Viper's Kiss (4 page)

“
Define
asshole,
”
Blaine said.

“
Getting
caught with five strippers and then fooling around with them in a holding cell.
”

“
You
say asshole
…
I say
opportunity taken advantage of.
”

Miller shook his head.
“
Have a shot and ask me.
”

“
Ask
you what?
”

“
I
can see it burning in your eyes.
”

Blaine grinned ear to ear. He threw
the shot glass back and flipped it upside down.  He folded his hands and leaned
in a little even though he and Miller were alone.

“
Is
she still full?
”
he asked.

“
Ella?
”

Blaine nodded.

“
Yeah.
She
’
s still full, Blaine.
She
’
s still breastfeeding
Beck.
”

Blaine ran a hand across his face.
“
Just let me
…
just once.
”

“
You
want a taste.
”

“
Yes.
”

Miller leaned in.
“
No.
”

“
Goddammit,
Miller.
”

“
You
get to ask once a day, that was our deal, right? If you ask again, I
’
m going to make the other side
of your face match what those cops did.
”

“
Got
it,
”
Blaine said.
“
Now what the hell do you really
want me alone for?
”

“
Ethan.
Give me the scoop.
”

“
I
already did in front of the table, Miller. I need to come clean with my
brothers about who I am.
”

“
Who
you were.
”

“
The
badge is like the cut, Miller. You can lose it but it never leaves you.
”

Miller put a hand to Blaine
’
s shoulder.
“
No. You goddamn listen to me,
Blaine. You dirty, fucking, scummy, piece of shit asshole
…
you tossed that badge when you
understood it had no meaning. The cut on your back you wear and will wear until
you
’
re dead because it has
meaning. You got that?
”

Blaine nodded.

“
That
’
s why I need this delivery
figured out.
”

Blaine shrugged Miller away and
stood up.
“
I love you,
Miller. I love every guy that sits at this table. Including Trev, and I barely
know him. But if we
’
re
going to exchange bullets and trust, I have to love, right? I know what you
need from me. I
’
ll do
anything for this club. For you. I
’
ll
be the diversion, Miller. Just tell me what to do.
”

When Blaine got to the door, Miller
whistled for him. He looked back.

“
Thank
you,
”
Miller said.

Blaine gave a nod and went to the
bar.

“
What
do you want, Blaine?
”
a
young prospect asked with a smile.

Blaine threw a fist, smacking the
guy in the mouth. The guy stumbled back, eyes wide, arms flailing. The guy
’
s hand then grabbed for a gun.
Blaine jumped over the bar at him, rage in his heart.

“
You
want to shoot me?
”
Blaine
asked.

“
Why
’
d you hit me?
”

Blaine grabbed the prospect by the
throat and threw him to the floor. The prospect groaned and lifted the gun,
pulling the trigger.

***

The bullet zinged right by Blaine
and hit the wall. Blaine stepped forward and put the toe of his boot between
the prospect
’
s legs. He
wasn
’
t making a threat
here, he stepped and twisted.

As the prospect cried - literally -
he dropped the gun.

That
’
s
when Blaine dropped down to one knee and grabbed the gun. He quickly took out
the clip and hid it, all before the prospect could see.

“
You
see, you little bitch, you need to stay strong and tough,
”
Blaine growled.

“
What
the hell is going
…”
Gaige
was at the bar and then on top of it. He quickly drew his gun.
“
Blaine. What the fuck are you
doing?
”

“
Teaching
this punk a lesson.
”

“
Step
away,
”
Gaige ordered.

“
Let
it go, VP,
”
Blaine said.

“
Don
’
t make me shoot you,
”
Gaige warned.

“
Over
a prospect?
”

“
What
did he do to you?
”
Gaige
asked.

“
Nothing,
”
Blaine said. He widened his eyes
and smiled.

“
You
’
re sick,
”
the prospect said.

“
Fucking
sick,
”
Blaine said. He put
the gun to the prospect
’
s
head.
“
So fucking sick.
”
Blaine pulled the trigger.

The prospect jumped and twisted
like a fish flopping on dry land.

“
Christ!
”
Gaige yelled.

Blaine stood up and reached back,
grabbing at Gaige. He took Gaige
’
s
gun and tossed it to the floor. By then the rest of the guys had all gotten
together in the clubhouse to watch the scene unfold.

“
Blaine,
brother,
”
Jace said.
“
What are you doing?
”

“
Nothing,
”
Blaine said. He dropped the
prospect
’
s gun on the
floor.
“
Everyone needs to
take a punch once in a while, right?
”

He grabbed a bottle of whiskey from
under the bar and jumped over.

“
Don
’
t go too far with that,
”
Trev said and pointed to a
camera in the corner of the bar.
“
We
have company.
”

“
Who
is it?
”
Gaige asked.

“
The
new police chief,
”
Blaine
said.
“
Fuck.
”

four.

“
I
don
’
t understand,
”
Dr. Ashland said.

“
You
’
re not supposed to understand,
”
Jessa said.
“
I just need to leave for a
little while.
”

“
Someone
threatened you, Jessa. Someone broke into the office and killed one of our
patient
’
s animals. And now
you have to leave? Jessa, if you
’
re
hiding something
…”

“
Look,
I
’
m really sorry to do
this. I was honestly just thinking about leaving. And not even saying a word to
you. I
’
m at least trying to
be honest.
”

Dr. Ashland stood with her hands in
her pockets. She had an angelic face, perfect features and looked twenty years
younger than she was. But she had a full head of gray hair. Perfect and
beautiful gray hair at that. Her eyes were a rich blue color that always begged
for honesty.

“
I
wish I could tell you more,
”
Jessa said.

Dr. Ashland reached for the door
and engaged the lock.
“
So
give it to me.
”

“
You
can talk to Terri,
”
Jessa
said.

“
I
did that. She said you looked terrified. That something had gotten to you.
”

“
And
I told her it was simply my reaction to seeing a cat with a missing head.
”

“
And
before you looked into the box?
”

“
We
have security cameras,
”
Jessa said.
“
Look at those.
”

“
They
mysteriously malfunctioned for an entire hour, Jessa.
”

Jessa paused and considered what
she was up against here.
“
You
don
’
t think I did something
wrong, do you?
”

“
The
only thing I feel you
’
re
doing wrong is what
’
s
happening right now. You holding back on me.
”

“
You
wouldn
’
t believe me if I
told you.
”

“
Then
try me.
”

Jessa swallowed hard.
“
He
was here.
He
got
out of prison and came right to me. To finish what
he
started.
”

“
And
who is
he
?
”
Dr.
Ashland asked.

“
The
he
who took everything from me. My best friend. Her daughter. My dream
of becoming a doctor. Everything collapsed
…”

Her stomach started to flip. She
looked left, right, seeking a trashcan. She lunged to her left, falling to her
knees. Jessa got sick right there in front of the woman who helped her through
the darkest time of her life without really knowing why it was so dark. All Dr.
Ashland knew was that Jessa
’
s
best friend and her daughter were murdered and she discovered the bodies. She
didn
’
t know anything that
happened before it or what it all meant now.

Or what she had to do next
…

“
Oh,
Jesus,
”
Dr. Ashland said.
She crouched and rubbed my back.
“
You
’
re afraid for your life.
”

“
Bingo,
”
Jessa said with her head
dangling in a trashcan.

“
Here,
”
she offered her a tissue.

She wiped her mouth and she was
then handing Jessa a piece of mint gum. She took the gum and stood back up.

“
You
need to talk to the police,
”
she said.
“
Get yourself
some help or advice. If anything, contact a lawyer. I can set up a meeting with
my lawyer. She
’
s an old
friend. We
’
ll talk over
wine. Tonight. My place. Sleep there.
”

“
No,
”
Jessa said.
“
It doesn
’
t work that way. The police
…
Jesus, I can
’
t
believe I
’
m going through
this again.
”

“
Going
through what?
”

“
It
was all a mess back then. The whole thing. There were so many pieces purposely
lost. Okay? There
’
s only
one person I can talk to about this.
”

“
Okay
…
is that why you
’
re leaving?
”

“
Sort
of.
”

“
Then
why do you seem so uneasy still?
”

“
Because
this person is as dangerous as the man who was here.
”

And that was the scariest part
of it all.

***

Jessa was finally home, but she
didn
’
t feel safe. She knew
how powerful
he
was. He, being Vin, the man who lived with one foot in
the path of justice and the other in the path of crime. He was the guy that
could make charges disappear or make charges appear and stick. He had been
serving time in prison and it wasn
’
t
for the crime he committed by murdering Jessa
’
s
friend, Meghan, and Meghan
’
s
daughter. That was terrifying in itself. The fact that Vin got off on murder.

He had been serving time for a
corruption charge. The best part of it was that he went into prison almost
voluntarily while the legal system worked its magic to ensure the safety of Vin
and the good will nature of his name. It was horrible to think about and even
worse to see in action.

Promising to keep herself off the
internet and researching Vin
’
s
name was useless. She had learned from Blaine a long time ago that if she was
going to face an enemy it was smart to know everything possible about that
enemy.

The problem with Vin was that he
had too many people in his corner. Men with badges. Men with nothing but the
urge to kill. Men who were addicted and willing to do anything for the next
high.

She sat in her bedroom with the
door locked. She didn
’
t
have a gun -
she had no idea how to actually fire a gun either
- but she
had a knife from the kitchen. And a needle loaded with some heavy sedatives. If
by some chance Vin tried to attack, she
’
d
be prepared.

For how long, Jessa?

That was the question she had been
asking herself over and over. Like a song stuck on repeat, she kept asking how
long she was willing to do this. Sure, one night of fear, she could survive
that. She could wrap up tight in blankets and let the storm pass. But this wasn
’
t a summer thunderstorm that
would lead to blue skies and a cool breeze. This was a fucking hurricane. A
category five, headed right to her.

Bad enough she was taking a leave
from her job, now she was going to sit in bed with a knife and a needle and
wait?

Jessa grabbed her cell. She had a
piece of a paper tucked away in her nightstand drawer with a phone number on
it. It was the last thing Blaine ever gave to her. As he stood at the edge of
the cemetery wearing black jeans and a black t-shirt. His hair had been messy
and when he took his sunglasses off, Jessa saw the pain. The betrayal. The
hurt. The guilt. The anger. She had never understood Blaine and really never
liked him. He was an asshole, a fighter, a loud mouth, and way too touchy for
his own good. He loved Meghan fiercely though, that was for sure. Even when
they had some serious problems, he stayed true. There had been a few times when
Jessa and Blaine had been alone
…

Rolling her eyes, Jessa told
herself not to do that. Not to even attempt to go back to something like that.
Temptation was a fantasy best left right there.
As a fantasy.
Fun to
think about but never to go after. Especially with Blaine. And now that he
decided to give up the good guy side and go straight into the arms a motorcycle
club, Jessa couldn
’
t
imagine what happened to him since. But right now, he was perhaps her only
hope.

She dialed the number and shut her
eyes.

It rang and then disconnected.

“
Shit,
”
she whispered.

She tried calling the same number
for an hour straight, all resulting in the same thing. It would ring eight
times and then just disconnect. Somewhere inside herself, Jessa knew not to be
completely surprised. It was Blaine, after all. He was tied into the MC. So
they probably used the cheap phones that couldn
’
t
be traced.

Jessa swung her legs off the bed
and stood up. She walked to the window and looked out. There was still plenty
of daylight left in the day. And hell, even if it was night, then what? She
’
d just go to sleep and pretend
like nothing was happening?

What if Vin was just messing
around? What if Vin was going to go after Blaine?

The images started to pop into
Jessa
’
s mind again. Walking
through the doorway and seeing the hands first. On the floor. Blood on the
floor. Meghan
’
s hand just
an inch from her daughter
’
s.

Jessa saw it when she shut her eyes
and she saw it play out when she opened her eyes. There was no escaping it.
There was only running.

There was only one choice left.

Jessa grabbed a bag, her purse, and
her keys.

She was going to pay a visit to
Back Down Devil MC.