Chapter 17

I needed to make sure Marcella got out of this alive. I’d die either way, either by the hands of my club brothers or by her father. There was a strange sense of relief in the knowledge of certain death.

I scanned our surroundings, hoping for Gray to dash past. He was our only hope. None of the other men, not even Gunnar would help me escape. I wasn’t even sure if Gray would do it. The rift between us had grown in the past weeks. Gunfire sounded down at the fence. Our gun power would keep Vitiello and his army back for a while. I wouldn’t wait here like a mouse in the trap.

I tried not to glance at Marcella who was pressed to the wall of her kennel. I wanted her out of harms’ way. The chances of being hit by a stray bullet were just way too high. Not to mention that Earl might still kill her to punish Vitiello.

I cast a cautious glance at the dog. It hadn’t moved from its place, but it was watching me. I hoped it had forgotten Earl’s orders. Being torn apart by teeth wasn’t my wish for death. Not that death at Luca’s hands would be much better. Satan was still breathing but blood had gathered under her hind leg. I doubted she’d make it.

And then I spotted a flash of bright blond hair and the matching cut. “Gray!” I shouted.

His eyes darted to me, wide with disorientation and anxiety. He bowed down to escape the bullets.

“Gray! Come here!”

He glanced my way once more, conflict reflecting on his face. When Earl had been off with his club brothers, getting drunk or pussy, and Mom had been down with a bout of depression, I had taken care of him, had held him at night when he’d been scared of the monsters of the dark.

Then he dashed toward me, his head low. I wasn’t sure if Luca and his men had breached the fence yet, but I suspected they had. A wire-mesh fence wouldn’t hold them back for long but getting past our armed guards would take longer.

When Gray finally arrived in front of my cage, I breathed a sigh of relief.

“What happened to the dogs?”

“You’ve got to help me, Gray. I’ll die if I stay locked in here.”

Gray’s gaze flitted to Marcella and he narrowed his eyes. “You are the reason why we’re under attack. If I release you, you’ll only fight against us.”

“Gray,” I said imploringly, pressing tightly against the bars. “Earl set the dogs on me so they could tear me apart.”

Gray shook his head as if he couldn’t believe it. “He wouldn’t—”

“Do it? Come on, we both know that’s not true.”

Gray didn’t say anything, only watched Satan.

“We’re brothers. Do you really want me defenseless in a dog cage so Vitiello can tear me apart? You know what he did to my father. And he’ll do the same to me, no matter if I helped his daughter, which is all I did. You saw what Earl did to her. It’s not right. This has nothing to do with Vitiello. I still want him dead and won’t hesitate to kill him if given the chance.”

I needed to get through to Gray quickly before Earl spotted us, or my brother was hit by a Famiglia bullet.

He glanced back to the clubhouse then to me. “I don’t know if I can trust you.”

“You can,” I said fiercely, but I wasn’t sure he could. Right in this moment, my sole priority was to get Marcella to safety. Once that was taken care of, I’d do my best to help Gray. If something happened to him because of my betrayal, I’d never be able to forgive myself. I wanted him safe. I wanted a different life for him.

Gray took out his key chain, and I had to resist the urge to rip it out of his hand. Instead, I waited for him to unlock my cage. The moment the familiar click sounded, I shoved open the door and rushed to Marcella’s kennel.

“Now her.”

“No,” Gray growled. “I don’t care what happens to her. She ruined everything.”

“It wasn’t her fucking choice to be kidnapped by us.”

“But it was her choice to seduce you and mess with your mind. Before her, the club always came first. You lived for the club, for revenge, and now look at you.”

“You were never for kidnapping her. Look at her back!” I turned to Marcella. “Show him.”

She presented her naked, tattooed back to us. The sight still set my blood aflame with rage. The place between her shoulders was red and bloody, and Vitiello whore was written in ugly black letters across her skin.

Gray’s eyes widened and he swallowed.

“Gray, help me. Do you want an innocent woman’s death on your conscience?”

Screams rang out.

Gray turned back to the fights but I couldn’t allow him to leave with the keys. I lunged at him and grabbed his arm. “Give me the keys.”

He turned to me with a disbelieving expression. “I knew it!”

“You know nothing, Gray. Don’t be a sheep that blindly follows the herd into death. Leave as long as you still got the chance.”

“I won’t leave the club.”

I pulled him even closer. “Gray. Our club took a wrong turn when we kidnapped Marcella, but we sure as fuck went straight into hellfire territory when Earl started torturing her. Don’t tell me you’re suddenly okay with what happened?”

“No,” he growled. “I was against the kidnapping from the start but Earl’s the president of this club and it’s our job to follow his orders.”

Gray shook off my grip and stumbled away. I hoped he’d get on his bike and save his own ass. He was a good guy and didn’t deserve to go down with this club. If Vitiello got his hands on him, he wouldn’t show him mercy, even if he was still pretty much a kid.

I whirled around to Marcella’s cage. She stumbled toward the door when I unlocked it and fell into my arms. I kissed her fiercely, not caring about the bullets and screams. I needed another taste of her before I might never see her again. She briefly relaxed against me and time seemed to stand still. Nothing mattered but her lips, her body, the fire burning in her eyes. “We need to get you to your father,” I rasped.

“What about Satan?”

“Marcella, we can’t help her now. She’s too heavy for us to carry.” I linked our hands and guided her away from the cages. The other dogs had quieted and hidden in their huts. The vision in my left eye was still impaired. Maybe blood had dried on my eyeball, or the hit to my head had left lasting damage, I wasn’t sure. Marcella had trouble keeping up with my steps but she didn’t complain.

I spotted Gunnar and a couple of prospects storming out of the clubhouse and toward the fence, probably to defend our borders but knowing Vitiello’s numbers, I doubted they stood any chance. He would barrel right through us and would leave nothing in his wake.

An explosion sounded, blasting splinters of wood and fence all around us. I shoved Marcella down and shielded her with my body. My back burned but I didn’t move until a new wave of screams and shots rang out. The sound of shotguns made my head swivel up. As I’d feared, Earl and several bikers stormed out of the clubhouse and in the direction of the kennels.

I jerked Marcella up onto her feet. She, too, had seen the bikers heading our way. I dragged her away but running toward the fence line where the majority of the fighting was happening posed the risk of being hit by a bullet from either side. Vitiello was on his way, I only needed to make sure Marcella stayed alive until then. Nothing else mattered.

I stormed to the most unlikely place, to the clubhouse. As expected, it was empty except for one terrified looking prospect. He fumbled with his gun but didn’t manage to loosen the safety pin. I released Marcella’s hand and lunged at him, ripping the gun out of his hand before I hit him over the head with the barrel. I grabbed another gun and his knife, then I dragged Marcella behind the bar. It had been enforced with wooden boards and could hold off a few bullets. Of course, the shotguns would eventually tear through it, but I had to trust that Vitiello would find us.

The shooting and screaming came closer. It sounded as if world war three had broken out. Marcella peered at me with wide eyes, panting softly.

“Everything will be okay. Your father will be here any moment and I’ll keep you safe until then.” And then all hell broke around us. The shelf behind us exploded. Alcohol and glass shards catapulted our way. My back lit up with new pain, but I only focused on Marcella who cowered in front of me. I touched her cheek briefly, wanting to burn the image of her face into my mind so I could recall it in my last moments.

Steps rang out and a door was thrown shut. “Barricade the door!” Earl screamed and I held my breath, realizing he was in the house and judging from the myriad of voices several men were with him. Maddox and I were trapped.

“Earl!” Dad roared. “I give you five seconds to hand out my daughter before I tear down the fucking house and chop you and your fucking family into pieces.”

My heart swelled with relief hearing Dad’s voice.

“Fuck you! I’ll send her head out to you, that’s all you get. We’ll keep her cold pussy to keep us entertained.”

Maddox’s muscles tautened as he raised the guns. “Stay down,” he mouthed.

Another explosion sounded and splinters flew through the room. A man staggered toward us, probably to seek cover. “Prez, they are—”

Maddox shot him in the head before he could finish the sentence and all hell broke loose. My ears rang from the gunfire. Maddox jumped up, raising his guns. “Earl, don’t be stupid. Everyone’s going to die because of your ego.” Maddox ducked and a bullet burst through another of the liquor bottles.

“Damn dogs, I’ll drown them all.”

“For fuck’s sake! Be reasonable and hand Marcella over!”

More gunfire sounded followed by the sound of breaking wood. A moment later something hit the ground with a loud bang.

“Door down!” someone screamed.

Maddox jerked to his feet when Gunnar showed up, holding a knife in his hands. They began grappling. It was obvious that Maddox didn’t want to kill the older man. Eventually he managed to land a hard hit to the man’s temple. Gunnar crumpled on the floor and didn’t stir again.

The next biker who lunged at Maddox wasn’t as lucky. Maddox impaled his knife in the guy’s chest.

I began shaking, my ears ringing from the gunfire and wounded men screaming in pain. Maybe I’d die right in front of Dad.

Blood splatters covered the wooden boards and the walls. Maddox stepped out from the cover and fired. I crawled forward, peering out from behind the bar. Brutal carnage reigned around me. Blood and body parts lay on the ground.

And amid it all stood Dad, Matteo and Amo and several Famiglia soldiers, right before the front door while Earl and his men hid behind the overturned pool table. It took me a moment to recognize Amo. His eyes were wild and in his right hand, he held an ax, covered in blood and flesh. I didn’t know how many of the savagely killed bikers were his fault. This wasn’t the Amo I remembered.

The brother I’d left behind had seen fights as a fun game. Becoming a Capo had been a distant goal, one he hadn’t been prepared for yet. He’d been a cocky, thrill-seeking boy who liked to impress girls with his future title and looks. His induction had been proforma. Up until this point, Dad had kept him away from the worst of the business by Mom’s request. Amo had always had a penchant for violence. It ran in his blood, like it ran in mine, albeit not as strong. But it had lain dormant. Now as I saw his blood sprinkled face and the raw hunger for revenge in his eyes, matching Dad’s, I realized his true nature had been awakened.

Maddox pushed me back when another biker jumped at us and rammed a knife into the man, killing another one of his MC brothers to save me. Behind the couch on the right, I spotted Gray. Maddox would be devastated when he realized his brother hadn’t fled but stayed for the fight.

More Famiglia men pushed into the house until Earl and a few other bikers made a dash for the stairs to seek safety on the second floor.

Maddox grabbed my arm and helped me to my feet, dragging me across the room and shielding me with his body. “Go to your family.” He pushed me forward, away from his warmth and I stumbled a few steps, disoriented. Matteo caught me in his arms but I gasped in pain when he touched my back. He briefly looked at my exposed back, and his expression twisted with disbelief then fury. “I’ll have a blast killing them.”

“Take Marci to safety,” Dad growled. Marci, the name no longer seemed fitting for the girl I had become.

Matteo began to drag me away from the scene but I turned in his hold to address Dad. “Don’t kill him!” I pointed at Maddox, but I couldn’t say more because Matteo tightened his hold on me and dragged me away. My gaze brushed over Maddox and his parting smile as he stood covered in blood amid his dead club brothers. He had made peace with death. The last thing I saw was how he jumped behind the sofa beside his brother Gray to fight at his side.

“No!” I screamed.

“Come on, Marcella. Let’s get you to a doctor.”

I peered up at my uncle. “Tell Dad he can’t kill Maddox.”

“Let your dad and me handle those assholes. And don’t worry, your dad wants to keep as many of them as possible alive for questioning and thorough payback.”

I glanced back at the clubhouse as I stumbled along with my uncle. Two armed guards were by our sides and didn’t leave even when we got into a black van. Inside, the Famiglia doc was already waiting. Dad had thought of everything.

“Why didn’t Amo take me to safety?” I asked, surprised Dad had allowed him to stay.

Matteo twisted his knife in his hand, obviously eager to use it on someone. “Your brother insisted he was allowed to fight and your dad prefers to keep an eye on him so he doesn’t do something stupid. But I’ll keep you safe.” His mouth pulled into a smile that looked completely wrong. Matteo was easy going for a mobster but today his darker side had come out to play.

His expression twisted again when he regarded my back. I could only imagine what it looked like. I faced him. “Can’t you go to Dad and tell him not to kill Maddox? I won’t let the doc treat me otherwise.”

Matteo scanned my face curiously. “The plan is to keep Earl, Maddox, and Gray White as well as the sergeant at arms alive so we can deal with them thoroughly in the next few days.” Excitement swung in his voice, reminding me of the stories about Matteo’s penchant for torture that I’d heard. It was always difficult to imagine considering how funny he often was.

“Is everyone else safe? Mom? Valerio? What about Isabella and Gianna? Lily and the kids?” I was rambling but my lips moved on their own accord.

“Romero and Growl are responsible for their safety. Don’t worry. Soon everything will be over, and the men who hurt you will be dog food.”

Maddox.

I knew what my family had planned, but it gave me time to figure out what to do with Maddox and how to convince Dad not to slice him into bite-sized pieces. I could only pray that Maddox didn’t get himself killed today.

“Do you have any injuries?” the doc asked calmly as he sat down on the bench beside me.

I gingerly touched my ear, which Maddox had covered with a fresh bandage yesterday. “My ear and my back.”

“Let’s start with your back, shall we?”

I nodded numbly. The doc had free access to my back due to my ripped-apart shirt. After a few minutes of careful prodding, he said, “I’m going to disinfect everything and refresh your tetanus shot. And just to cover all our bases, I’ll get some bloodwork done to check for possible infections the needle might have carried.” What he didn’t dare to say: possible diseases through intercourse.

My heart skipped a beat and I stared at him in horror.

“What kind of infections?” Matteo asked before I could utter a word.

“Hepatitis, HIV to name a few.”

I could feel the blood slowly leave my face. I hadn’t even considered that the needle might be contaminated. The ugliness of the tattoo had been my only concern so far.

Matteo squatted before me, giving me a reassuring look. “You’ll be fine, Marcella.”

“What about a possible pregnancy?” the doc asked in a very quiet voice.

Matteo’s expression shifted to fury but then his gaze darted to me.

I shook my head vigorously but I couldn’t be sure I wasn’t pregnant. I’d been on the pill for over a year when Maddox kidnapped me. Of course, I didn’t have them with me. But I didn’t want to consider it now. I’d take care of this problem when I was home.

The relief in Matteo’s face was overwhelming. He touched my arm. “Soon you’ll be home and forget this ever happened.”

I nodded, but I felt shaky and cold. Up until this point, I’d managed to put up a mask of control but it was slipping quickly. I barely registered as the doctor removed the bandage to check on my ear. “There’s the option to remodel your earlobe. I know one of the best plastic surgeons in New York who’ll gladly treat you.”

“As if your dad and I will give him a choice,” Matteo muttered, hitting his palm with the blade of his favorite knife.

I shook my head. “It stays the way it is. Only make sure it doesn’t get infected.”

Matteo met my gaze, obviously confused. Maybe he worried I suffered from PTSD, but I didn’t think that was the case.

“I want a reminder.”

“I hope you don’t consider keeping the tattoo as well,” he joked in a dry voice.

I shrugged. “How bad is it?”

“Bad,” he said.

“There are options to remove a tattoo.”

“I know,” I said. I hadn’t even dared to peer over my shoulder yet. Later would be time to face the horror.

The doc covered the tattoo with bandages and Matteo threw a blanket over my shoulders then we sat in silence, waiting for the fight to be over. I could see in Matteo’s face that he wanted to return and be part of the bloodshed. I was thankful he stayed with me. I didn’t want to be alone right now.

My mind drifted to Maddox, who’d risked everything to save me. Calling my father and tell him about the clubhouse was suicidal. He’d told me he loved me. I didn’t trust my own feelings. Could true love be born in captivity?