Sniper (Devil's Shadow MC, Book 2) Read online

  ***

  Just as Ginger said, the club is full today. More people coming in than other days. Seth has a tight hold on me. His eyes darting from one man to another as if he's smelling the danger out.

  "I want you to be with me all the time during the ceremony Kitty. The Sinaloa cartel wanted our help after Lorenzo failed to receive the shipment. We let them know that Lorenzo is in Prison now." Somehow my mind gathers the information messily. The shipment, Lorenzo, the Cartel. Got it. "If they heard about what Lethal is plannin’ to do, they will definitely come today. I don't want you to be in danger. You hear me? Don't go anywhere without me."

  Confusion swirls over. Lethal is planning something? "What is Lethal planning?"

  "It's a surprise." Surprise? I don't like surprises anymore. It shocks me and not in a good way.

  He's awfully quiet when we enter the bar. I want to continue our conversation but whoever, or whatever he sees at the counter, stops him from going any farther. His face pales, the contrast sharp against his skin.

  "I think it's time I walk you to Vixen." He's hiding something. I know it. And it becomes clear when for a fleeting second my eyes go to where I used to bartend even a few days ago. There's a man hovering over the counter with a gun pressed against his head. I think that's Reaper who has his gun out. Scar snarls watching them and their president, Lethal looks bored but on guard.

  "Come on," Seth repeats again. His movement is so quick that I'm no match for him. He's practically dragging me away. Only when we stop near my sister's room does he inhales air. The sound rushes over my ears like a taunt.

  Who was that man that freaked Seth out this much?

  "Who was that?" I can't help but ask.

  I'm not even sure what name he takes. Something about Xavier. Something about a lost file. All I know is that the door is open and I'm thrust into my sister's gaze. She sounds better, her scars are healing.

  She looks happy.

  "Prez wants you in ten minutes. Don't be late, Ok?" Seth says to my sister, making her laugh. But I know his eyes are on me. They are burning holes into my skull. They are daring me to walk out of this door without letting him know. I can almost hear him say in my head.

  You dare to walk out without me, Kitty and I will-

  What will he do?

  Without question, I know he will burn everything down. So I look down avoiding his gaze. Only when I hear my name calling that I look up.

  "Gwen?" I can't help but give her a smile. Instinct tells me that Seth is going to do something about that man by the way he helps me sit quickly on the bed and then excuses himself to get things ready for the ceremony.

  "How are you?" Grace asks softly. My cheeks flame when I notice the look on her face. She knows. Oh God, she knows.

  So I shrug to avoid the question in her eyes. "Fine."

  "How's living with Sniper? I heard he can be a pain in the ass. Literally." The other woman in the room, Foxy says so suddenly that the words first don't get to my head. Whipping around to watch her is becoming hard. What did she mean by that? I'm no fool when it comes to love but Seth...he can't-or did he? Did she know how he tastes? Did she moan like me too? What was she to him?

  An addiction or just love?

  "Hey." From somewhere inside my mind I hear my sister say. "She was joking. Weren't you?"

  Did she?

  Did she really?

  "Yeah, yeah. I was just kidding! You know I love to do that. Yeah." Foxy awkwardly finishes with another grin. Do I believe her? The answer is obvious. No, I don't. And the sick part is I don't even care. So they change the subject, all the time they avoid his name as if that doesn’t make me feel any more worse.

  "Hey! I said ten minutes! Lethal is gettin’ lividly pissed. He's in Prez mode. Come on you three." Suddenly the door opens again and Seth enters. I try to understand what changed in these few minutes. Did he hurt himself or beat someone up? Is there blood lingering somewhere?

  Oddly I find neither.

  He helps me walk faster to reach the arena. I've only come here once when Grace gave me a tour of the clubhouse. Now blood lingers and I know how many of them have lost their life here. More people enter and in a few minutes, the whole place is flooding with guys and girls of various ages wearing the Devil’s cuts.

  When my sister goes to the podium, I've to squint my eyes to see what face she has on for today. Is she my sister, Grace or a Devil, maybe even Vixen? I'm not surprised to see her repeating the club rules but the next moment I'm more than surprised. I'm gasping as the words are being driven right through my heart.

  "And now I give you your Vice President of Devil’s Shadow, Vixen! Let's welcome her, brothers and sisters!" Lethal screams making the crowd go crazy.

  She looks at him like Seth looks at me. Like she can't breathe if he isn't there with her. And I know. Right then I know what Seth meant when he said that I will see. I see her future written on those words on the vest.

  Vice-President.

  Lethal has claimed my sister as his. I might not know much about biker club rules but even I know what it means.

  "Now you know." Seth murmurs, forcing my gaze to meet his. Feeling eyes on me, my chest tightens and suddenly I can't breathe. It's not because of him, oh no, it can never be because of him. It's because of another man staring right at me.

  And when he sees me stare back, I see that smile tug on his face. The same smile that haunted me for night over nights. The same smile that's bringing me down to my knees even now. F-Fuck. This isn't happening. This can't be...This is happening. And then he mouths the words I know will be the beginning of my doom.

  "They know where you are."

  CHAPTER 26

  SNIPER

  "They know, Seth. They know."

  I've yet to see the reaction on her face and I've come to realize that I hate it. Her face is ice cold but her eyes deliver what she can't verbally say. Fear. Pure raw fear for something I've yet to find. Then the next second a storm is brewing in those dark eyes that I realize she's not even looking at me. She's looking over my shoulder.

  "What's the matter, Kitty? Who knows?" There are so many things to know. About her, about me, about us. Our past, present, and future. What's she referring to?

  She sinks to her knees, taking me with her. What feels like hours later she speaks but even that sounds tired. "I saw him, Seth. I saw one of the monsters. He was here a minute ago."

  He was here?

  That fucking bastard?

  My breath comes out slow and unsteady. I don't recognize the man who talks. "What did he look like? Tell you what Kitty, you tell me who it is and I will let you play with him yourself."

  She seems so far away yet my words jerks her right back to this world. This new hell that we are going to enter. She looks up to the crowd and frowns. "I can't see him here. I don't even know where he went. I was too busy trying not to freak out. What if I just missed a chance to find him? What if I-"

  My fingers twitch to punch something or someone. But she needs me. She needs me to be sane. Calm. Collected. Her salvation. That's what I am. And that's what I will be, as long as she wants me to be.

  "Seth? How are we going to find him?"

  "What was he wearing? Can you remember anythin’ that makes him stand out in a crowd?" I ask, grasping her chin. She wants to fade away again. I know that. I've seen this look on Grace right before she ran towards that burning house. But I can't let Gwen fade away. That fucking bastard better be ready for my fist cause he's going to get even worse than that.

  I find her lifting her eyes to where Grace is standing now. Grace looks so happy, while her sister is withering away.

  "Kitty? Answer me."

  "He has an ugly smile." She starts her frown deepening. "He is tall, bulky and has brown hair cropped short. His eyes...they are brown too, almost black at times. He has a nasty cut on his eyebrows. And clothes...He was wearing a Devil’s cut like others but he didn’t have a patch on."

  Shit! This was bad. Way
too bad.

  "Come to the office with me." I know Lethal will have my head for this. He trusts me with his life but this time I'm choosing me. I'm choosing her safety over our club rules.

  "What?" Her expression falls flat as if she can't believe me. "Today is my sister's day. I'm not going to tell what happened to either of them. Seth, please tell me you're going to respect my choice."

  I've always respected what she said. Every fucking word like a goddamn pet. So I don't disappoint her today either.

  "They don't need to know Kitty. But we have to know who it is." She nods walking alongside me. Today the office seems further. The bar is empty, only Scar hunched over the counter with a knife pressed over his hand. When our eyes meet we both know we are breaking some kind of code. He's playing with his life and I'm playing with the fire.

  But none of us say a word.

  He keeps my secrets as I keep his. When we reach the office, it's cold and dark. But even in the dark, we have some light. The camera is still on and thankfully there's no blind spot in the arena. We don't waste time as we watch over the CCTV footage. And when her nails dig harder in my skin, I know I've found who is going to be my next kill.

  "T-That man. He was the one." She says without any emotion. I think even fear has driven away from her soul after all.

  I have to squint my eyes to see who it is. Cropped brown hair, brown eyes and a nasty scar on his face. He's even wearing the Devil’s cut. The man matches perfectly with her description. And I'm having a hard time to believe what I am seeing.

  It can't be fucking possible.

  How can a dead man be here threatening to ruin our life? How the fuck is that even fair?

  "Seth? What's wrong?"

  "I know him." My throat goes dry. I know him. I learned from him. I-I killed him. "I knew him before he supposedly died."

  The words come off harsh and bitter. One monster died only to raise another. When the fuck is that going to stop?

  She gulps looking away from me. "What happened?"

  "Remember when Lethal became the President after Mad Dog lost the fight?" She nods silently, much to my annoyance. Fuck Kitty, I need you angry now. But she isn't. Not even close. "Any Devil who took Mad Dog's side was killed with a bullet between their eyes except Michel and Maddox. This bastard was one of them. He was known as the Sniper back then. I was the one who shot him. I took his place. I thought the fucker died. Fuck! If only I would have checked each body properly, then maybe this wouldn't be-"

  "You couldn't have known." She cuts me off shrugging. She's good old Gwen again before I can muster up a reply. "But at least we know who it is. That's enough for now."

  Something is wrong. She isn't saying everything. Something is bothering her. I can tell by the way her eyes fail to meet mine.

  "What else did he say?" I'm painfully alert that she winces slightly when my fingers trace her thin neck. Her heart beats harder, her eyes forcing not to wander away from me.

  "I-I didn't-"

  "Kitty." The hiss comes so sudden, that even I'm surprised. I've never felt so helpless. Never so...fucking pathetic. "Don't lie to me, Kitty. Never."

  There is it. The emotion I want to see. Tears. Beautiful tears fall from her eyes. She doesn't even attempt to wipe them off. Her voice is hoarse yet so beautiful. "He mouthed they know where I am. And then-then he...lifted his jacket to pull out the gun. That man-he…then-"

  "He can't hurt you, Kitty." I'm stuck between screaming the words and taking her lips against me until she knows who can make her feel the oxygen in her lungs. I end up doing both. A pair of haunted dark abyss stares back at me as I give her everything I can. My air, my soul, every fucking thing. "Not when I've any sayin’ to that. Mark my words Kitty. I don't make promises I can't keep."

  She laughs. She fucking laughs as the sound tickles over my bones. There is pain and frustration in those sounds. In those little giggles as she suddenly shoves me until I'm against the wall. She laughs once more. At what though? My misery or her pain? Guess we will never know.

  "Y-You think I'm afraid because of him?" Her laughter dies down as if even she's not sure why she shouldn't be. "Do you, Seth?"

  "What the fuck are you talkin’ about?" Don't play games, Kitty. I pray. Not now, not ever. I wouldn't be able to fucking breathe if you do.

  "He didn't pull the gun on me, Seth." She sounds so tired to fight, to even breath I think. Her next words are what nails me to the ground. They choke me until I can't find any air. Love, fucking love.

  "He aimed the gun at you. And that's what scared the shit out of me."

  She loves me. And, maybe that's exactly what’s going to be her downfall.

  CHAPTER 27

  GWEN

  "Why?"

  He stares at me dead. There's no confusion or curiosity in those blue eyes. He knows just as I know. Yet he wants to hear the words from me. He merely gives me a minute and asks again. "Why, Kitty? Why were you scared for me?"

  The answer is simple.

  "Because I care." My eyes drift from his intense gaze. "Or maybe it's because I need you."

  I smell him even before I see him move. His form looks just like a shadow in the half-lit office. And when he reaches me, it's only silence and him. And the half of me that's still clinging to the hope of becoming just Gwen.

  "Have you any idea what we've done?" He strokes my jaw as one would do to the animal they are going to slaughter. He doesn't even sound human. It's a strange contrast with his calm demeanor. "It's too late, Kitty. Too late to back down. I've become your weakness just as you are mine."

  I should shake him off. I should protest. No, it's not too late! I can yet leave. I can go away from Southside. They've been watching me for God knows how many years. They've been waiting for me to get better. Was that their plan all along? Give me hope for a better life only to break me again? And if they know where I am, then they will know that I've left. I can get them out of this town, out of this clubhouse.

  But he's right. I clutch the desk behind me harder. When that man drew the gun, my first thought was Seth and his safety. Not me. Not even my sister. Just him. And maybe now it's too late.

  I fight the need to beg. Don't tell me it's too late. Don't tell me that I can't be his addiction anymore. That he has mistaken the idea of love. Please don't.

  Before I can say any of them aloud his hands are on me and he's dragging me out of the office. Only when we go through the kitchen to another room that he stops. I don't know what his plan is. I don't even know if he has a plan or he wants anything to do with me right now.

  "When we go to that room, I want you quiet. Anythin’ happens, don't talk at all. Understood?" Only a desperate man sounds like him. So I give him what he wants. I nod. But it's not enough this time.

  He shakes my shoulder making me look at him. "I need words, Kitty. Do you understand?"

  "Yes."

  His sigh reaches my ears like a drug. Is he annoyed? I hope not. The loud knock is what brings me to watch everything play. He knocks again with irritation seeping from his body that the door opens.

  Steel hazel eyes bore into him and his jaw hardens. "What the fuck are you doin’ here now?"

  "I saw somethin’ interesting today. So I thought to let you know." Is Seth going to tell him? Poor Lethal doesn't even know what's happening. "I saw Desmond today at the arena with a gun aimed at my fuckin’ head. Wanna tell me who did the cleaning duty after that massive slaughter, Prez?"

  For a second I feared that Lethal's heart stopped. He looks at both of us with questions I know he wouldn't get. It feels like ages passed away, before a snarl reaches my ears. Looking up I've to force myself not to wince. The sneer is clear on Lethal's face as he glares at Seth.

  "Fuck! This ain't the time for a joke, brother."

  Someone laughs. His chest heave as he continues to laugh. I think he even surprised Lethal. "Y-You think I'm joking, brother? Imagine lookin’ at the eye of someone you thought was killed by you, Prez. Then tell me if I'm fuc
kin’ joking!"

  My heart beats faster the longer Lethal prolongs an answer. And when he finally answers, I know I'm going to break my promise.

  "Fine. We will catch the fucker. And you can get another chance to kill him. This time makin’ sure that he's actually dead."

  "No." I don't even realize that I've spoken up. Seth’s gaze hardens and I can almost hear what he was going to say if Lethal was not here.

  You think you can break a promise and not suffer? You think I can't handle this, Kitty? You don't trust me? But everything I did was for you.

  "Why is she here?" Lethal asks with confusion. But I'm already out of the room running toward mine. My mind is in another world, my hands working to empty the cabinet. Tops, jeans, sweater, pills...what else? Escape or go back? I empty another desk only to find a picture of me and Grace. I will never say it to my sister but honestly? I was better off gone.

  No more revenge. No blood. No...Addiction.

  The last item drops in the bag and suddenly someone has destroyed my half hours of work. Every item is on the floor, looking as broken and confused as I am. A hand lunges on my shoulder forcing me to stagger and be trapped against the wall.

  "What the fuck are you doing?" Blue eyes watch me pant in...What? Anger that I couldn't leave before him or the fire that's starting to burn me alive.

  His hands are too punishing when they start a torturous journey down my unsettled shirt to my bare thigh. His grin widens to hear my breath hitch. "Were you tryin’ to leave, Kitty?"

  Was I?

  Could I?

  Yes, I was. For him, I would.

  "I don't like it. I don't like it when you run from me." He makes it harder to take air when he pulls me in for a kiss. This time it's all teeth and tongue. There's not enough time to feel him. He withdraws from me even before I can grasp his taste on my tongue.

  "You're being selfish, Kitty. You want to leave." He grabs my hands, only to twist them around my back. And none too gentle so all I can do is moan in protest. "You don't get to keep me. I shouldn't even touch you now."