Chapter 24

24

Perrie – Three Weeks Later

I smile a little despite the pain burying me. I hear the brothers laugh and look up to see Bulldozer run around the large pool table while Cannon runs after him, the pool cue in his hand, high above his head, as the brothers all laugh at their antics.

“You cheated, you fucker, give me my money back,” Cannon growls, and I shake my head. The men here are like children, I tell you.

When Steal said he was going to watch out for me, he wasn’t lying. If I’m fighting, two brothers are in the crowd, if I’m at the gym, prospects stay outside, and on weekends, he’s demanded I stay in Ollie’s room at the club, and when I say demanded, I mean he threw me over his shoulder the first weekend Ollie was gone when I refused.

Something about him not wanting me to get into my head and spend all my time at The Fight.

The problem with Steal being the president of an MC is he wasn’t scared when I threatened to kick his ass; instead, he used the letters Ollie’s been sending me against me because, of course, the man has been sending them to the clubhouse instead of the gym.

Shaking my head at the way Bulldozer trips and falls over the table, causing the brothers to piss themselves laughing, I look down again at the letter in my hand.

I gently trace over my name in his handwriting.

Five whole weeks without him, and I feel lost. Over the years, when we barely spoke, he was still in the background, still watching over me, and I knew it. But now, I’m empty, cold, and not even The Fight can fade the feeling.

Slowly, I open the envelope and pull the letter out, unfolding it, hoping I don’t fall apart like yesterday’s letter, where he explained how he was held down at the age of twelve by his own father, allowing his social worker to ride him. My eyes tear up as I start to read it.

My Tinker,

The nightmares are getting worse, and I’m struggling. Normally, I’d get in the ring for a few hours before heading to the diner to watch you, but I can’t because I’m stuck here.

I don’t know how much more I can take, sweetheart.

The dreams, the nightmares, they feel like reality again. I wake up screaming and shouting. They’re consuming me, Perrie….

A few tears fall, and I wipe them away, the noise from the clubhouse fading in the background.

Every time, the women’s faces change; they become you, and I know it’s because I need you. But I’m not ready to come back yet. I’m not done fighting my demons.

I wish I was. I wish I could say I am magically cured, but I ain’t, Tinker.

I don’t know if I ever will be. It’s consuming me, sweetheart, the pain, and the filth.

I can’t breathe.

I suck in a breath as fear consumes me.

I know I sound like I’m giving up, but I’m not. I just, fuck, Perrie, I miss you so fucking much. Being here without even looking at you makes it hard to breathe, but I know if I leave now, I won’t come back to New York; I’ll go nomad.

“No…” I whisper, agony rising, as I sit up in a panic.

Suddenly, someone shouts, “Where is she?” and I jump before looking near the front door, recognizing the shout.

I take deep breaths, trying to control the panic inside at the thought of Ollie not returning, before I roll my eyes when I see my mother being held back by a prospect, Andrea standing right behind her with yet again her false bump, which, surprise, surprise, is more to the left than it should be.

I’m surprised the bitch didn’t run and hide after what she’s done, because as soon as these men find out, she’s a dead bitch walking.

I shake my head and look down at the letter, ignoring them.

I need to know what else he’s said….

When I was thirteen, Aiden tied me to the bed and allowed three women to do whatever they wanted. I screamed and cried for them to let me go, until that fucker threatened to bring Eli into the mix. I kept quiet after that.

I took their torture; I added more dirt to my body, more filth….

A sob climbs my throat, but I swallow it before Mom shouts , “Perrie!” and I tense.

I cannot hit my mother, I cannot hit my mother, I repeat in my head.

Or can I?

“What the fuck is the racket about!” Steal shouts, coming out of his office.

Mom shoves Killian, who fists his hands, before I make eye contact with her. I give him a silent clap because I would have hit her, making him smirk before he answers Steal, “She kicked Cam in his cock, and they both ran in. I was bringing the truck into the new garage when I saw them barge in. Pretty sure Cam can’t have kids now….”

I grin at him, and he narrows his eyes at me when I state, “With how Cam likes it, there’s no way he’ll be knocking someone up, anyway.”

The brothers laugh as Killian scratches his cheek, giving me the middle finger while making me chuckle.

I caught him and Cam in the bathroom this morning. Apparently, I’m the only one who didn’t know they were an item and used that bathroom for a quickie in the mornings before they started their shifts.

“I have been trying to contact you for weeks, Perrie!" Mom snaps, and I sigh as I stand up.

I raise a brow at her and ask, “And why is that, Mom? Your ‘friend’ kick you out?”

She flinches when I quote ‘friend’ while Andrea steps forward but quickly grabs Mom’s arm as her heel hits a crack in the flooring.

I smirk when Mom steadies her and chides, “Be more careful, darling. Think of the baby,” before she looks my way with disdain.

“Look at her like that again and you’ll answer to me!” Piston snaps as he comes to stand by me.

I grab his arm and squeeze it.

“I can look at her any way I like; she’s my daughter,” Mom growls, then snaps at me, “I want what is owed to me. Cassidy refuses to see me, and you’ve ignored me for weeks. I only knew you were here because Andrea found out you were trying to get with Acid, which is pathetic. I didn’t raise you to be a thief or a man-stealing whore, Perrie!”

The room grows tense, but instead of throwing a fit, as Andrea wants, I smile and hand Piston Ollie’s letter, before walking over to them.

“A man stealing whore, huh, Mom?” I ask as I get in her face. Mom’s eyes widen as I snap, “Funny, because are you or are you not the whore who cheated on my father?”

“Per—” she starts, but I cut her off.

“The money from the house sale doesn’t belong to you because you couldn’t keep your legs closed. It belongs to me and my sister. If Andrea’s dad finally decided to cut you loose, that is your problem, not mine. Why don’t you ask your ex-lover’s precious daughter if you can crash with her? You know, the one who is currently lying about being pregnant with a man she never even slept with.” Mom furrows her eyebrows, and I finish, “A man she drugged.”

Andrea scoffs and I look to see her eyeing the brothers in fear, and she stutters, “S-she’s lying.” I smirk and move to her as she sneers, “You touch me, and I’ll have you arrested for assault. You’ll do time for hitting a pregnant woman!”

I grin at her before I move quickly, putting my hand up her small tank top and tearing the false bump from underneath it. Then I press it against my mother’s chest. Her eyes are wide in shock, and I snap, “Pregnant with Acid’s baby is she, Mom?” Her mouth opens and closes several times. “Did you also know she’s the one who knocked me out five weeks ago to aid a man who kidnapped and then attempted to assault me?” I snap.

She steps back in shock, shakes her head, and denies, “She-she wouldn’t….”

“Wouldn’t what?” I cut in. “Wouldn’t try and get me out of the way because she knew there was only one person Ollie wanted and that was me?” I tilt my head. “She’s been playing you, and you let her. She’s on the list for donor insemination, for Christ’s sake, the first two rounds failing!” I get in her face. “How does it feel knowing you lost your daughters over the crap your lover’s daughter have been spewing, huh, Mom?”

Mom drops the false bump in shock before she turns without saying anything, and we all silently watch her leave the club.

How pathetic.

As soon as the door shuts, I tilt my head Andrea’s way to see her glaring at me.

I give her a grin, and she screeches, “You stupid bitch, you’ve ruined everything,” forgetting where she is as she goes to attack me.

I get ready to kick her ass, to finally get my revenge, only for a gunshot to go off, once, twice, three times. Andrea jolts before she falls to the floor, blood pooling around her body, her eyes open.

My mouth drops open in shock, and I turn to see Canine standing with his gun out, and I blink. The damn man didn’t even give me a chance to hit her first.

“Well, that takes care of that problem,” Steal says, and I raise a brow at him as we lock eyes. He winces and says, “Ah fuck,” when he realizes I am still standing here.

Canine’s eyes come my way, and he also winces.

“It’s a good thing I’m the only female here to witness that, huh?” The brothers all shift, probably wondering if I’m going to freak, and shockingly, I’m not, and I sigh. “You couldn’t let me get at least one hit in first, Canine?”

I watch as the brothers instantly relax as Canine grins and walks over to me, hugging me. I smile and hug him tight, trying to ignore a dead Andrea, refusing to look at her before I go to Piston, who is reading my letter.

Ah crap….

He swallows as he looks up at me, his eyes tearing up as he hands it to me, and I look at the rest of it with Canine over my shoulder, cursing at the words on the paper.

I hope this doesn’t make you hate me, Tinker, that you’re not disgusted, but if you want me, you need to know the truth of what I went through, the truth that would kill Eli if he ever found out.

I’m sorry I’m fucked up, sweetheart. I’m sorry I had to leave to try and make peace with my past.

I’m sorry for not being strong.

I love you, Perrie.

Forever Yours,

XX

My eyes sting. I sniffle and wipe my cheeks as Piston snaps, “Perrie, I need to spar,” and I nod, my eyes still on the letter.

Canine rasps, “He’s breaking,” into the quiet room, and the brothers curse while two prospects grab Andrea’s body.

Sneering at the corpse, I follow Piston to the basement, Ollie’s letter firmly in my grip as Steal, Anchor, and Canine follow us.

I feel helpless.

In every letter, I can read his pain; I can feel it.

He’s starting to give up, and I just hope I’m strong enough for both of us, because a life without Ollie is one not worth living, even if he did leave me on top of the counter.