The party wasapparently outside in the barn. If they’d put one hand on Ally, he’d kill themall nice and slow. They met up with the other brothers out back. Reaper had anautomatic across his chest. The spotlight in the rear alley gave them a wash oflight to see by.
He heard a scufflecoming from the barn, followed by breaking glass, so they all broke into a run.So many scenarios ran through his head. What if Ally was already dead? What ifthey’d tortured her? Raped her?
The Skull Nationwas capable of anything.
Bullets rang outclose to his ear. He hadn’t even seen the threat before Tarmac began firingbeside him. Lord saw the opposing muzzle flash coming from the side of the barn.They scattered, firing back. The darkness and deafening gunfire created an atmosphereof pure chaos. He didn’t even know where Ally had been taken.
“Watch where you’reshooting,” he shouted out to his men. He ran in a crouch, getting as close to thebarn as possible. With a forward kick, the old wooden door planks broke apart.A lone lightbulb hung from the ceiling of the barn, swinging back and forth fromthe commotion.
“Lord, in thefirst stall.” It was Rancher. He was on the ground, a gun in his hand as hecovered him from the Skull Nation. Stump was behind a wall of hay bales, leaningto the side to fire deeper into the barn. Lord rushed over to join him.
“Where’s Ally?” heshouted to be heard.
“Don’t know. Wegot here and the Skull Nation fired on us as soon as we pulled up.”
“Fuck,” Lord muttered.She was probably already dead. Dread and panic consumed him. “We need to finishthis. Tank’s bleeding out in the house.”
They took a breathand charged into the barn with guns blazing. His other men followed, creating aline of fire. Nothing could survive that much lead.
When it didn’t seem they were being fired at, he stopped shooting.
“Stop!” he calledout.
Silence.
“Brick, check it out. Make sure they’re all dead,” Lord said.He went to check on Rancher. “Where are the women and kids?”
Gunpowder still lingeredin the air, creating a fog similar to a battlefield. Rancher’s leg was shot up.He couldn’t move. Without medical help, he’d bleed out the same as Tank.
“I never made itto the house,” he said. Then he swallowed hard before continuing. “I heard Allycalling for help, but those fuckers had already surrounded the house. I couldn’tget to her.”
“Called from thehouse?”
He nodded.
Lord clapped hisold friend on the shoulder before rushing off. They’d controlled the scene, butwhat about the house? There had been a body by the door and Tank had been shotin the kitchen. He didn’t want to find Ally’s body.
Reaper ran with him.They did a sweep of the main floor. Tank was still holding on, but he didn’t lookgood.
“Call the club.Get a truck here with a doctor. Right fucking now,” Lordtold Reaper before taking the stairs alone. As he burst into room after room,he heard a muffled cry coming from the end of the hall.
Lord stopped dead.
He slowly nearedthe door. Judging by the location, it had to be the room he saw from the street,the one where the light had turned off as he’d approached the house. He took measuredbreaths, but the squeaky wooden floorboards gave him away. Gunfire sprayed thedoor, but he kept out of the line of fire. There was at least one Skull Nation motherfucker still breathing. He couldn’t give him more timeif he had a hostage. Whether he lived or died, he had to end this now.
****
Ally kept huggingher stomach, hoping to somehow protect her unborn baby from harm. After thefirefight outside ended, she began to lose hope again. But the prez of the Skull Nation was firing at something now, sothat meant whoever was on the other side of the door was on their side. If itwas Lord, she prayed he wasn’t hit by all the gunfire.
“Don’t fuckingbreathe,” he whispered in warning. He had a gunshot wound to the side of his bodyand hadn’t been doing too well in the last twenty minutes or so. The skin ofhis face had blanched unnaturally white. Betty’s first and only shot had donethe damage, but they didn’t even realize until after he’d nearly knocked themboth out. He’d tied Betty’s wrists to the sink leg and he had a rope around Ally’sneck, the other end firmly in his fist. Whenever she whined or squirmed, he’dtug it hard enough to steal her air.
There was a bangon the bathroom door, making the prez panic and spraythe door with bullets again. She shielded her head and face from the splintersof wood. As soon as he stopped firing, what was left of the door burst open. Heyanked her leash tight, pulling her in front of him as a shield.
It was Lord.
She felt herentire body melt and her knees gave out completely. He was a beautiful sight. Beforethe prez could react, Lord moved impossibly fast, lungingforward and wrapping his hand around the man’s neck.He slammed his head against the wall with force. The medicine cabinet crashed downinto the sink. Betty shielded her head. With Ally’s rope on the ground, shequickly crawled over to untie Betty.
“You have my womantied up like a fucking dog?” Lord rammed his head into the wall over and over,the sounds sickening. Some of the brothers from the club appeared in the doorway,but they didn’t move to interfere.
Ally was worried aboutRancher and the kids. Seeing Lord in the flesh felt almost like a dream afterthe night she’d had. He’d found her. Saved her.
She sat on the floorwith Betty, keeping her eyes averted as Lord literally beat the man to death. Hewas a powerhouse, an unrelenting beast of vengeance. All she could see in herperipheral vision was red.
When everything wentquiet, Betty nudged her. She looked over and saw Lord covered in blood. Helooked like the devil himself. But he wasn’t, she knew
