Sons of Flame MC - Redemption (12 page)

That had been eight hours previously, and since then the only human contact that Tess had had was when a younger member of the Sons had opened the door and given her some water. When she’d tried to get some answers out of him, some idea of what was going on, he’d just told her to shut up and closed the door behind him.

Tess had paced back and forth in the small room, over and over, looking for a way out or a weapon of some kind she could possibly use to escape. But there was nothing, just the dripping sound from a broken water pipe somewhere and the damp stink of decay.

They had taken her bag away before they had arrived at this place, so any hopes of her using her cell phone to call out for help were hopeless. Tess was beginning to despair that she would ever leave this horrible room, when the door was suddenly thrown open. Tess shaded her eyes from the bright light coming from outside, and withdrew to a corner as somebody was bodily thrown into the room, landing on the floor with a thump. The door was closed quickly once more, and Tess rushed over to her new companion.

It took a few moments for her eyes to adjust to the semidarkness, but when they did and she saw who it was she cried out in shock and fear.

Eli appeared to be unconscious, and he was barely recognisable as the same man that Tess had come to develop feelings for over the past couple of weeks. His face was swollen mass of bruising and contusions, with one eye sealed shut and the other not much better. His hair was tangled and matted with his own blood, which had also stained his shirt. He appeared to be unconscious, and Tess reached out to him, caressing his face and whispering gently to him.

“Oh my God, Eli, what have they done to you? Can you hear me? Are you awake?”

No response. His breathing was at least even and deep.

Tess tore a strip from her T-shirt, and soaked it in some of the water she had been given. She began to wipe away the blood on Eli’s face and head, crooning and whispering to him as she did so. It wasn’t going to be much help, and it wouldn’t cure his injuries, but it was all she could do. When she was done, he still looked awful, but better.

She took the bottle of water and put it to his lips. Eli groaned, and his one good eye fluttered open.

“Where am I?”

It took him only a moment or two to remember everything that had happened, and then his expression changed in an instant, going from one of confusion to one of anger.

“Did they touch you? Did they hurt you?”

Tess shushed him, putting her hand on his chest and laying him back down.

“No, Eli. Nobody has been in here. They’ve left me alone for now. Save your energy - I don’t know if you have any internal injuries, and if you do you don’t want to make them worse.”

He reluctantly lay back down, and winced in pain as he did so. For a while the two of them sat there in silence. Tess felt absurdly happy to have him back with her, even in this horrible situation they found themselves in; she just tried not to think about what the near future held for them. She didn’t know why Tex hadn’t just finished the job, but she didn’t want to ask Eli for fear of the answer.

She looked down at him - his face was etched with pain, and she didn’t know how much more this punishment he would be able to take before serious, permanent damage was done to his body.

“Eli,” she whispered, “I need to get out of here, go to try and find some help. If I don’t, I can’t see either of us getting out of this alive. Am I right?”

He nodded weakly, and when he spoke his voice was thin and quiet with none of the righteous anger that he had displayed just moments before.

“He’s only keeping me alive to torture me, and taunt me with this moment of victory before he gets rid of me once and for all.”

Tess waited for more, waited for him to outline the plan that she was certain he must have. Throughout this whole thing he had always been in control, always known where to go and what to do next. But she waited and waited, and he didn’t say anything else.

“What shall I do? We need to think of something before they come back again.”

Eli just shook his head, and even that small motion was almost beyond him in his current state.

“They have guns, they outnumber us fifteen to one, and I can barely stand by myself right now. How do you expect us to even get out of this room?”

He sagged down and sighed, a sound of complete despair and hopelessness. Tess looked down at him and she was silent for a few moments. But then, she frowned and her brow furrowed.

“No. No, I won’t accept that Eli. I don’t want to hear you speak like that, you hear me? Not now, not ever. Understand?”

His eyes fluttered open again. There was fear and hopelessness in them, but Tess refused to allow those emotions to take root in her.

“Now, listen to me because we don’t have much time. I need you to work with me to think of something to get us out of this mess. We may as well try because if we don’t we’re good as dead anyway, right?”

He groaned and turned away from her, curling up into the fetal position.

“Save your energy,” he whispered. “They might not kill you. It’s me they really want, and Tex will finish the job soon.”

Tess was horrified at his words, and a sudden swell of anger surged through her. She grabbed him by the shoulders and turned him back round, despite his groans of pain. She met his eyes again and held his gaze, even when he tried to look away.

“And what do you think they will do with me once they’re finished with you, huh? Do you think they’ll just let me go, send me off with a pat on the back as long as I promise not to tell anybody what happened? No, Eli, that’s not what will happen to me. You know what will happen to me. If you’re just going to roll over and accept that, then you’re not the man I thought you were.”

She was breathing heavily, her chest heaving with fury. Something entered Eli’s eyes that wasn’t there before, a glint that told Tess her words had gotten through to him. He dragged himself upwards into a sitting position, and then scooted backwards so that he leant against a wall. From there he looked at her, with something approaching mirth.

“Can you go ask them to get me a new nurse please? Your bedside manner is appalling, and I don’t even think you’ve been trained properly for this job.”

He even managed to crack a wan smile, which Tess couldn’t help but return. Her anger melted away as quickly as it had come, and she went to sit next to him.

“Hey, I might not have received all the proper training, but I fill out a nurse’s outfit pretty damn well if I don’t say so myself. Maybe I should ask Tex if he has a spare one lying around so I can show you.”

Eli chuckled, but then winced and clutched at his ribs.

“Don’t make me laugh,” he said, “I think I’ve cracked a few ribs.”

He turned his head to look at her, his expression earnest and serious.

“I’m sorry. I don’t know what came over me, and I’m lucky I have you here with me. If it was just me, I would still be lying there on the floor feeling sorry for myself and waiting to die.”

“Don’t beat yourself up about it,” Tess said. “Now, can you remember anything about the outside of this room? How many men do they have guarding us? I think I can remember the way to the exit, but we need to think about some way to distract the guard so I can sneak out.”

Eli’s brow furrowed as he tried to recall.

“I think that there’s only one guy out there. The rest of them are in the big warehouse-type room getting drunk and celebrating. It’s a regular old party they got going on out there.”

Tess thought for a moment.

“Then I bet the guy outside probably isn’t too happy being relegated to guard duty, huh?”

Eli shrugged.

“I guess not. But that doesn’t mean that he’s gonna just let you out if you ask nicely.”

“Well, how about if I just invite him in? I may stink, and my clothes might be all ragged, but I think I still have a few of my feminine charms about me.”

Eli nodded.

“Well, I certainly won’t argue with you on that one.”

Tess took a breath.

“Well then, I think I have an idea.”

She leaned over to Eli, and began to whisper in his ear.

*****

Eli

E
li lay there on the ground, curled up in the same fetal position that Tess had so unceremoniously dragged him out of a little while before. His eyes were closed, and he made an effort to keep his breathing deep and slow and steady.

Every inch of him ached, and he was certain that at least two or three of his ribs were broken. Nonetheless, if their plan was going to work he would need to muster every last remaining ounce of strength that he had.

“Are you ready?” Tess whispered.

Eli gave her a thumbs up, mentally preparing himself for what he was about to do, and praying that it would work. It was the only chance they were going to get, and he just hoped that his memory of the guard was accurate.

He listened as Tess shuffled to the door and wrapped on it loudly with her knuckles.

“Hey,” she said, “can you come in here a sec? I need something.”

No response. There was silence for a short while, and then she tried again, knocking louder this time.

“Open the door! It’s important!”

Eli’s heart pounded as he heard the old rusty door squeal in protest as it was suddenly thrown open.

“Shut the fuck up!”

The guy sounded young, and Eli didn’t recognize his voice. He must have been a new recruit to have landed the shit duty like this.

“We need some more water,” Tess said.

The guy laughed dryly.

“Oh really? I tell you what, why don’t I bring you some candles and a bottle of wine with that?”

Eli heard him shuffle back toward the doorway, and his heart sank. But before he heard the door close again Tess spoke, and this time there was something in her voice that Eli had never heard before, but immediately wanted to hear again.

“I’ll make it worth your while.
Really
worth your while.”

Her voice was low and sultry, utterly believable. Eli heard the guy stop in his tracks.

“Tex said he wants first go at you, while loverboy over there watches. He’d fucking kill me if he found out I’d gone first.”

Eli listened as Tess’ footsteps approached the sound of the man’s voice.

“Tex never needs to know, does he? I’m not gonna tell him. Why don’t you just come over here, and we can have a little fun? It can be our little secret.”

Silence for a few moments, and when the guy spoke again his voice was thick with lust and desire. It made Eli’s skin crawl, but he didn’t move. Not yet.

“Well, they’re all drinking in there, celebratin’ without me. Why shouldn’t I get to have some fun?”

“Exactly,” Tess purred. “All you have to do in exchange is bring me some water after.”

Shuffling sounds as the guy grabbed at Tess. Eli chanced a glance and saw him pawing at her, pressing her roughly up against the filthy wall. Anger and disgust rose up in him, making him forget his pain for just a moment. It was enough.

He surged up off the floor and raced to the guy, cracking him on the back of the head with the broken piece of pipe that Tess had torn off a wall. He went limp immediately and fell to the ground in heap.

Tess spat on him, and then kicked him for good measure. Eli was breathing heavily, bent over leaning on the wall with one hand. He looked up at Tess.

“Go. Run away and try to get some help. Leave me here, because I can barely walk and I’ll just slow you down.”

She looked angry at the proposition.

“Are you out of your mind? I thought we knew each other better than this by now, Eli. There’s no way that I’m going to leave you here, don’t be so stupid. Now come here - can you walk? Here, put your arm around me and I’ll help you.”

Eli protested weakly as she took his arm and draped it around her shoulders, but she was determined and he could see that she wasn’t going to take no for an answer. Before they left, he looked down and noticed their guard’s gun on the ground. It was a revolver. Eli crouched down and picked it up. He’d never much liked guns, especially since the incident in the desert that had led to his arrest, but its weight was pleasing in his hand and at least this way he’d have a way to defend Tess and himself if they were discovered escaping.

“Okay, let’s go,” Tess said. “I’ll check that the way is clear first, and then come back for you.”

She went to the door and peered out for a few moments. Eli could hear the faint sounds of laughing and revelry, as the Sons celebrated their victory. He just hoped that they were drunk enough by this point, and confident enough in their guard’s capabilities, that they wouldn’t send somebody to check up on them before he and Tess managed to get out.

She came back to him, and took his arm once more.

“I can’t see anybody, but I can hear them. We need to do this in one straight shot, or there’s a chance that they’ll realize what’s going on - and if they do, I
really
don’t think we’ll get another chance.”

She met Eli’s eyes, her own full of empathy.

“I know you’re hurting, Eli, but I also know that you’re strong enough for this. Are you ready?”

Eli gritted his teeth, and then nodded. She was right - he was in real pain, and without her he would have already given up and accepted his fate. But her determination and bravery spurred him on, and he did his best to block everything out and draw from his deepest reserves of willpower.

She looked into his eyes for a few more moments, and then leaned in and kissed him softly, lingeringly. Her lips were so soft, and even through his pain Eli was aware of the curves of her body against his as she leaned into him.

She broke away reluctantly after a few seconds.

“I want you to make me a promise, Eli Flint - promise me that won’t be our last kiss.”

Eli replied without hesitation.

“I promise you.”

She took a breath and nodded, and, taking as much of his weight as she could bear on her shoulders, they shuffled toward the door. Tess checked that the coast was clear, and then they took their first step outside of the room.