I Dare You To Meet Me
Chapter 29

The door to my room was locked. I didn’t want to see anyone even though I doubted anyone would deign to look for me. Whatever was going on downstairs was more important than the fact that I had committed murder.

I had taken a shower and changed my clothes. I was a little shocked at how easy it was to get all the b***d off. My skin was completely clean now, with no trace of what I had done, but my mind was playing tricks on me by making me feel like I was still dirty.

I was now clad in black high-waisted shorts with a red long-sleeved top, my leather jacket and my military boots. I looked for my bike keys, because there was no way in hell I was going to stay locked in my room for the rest of the day. I noticed that my precious baby was still outside the crows’ garage.

I didn’t feel a twinge of remorse when I left the clubhouse unannounced, making sure no one noticed I was leaving. Which turned out to be a more difficult task than I thought, as it seemed that in the time I had spent in the basement the bikers had decided to multiply and were now everywhere.

As much as I wanted to stay in bed and cry myself to tears over all the things I had lost in the last 48 hours, I knew it wouldn’t solve anything. Hell had satiated the stress in my body and the Russian made my anger subside enough to give me a clear vision of what I was going to do.

I walked to the mechanic’s shop, using the time to get there to make a phone call to my friends. I warned them of the guy’s threat, because I knew my friends were not from clean environments and I was worried about what would happen to them, even though they were capable of taking care of themselves. But not everything is fair in this world and I was tired of losing people I cared about.

I also asked them to pull some strings and help me get more details about my mother’s accident and about the crows. Because stupid me, it never occurred to me to look into the club’s past as much as they did with me. And talking to my friends made me realise what a good girl I had been since my arrival in this country, I mean, I hadn’t been arrested once yet and that was unusual for me.

Ivan told me that he has family from California, some distant cousins who were the only ones he knew of his family. And like him, they were not clean either, so my friend was able to tell me about several addresses where I could find illegal fights and races. Just like the ones I used to attend in Russia. In case I got bored, although he warned me not to go alone.

When I arrived at the mechanic’s shop several brothers watched me out of the corner of their eyes as I got on my motorbike and started down the streets.

I watched as someone saw me leave and pulled a mobile phone out of his overalls and then held it to his ear. I knew for sure they were calling Hades to tell him that his daughter was going AWOL again.

I drove to Darren’s house, I hadn’t seen the red-haired man in a long time and I needed the comfort of someone who didn’t ride a motorbike or wear a fur waistcoat. I stopped in front of his house and nervously knocked on the door.

I didn’t know what the hell I was going to tell his mother if it turned out he wasn’t there. Or worse, if his brother was the one to open the door for me. Even though I didn’t get to meet him the time I slept over, I knew he wasn’t my friend’s cup of tea.

But luckily nothing bad happened, because when the door opened I saw Darren’s crazy hair, which was now a cool electric blue that I loved immediately.

-Tasha, what a surprise to see you, I wasn’t expecting you, do you want to come in? He asked me and I smiled at him as I nodded.

-Hi Darren, I’m sorry to be such a bad friend, there’s been some crazy stuff going on with my dad and his motorbike gang and well, I guess I just got lost in the middle of it all. I guess I just got lost in the shuffle.

-Is everything alright? He said worriedly as we walked to his room.

-Not really, I don’t know what the f**k is going on at the club but the mood is really tense and everyone is so defensive. They make me grumpy, plus there are other personal issues I’m dealing with but as I’m still new to this country I don’t have the same tools and contacts I’d like. I’m blindly stumbling around with the few scraps of information I get and it’s driving me crazy. I tell him honestly as I plop down on his bed.

He looks amused and serious as he sits down next to me.

-Look, I honestly have no idea what’s going on in that place, but the amount of bikers on the streets lately has increased. MCs are a very respected thing around here. Not to say feared, they are always getting into trouble but they get out of it unscathed. In the last few days bikers from all over are returning to their main headquarters, not just the Black Ravens, my brother told me how he saw a caravan of about fifteen bikers with different waistcoats driving around the streets which is very rare. MCs don’t just mix with each other, there’s something big going on in your world and I don’t think it’s pretty.

Analysing Darren’s words I realise that I’m missing several pieces of the puzzle. The other night I found out that my mother and grandparents were murdered, but I was too shocked to think about it any further, how did they come to that conclusion, where did the topic of conversation come from, why now and not before, just this morning Hell and Hades had pulled me aside to solve an emergency, was it to do with my family’s accident, and I couldn’t get out of my head everything that Bruno had told me about his experience when he found out that Hades was his father, and I couldn’t get out of my head what Bruno had told me when he found out that Hades was his father, facts that coincided with the dates of his death. Events that coincided with the dates when my mother had taken me to Russia.

What was I missing, and how was I supposed to find out?

I rub my face with my hands. F**k this would all be easier if my father would just tell me everything straight and blunt. But first hell freezes over before that happens.

My mobile phone rang at that moment with a text message, under the curious gaze of my friend I unlock the screen to see what Reykon has to tell me.

I found a short video from one of the security cameras on the road of your mother’s accident, I’m attaching it below. Ivan and Caleb have been at it again and damn it. Your father’s club is too clean to be true, it doesn’t smell right to me. Ivan sends word that we can’t investigate much from here but if you want to know more his cousin can give you a hand. He’ll be at one of the rings I told you about earlier tonight, you just have to go and find him and convince him to help you. Be careful, even though they are family Ivan doesn’t trust him much but he is the safest contact you have. Keep us informed and don’t do anything stupid.

After that a multimedia file arrives on my mobile, I download it and press play on the video. The screen shows the recorded tape from a high vantage point, maybe from a lamppost. The road comes into focus and I can see several cars driving by. After a few seconds I can begin to make out a caravan of four vans in the distance, and my heart stops when I recognise them as my family’s cars.

Just as they are passing in front of the camera a large trailer enters the scene from the opposite lane, crashing into the fence separating the two directions, destroying it and taking the first security car with it. Then the trailer loses control and derails completely, spinning around and crushing the rest of the vehicles.

A muffled scream sounds next to me and my hands tremble as I watch the cars explode after a few seconds. Other cars crash into each other trying to avoid the accident but overall the place is a massacre. The security camera keeps rolling until the emergency services arrive. That’s when the video comes to an end.

-Is that…? Darren started but I interrupted him.

-The video of my mum’s accident, I’ve never seen it before. I let out a sigh, my fingers tremble but I block the screen and put the device away again. “I already told you that there are strange things happening, but that’s not the reason why I’m here bothering you. Rather, I’m here to give you an invitation.

The now blue-haired man raises an eyebrow as he looks at me seriously.

-I’m starting to be afraid of your invitations.

A lethal smile creeps across my lips.

-Do you like illegal fights?

(…)

-This is a very bad idea. I’m definitely a suicidal person since I met you. If I go grey before I’m twenty-five, it’ll be all your fault.

Darren said as we both tried to make our way through the sea of people. My ever-faithful friend had been giving me the same speech about his refusal to come to the fight cellar ever since I told him about it in his room. But after seeing that I wouldn’t budge, he had no choice but to agree to accompany me.

-Relax, although it’s my first time in this specific place, it’s not my first time dealing with these matters and something tells me it’s not yours either. Nothing bad is going to happen to us, I just need to find a friend’s cousin and talk to him. We’ll be out of here before anything bad can happen. I said with conviction.

Or so I hoped.

Because luck had not been on my side in the last few days.

The blue-haired man pouted strangely but didn’t complain again. I pushed away a drunk who had bumped into me before he could spill his drink on me as I made my way over. The last thing I wanted was to have the smell of alcohol on my body for the rest of the night.

-What’s the name of your friend’s cousin! Darren shouted over the noise and I shrugged.

-I have no idea, I only know his fighting nickname and that’s Beast! I shouted back.

The closer we got to the centre of the abandoned building that served as an alibi for the business, the more difficult it became to communicate.

When we finally reached the kind of ring that was there. Which basically consisted of four cement poles with thick rope marking the area, there were already a couple of people beating each other up while the crowd roared with excitement.

-How do you think you’ll find him? shouted my friend and I scanned the crowd looking for my target.

A smile broke out on my face as I noticed a dark-haired man sitting on a chair surrounded by people with notes in his hand and a small backpack around his waist. I nudged the blue-haired man and pointed to the obvious bookmaker of the place.

We both gave each other a nod of understanding and wordlessly struggled back through the crushing crowd around us. Nudges, stomps, curses, withering glances. We received and gave everything on our way to the guy, but finally reached his side when one of the two guys in the ring was knocked to the floor by a well-delivered uppercut from his opponent.

-Hey, I’m looking for Bestia! I shouted as I reached his side but the dark-haired man paid no attention to me, his eyes fixed on the fight in front of him.

-You and all the straight women in this beautiful place, don’t waste my time! He shouted back but paid no attention to me. I frowned and my hand grabbed his in an unfriendly way.

-It’s important that I talk to him, I’m a friend of his family! I said and the guy dared to roll his eyes as he shook off my grip. His brown eyes looked at me like I was less than an insect and that annoyed me to no end.

-I’m the f*****g tooth fairy, stop wasting my time, if you’re not here to fight you’d better shut up and enjoy the show! He answered and disappeared into the crowd.

I clenched my jaw and fists with that answer. I was used to being overestimated, but my limited patience was being tested on too many occasions since I had arrived in the U.S. And the guy hadn’t picked the best day to ignore me.

-Hold this! I shouted at my friend as I took off my jacket and handed it to him. He looked at me with something akin to panic in his eyes.

-What do you think you’re doing! I practically shrieked.

-Reliving old times! That was the only answer I gave him before I disappeared in the same direction as the dark-haired man.

I found him paying and collecting bets. I didn’t give a shit when I abruptly spun him towards me, then fisted his shirt as I pulled him close enough so we were nose to nose.

-You listen to me, you’re going to put me in that fight ring with Bestia before this night is over or you’re going to see your body torn apart by the Black Ravens, do I make myself clear? I didn’t know if it was a good idea to mention the club but damn, it had to do me some good to be stuck with my dad in that place.

The dark-haired man who looked annoyed so far turned pale from one second to the next as he nodded.

-Good, because I’d hate to tell this Hades guy how uncooperative you were with his only daughter when she asked you for a tiny favour. Well if he was pale before, he was green now.

He opened and closed his mouth like a fish out of water, pulled a mobile phone out of his pocket and started texting at lightning speed.

-The next fight is yours, it’s an amateur night and anyone can ask to fight anyone, you’re lucky you came today,” The guy now frowned as he detailed me up and down, “Are you sure you want to fight him, he won’t take kindly to being challenged by a girl no matter how much of a daughter of Hades you are, that nickname didn’t come to him for nothing”. He said and now it was me who rolled my eyes as I let him go.

-I’m not a f*****g girl, and it doesn’t matter if it’s the UFC champion himself. I’m going to get in that ring and I’m going to see his face just like my name is Tasha Kozlov.

The boy nodded his head but did so with doubt in his eyes, he frowned as he folded his arms.

-Is that what I call you, like Tasha? He asked me and I struggled to understand him through a new wave of shouting, but in the end I shook my head as he repeated his question.

-They call me Medusa where I come from, you can announce me as well. I answered and the dark-haired man nodded, before I could say anything else, a series of shouts and boos more intense than the previous one diverted our attention.

At last one of the two guys was being carried out of the fighting ring passed out with the help of others.

The bookie, whose name I realised I didn’t know although I had told him mine, shot off in that direction and reached between the ropes to grab the arm of a beaten blond and raise it in triumph.

The blond smiled and shouted at his victory as he basked in the applause of the crowd for a few seconds before also walking out of the ring. The brunet brought his hands up to his mouth to create a sort of loudspeaker to make himself heard over the crowd.

-Are you happy to see that? More shouts of confirmation. “I can’t hear you!” I distinguished Darren who looked at me worriedly as he crumpled my jacket in his hands. -If that’s what you want that’s what you got!!! Stand back gentlemen and hold your knickers ladies!!!, In our first bout of our amateur night we have, the one and only, the so far undefeated, ring champion, Michael Beast Ivanov!!!”.

I swallowed as wild shouts echoed through the walls. On the other side of where I stood, people began to part to make way for a mountain of muscle.

He wasn’t as tall as my father or Hunter, but he was definitely bigger than me. He wasn’t wearing a t-shirt even though his legs were covered by worn grey jeans and military boots. Which allowed me to see his bare torso along with his arms, it was obvious that someone with the title of Beast and apparent undefeated champion had to have an impressive physique. And that was my first thought as my green eyes swept across that chocolate bar and those powerful arms.

But my attention was riveted on his face, which was almost an exact copy of my friend. Strong, pronounced features, elongated jaw, big nose, short brown hair, dark blue eyes, defined lips. But Ivan had an expansion in his right ear and a nose earring, apart from a large dragon tattoo curled around his waist. His cousin had no piercings or tattoos.

The fighter raised his arms in the air as he received the support of his audience and smiled arrogantly, confident of his triumph. I approached him elbowing and shoving whoever stood in front of me. Disgruntled people turned to look at me ready to start a dispute but I was already far away by the time they realised. Almost at the edge of the ropes Bestia’s blue eyes made contact with mine and I gave myself the pleasure of giving him my sharpest smile and my coldest look. Those that had earned me my nickname. He raised one of his eyebrows enigmatically and I continued to approach.

-We have an opponent who fears nothing, a woman who has expressly requested this match, welcome Tasha Medusa Kozlov! Many boos and incredulous looks were directed at me when I finally entered the allotted space.

My friend’s cousin was no longer smiling, he just looked annoyed and irritated. He approached the dark-haired man at great speed and the two of them began to argue in a low voice.

I knew exactly what the problem was, I didn’t want to fight with a woman. I took a hair tie out of my shorts pocket and tied it into a tight high ponytail. Then with deliberate and calculated slowness I pulled off my red top and threw it on a pole, mentally praying that it would still be there when the fight was over.

The boos stopped being boos, turning into hisses and vulgarities as my overworked, tattooed and scarred body came into view. I mentally thanked myself for having chosen a sports bra when I had bathed that morning. My babes would stay in their place and let me fight in peace.

I didn’t have to win, just attract enough attention so that Bestia would deign to talk to me.

Both guys stopped arguing when they sensed the change of atmosphere and turned to look at me. Their eyes swept me up and down. I moved into a defensive stance and blew him a k**s and a wink to provoke him. Ivan’s copy frowned and after a few seconds that seemed like forever he nodded his head. He stepped away from the brunet and mimicked my posture.

-You know the rules, no back blows, no low blows, no low blows, no foreign objects on your person, the fight ends by submission or knockout, ready, fight!

The dark-haired man shouted and then left the place, leaving Bestia and me alone. We both walked in circles around each other for a few moments before he made a comment.

-You don’t know what you just got yourself into. He said and his voice sounded deeper than Ivan’s. “Trust me, this is the one.

-Believe me, this is exactly the place I want to be. I responded and surprised him by moving first.

I threw a combination of punches that while they didn’t touch him, they did knock him back several steps to avoid them. His blue eyes sparkled when he realised that this fight was serious.

-You’re going to suffer, and it will be a shame if a pretty face like yours ends up destroyed. He spoke again before trying to hit me, I dodged and buried my fist in his ribs as my head smashed against his nose.

Bestia grunted something and backed away as a hand touched his now bleeding nose.

-Worry more about your face and I’ll do the same for mine. I spat and the guy stopped playing games.

He approached me and threw a series of blows that forced me to retreat, I deflected and dodged as many as I could. But more than one hit my body, I gasped in pain when he hit me in the side where the damn Russian had already hit me this morning.

Tired of being used as a punching bag I risked lowering my defence, causing Bestia to impact his fist into one of my shoulders but giving me a window of time to land a jab that split one of his lips. Unfocused by that blow I took the opportunity to turn the situation around. Now he was the one cornered while I let go of all kinds of combinations. Maybe my blows were not as strong as his, but they were accurate in the right areas to generate more pain.

Annoyed at being at a disadvantage Bestia let loose a kick that sent me flying towards the centre of the arena. I didn’t fall, but I didn’t miss much, I breathed heavily through my mouth in a desperate attempt to gain air. To my consolation the guy was covered in sweat and his l*p was still bleeding, apart from the trace that remained from his nose. He approached me again with violence in his eyes.

But as I had said, I was not there to win the fight. I was there to get information, and that wasn’t going to happen if either of us ended up unconscious after our confrontation.

-I have to talk to you,” I said as I dodged his fists and walked away.

-It’s too late to beg for mercy girl, I’m going to smash that doll face of yours. He said through gritted teeth and annoyed because the nickname reminded me of a certain biker I punched him twice in the face and felt nothing when he connected his left fist with my cheekbone.

-In your dreams you f*****g idiot. That’s not what I’m talking about. I come from Russia and I’m a friend of Ivan’s, he told me that you could help me in a matter I have pending. I told him but I wasn’t paying attention and he kneed me and made me see stars.

Damn that hurt like few things have ever hurt.

I shoved the mound of muscle as he looked at me with intrigue but without lowering his defence.

-Ivan didn’t mention any friends when I talked to him a few days ago. Besides I don’t know you and I have no reason to help you. He answered and attacked me again.

I grabbed his arm and twisted it behind his back. I hit the back of his legs and made him fall to his knees as I brought my mouth to his ear while listening to him gasp in annoyance at my maneuver.

-Because your help wouldn’t be free, I’d pay you well, if you want to know more details we’ll talk after this f*****g fight.

Half shouting, half whispering, Bestia bringing his head backwards hit me squarely in the nose and I let go as I covered my face.

Son of a bitch.

-You’re assuming you’ll make it out of this place safely, I wouldn’t take that for granted.

I screamed as he stood up, stopped holding my face and spat out the b***d that was seeping into my mouth. Well, now I was upset. If this Beast wanted war, war it would get.

I ran out and wrapped my body around his, my elbow landing on his face, my legs spinning me over his torso, before his arms could hold me I was already on his shoulders slamming into his head and my feet into his stomach. When he got me back on the ground I wasted no time in getting to my feet, I swept his legs with mine and as he fell I threw myself back onto his body.

I threw punches with all my strength ignoring the pain of the ones he was throwing back at me in an attempt to get me off him, but I didn’t give an inch, the guy was going to learn the hard way why the hell I was respected in my country. Between blows I managed to make myself heard.

-If you’re a good loser you’ll look for me when you wake up, otherwise you’ll force me to tell Ivan that his cousin is a coward. I screamed and Bestia gave me another punch in my face, more specifically in my right eye, which made me clench my jaw to keep from screaming.

Blinded by the pain I grabbed his head and smashed it against the floor on a specific spot on his temple, the one where I had hit the biker hours ago and received the same result. Bestia collapsed between my fingers, his body going limp.

My mind played a trick on me and Bestia’s body disappeared from my vision being replaced by the Russian’s corpse, it took me a couple of breaths to push the memory of reality away but I finally succeeded.

Gasping I stood up, my legs shook with the effort and my right arm held my aching abdomen. I winced in all kinds of pain. The crowd, which I had ignored until now, fell into stony silence before all kinds of screams rang out.

Some loved me, some hated me, some just said obscenities. I limped a little as I walked towards my top, which apparently thanks to some superior force, was indeed still where I had left it. The dark-haired betting man intercepted me halfway and just as he had done with the blond before him, he raised my arm in victory. I tried not to punch him because of the look of surprise and satisfaction he gave me as he did so. As if my triumph over his champion was his fault. But I did nothing but hiss in pain from the move.

Damn it, Ivan’s cousin had left me more beaten up than I would ever admit to anyone. And I have to say, there were times when I didn’t think I could beat him.

-The winner tonight, the tamer of the Beast, the one and only, the incomparable, Tasha Medusa Kozlov! shouted the dark-haired man and the audience shouted with excitement as they chanted my nickname.

Gently, because it hurt, I pulled my arm out of his grip and finished making my way to my top. Cursing at every turn I put it on and then my eyes roamed the place until I saw Darren near the right side. He too was shouting excitedly although his eyes reflected concern. I made my way towards him, stopping just long enough to tell the dark-haired man that he had better get my money to the Crows’ clubhouse by tomorrow at the latest if he wanted to stay alive.

Out of the corner of my eye I could see two other guys enter the ring and pull out the still passed out a*s of the Beast, they saw me with fury in their eyes and I know I made a couple of enemies with them. When I got to Darren he helped me put my jacket back on. People pushed me out of the way to let me pass.

Apparently I’ve just earned a reputation in this country too. And I said that mostly because of the curious looks I got from specific guys, guys who I bet half of my inheritance were more recurring brawlers in the place.

-That was the most incredibly scary, stupid and awesome thing I’ve ever seen in my life! The blue-haired man shouted at me as he wrapped his arm around my shoulders. I grimaced and leaned against him.

-Thank you, I didn’t plan for the night to end like this, but you see, fate is capricious.

My friend smiled at me as he shook his head and pulled me through the crowd.

-My dear foreign friend, my life is so much more interesting since I’ve met you, I think we’re going to have to go out more often. F**k, I need more stories like this to tell my grandchildren.

I laughed at that statement and then stopped and grimaced again. Every second that passed my body ached more and more.

-I don’t think I can ride the bike in this condition, can you take me to the club?

Darren changed his smile to a serious look as he scanned me.

-Do you need to go to a hospital? He asked with concern but I shook my head.

-No, I just want to get a bed and get this day from hell over with.

My friend looked at me hesitantly but I gave him a hard look. We both made our way out of the abandoned building. Darren making sure no idiot would bump into me.

A*w, so cute the blue-haired guy worrying about me.

His way of acting only made me miss the guys more, they also used to act like mother hens when I got in trouble.

We walked at a slow pace to where we left my bike parked, because that’s how we got there, me driving and him riding on the back hugging me. I took the keys out of my jacket pocket and handed them to him.

-Do you remember how to get there? I asked and he gave me a sly smile as he got on the bike.

-Everyone in this town knows exactly where the Black Ravens live, don’t worry I’ll make sure you get there in one piece, are you sure you want to go there looking like that, I don’t think your father will be too happy, if you want you can stay at my house again.

He said as he helped me up behind him. I grimaced but I didn’t complain, I think what hurt me the most at that moment was the fact that someone else was going to drive my beautiful bike.

-I don’t know what the f**k is going on in that hornet’s nest but it’s serious. I don’t want to have my a*s watched any more than it is and I know Hades wouldn’t forgive me for spending so many nights away without telling him. And I don’t feel like calling and explaining myself and then listening to his lecture, I’ve had enough this week.

-Whatever you say, I just hope you have an excellent explanation for why you look like shit. He said as he shrugged his shoulders and started up the Harley.

-I’ll tell him the truth and hell if he doesn’t like it, I couldn’t care less.

I replied sincerely as I hugged him around the waist. Darren shook his head.

-I wonder how many lives you have, Russian, for you to keep risking over and over again.

-Many my friend, many many. And with that he set off for the biker clubhouse.

My least favourite place in the world. With the last people I wanted to see at that moment.

Wuuuu, can you tell I’m excited to get there?

(…)

Darren parked the bike among the others, got off first and helped me do the same. I gave him a grateful if tense smile. I really didn’t want to be here, the crack of the guy’s neck when I broke it drilled my ears at that moment and I swallowed nervously.

-Thank you for coming with me, if it wasn’t for you I would have gone alone and after the morning I had I don’t think it would have been a good idea. My friend’s eyes sparkled as he hugged me.

-No problem Medusa, you still have to tell me where that nickname came from. Me and America. I hope all the problems you have with your father are solved and you know where I live if you need to escape. He said that last thing while he winked at me.

-I’ll do that, you can also text me or come and get me if you want, although I don’t think you’ll like it here very much. He faked a shudder at my smirk.

-No, I’ll really avoid the MC as much as I can. Nothing personal, just a precaution. But well, it’s late now and I have to go. Try not to take too long to see each other next time.

-I’ll do my best. I winked.

-Good night, Tasha. He said goodnight as he put his hands in his jacket pockets and started to walk down the street.

-Goodnight Darren.

I stayed a few seconds watching him as he reached the shore and then waited for a taxi, it took less time than I thought and when he disappeared into the streets I took several breaths to contain the pain and give me the strength to get in.

Every step I took was an abysmal effort on my part. Even my hair ached, and my eyes grew heavier and heavier, I would have willingly fallen asleep on Darren’s back on our way back if I hadn’t been afraid of falling off my bike. It wouldn’t be the first time. Tiredness made my walk slow, or so I told myself.

When I crossed the doors of the bar I put my figure back together looking like I was the queen of the world. I was used to the f*****g stares from the bikers so I just dragged my a*s to the bar where I didn’t even bother to order anything, I just leaned back and my hand grabbed the first bottle I could find. Whiskey, perfect.

There in front of everyone I uncorked it, a sweet a*s tried to take it from me but with a shove I sent it to the floor. I shoved the bottle to my lips, one swig, two swigs, three, four, five, six. I lost count. Only when the vomit and heartburn rose up my trachea did I put the bottle down again. I put it on top of the place and under the watchful eyes of everyone I went to my room.

Feeling less pain with every step I took thanks to the alcohol.

I ignored the fact that Toro was glaring at me from across the room, just as I overlooked Bruno’s scowl as he looked at me and headed for Hades’ office.

I just wanted to rest, I pushed one of the twins who had approached me with a worried look on his face out of the way and answered his questions about my condition with a wave of my hand.

F**k I was fine, not fine, but fine.

I didn’t need help from any of them.

Unlike when I was about to enter the bar I almost ran to my room, where I didn’t bother to gently close the door. The slamming of the door echoed throughout the hallway, I didn’t turn on the light either, so in the dark I took off my boots as best I could and my shorts and top remained on the floor. I let my hair down and a sigh of satisfaction came out of that. In my underwear, sore, and splattered with b***d I dropped onto my bed.

Tomorrow I would worry about how I looked and the fact that I didn’t get the information I needed. Now I just needed to regain the energy I had used that day.

I settled into the covers and found a comfortable position where my body wouldn’t throb. The whiskey slowly numbed my limbs. I buried my head in the pillow and inhaled deeply. The smell of male cologne permeated my cloud of pain and exhaustion.

Hunter.

The damn biker had left his perfume on my pillow.

Annoyed by that fact I got up, caring little for the pain I felt, and in a burst my hands tore the fabric to shreds. The stuffing scattered all over the mattress and I threw the remaining shreds against the wall. I shook out the blankets and made a ball out of them to use as a pillow. When I went back to bed I took a deep breath, the smell hadn’t gotten through there and that was enough for that night.

Tomorrow I would burn the damn sheets if I had to, but I didn’t want evidence of my night with the biker.

I would never forgive him for leaving me alone after telling me he wouldn’t do it.

I closed my eyes, and even though I was tired and the whiskey was kicking in. It took me a long time to fall asleep, time I used to reflect on everything that had happened that day.

When sleep finally overcame me, new nightmares replaced the old ones.

Now I was reliving the moment where life disappeared from the Russian’s eyes over and over again.

The f****d up thing about it is that it wasn’t always his eyes that saw me in pain seconds before I ended his existence.

No sir, sometimes they were brown and shed tears. But other times they were charcoal coloured and looked at me with a feeling that my mind didn’t want to acknowledge but my heart did.

For those onyx eyes looked at me with love just before my hands broke his neck erasing it forever.

It was one of the worst nights of my existence.

Damn it.