BROKEN ROAD (A Back Down Devil MC Romance Novella) (9 page)

fifteen
.

Keira watched Kami finish off three
cups of coffee before he looked a little more human. The third cup of coffee
was completed with a shot of whiskey mixed right in. Kami took a few more pills
and then wiped his mouth.

“
We
need to get moving,
”
he
said.

“
Kami,
how bad is this thing?
”
Keira asked.
“
The cartel
…”

“
Jake
wins this fight and everything changes,
”
Kami said.
“
We can get the
necessary weapons and protection to push back.
”

“
I
don
’
t get it.
”

“
The
deal is off,
”
Kami said.
“
Okay? It was a bad deal to make
and we
’
ve learned our
lesson. There
’
s no pointing
fingers, Keira. That
’
s what
you have to understand. Some of us voted for it and some voted against it.
Majority always wins and the gavel is the final call. Okay? So we made a deal
with the cartel and it didn
’
t
work out. They want a distribution channel without the fee and it
’
s not going to happen. Rusted
Devil MC will rebuild and fight back. We have no choice.
”

“
You
’
re going to get rid of Jake no
matter what,
”
she said.
“
I know it. I see it in your
eyes.
”

“
Look,
we have an open membership right now. Apollo hasn
’
t
really spread the word just yet. He made a few calls here and there, looking
for a fighter. Jake shows up. He
’
s
a fighter.
”

“
And
that means he can
’
t ride?
”
Keira asked.
“
You know how many guys
…”

Kami put a hand up.
“
It
’
s
a club vote. Patch in or hit the road. Chances are, after the
snake pit
,
he
’
s going to want to bolt.
This life is too real.
”

Jake is too real.

And Keira realized that more than
she should have.

Maybe this was Kami
’
s way of seeing that and trying
to protect her.

“
Jake
saved me,
”
Keira said.
“
He stormed in and showed no fear
in fighting that guy off me.
”

“
Off
you?
”
Kami asked.

“
He
was about to
…
you know
…
force me
…”

Kami
’
s
eyes flared.
“
I
’
m going to gut them all.
”

“
You
should trust Jake more. He
’
s
the only one who is trying to help. All those other guys are sitting around,
drinking. They look like lumps of shit sitting there.
”

“
They
’
re fucking grieving!
”
Kami bellowed.
“
Don
’
t you dare say a word about guys wearing leather
cuts.
”

Kami
’
s
words echoed through the apartment.

Then there was silence.

Kami rubbed his head and groaned.
“
Fuck. We need to ride. You
’
re with me. You
’
re not driving alone to this.
”

Keira didn
’
t argue. She did as told and climbed onto the back
of Kami
’
s motorcycle.

She had been to the
snake pit
one other time. She watched two fights and then waited for it to be over.
Everyone was loud, drunk, and everyone wanted more violence. They loved blood.
They loved death. They bet money in ways that was sickening. It was a rare time
when the MC life mixed with other lives for a common purpose.

As Kami took a turn off the road,
kicking up dirt and dust, Keira felt her heart start to race. They had a couple
miles to go, off the road, in the middle of nowhere.

The
snake pit
was basically
like a giant hole in the ground. Some said it was man made. A giant grave that
had never been filled. Other people said it was some kind of nature thing. Some
aberration, caused by erosion, an earthquake, maybe even something from space
smacking the ground at some point during the world
’
s existence.

No matter what, it proved something
terrifying.

The ground was hard, the sides of
the hole hard. It wasn
’
t a
deep hole or anything, but enough that those watching the fights looked down.
The hole was big enough for the fighters to have some space the catch their
breath - or try and run if things went bad.

And things always seemed to go
bad.

There was something to be said for
those who fought in a shallow grave. It was disgusting.

Keira climbed off Kami
’
s ride and saw the people
already there. This wasn
’
t
about outlaw bikers showing up to earn some cash or find someone to fuck. These
fights entertained some rich and powerful people. There were plenty of women,
almost all of them paid to be there. Over the years, a small stand had been
built to allow whoever to stock it with drinks and someone to take bets and
issue payouts. It was all about straight cash and nothing more.

Guys that had twenty million in
their bank accounts came to drop fifty grand on a fight for the hell of it. For
the thrill of the bet. For the sight of a real war before them.

If someone died, they were usually
buried somewhere close by.

As Keira walked on the ground, she
tried not to look down. She had heard stories of guys walking, feeling the
ground crunch, only to discover they were walking on bones.
Real bones.
Human bones. Bones of men who lost.

All Keira could think about was
Jake.

Yeah, maybe he was smart. Maybe he
was really tough. Maybe he was a great fighter. But this entire scene
…
this was something really
different.

Kami met up with some of the Rusted
Devil MC guys. They all hugged and started to talk about the fight. The club
had managed to scrounge up enough to place a healthy bet on Jake. Keira didn
’
t want to know how they got the
money.

She casually looked around, trying
to find Jake.

Her heart raced faster by the
second. Half of her couldn
’
t
wait to see Jake again. His statue like body, perfect yet rough features, and
to feel the way he made her feel.
The other half of her body hoped to hell
that Jake was smart and had taken off.

sixteen
.

Jake remained hidden. Nobody had
seen him, yet.

He knew how to hide. He knew how to
listen.

The two motorcycles pulled up to
the car without hesitation and without bullets.  Even then, Jake waited
patiently. He waited for someone to make a move. To attack. Jake didn
’
t have a gun but he had the
element of surprise if he needed to attack the car.

He glanced over his shoulder and
couldn
’
t believe how damn
lucky he
’
d gotten when he
parked the motorcycle next to the large rock. From the angle of the car and the
motorcycles, nobody would see a thing.

The riders took their helmets off
and Jake gritted his teeth.

It was Pitt and a guy named Petey.
Petey was the money guy of the MC and Pitt was just a chunk of muscle and
nothing else .

The window to the black car went
down and Jake almost wished for a weapon to be pulled. Instead, they all shook
hands. Pitt gave the driver of the car a piece of paper and the driver handed
Petey a wad of cash.

They were talking to the cartel.
They were crossing on Rusted Devil MC.

It made more sense now how and why
the cartel were able to attack the way they did. Normally, the cartel would
make a deal and honor it. Or they
’
d
find a different way to bleed a club or crew dry. To just come in and attack
took skill, balls, and it took information.

Jake watched the information
exchange hands. 

They talked, laughed, and everything
was normal.

Jake
’
s
distance was too much to hear anything. But the image was very goddamn clear.
And it put Jake in an even worse position. He was no better than these guys,
right? He was lying to the MC. He was undercover from a rival club. But he wasn
’
t trying to hurt Rusted Devil.
He was trying to help.

At the same time, what would happen
if he told Apollo or Kami about this? He didn
’
t
have a leather cut and he was going to try and rat out two guys?

There wasn
’
t much time though. With information being passed
around, it would be only a matter of time before the cartel struck again. Maybe
the next time would be the last time. Then Keira would be hurt or taken captive
or killed.

No matter, it felt like the ending
result was going to be a losing one.

Jake watched and saw everyone shake
hands again. Petey then grabbed Pitt
’
s
shoulder and squeezed. The black car slowly rolled away and picked up speed.
Once out of sight, Pitt grabbed Petey by the shoulder. Pitt was more than twice
the size of Petey. He shook the little money man and laughed.

They were laughing while their club
was dying.

Motherfuckers.

The two then got on their
motorcycles and rode away.

Once they were out of sight Jake
had to hurry. He climbed on a motorcycle that wasn
’
t his. He started and darted out to the road,
leaving a small dust cloud behind him. All he could do now was prepare and
hope. He hoped Gaige - or someone - would get his note. He hoped he could win
the goddamn fight at the
snake pit
. He hoped he could really help Rusted
Devil MC get out of this mess.

All before bodies started dropping
again.

*

Jake followed Apollo.

They parked their motorcycles near
the front of
…
whatever
the hell this was.
It was a wide open desert. Nothing but a few random
shrubs. Nothing on the horizon and nothing against the horizon except where it
met with the sky.

“
We
park here in case we have to run,
”
Apollo said.
“
We
’
ve had shootouts here.
”

Jake nodded.

Back Down Devil had experienced
plenty of shootouts. Christ, he remembered a time when Gaige left a shootout
with a woman. Her best friend had been shot and killed. The woman fell in love
with Gaige and now they were damn near attached at the hip.

They took a few steps and then
Apollo put a hand out and stopped Jake.

“
What?
”
Jake asked.

“
This
isn
’
t a joke,
”
Apollo said.

“
I
’
m not laughing.
”

“
We
won
’
t wait for you,
”
Apollo said.
“
We
’
ll
shoot for you. We
’
ll try to
protect you. But if something goes wrong, we won
’
t
negotiate for you.
”

“
Got
it.
”

“
You
need to go after this guy with speed.
”

“
Don
’
t tell me how to fight,
”
Jake said.

“
Hey,
”
Apollo growled.
“
This is a big risk for us. The
guy you
’
re about to fight
is called Animal. He
’
s
intense and ruthless. He just got out of prison.
”

“
For
what?
”

“
Murder,
”
Apollo said so calmly.

“
How
do you get out of prison for murder?
”
Jake asked.

“
Connections,
”
Apollo said.
“
He loses this fight, he
’
s going back in. So he
’
s not going want to lose this
fight.
”

“
Understood.
”

Jake started to walk and gather his
thoughts. He looked around and wondered if anyone was going to recognize him.
Lucky for him, most of the people at the fight looked to be too far well
dressed to be in Jake
’
s
world. There were bikers but they were from MC
’
s
and charters far enough away from Frelen that it didn
’
t worry Jake.

This was one of the reasons why
Jake never wanted to be at the table with Back Down Devil MC. Sometimes it was
nice to be a little hidden and a little unknown.

At the edge of the
snake pit
Jake looked down and felt his stomach turn. It was  dirty, messy, and the aura
was that of death. People were chanting and cheering already, drinking and
ready for a fight. Jake knew his fight wasn
’
t
the only one happening today. This was going to go all day and into the night.
But for Jake, his fight was the only fight that mattered.

Apollo stepped up next to Jake.
“
You ready for this?
”

“
Yeah,
”
Jake said.

Apollo then took out a gun and shot
it into the air.

That got the attention of most of
the people watching.

“
We
’
re here to fight!
”
Apollo bellowed.

The crowd went wild.

Jake looked around and saw Keira.
She was standing with Kami and the other Rusted Devil MC guys.
Even Petey
and Pitt.

Those fucking traitors.

“
Jake,
get in there,
”
Apollo said.
He then addressed the crowd.
“
Representing
the Rusted Devil MC
…
a
newcomer. A fighter. Someone you
’
re
never going to forget. Soon to be known as
master of the pit
…
Jake.
”

Jake stepped down and felt his heel
slip. He dug his other heel and that didn
’
t
help a damn thing. Jake fell back, ass against the dirt, hands in the dirt, and
he slid right down. Right in front of everyone. Definitely not the start he
wanted. When he hit the ground, he stood up and brushed dirt off his hands and
his ass. The first thing he did then was look for Keira. She stared at him.
Even at their distance he sensed the fear in her eyes.

“
We
’
re here to fight!
”
another voice boomed.
“
From the darkest cell in a
shithole prison. A man with murder dripping from his cold hands. A man ready to
do the same because he has nothing to fucking lose. Ladies. Gentlemen. Prepare
for the feast! The Animal.
”

Jake looked around. He saw a few
people move out of the way and then saw the guy they called Animal. He stood at
the edge of the
snake pit
and pointed to Jake. He then showed his teeth
and jumped. The son of a bitch jumped into the
snake pit
. He hit the
ground and kept his balance. A second later, he charged at Jake.

Just like that, it was time to
fight.

Animal charged at Jake just like
his name - like a hungry animal.

Jake watched Animal
’
s shoulders and picked up on the
move. Animal was going to use his size and muscle to just take Jake down. Then
he
’
d probably hold him
there and kill him. So Jake waited until the last second and darted to the
left. He then threw a right hook to Animal
’
s
gut, hitting ribs. Animal toppled against the side of the
snake pit
.
Jake unleashed a fury of punches to Animal
’
s
ribs. Left, right, right, left, wanting to break something and take the giant
down.

Animal took a few of the punches
and then threw an elbow. It hit Jake in the chest and sent him back. Animal
quickly turned and pounced. The big guy moved faster than his size and shape
indicated. When Animal grabbed Jake
’
s
shoulder, he pulled him in, opening his mouth. Animal
’
s breath was so rancid, Jake felt bile race up his
throat. He
’
d never forget
the smell.

As Animal clamped his teeth to Jake
’
s face, Jake hurried to lift his
knee, bringing it to Animal
’
s
gut. That knocked the wind out of Animal. He stumbled back but didn
’
t let Jake go. Instead, he
growled and swung his arms, lifting Jake off his feet. Jake sailed through the
air and hit the side of the
snake pit
with a hard thud. It stole Jake
’
s breath. He quickly put his
hands to the ground and pushed. A second later, Animal
’
s heavy foot connected with his gut, stealing more
breath.

Jake was then huddled against the
ground and wall of the
snake pit
. All around him, he heard the shouts
and cheers of the people. Animal then came down with big fists. Plowing into
Jake
’
s arm, shoulder, the
side of his head. Jake knew he was suddenly in big trouble. Any fast movements
would open him up and Animal would finish him off. All Jake could do was fight
his way back.

So he did.

When Animal swung down with a
right, Jake hooked his arm around Animal
’
s
wrist and twisted. He then swung with his other fist and hit Animal at the side
of his knee. He felt a pop and watched Animal drop down.

Jake released his hold on Animal
and then kicked up and back, resting against the side of the
snake pit.
Jake
braced himself and pressed his back against the wall and kicked his feet at
Animal. Both boots connected and sprayed blood everywhere.

But Animal hadn
’
t gone down all the way yet.

Jake readied himself to do it
again. He knew nobody could withstand too many head hits.

Before Jake could kick again,
Animal reached for something in his pocket.

Then it all happened too fast to
react.

With the flick of his wrist, Animal
opened a knife. Another flick sent the knife flying at Jake. Jake tried to
move, saving his own life, as the knife was aimed for his throat. Instead, the
knife went into Jake
’
s
shoulder.

The searing pain left Jake
screaming. He grabbed at the knife and held it tight.

Animal rose up, murderous eyes
wide, smiling. He stepped toward Jake and put a hand over Jake
’
s. He then pulled the knife out.
For a second, Jake saw nothing but darkness. The pain so hot, so intense.

Welcome to the snake pit.

There were no rules apparently.

Jake groaned and felt a sharp pain
in his other shoulder. He came to and looked to see Animal jamming the knife
into his opposite shoulder.

“
Fuck,
”
Jake said.

“
Die,
”
Animal said.
“
You, die.
”

Jake mustered up all he could and
kicked at Animal. The heel of his boot hit Animal right in his lower stomach.
Animal went flying back, dropping the knife. Jake felt the pulsing of his heart
and the pulsing of the blood pouring from both wounds. He stepped forward and
swung with his left hand. He stayed right there, punch after punch, hitting the
same spot over and over on Animal.

The pain raced through Jake,
stealing his breath and making him feel weaker by the second. With one really
heavy jab, he sent Animal back even more but it took its toll on Jake. He
dropped to his hands and knees. When his right hand hit the ground, it put
pressure on his shoulder. That made the pain kick up worse than ever. Jake lost
his balance and toppled onto the wounded shoulder. He saw Animal getting his
bearings back together. Worse yet, the crazed man reached into another pocket
and pulled out another knife.

I
’
m fucked.