Desolate Souls (Forgotten Souls MC, #1) (21 page)

When the door slams open again, I turn expecting to see Hawk. Instead my eyes land the three burly men standing behind him. “I warned you a long time ago not to cross me,” he says before nodding to his cohorts who move into the room, coming to a stop beside me. “You know what to do with him,” he says, a sadistic smile on his face. “Did you really think a few grand would be enough? I knew you would betray me over that little cunt, I just didn’t expect you to be so fuckin’ stupid about it. Hope she was worth it because this will be the last time you ever lay eyes on her.”

He nods at the three men before turning, leaving my fate in their hands.

P
ulling up to the warehouse, my heart is pounding in my chest. I have never been more nervous than I am at this very moment. Alana is in there and God only knows what is happening to her. Pushing aside my worries, I put my faith in Deuce who keeps assuring me that she will be safe. I have no doubt we will get her out of there or die trying, but what gives me the most concern is what is undoubtedly happening to her this very moment. 

“I need you to focus,” Deuce reminds me as he climbs out of the SUV. “Spyder, you already know your assignment. Make it happen,” he barks, prompting Spyder to head towards the back of the building.

“What assignment?” I ask, feeling left in the dark.

“When you and I walk in, Hawk’s gonna know somethin’s up. Spyder’s job is to find Hawk, detain him, and then locate Paul before we make our move,” he explains. “He has ten minutes.”

Taking in a deep breath, I try to maintain my composure. I want nothing more than to barge in, do what I feel is necessary, but by doing so I would be placing Alana in jeopardy and I refuse to do that. No one knows what measures Hawk and Paul will go to in order to protect themselves.

“I go in first,” Deuce says abruptly, interrupting my thoughts. “If shit goes south, you get to Alana.”

He is willing to sacrifice himself for her, yet another reason I am proud to call him my friend and brother. I nod my head in agreement, not because I want him to risk himself for Alana, but because she is the priority here.

The remainder of the ten minutes is filled with silence as we wait for Spyder to accomplish his task and I find myself counting the seconds until Deuce gives the signal for us to move in.

As we push our way through the door to the warehouse, I immediately begin scanning the room, looking for any sign of Alana. “She’s not here,” I mutter, my heart sinking at the prospect that we are too late.

Out of the corner of my eye, I spot Spyder moving towards us. “First one down, but no sign of the other,” he says as he approaches, the people in the room oblivious to our existence.

Deuce turns towards me. “You find Alana. Spyder and I will take care of Paul.” He doesn’t give me a chance to argue before disappearing into the crowd.

Letting out the breath I didn’t realize I was holding, I push my way through the chaos in front of me, completely ignoring what is going on around me. In another time and place, I might find all of this entertaining if I didn’t know the real reason these women are here. Pushing aside those thoughts, I make my way towards the lone hallway to the right, my mind focused on the only thing that matters in this moment.

I go room to room, interrupting several individuals without apology, in hopes that the next door I open will lead me to Alana. As I approach the last room on the right, all hope vanishes when I reach for the handle to find it locked. Taking a step back, I lean against the wall, feeling completely defeated.

At this point, I don’t know whether we were too late or if she was ever even here. She could be halfway across the world at this very moment, and there isn’t a damn thing I can do about it. My heart feels heavy, completely void of any feeling, at the realization that I have lost Alana for good.

Clenching my teeth, I push myself off the wall and head back towards the main room. After taking a few steps, the sound of gunshots from behind me causes me to reach for the .45 tucked in the waistband of my jeans. As I turn, intent on busting through the door, it opens and Paul steps into the hallway.

Lifting my piece, I aim it directly at his head, my trigger finger itching to take the son of a bitch out. “Where the fuck is she?” I growl, attempting to look over his shoulder into the room he just abandoned.

He lifts his eyes to mine, shaking his head. Taking in his blood splattered clothes, I am filled with a rage I have never before felt. “Jax!” Pat shouts from behind me. I ignore him, my focus solely on the man who has manipulated and destroyed the only woman I have ever loved. “Put the gun down!” he orders.

Staring into the eyes of the enemy, I watch them transform from cold and heartless to being filled with regret. “I never meant to hurt her,” he whispers, raising his arms in surrender. “She was the first person who ever truly cared about me. I just wanted to get her away from this life, become the person she believed I was.”

His words infuriate me even more. “You mother fucker!” I snarl as I slowly pull back the trigger.

“She would have forgiven me,” he continues. “But I don’t deserve it.” Paul closes his eyes, taking in a ragged breath. When his eyes open again, they are filled with anguish. “Maybe it’s better this way.”

“What?” I ask, loosening my grip on the gun just as Deuce appears at my side. Grasping it from my hand, he nods prompting Pat and his men to rush forward. In a flash, Paul is tackled to the floor and handcuffed.

Closing my eyes, I bite back the flood of emotions that threatens to consume me. I have not only lost my best friend, but the love of my life. Voices are a mere flurry of chaotic background noise that I can no longer comprehend as the realization of it all finally hits me. Only when I feel Deuce shaking me do I begin to snap out of it.

“Did you hear me?” Deuce asks, looking at me with concern.

I say nothing, staring at him absentmindedly. Losing someone is never easy, but losing someone that was your past, present and future, someone who was a part of your heart and soul, absolutely destroys you. No passage of time will ease my pain.

Gripping my shoulders, Deuce pushes me against the wall as paramedics push their way past us. I watch as Deuce’s lips move, unable to hear a word he says, my mind still reeling over my present nightmare.

Only when I see the paramedics begin to exit the room do I move forward, knowing I must face reality. With my eyes locked on the stretcher, I move forward, pushing Deuce out of my way.

Before I can say a word, one of the paramedics stops, looking at me with confusion. “We’re taking her to Mercy if you want to follow,” he says, looking from me to Deuce.

“We’ll meet you there,” Deuce nods, pulling me out of their path. “See, she’s alright. No signs of any trauma so the chances are she was just drugged. Would’ve called Doc if Pat wasn’t here, but he has to follow protocol.”

Shaking my head, it takes me a moment to wrap my head around what I have just witnessed. “She’s alright?” I ask, my voice a mere whisper of disbelief. “But the shots, the blood?” There is no mistaking what I heard and saw with my own eyes.

“Looks like Paul took out three goons, all DOA. Don’t know what went down, I just know that Alana was out of it the entire time. He didn’t hurt her.” I breathe a sigh of relief, making a silent vow that from this point forward, Alana will remain safe. “Now let’s let Pat do his job and you go take care of your girl.”

My girl. My Alana.
She’s been mine since the day we first met and will be mine until the end of time.

TWO DAYS LATER

A
s I take a seat at the rectangular shaped table, my heart is pounding in my chest. Being in this place brings back memories I would rather forget, but somehow I managed to force myself to come here. I need answers and this is the only place I will I get them.

Jax has been elusive. All he will tell me is that I was drugged. That alone speaks volumes, but doesn’t explain much more. Jax knows more than he is letting on, but he refuses to tell me. I want, no I
need
to know the truth.

My nerves getting the best of me, I allow my gaze to wander the room. Several women are seated at tables similar to my own, sitting across from them are various men, all dressed in bright orange jumpsuits. They all seem at ease, comfortable in their surroundings, while I am a nervous mess.

Letting out a rushed breath, I rest my forehead in my hands and close my eyes.
You can do this,
I tell myself, trying to gain some confidence.

“Alana?” I turn at the sound of Paul’s voice whispering my name in disbelief.

I rise from my seat, looking up into his tormented eyes. He looks somehow different, his eyes sunken with dark circles surrounding them.

“Ma’am, you need to stay seated,” the guard warns, nodding at the seat I just abandoned.

“Sorry,” I whisper as I sit back down, the nervousness I was feeling all but gone now that I see Paul is alright.

The guard leads Paul to the chair across from me, and as he takes a seat, I notice the cuffs that bind his wrists and ankles. I hate this, both for him and myself. 

“You have thirty minutes,” the guard says before walking off.

We sit in silence for several minutes, neither of us saying a word. When Paul finally does speaks, his voice is filled with anguish. “I didn’t expect you to come,” he begins, his gaze lowered, unwilling to meet my own.

“Why would you think that? We’ve been through so much together. You getting busted doesn’t change anything. I made a promise to you, remember?”

He lifts his eyes until they are meeting my own, immediately softening. “I do remember,” he whispers. “But don’t make promises you don’t intend to keep, Alana. Everything changes. You know that better than anyone.”

“One thing that will never change is you and I,” I say, smiling over at him, silently telling him we will get through this.

He shakes his head, the lightness of his eyes suddenly turning dark. “There was never a me and you, Alana.”

His words are cold and heartless, stinging on impact. “That’s not true,” I argue. “We are a team.” Why is he acting this way?

“No, we were never a team. You were my puppet and you still are. I have to put an end to it. You should just go, Alana.”

“I’m not going anywhere, Paul. You aren’t making any sense!”

He throws his head back in a fit of laughter, causing all eyes to land on us. “You’re a piece of work, you know that?” He continues laughing for what seems like an eternity before finally calming. “I used you Alana. From the beginning I used you.”

Shaking my head, I look at him in confusion. “Don’t try to chase me away. Let me help you.”

“Help me? How are
you
going to help me?” he chuckles.

“We can get you an attorney. Someone who will fight for you,” I retort, willing to do whatever is necessary to help him.

“I don’t need your help, Alana, and I sure as hell don’t want it.” His words are laced with pure venom. “You’ve done enough already.”

“What?” I ask in disbelief. Is he blaming me for being in here?

“Quit with the innocent act. You knew what was going on, didn’t you? That’s the reason you were willing to walk in there without putting up much of a fight. I can’t believe I didn’t see it.”

“I don’t understand,” I mutter, trying to wrap my head around everything he is saying, none of it making any sense.

“A sex trafficking charge wouldn’t hold because I’ve always protected myself against that. I could have pinned it entirely on Hawk. But murder? There’s no coming back from that, is there?” Paul seethes.

Sex trafficking? Murder? I am speechless as he continues his barrage of accusations.

"How did you find out? You couldn't have known all along because you're not that good an actress. It was Jax, wasn't it? He found out what we were doing behind the scenes and pulled you to his side. I knew I should’ve listened to Hawk and sold you to the highest bidder, but I couldn’t," he mumbles, shaking his head. "Jax has wanted me out of the picture since the beginning but he didn't want to bring you down too. So he waited for the opportunity to arise and thanks to Hawk, it did. I'll give the fucker credit, he's smart, but not smart enough. My attorney is already working on a plea bargain, so Jax's plan still failed."