Hell's Riders MC

MIA

“You fucking whore. It’s time to show you that you’re nothing but trash.” Caleb tore at my clothes.

“No. No, stop. Caleb, no more! Please,” I begged him, my voice rising into a scream.

“Hey. Hey, girl, wake up,” a voice called from afar.

“Stop, Caleb,” I begged.

“Hey, wake up,” the same voice called to me.

I ripped myself out of sleep, hands up to fend off the nightmare. Sweat slicked my skin, and I fought for breath as my heart thundered. A strange man leaned over me, and I jerked away from him in terror. His thick, dark hair was in a ponytail, and he wore a cut with the club’s patches on it.

“You okay?” he asked.

I was back in my old room at the clubhouse, far away from Caleb. Safe. I fell back against my pillows, a hand pressed to my pounding chest.

“Hey, it’s okay. I’m not going to hurt you. You’re in the Hell’s Riders’ clubhouse. I heard you screaming. My room’s next door. Let’s start over. I’m Mayhem. What’s your name?” His voice crackled, raspy and rough but also soothing.

“I’m Mia,” I whispered as I brought my knees up to my chest.

“Wait a second. Mia? The same chick who kept calling three years ago, looking for the prez? How the fuck did you get into the clubhouse?” Mayhem sounded angry.

“I told you the truth. I’m Bobby’s daughter and Mason’s niece. They brought me here,” I tried explaining. I scooted back further until I hit the wall.

“This shit again. Okay, let’s go.” He grabbed my good arm and yanked me off the bed, holding me up when I stumbled.

I didn’t dare resist as he pulled me out of my bedroom and down the hallway, heading for the clubhouse’s main room. I did try to reason with him, though. He was making a huge mistake.

“Listen to me, Mayhem. I’m telling you the truth. How else would I have gotten in here? Or better yet know about the club?” I tried telling him, but he wouldn’t listen.

We got to the main room where all the members were piled in with the club girls. Curious faces turned toward us, but nobody got in his way as he pushed through the crowd. He shoved me toward the front door.

Is he just tossing me out onto the street?

“Mayhem! What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” Uncle Mason shouted from behind us.

Taking advantage of Mayhem’s loosened grip, I tore free and ran to my uncle.

The whole room fell into a deadly silence.

“Brother, you know this chick?” Mayhem gave my uncle a confused glare.

“She’s my niece. Why the fuck are you putting hands on her?” Uncle Mason growled as I hid behind him.

“I heard her screaming from the room next to mine. She’s trying to tell me she’s Bobby’s daughter.” Mayhem looked at me, then at my uncle and back again. He wiped a hand over his mouth, his brow furrowed.

“Dammit, Mayhem! She is Bobby’s daughter! He doesn’t talk about her to anyone because she ran off five years ago. It tore him up after she left. You’re lucky she’s behind me right now, or you and I would be in the ring right now.”

Uncle Mason took a threatening step toward him, but I clutched his shirt to keep him from hauling off on Mayhem.

He’d been ready to throw me out, but he’d also sounded kind when I woke up from my nightmare. He couldn’t have known I was telling the truth. Not if my dad had refused to talk about me. I didn’t want Mayhem getting into trouble.

“Wow, brother, I’m so sorry. I thought all this time she had been lying. Mia, I’m terribly sorry for not believing you. I know that it doesn’t mean anything to you right now, but I am,” Mayhem apologized.

“Thank you for apologizing, brother. Be glad right now that Bobby isn’t out here, or he’d have your ass. And if you put your hands on her again, you’ll answer to both of us,” Uncle Mason said.

Feeling Mayhem’s burning gaze on me, I didn’t dare return it. I knew my dad and uncle would beat the life out of him if they thought he’d hurt me, and I didn’t want that on my conscience. Instead, I hugged my uncle.

“Thank you, Uncle Mason,” I whispered. “I’m going to grab something to drink and a snack, and then go back to my room.”

“Good idea,” he said with another glare at Mayhem.

The Hell’s Riders’ clubhouse had a kitchen big enough to handle meals for the entire club, and at this time of night it was empty. I helped myself to some grapes and blueberries from a few containers in the fridge. Those guys were more likely to chow down on burgers, anyway.

As I settled the bowls on the counter, a fierce itch spread up my arm underneath my cast. It was like ants marching up and down.

I grabbed the first thing I could see that might help. As I slipped the butter knife between the cast and my skin, a voice from behind me startled me into dropping it.

“The hell are you doing?” Mayhem chided.

“Oh, um. My arm started to itch. I thought since it’s long enough, it could help.” I tried not to show how much he’d startled me and wondered if I’d ever feel calm again.

“Well, don’t use a knife. That’s a disaster and a mess just waiting to happen. Use a pen or pencil. It’s less messy,” he said as he came and sat by me.

“Thanks, I’ll remember for next time.” I put the knife in the dishwasher.

“So is Caleb the one who did this to you?” he asked, pointing to my arm.

I froze, incapable of replying. No one here knew about Caleb or what he had done.

“You were screaming for Caleb to stop,” Mayhem said in a low voice, his gaze locked on mine. His eyes were the color of summer grass. “I’m gonna bet that he’s the boyfriend who was abusing you three years ago when you called.”

Mayhem’s expression twisted with concern—and maybe some shame.

Tears slowly rolled down my cheeks. I looked down at my cast and nodded.

“Does anyone other than me know?” Mayhem lifted his hand to my face. I flinched. He looked at me, then wiped away the tears. His rough fingers were gentle, but I still pulled away from him.

“No. No one here knows. My friend back in Oregon, Lexi, knew. Mayhem, please don’t tell Uncle Mason or my dad. Please.” I looked at him, hoping he would keep my secret.

“I won’t say anything for now. You need to do that, Mia, and soon,” he told me.

“I know, and I will. I’m just not ready to tell them what happened to me. After I lost my mom, they were overprotective of me. They’ll lose their minds when they find out what he did to me.” I kept my focus on the door.

“No matter what, they’ll be here for you. I know they’ll make sure that dirtbag doesn’t come anywhere near you. So will I. You’re safe here.”

I flinched again when Mayhem reached for me. He gently put his hands on my shoulders, then let go of me to tip my chin up with one finger. He waited until I was looking deep into his green eyes. I let myself study him. He looked sincere, and I knew he meant his promise.

I was safe.

“Thank you,” I breathed, too caught up in my emotions to keep my voice steady. I hoped my nightmare was over.

“You’re welcome. I’ll see you around, darlin’. If you ever need me, my room is next to yours.” He smiled at me as he got up from the table.

I watched him walk out of the kitchen to the main room.

I should’ve come back home a long time ago. If my mom was still alive, she wouldn’t have been happy with the way I had left home. But if my mom was still here, I’d never have run away.

“Hey, princess, you all right?”

I jumped at Uncle Mason’s voice but gave him a strong smile. “I’m okay. Hey, Uncle Mason, earlier you told Mayhem that Dad was torn up because of my leaving. Is it true?” I asked.

I watched him take the chair where Mayhem had sat. He grabbed my good hand from my lap and sighed.

“Princess, you gotta know that after your mom died, your old man’s heart was broken. I’m not saying how he acted toward you was fair, because it wasn’t. But when you left and never once came home, he beat himself up every day. Shit, he was so out of it that I had to take over for him a few times.”

At the sight of my shock, Uncle Mason leaned forward. “I’m not telling you this to upset you. I’m saying that five years ago, you gave your old man a real wake-up call. He had to lose you to see how much he loves you. Never think he doesn’t.”

My body shook with sadness at everything that had happened.

“I didn’t mean to hurt him or you the way I did. It’s just that anytime I talked about art or school, it was like no one cared. Hell, no one but Aunt Haily showed up to my graduation. I was valedictorian for my class, Uncle Mason, and your wife was the only one who bothered!”

I let out a trembling laugh at the memory.

“When I came home that night, I thought there’d be a celebration or something, but the lot was empty. Aunt Haily told me that you guys went on a run up in Nevada. I worked so hard to try and make you all so proud, but no one except Aunt Haily cared.”

More tears flooded down my cheeks. Would I ever be able to stop crying? I hung my head as I tried to stop the sobs, but years of pain kept washing over me in waves.

“I’m guessing you never saw me and Beast there that day. Princess, I think it’s time I showed you something. Follow me.” He stood up from his seat. I followed him out the back door.

He walked to the office door of the garage and unlocked it.

“What are we doing in here?” I asked, watching him walk inside.

“You need to know just how proud we all are of you. Even your old man.”

He walked to the filing cabinet, unlocked the bottom drawer, and pulled out a huge folder. He set it down on the desk. I walked toward the desk, then looked at my uncle, confused.

“I will give you some time to look at what’s inside. I love you, princess.” He kissed the top of my head and walked out the door.

I opened the folder to be faced with cards and letters—each one saying how proud they were of me and how much they wished I would come home soon.

After finishing up with the pile, I came across a letter from my dad. The envelope also contained a picture of me that Aunt Haily had taken of me holding my acceptance letter to the Academy of Arts and Academics.

I sat down in the chair at the desk to read the letter.

Dear Princess,

I am so proud of you.

I’m sorry I never said it before.

When your mother died, she made me promise to be there for you. I did one hell of a terrible job.

I pushed you away because every time I saw you, I’d see your mother.

I know that wasn’t fair to you. You were only fourteen when she passed away.

Every time you talked about school or your art, I didn’t listen. I just shut you out.

I never wanted to be that dad who shut their kid out.

I failed, princess. I am sorry. I hope one day you come home soon so that I can make it right. But I know you ran away because I screwed up, so I won’t chase you. I’ll give you your space until you’re ready to come home. I’ll be there for you this time, princess. I promise.

Always remember I love you, my dear Mia.

I’ve never been more proud of you.

Your old man

I set the letter down and ran out of the office, running back into the clubhouse, looking for my dad. Pushing through the crowd of people, I finally found him playing pool with Beast. I went up to my dad and wrapped my good arm around his abdomen, startling him.

“Oh, hey, princess. What’s wrong?” he asked.

“I love you, Daddy,” I whispered as I continued to hug him.

“I love you too, princess.” He put his pool stick down and wrapped his arms around me.

I finally pulled away so that I could wipe the tears from my eyes. We shared a smile, and I knew all those lost years no longer mattered. I was home.

“You gonna tell me what’s going on, princess?” My dad knew something was up.

“I’m just sorry about how I left the way I did. I never told you that. I love you, Dad.”

I told him half the truth, not wanting to sell Uncle Mason out for what he had shown me.

I looked around at all the men and a few women in the room. I was truly blessed to have such a big family, even though the guys weren’t there for every event of my life.

“Aw, prez, I think she missed us.” Wolf, a burly guy with thick eyebrows, teased me.

“Nah, I missed everyone else but you,” I teased Wolf back.

Everyone laughed. I walked over to him and gave him a hug. Wolf was one of the few guys in the club who was around my age. He was tall and loaded with tattoos like everyone else, but, also like the rest of them, he’d always been a good guy.

“You know I’m just joking with you, Wolf.” I bumped him after I let him go.

“I love you all,” I said, looking at everyone in the room.

“We love you too, princess. Glad you’re home.” Beast gave me a big bear hug with his tattooed arms. He was over six feet tall, with his light-colored hair cropped in a short, military style. He looked scary, but he had a heart of gold.

I let out a small cry as he lifted me up to twirl me around. Once he put me down, everybody fought to hug me, and I accepted them all gratefully. My dad came and gave me one last hug before I decided to head back to my room.

I knew I wasn’t going to be able to sleep after dreaming about Caleb, so I decided to do the one thing that always had helped me when I couldn’t sleep before.

Finding my sketch pad and my pencils deep in one of my bags, I climbed the ladder that led to the roof. I’d discovered this spot when my mom died, and it had always helped me relax in some way. I sat down near the edge, and taking a deep breath, I started to sketch out the view in front of me.

The buildings and the night sky took my breath away. I became so lost in my sketch that I didn’t hear anyone come up.

“You’re very talented.” Mayhem’s low voice from behind me sent a shiver up and down my spine.

I turned, my cheeks hot. “Oh, hey, you scared me.”

“Sorry, didn’t mean to.” Mayhem settled next to me. “Why are you up here alone?”

“I couldn’t sleep. I came up here to draw a little bit.” I looked at him, then back at my drawing.

“You can’t sleep often, I’m taking it?”

I sighed, pushing my hair behind my ear. I could feel his warmth close to me. “Honestly, no. I haven’t been able to get a good sleep in a long time. I guess when you live in fear for four years, it does that to you,” I explained, looking at my cast.

“Mia, I can never tell you how sorry I am for not believing you. If I had, then you would have been here ages ago, and that would never have happened to you.” Mayhem’s voice got thick and rough with guilt.

I stared into his green eyes as my heart beat faster.

“Mayhem, this isn’t your fault. Even if you had believed me, Caleb would have still hurt me or worse before anyone could have saved me.

“Please don’t blame yourself for something you had no control over. I already know Uncle Mason gave you a run-in, and no doubt, once my dad finds out, it will be worse. But you couldn’t have known.”

I turned my head back to the view, noticing the sun starting to come up.

“How long have you been drawing?” Mayhem broke the silence again.

“Oh, um, since I was ten, I guess. I broke my leg in dance class, and I was so bored with nothing to do one day that I just started drawing. I really got into it. I decided to go to school for a degree in art and design. My mom would always say I was going to do great things with my talent.”

I played with the ends of my sketch pad as I remembered my mom.

“Well, I think she’s right. You’re very talented, Mia. Don’t stop doing what you love. Embrace it,” Mayhem said, which made me give him a small smile.

“Well, thank you, Mayhem,” I said.

“Ryan,” he said, holding out his hand. “That’s my real name.”

“Okay, Ryan. I like it.” Ryan fit him, although I knew that if he’d earned a nickname like Mayhem, it had to be for a reason.

“Come on, sweetheart, you need some sleep. Let’s go.” Ryan helped me, and we climbed down the ladder to go back inside.

I walked to my door, then turned around to see Ryan still next to me. “Thank you, Ryan. See you later,” I said, then walked back into my room.

With him right next door, I knew I’d sleep with no fear.