping the cryptic note off the door, Beast walks up behind me while Ripper, Hannibal, and Jada search the driveway.

“They fucking beat her.” A whisper leaves my throat in between it closing.

Beast’s hand grips around my shoulder. “I know, brother. I’m sorry.”

I’m not a crier. I’ve never cried in my fucking life, but right now, I could cry a fucking river large enough to give the Nile a run for its money, but I won’t. It’s not going to solve shit, so I mask it with my anger.

Squaring my shoulders and swallowing, I flick the note to Beast. “Know what the fuck this means? Melissa said this was Kurr, but what the fuck has this got to do with Kurr?”

Beast’s eyebrows draw together. He takes the note off me and flips it around, searching for clues. “I don’t. I can’t count how many people we’ve taken out. What the fuck is this supposed to mean?”

“Fuck knows.” I take the note off of him and shove it into my pocket with the dart before turning around to see Jada shaking her head standing beside the driver’s side door.

“They took Millie,” Beast sighs beside me. “What the fuck is going on?”

“Why would they take Millie and not Melissa?” I say to Beast, watching him closely.

“That’s simple. He needed to show you that he can do that again if we fuck up. He needed you to still have something to lose, so he took the sister.”

“Took Millie for what? Why not just beat them and leave them both? Nah, brother. We’re missing a whole lot of bullshit here.”

Beast nods his head, shoving his hands into his pockets. “We are, but whatever the fuck this is, they’ll pay. We just need to be more diligent next time. We need a bigger I.T. team and to get Hannibal to kidnap the girl he knows, if that’s what it fucking takes. We can get a few more people in. We need to start building our own army, build our brothers stronger. There’s no way we’re going to stand a chance against him with how we are right now and it’s not fair to ask the club to take the hit for it. We can vote on who’s going to go through this with us, then go from there.”

“Maybe. I’ll head to the hospital. Just wanted to check out this shit before I leave.”

“I’ll take you back to your bike.”

We walk back towards Jada’s car and everyone gets back in. Jada hands me the keys to my car and I stare at it for a few seconds before pushing them into my pocket.

“She’s going to pull through, Hella.”

“She fucking better.”

Melissa

The echoing beeping of a machine awakens me and I wince at the sudden rush of pain pulsing through my body.

“Get a fucking doctor!” Jada yells.

My eyes won’t open, weighed down with pain. I moan in my sleep before darkness seeps into me again and pulls me back to my dark abyss.

***

“I don’t fucking know, Jada!” Whispering, loud angry whispering. “Jesus Christ, this is bad.” That was Phoebe. Tears prick my eyes and an unexpected sudden wash of comfort comes over me.

“Phoebe, sit down, give me the phone.” Mom? My eyelids shake from my trying to open them.

“No, it’s fine. He’s asleep. Hasn’t left her side all week.” Week? Panic surges through me and I let out a loud gasp of air.

“Oh my God, did she just gasp?” Phoebe yells. A door opens before she yells, “I need a doctor in here!”

Hands wrap around my fingers. “Baby?”

“Step back. Everyone needs to clear out. She’s still out. Melissa? Can you hear me? I’m Dr. Smith.” Another set of hands wrap around my free hand. “Squeeze my hand if you can hear me.”

I urge myself to squeeze with all my might. My brain is yelling at my hand to squeeze, but it’s numb, stock still, and not budging. Her hand lets go and panic seeps into me again. Every ounce of my being is put into squeezing Hella’s hand.

Then my index finger curls against his, and he gets to his feet in a hurry. “She just squeezed my fucking hand.”

“Okay,” the doctor says. “Calm down and stop swearing. We need to give her rest. The fact that she’s responsive is a good sign, however, we’re still unsure what sort of state she’s going to be in when she does wake. Bear in mind, her injuries were significant. She was an inch away from losing her life. We lost her on the operating table—twice—so I think you get the picture that she needs rest.”

I died? Twice? I don’t want to die, not like this. I was supposed to die like Hunter S. Thompson quoted, though I would arrive to my grave in a totally worn-out body. I had a different picture of “worn-out body” in my mind when reading that quote. The sass in the doctor’s tone makes me want to smile. She didn’t care that Hella was a big-ass biker; she still gave him lip. My head begins to pound again, suddenly filled with fatigue before I’m dragged back in.

***

The beeping I wake up to this time is louder, more profound. The crickets chirp outside, and the heat from the afternoon sun warms my arms, setting off goose bumps that travel over my skin. 

“Brax?” I manage to croak out through my parched mouth.

“Melissa?” He rushes to my side and clutches my hand in his. My eyelids are still heavy but I manage to pull them open wide enough to see a slit of fog as Hella rushes to the table to get water. “Here, baby. Take a drink. Phoebe!” he yells.

“Mmm?” she slurs before the other side of my hand is covered by hers. “Oh my fucking God. I’ll get the doctor. Don’t fall asleep again or I’ll fucking kill you.”

“Phoebe!” Hella sneers at her.

“Sorry,” she apologizes. “Too early?”

“Yes,” he hisses. “Get the doc.” He brings his attention back to me and I try to lift my head up. “Hey, no, lie back down, babe.”

“Millie,” I whisper, remembering that she was with me. “Is she okay?” My vision clears and the sudden bright sun causes me to squint.

“Hold up.” Hella jumps off his seat to the blinds, pulling them closed. He comes back to sit on the bed beside me, his eyes searching mine. “Fuck, I don’t even know how to say this.”

Just then, the door swings open and the doctor whose voice I remember from the last time I woke up says, “Hi, Melissa, welcome back. How’re you feeling?” She places the stethoscope into her ears and presses the other end to my chest.

“I’m okay. I feel sore but I’m okay. Hey, where’s my sister?”

She places the stethoscope back around her neck and shines a bright light into my eyes.

“Follow my finger.” Now that I can see her, she looks really young, but the way she presents herself is confident with a takes-no-bullshit sign hanging over her head.

“Braxton,” I whisper, following the doctor’s finger. “Answer me right now. Where is Millie?”

“We haven’t been able to find her, babe. I’m sorry.”

The doctor pushes her hand back into her pockets and steps back. “Everything is looking good. You’re healing fast. I’m confident on your recovery, but you sustained substantial injuries, so I’m going to need you to stay a little longer.”

“How long have I been here?” I ask, searching between her and Hella.

She looks to him before looking back to me. “A little over a week.”

“I’ve been asleep for a week?”

She smiles. “I’ll be back in a few to check on you. Rest, and push the button on the side if you need anything at all.” She looks back to Hella pointedly before leaving.

Swinging my head back to him, I look into his worried eyes. “What the fuck do you mean you can’t find her? She’s not a pair of fucking socks, Hella, she’s my sister. Jesus Christ,” I swing the blankets off my legs.

He shoots up and pushes me back down lightly. “Don’t fucking play the hero, Melissa. We have a plan. Lie the fuck down before you hurt yourself.”

I pause, the heat from his hand coating mine, and my eyes shut.

“Tell me everything, babe. I need from start to finish,” Hella says, running his finger down my face.

I sigh, lying back onto the bed before opening up and telling him everything from start to finish. It’s when I’m relaying everything back to him that I notice the tired lines under his eyes and his unruly hair. He looks like a hot mess, but he’s a mess because of me. His jaw has a couple days’ stubble on it and it looks hot on him.

He runs his hands over his face when I finish. “Fuck, this is worse than we thought.”

“How so?”

“Because, it sounds like Kurr took Millie for other reasons. The ‘take the nun’ statement. If that’s the case, we technically can’t do jack shit because she’s not owned by anyone in the club.”

“Bull-fucking-shit!” I spit. “She was there
because
of the fucking club!”

His eyes slant. “Calm the fuck down, babe. You’re real fucking cute when you’re mad, but I don’t think you’re in any state to get your ass handed to you in bed. Got it?”

My mouth drops open briefly before snapping shut. He continues. “What I’m saying is, we’re already risking a fucking lot. Hannibal said he’s in the process of messing around with his sister’s friend, who is sort of his sister too, I guess, because she grew up with him. They teamed up with Drago so they can contain a more stable hack and find her.”

Drago is probably one of the funniest people I’ve ever met. He’s the computer genius for the Sinful Souls. He went to school with all of us and would get picked on daily until Zane and Blake took him under their wing.

“Okay, okay,” I whisper, calming myself down. “I can work with that.” Then the door opens again and my mom runs in with Phoebe, Meadow, Beast, Ripper, Hannibal, Frost, Skid, Layla, and Asha. “Holy shit!”

Hella stands up and puts his arm up. “Everybody, back the fuck up. If you’re not immediate family or one of the girls, get the fuck out and wait in the waiting room. Fuckers.”

They all moan and I giggle lightly under my breath.

“Beast?” I call out just as he’s about to walk out. “Please find my sister.”

He nods his head. “I’ll try really hard, Melissa. You just get better.”

I look towards my mom. Her fine wrinkles have widened, her eyes laced in red. She clutches a tissue in her hand and it’s then that I notice how frail she looks. “Mom?”

“I’m sorry, darling. I’ve been so worried about you and your sister and everything, your father… everything is such a mess. I’m sorry. I should be stronger for you right now—“

“No, mom,” I whisper, tears falling down my face. I pull her hands into mine and search her eyes. “No. I’m here. You’re allowed to let it all out every now and then. This right here is the now, okay?”

She nods her head. Her uncontrollable tears begin falling and she swings her arms around me, her tears drying on the side of my neck. My heart breaks even more. One of the hardest things you can see is your own mom cry, but seeing her break in front of you is earthshattering.

She steps back and wipes the tears from under my eyes. “Honey, we’ll need to probably get your nose fixed after everything is back to normal.” Her chirpy voice is forced, like she’s trying to lighten the mood.

I smile because I appreciate her. I need her and I’m going to need her a hell of a lot more now with us needing to find Millie. “Thanks, mom, thanks a lot.”

Hella steps up and climbs on the bed with me, his arms swinging over my neck and pulling me in to him. He lays a kiss on my forehead. “We’ll find her, babe. I promise we’ll find her.”

After spending another three nights in the hospital, I put my foot down and demand Hella to take me home. I have so much that I need to figure out. I need to find my sister and I need to call my bakery to check and see how they are and tell them that I’ll be gone for a little longer. There’s no way I’m going back to Westbeach until Millie is home safely, and even after then, I’m not sure what Hella was hoping for us as a couple.

We’re pulling into the driveway at sundown when he pulls up the emergency brake and turns to face me. “We’re going to find her, baby.”

“I hope so,” I answer, looking out to the waterhole. He follows my line of sight before taking my hand in his.

“Come, you need to eat something.”

He rounds my side of the car and takes my hand in his, pulling me to my feet. I wince while straightening my back. My body still feels bruised and damaged, but my memories remain fresh like it happened yesterday.

He picks me up, scooping me from behind my knees and cradling me like a baby before walking me into the house.

Placing me softly on the barstool, he walks towards the freezer and pulls out two of his prep meals. My hand goes up. “If that is as healthy as it looks, I’ll cook.”

He rolls his eyes and places them in the microwave. “It doesn’t matter. All food fills you up in the end. Isn’t that the whole purpose of eating? It’s not about taste.”

“That’s exactly what someone with your form would say,” I whisper, rolling my eyes back. “I need a bath.” He nods his head, rounding the kitchen island, and I stop him with a laugh. “It’s cute, but I’m okay. I’ll have a quick bath and then meet you back down here, then we can talk about Millie.”

His jaw flexes a couple times as he contemplates whether he’s going to fight me or not before dropping his shoulders with a huff. “Fine. But if you so much as flinch at anything sore, I’ll be there in a second.”

I smile, taking his hand in mine and giving it a reassuring squeeze. “I know you will be.” I walk towards the stairway, biting down the insides of my cheeks to stop from pulling any face that shows I’m in pain. Once I’ve rounded the corner down the hallway and I hear the microwave shutting, I let out a long shaky breath, my hand going to my lower back. The pain is excruciating, like each one of my bones has been crushed into a million pieces. Once I finally reached the bathroom, I slowly fill the tub before carefully removing my clothes. It’s only a strapless dress, easy to remove swiftly, but in my state, it takes a little longer than usual.

I slip into the steaming hot water and sigh, sinking in. My eyes shut as I push my head under the water.
“We don’t work around your little revenge.”
I come back to the surface and rub my hand over my face, attempting to remember whose voice that was. I quickly soap up before getting out of the tub as quickly as I can. Walking out to the master bedroom, I walk straight to the closet and pull one of Hella’s shirts down before slipping into some panties and waddling back downstairs.

When I hit the bottom, the sight I’m graced with makes my heart flutter in my chest. Well, what do ya know? Braxton Ward can make a girl’s heart flutter. I smirk and lean against the doorframe.

He turns, our plates in his grip. He notices my smirk and his eyes narrow. “What?”

“Oh, nothing. It’s just a little cute seeing you in here cooking.”

He smiles, nudging his head towards the outside porch. “Come on, we’ll go eat by the waterhole.” I follow him out the back, taking a throw off the sofa on my way out. He pauses halfway and turns to wait for me. “Tell me if you’re fucking sore, Melissa.”