Rust: A Bad Boy Romance (Courage MC) (31 page)

I
woke
up to his disgusting laughter and plumes of cigar smoke and dust. “Tonight’s the night!” he yelled as I woke up, feeling groggy. I looked around the room and immediately noticed where I was. “Look familiar?”

“Avery’s childhood home.” I whispered. The pictures were strewn around the front of the room. Bobby’s men stood guard in the front, watching carefully for Avery or any other intruders.

“You know what today is right?” He bent down over me, wearing a nice suit and tie. I felt sick to my stomach. I couldn’t even look at him. Even if Avery did come, he’d be outnumbered. How would he win in a firefight against 10 of his men? I shuttered to think about how this would end for us.

“I don’t have a clue.” I muttered, ready to lose everything. I knew what he wanted me to say, but I refused to give him the satisfaction.

“Why, today is the day we celebrate our wonderful marriage!” he exclaimed. “Now put on a smile for our guests. You’ll need to look as pretty as you can, my little flower.” he grinned, teeth as yellow as the setting sun.

“Go to hell.” I said. “I’ll never marry you. You’ll have to kill me. I’m Avery’s girl. Always.” I said, defiant of his expectations.

He grabbed my smooth cheek and squeezed. “Then I guess I’ll just have to kill Avery and make you be my wife. I’ll force you to do whatever I want. You hear me, bitch?”

“Avery will kill you first!” I suddenly screamed, not thinking about what I was saying. “He’ll … He’ll … He’ll find you and slice you open!”

A third voice echoed in the room, “Somehow I highly doubt that.” It said. I turned to look at who it was.

“Luke!” I cried.

“It’s me.” he said. “Hello, Hope. Doing well?” He smiled, cleaning Avery’s blade. It was the one he used to slash his face.

“You bastard! You … TRAITOR!” Tears of rage were streaming down my eyes. I wanted him to apologize. I wanted him to realize what he had done. I wanted him dead.

“I’m the traitor?” he asked. “Oh, Hope. Silly little Hope. You really don’t know anything, do you? You were just a pawn all along. He used you to get to Bobby. He was never going to help you get your career back. He just wanted you to fuel his.”

“LIAR!” I screamed back with clenched fists. “He loves me! And I love him. I don’t care about my career or my stupid house. What we have is more special than anything in the world. You’ll never know what we have. You’ll never have something as real as our love!” The past was the past. Avery already acknowledged his wrongs and I forgave him. That’s what love was about. Forgiveness and sacrifice. And so far, Avery had sacrificed everything for me.

“We’ll see, I suppose. I ain’t too optimistic, I guess. You see, he betrayed me too, Hope. He promised me the world. He said we were brothers. HE MADE AN OATH!” He threw the knife next to my hand and it stuck into the wooden floor. I jumped back, surprised. “And what did I get in return? Nothing but betrayal.”

He was twisting the truth. Of course he blamed Avery for everything, but it wasn’t his fault. It was his own damn fault. He harbored too much pride for any man. “So you become friends with Bobby Farole, the most distrusted man in this town. The most brutal killer in possibly all of America. You don’t make sense, Luke. You never have. Your pride has gotten the best of you. I beg you to realize that before it’s too late.”

“It’s already too late. Don’t you see? I’ve burned all my bridges. Yep. I reckon this is the end for me. But if it ain’t, me and Bobby will usher in a new era for our brothers. The Darkhorse MC will rise up and take the world by storm. Me and Bobby were at odds before, but now we have an understanding. And an understanding is all two men really need.” Bobby was sitting down in the corner, smoking and smiling like a creep.

“He’s right, Hope. Come. Join us. Be my bride.” he said.

“NEVER!” I screamed.

“It’s settled then. Grab her and hold her down, Luke. I want to have 10 minutes with my beautiful bride, but I’m afraid she’s a bit too squirmy for me right now.” he laughed.

“No … Please … don’t…” I cried. The tears fell to the dusty floor. I prayed for Avery. Where are you, my love? Please, show yourself.

Luke grabbed my hands and forced them behind my back. Bobby walked up slowly and unzipped his pants. “NO!” I screamed.

He grabbed my legs and smiled. “Don’t worry, honey. You’ll look back on tonight someday and realize just how magical it really was.” I kicked at him but it was no use. He was too strong for me.

He ran his hands up my thighs, but just as he was about to have his way with me, a voice echoed in the distance.

“Bobby Farole! It’s Angelo. Let me in.”

Angelo? Bobby scrambled to his feet as I breathed a sigh of relief. He at least spared me some time.

“Angelo? Where the hell you been?” Bobby called out. “Seems to me that you’re a traitor to both parties. How can I trust you?”

“I’m not a traitor! I’m only loyal to you, boss. I come with information about Avery. He just intercepted a package of ours and is headed back to town. We need to ambush him. We need to strike before they do!” he shouted.

“Alright. Let him in.” Bobby said, pulling up his pants.

“Bobby, I’m not too sure about this. He’s been away for too long. I’m not sure I trust him.” Luke said, eying me. “If this is part of your plan, Hope, you’re dead. Hear me?”

I was too confused and scared to say or do anything. I barely even nodded my head. Bobby ignored Luke’s suggestions, brushing it off by saying, “You’re paranoid. Ain’t no one gonna bring me down.”

Angelo walked through the gate with a pistol in his hand. “You have Hope? Good. I’m glad I made it before the party’s really started.” he said.

“Whoa, what’s with the gun?” Luke asked him, placing his hand on his own weapon.

“Just a precaution. I wanted to make sure Avery wasn’t hiding with a gun to your head. I wanted to be ready, just in case.” he said. Was he lying? I couldn’t tell. From what Bruce told Avery last night, he was on their side again. But I couldn’t be too sure. Lately it felt like everyone had hidden motives. I seemed to always be moving away from the truth, rather than move toward it.

“I ain’t scared of it.” Bobby said. “Just wonderin’ where you been is all.” Bobby was looking at him funny. His left eye was twitching, but his right eye stayed incredibly steady on him and his gun. I could tell something was up.

“I’ve been out. Collectin’ info on Avery and Bruce. My boys don’t know I’m with you now, so I’ve been figuring out all I can to take them down. Without them in the picture, we’ll run this whole town.” he triumphantly said. Bobby looked unimpressed.

“We already run this town. Do you see me in prison for my crimes? Wanna know why I ain’t there? ‘Cause I’m the fucking king of this desert, see? Get that through yer thick skull!” Bobby yelled. Meanwhile, I was clawing at my chains, trying my best to break free.

“I think he’s lyin’, boss. I think he’s a god damn traitor.” Luke muttered through his teeth.

“You’re the only traitor around here, Luke. I know you’re waiting for the day Bobby croaks. I can see it in your damn eyes.” Angelo said, face turning red. It was getting tense in the room.

Luke grabbed at his gun and held it in front of him. “What did you just say, boy?”

“Boy? I ain’t no boy, fella. I’ll take you down with one measly bullet.” He raised his gun at Luke. They were at a standstill, both weapons dropped. Bobby laughed loudly and stomped on the wooden floor.

“A regular old showdown, huh? Well, alright, I’m willin’ to see how this plays out!” Bobby shouted.

“I’ll bury you, Angelo. Put your damn gun down!” Luke said.

“You first.” Angelo muttered. “I ain’t dyin’ yet.”

“Alright. I’ll put my gun down, but you gotta promise you won’t shoot in my direction. We brothers still?” Luke asked him.

“Brothers for life. Always.” Angelo said through creased eyes. Something wasn’t quite right with him. I just couldn’t put my fingers on it.

Luke bent down and put his gun on the ground. “Alright.” he said. “Your turn.”

Angelo looked at Bobby and smiled. “Sorry, boss. See you in Hell.” He turned around and shot four of the guards dead.

“NO!” Bobby screamed, running out of the way. Angelo fired at him and missed. Three more guards came in the room and Angelo ducked behind a table, getting out of the line of fire. Meanwhile, I was stuck in the middle of the room, holding my head in my hands. “Leave the girl unscathed!” Bobby screamed.

Luke dove for his gun and shot at Angelo. “I knew it!” he shouted. Angelo jumped up from behind the table and shot three more guards. There weren’t too many of them left now. I couldn’t believe Angelo’s willingness to give his life now, but I had a feeling he felt guilty about everything. This was his only chance at making amends.

Luke shot at Angelo and hit him in the arm. Angelo fell to the floor in pain. “FUCK!” he cried.

“Come out, you pussy!” Luke shouted. Angelo jumped up and fired, hitting Luke in the kneecap. Pieces of blood and bone sprayed across the room. Luke let go of his gun, completely unable to do anything at this point.

Bobby screamed, “I NEED BACKUP!”

Angelo came out hiding, holding a grenade in his hand. “Bobby, you son of a bitch. You ruined everything. You could have made a deal with Courage a long time ago. Instead, you got greedy!”

“I’ll show you greed.” Bobby whispered. And right at that moment a guard came out from behind the front, and stabbed him right in the back. Angelo fell and let go of the grenade.

Those three seconds seemed to last a millennia. Time slowed down in front of me. Bobby ran and grabbed me, ripping my chains out of the floorboards and diving into another room. Angelo’s eyes were wide with fear and bore the look of betrayal. And in a split second, all turned to ash.

I
n the distance
was a large explosion. “Look!” Bruce called out to me. I slammed my foot onto the pedal and raced toward the fiery detonation.

“Hope!” I shouted out loud.

“Don’t worry just yet. It could be a distraction.” Bruce was saying to me. “You know how Bobby is. He could be up to somethin’ big.”

I wasn’t taking any chances. I needed to find out if Hope was okay. And if that meant riskin’ my damn life, I would do that for her well-being. “Bruce, I know you’re my boss and all, but right now I’m gonna need you to shut-up.” I said.

“Fair enough.” Bruce simply lit up another cigarette.

We parked a block away and left the truck in a full on sprint. “You all loaded up?” I asked him. I watched as Bruce checked out his guns and nodded.

“You?” he asked me.

“Yep. I’m ready to kill some bad guys!” I exclaimed.

“Me too. Hope is in there somewhere, I reckon. So let’s be careful. The house is probably heavily guarded. Watch your back.” He said.

I took a deep breath and felt the oxygen send a rush of euphoria into my brain. Was I ready to do this? It didn’t matter if I was ready or not. It was now or never. If I wanted Hope to come out of this alive, I had to tune my emotions out.

We stormed the house, rolling behind a boulder in front. The sound of men’s voices shouting could be heard from inside. “You see anyone?” I asked him. Bruce looked up from behind the rock and shook his head.

“Can’t see shit. It’s all just smoke and ash.” he coughed.

I took a look as well. From what I could see, there were bodies lining up the front of the building. “What the fuck?” I whispered.

“What is it?” Bruce called out.

“It’s a warzone in there, Bruce. Bodies are everywhere. They don’t look like Courage though. Can’t be too sure.”

“My God…” he muttered. “We can’t sit by. On the off chance it is our men, we need to be in there for them. We need to stand our ground. On my mark. Ready?” I nodded. “GO!”

We ran in separate directions. I took the front, while Bruce took the back. We had all pathways covered. I slammed into the front of the house, right next to the front door, and peeked my head inside. In the back corner was Bobby and he was holding … Hope! Luke was next to them and it looked like he was injured pretty bad. I couldn’t be too sure, however.

I couldn’t make out who the rest of the bodies were, but it was clear they weren’t from our camp. They must’ve been a part of the Darkhorse gang, but how did they get killed?

I took one more look before entering the building and saw something moving behind a table. Angelo? He peeked his head out and pointed at Bobby and Luke, indicating that they had weapons on them. I nodded, surprised by his support. Was he the one responsible for this mess?

I held my pistol close to my heart and for what might have been the first time in my life, I prayed to the Lord above to keep me and Hope safe. Dear Lord, I know I haven’t been on the right path for some time. But I promise, if you are gracious enough to spare me and Hope, I will do everything in my power to honor your presence and sacred love. Amen. I somersaulted my way through the front and found myself next to Angelo.

I jumped up and fired my pistol at the two men. One bullet made its way through Luke’s arm and I knew he wasn’t in good shape by the way he was howlin’. “AH!” he screamed. “Shit, take cover, Bobby!”

“Avery, is that you behind that table?” Bobby called out. He had taken cover, cowardly, behind Hope.

“Your god damn right!” I called out. I took a look at Angelo, who was lying next to me in a pool of his own blood, and realized we were in a whole lot of trouble.

“Ah, shit, Angelo.” I picked him up and leaned him against the back table. “What'd they do to you, brother.” I sighed as a single tear rolled down from my eyes.

He coughed out some blood. “I … I’m … sorry…” he managed to say after a few seconds.

“AVERY!” Bobby screamed. “Come out and face me!”

“It's okay, Angelo. I forgive you.” I said. I didn't know if I had it in me, but when I was face-to-face with him, I had to show him some mercy. These were the last moments of his life and I wasn't about to rob him of that. He simply lied there, staring straight at me. He had that look, the look they give you when they know their card’s been chosen.

I gave him my blade in solidarity. “Keep this close to your heart.” I said. “If Joseph welcomes you at those pearly gates, make sure he knows my name.” I said. I reloaded my gun and cocked it back. Angelo gave me one last smile before he closed his eyes. God help him. God help me.

I jumped up from behind the table and shot in Bobby’s direction. “There you are! What’ve you been doing back there? Making out? Get out here and be a man!” he yelled.

“You call fighting with a gun being a man? You call slashing my face open, while I'm without a weapon, being a man?” I called out. “Seems to me you've got a weird definition on what being a man is.”

“I'll throw my gun. You have my word.” he said, tossing his gun across the room. It slid next to my foot. I jumped up and shot next to Luke. He jumped, holding his injured body. Bruce finally popped his head out, aiming his gun at Luke. Of course, he couldn't resist. He took a shot, blowing his kneecap clear off. Now he had no legs to stand on.

“You too, you bastard! Throw us your gun, Luke!” I said. Luke threw his gun at me.

“Fuck you! My legs, oh God, my legs!!!” he screamed at me.

“Hope, lemme hear your voice, baby! I need to know you're alright.” I shouted.

“Avery!” she cried. “Get this asshole off of me!”

I came out from hiding, holding my hands in front of me. “You want to settle this like men, Bobby? Well let’s go.” I said. It wasn't some of my best decision making, but I didn't care anymore. I had almost lost everything—Hope -- and I was willing to give my life for her, if God wanted that from me.

Bruce shouted, “Avery, this ain't a good idea! Have some sense!”

I waved him off. “This is between me and Bobby.” I said. I met Bobby face to face in my old living room. All those horrible memories in one place. Here I was, back at it.

I swung my arm back and hit him clean in the jaw. When I looked up at him, I realized he didn't move an inch. Instead, he was laughing. “You got yourself a strong punch, Avery. My turn.” His smile turned into an angry grimace.

I braced for his blow. He hit me in my cheek, nearly ripping my scar apart. My body nearly flew across the room and I smashed into the dilapidated wall. Bruce came barreling out of hiding to help me. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Luke crawling away.

“I got Bobby, you get Hope to safety. And tie Luke up. He’s worth more to us alive than dead.” I hissed. Bruce nodded and ran toward Hope.

I picked myself up from the ground and went for Bobby’s legs. His weight and brawn was my biggest threat so I figured by going after the things that held him up, I could take him down for good. And sure enough, just as my shoulders hit his ankles, he buckled and fell forward.

I jumped on top of him like a maniac and started wailing away. “This is for touching my girl!” I punched him. “This is for Angelo!” I felt his nose crack beneath my fist. “And this is for my face, mother fucker!” His teeth came loose. At the end of my punches, he was covered in his own blood. And you know what he did? I couldn't believe it, but the bastard actually smiled at me!

He spoke after spitting out his teeth onto the wood floor, “You fool. You came all this way just to kill me and get your revenge? None of that will get your life back. All of Courage will soon fall before your very eyes. See, I took the worst thing I could have taken. Trust. And now you have nothing. Nothing!” his voice echoed throughout the house.

“I'll kill you, you son of a bitch!” I hit him one more time.

“Not … if I … kill you first…” He moaned. And then I felt it. A bullet hit my chest. I fell backward, as all turned to black.