Chapter Thirteen

VOID

Dash wobbles on his feet as I yank him up by his cut before Ivy can push him off her.

He’s wasted, but it doesn’t give him the right to kiss her if she doesn’t want it. And I can see she doesn’t want it—her eyes were wide as she slapped and pushed at him.

“Oh, hey, Voi—”

My fist slamming straight into Dash’s eye socket makes him spin and fly face-first into the pool table. My knuckles hurt like a bitch, but it’s nothing compared to the pain searing through my side. I need to be careful, but right now, when I look at Dash, all I see is fucking red.

I reach out and grab him by the collar of his shirt, but as I do, he turns and pushes forward with all of his energy, ramming me back. I unleash a groan as the agony in my ribs becomes blinding. So much so, I can’t fucking breathe as he slams me down to the floor. I can’t function for even a second through the pain before his fist comes back, slamming straight into my jaw. The drunken assholes all cheer, enjoying the brawl rather than moving in to end it.

“Stop it!” Ivy screams, but Dash doesn’t let up, slamming me with another fist into my eye socket.

Suddenly, Dash is knocked away from me, and when I look up, Ivy’s standing there, shaking out her hand while Dash gawks at her, rubbing his face.

Did she just hit him?

“That’s enough! You two are fucking ridiculous. And Dash, hitting Void in the ribs? What were you thinking?” Ivy berates.

Nycto walks over, rubbing his chin in disapproval. “Prospect, you attacked the VP. There will be consequences. Chapel, now. Void, go to your room and sleep it off. Party’s over for both of you.”

I try to stand and cough, still finding it hard to breathe.

Ivy moves into my side, helping me up. “You’re a damn idiot… but thank you,” she whispers in my ear as she leads me through the drunken bikers to the hall.

“I know Dash wanted you to choose him, Ivy. I overheard him in the lab last night. Then seeing him try to kiss you just now… fuck.”

Ivy grimaces as we enter my room, but she takes me over to my bed and lays me down. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. It’s not because I felt bad for him or anything. It’s because you’re hurt, and I just… I didn’t want this to happen. I didn’t want you to get worked up and get yourself hurt even more trying to knock him out.”

I exhale, shaking my head. “I don’t care how fucking hurt I get, Ivy. I will always fight for what’s mine.”

She huffs, then leans in and grabs the hem of my shirt angrily. “For the record, I’m mine. I don’t care if Nycto ‘bought’ me, I don’t belong to anyone. Now, take off your shirt. I need to check your ribs.”

I help her pull my shirt off, and she winces. “Shit, Void! Dammit! The bruising’s worse. Maybe I should get Nerve in here?”

I wave my hand through the air dismissively. “He’s drunk. He’ll be no help.”

Ivy slowly sits on the bed beside me. “Can you take a deep breath for me?”

I somehow find the strength to smirk. “You going all ‘medical Ivy’ on me now?”

She rolls her eyes. “Just appease me, will you?”

I inhale as deep as I can. It hurts like hell, but I’m able to do it. I have to admit, it does relieve me, as I was concerned when I was winded out there that my fractured rib might have punctured my lung. It hurt that fucking much, and I couldn’t draw a breath.

“Good. Now stay here, I need to get some ice for your fucking… everything.”

She stands, and I reach out, grabbing her arm. She turns back to me, and I stare into her eyes. “Thank you…”

“It’s not him I want, Void.” She leans down to place an extremely gentle kiss on my lips.

I guess she’s trying not to hurt me.

Then she pulls back, heading out to grab some ice. I have to admit, it’s good hearing her say the words.

But having a fight with Dash with everyone watching?

Yeah, that was not my finest hour.

What a clusterfuck.

The Next Morning

There’s a pressure on my legs, or is it my groin? I can’t be sure, but I’m hungover and not awake enough to comprehend what’s going on.

My body—it’s sore all over.

Memories of fighting with Dash fly through my mind, and my lips turn up in the corners as I imagine Nycto kicking him out of the club for going to town on the VP.

I definitely feel like a damn pussy for having Ivy be the one to stop him. Something grinds down on my cock, making it harden instantly, and my eyes shoot open. Ivy’s straddling me, wearing only a bra and her panties.

Jesus. Fucking. Christ.

She has a stethoscope around her neck, and I cock my brow. “You’re not ready to play doctors and nurses with me just yet, Ivy.”

She smirks and leans down to kiss me. My hands slide up the silky-smooth skin of her back as she places something against my temple. I furrow my brow, and it beeps. “Ninety-nine degrees. You’re a touch high, but it could be the alcohol.” She places the stethoscope into her ears and presses the cold circle to my chest. “Now inhale.”

I grin, inhale deeply, and she moves the scope around my chest. “Exhale…” I release a breath. “Inhale one more time.” I chuckle, then breathe in. She moves it to the side where most of the bruising is located, and I wince. She mouths sorry but continues. “And out.” I exhale.

Ivy pulls the earpieces from her ears and wraps it around her neck. “You sound good. I’m pretty sure your lungs are fine. Of course, I didn’t finish my medical training, so we need Nerve to double-check, but if there was a problem with your lung, you’d be in deep shit by now, so I’m pretty sure you’re good.”

My hands move to her thighs sitting either side of mine. I can’t help but admire her and how fucking sexy she is like this. “Fuck, you’re gorgeous.”

She rolls her eyes. “I’ve tried telling you, but—”

“Don’t even joke about that, Ivy. You know I want you. I just…” I pause, trying to find the right words, but they don’t come easily.

Her hands rest on my chest. “It’s fine. Now’s not the time anyway. You’re hurt.”

I glance down at her left knuckles, which are grazed, bruised, and battered. “You hit Dash with a mean left hook… for me?”

Ivy grimaces. “I feel like shit for hitting him, but he gave me no damn choice.” She leans down to press her lips to mine again. I love the wave that crashes through me when I kiss her. It’s like everything calms down, like all the shit that’s going on melts away, and it’s just this world where Ivy and I belong. Our bubble is the only place where I feel whole, and if she’s the one coming in to rescue me every now and then, then I’m totally okay with it. Because if there’s one thing I know about Ivy, it’s that she has the heart of a lion and the tenacity of a bull. If she wants something, she’s going to fight for it, and she’ll fucking get it.

I can only hope, in the end, she wants to fight for me.

***

I’m sore as shit.

My face is swollen like I’ve gone ten rounds with Mike Tyson. It makes me feel inferior. I only went half a round with a fucking prospect, and the cunt laid me out. Admittedly, he had an advantage. That bastard went for my weak spot, disabling me right away, but the point remains, he took me out in front of everyone, including Ivy. And that shit doesn’t sit right with me.

I’ve had it in for Dash for a while now.

I can’t see a way through this, so I need to talk to Nycto.

Ivy’s already left for the morning after doing her little nurse routine on me, which I have to say was fucking tempting as hell. But now, I have a score to settle.

As I pull on a shirt, my torso screams at me, and I grimace. Nerve came in and wrapped me up tight with a compression bandage, so now the constriction around my ribs hurts more than I want to let on. I should wear my cut, but I’m not going anywhere other than to see Nycto, and to be honest, I am not sure I can move my arms enough to get it over my shoulders. The pain’s excruciating enough to pull on this much clothing. Nycto is just going to have to deal with me wearing civvies.

As I traipse out of my room, brothers take in the state of me. I’m sure they’re wondering what it means, but they shouldn’t read anything into it. I need to find Nycto, so I head for the kitchen, where Eva and Trixie are inside.

“Eva, where’s your man?” I call out to her.

She spins with a bright smile on her face, then it falls as she takes me in. “You okay, Void?”

“Yeah. Hurts to put clothes on is all.”

Her intense expression softens, and she relaxes. “Phew! Thought you were making a statement. He’s in the Chapel making some business calls. Head on in.”

I nod, turning to leave.

“And Void?” I turn back, raising a brow. “Thanks for looking out for Ivy last night. I’m sorry you got hurt in the process.”

“I’ll always look out for Ivy.”

“I know you will.”

I dip my chin, then turn to head for the Chapel. When I finally make it to the door, I knock twice. If Nycto’s in meetings, I figure I better not interrupt if it’s something important.

“What?”

I smirk and think, typical asshole answer.

Opening the door, I pop my head inside. “Can I chat with you for a second?”

Nycto waves his hand through the air. “I think that’s a damn good idea.”

I walk in, closing the door behind me, and as I turn, he’s staring at my shirt. “You not wearing your cut for a reason, brother?”

I sit in my seat. “Fucking hurt just to put my shirt on. Fucking hurts to walk. Figured I’m in the clubhouse, but if I go outside, I’ll put it on, even if the prospects have to help me dress.”

Nycto turns up his lip in a smirk. “Don’t be a pussy. You got in a fight… a damn pointless fight, I might add. You’re the VP of this club, and you will show the club what it means to be Defiance. You’ll wear your fucking cut wherever you damn well go. I don’t care if your cock’s falling off, your cut stays on. Got it?”

“Yeah, yeah, fair call. I’ll put it on after we have words.”

“You bet your ass you will. You’re walking around without one, it’ll have brothers thinking you’re leaving or some shit. Evaluate what you’re doing, Void. You’re a walking fucking disaster right now.”

Tensing, my mind flashes back to last night.

Dash made a mockery of me.

Every-fucking-thing always comes back to Dash.

“That’s what I’m here about.”

Nycto sits back in his chair and brings his cigarette to his lips, taking a drag. “Mm-hmm. This should be interesting.”

“The prospect. He’s caused nothing but trouble. He’s a damn issue. I’m not sure if the kid can be a part of the club when he so blatantly disrespects the hierarchy.”

Nycto blows out a perfect ring of smoke, then leans forward and butts out the cigarette. “It’s not the damn hierarchy, Void. It’s you.” He exhales. “Nevertheless, I agree. I’ve sent Dash away for a while to clear his head. To consider what the club means to him, what he’s willing to do for the club.”

“You’re giving him a second chance? What the fuck, Nycto?”

He glares at me. “The kid nearly died for Defiance. I have to take that into consideration. He’s put his life on the line, not just for Tampa, but also Miami. You might not like him, Void, but he is a valued member of this club. I gotta try to find a way through this.”

Running my hand through my hair, I scoff. “Fine. I’m happy I’ll have time with Ivy without him interrupting.”

Nycto pounds his closed fists on the table in front of him with a loud bang. “I know what it’s like to lose yourself over a woman, Void. Fuck, I did it with Eva. Just don’t lose yourself so much you end up losing your patch too.”

My veins run ice cold.

This club means everything to me.

It means a hell of a lot to Ivy too.

If I were tossed out, I’m not sure if she would follow me.

If I lost my patch, I would lose it all.

I have to reel myself in.

Keep my shit under control.

I have to do this for Ivy.

Everything I do is for Ivy.

Actually, there’s something else I need to do while I’m here. “Pres, I’ve been thinking about something, and I wanna run it by you.”

He exhales, letting out a groan. “Can’t fucking wait to hear this…”

I don’t miss the sarcasm but push forward anyway. “What are your thoughts on gaining a new prospect?”

***

After discussing my idea with Nycto, he’s on board with it. Now, I just have to get all the moving puzzle pieces into place, and I need to figure out how I’m going to do that.

I’m sitting at the bar, casually sipping on a whiskey, letting my thought processes flow, trying to work everything out, when Stacey walks over with an envelope. “Hey, VP, mail for you,” she relays, handing me the long, orange envelope.

“Thanks, Stace.” Placing it on the bar, I rip open the ends and pull out some glossy pictures.

My eyes widen.

The picture is of me, sitting on the side of Van Dyke Road, entirely out of my freaking mind—my bike totaled in the background—and I’m staring into the trees, with the picture coming from that direction.

I spin around to face Stacey behind the bar. “Who delivered this?” I bark out at her.

She jumps at my tone. “Just the usual mailman.”

I turn over the envelope to study the postage stamp. It doesn’t give anything away, just that it was sent from somewhere inside Tampa. My eyes shoot up, looking around the clubhouse to check if anyone else is seeing this—but of course, they’re not.

I’m confused.

I was alone on that road.

Wasn’t I?

I try to think back to what happened that day. Black shadows flashing through the trees. White-clothed figures. Familiar faces…

Maybe what I was hallucinating wasn’t in my mind at all? I glance down at the picture again, studying it closer. My pupils were huge—my eyes virtually black. Someone definitely took them while I was out of it.

My stomach churns as my mouth goes dry. I start to feel light-headed.

Fuck! I’m not sure what to do.

Should I go to Nycto with this? No.

Standing, I grab the photographs and race toward Atomic’s tech hub. If anyone can find out anything about these pictures, it’s Atomic.

After knocking on his door, I turn the handle and pop my head around the corner. He’s deep into coding, doing some nerd shit I don’t understand and don’t want to. I wait for him to stop what he’s doing, and he dips his chin. “What’s up, VP?”

“I’ve received something… Wanna know if you can check it out for me.”

Atomic pulls his headphones off and slides his keyboard further up his desk. “Hit me.”

I place the picture on the desk in front of him, and his brow furrows. “Is this of you when you totaled your ride?”

“Yeah.”

“I thought no one was out there with you?”

“So did I.”

Recognition registers on Atomic’s face as he picks up the picture, shining a light with a magnifying glass down over the top of it. “Can’t find a tracking ID. Could try to check for fingerprints, but ours are all over it now. What about the envelope?”

“Came from around the Tampa area, which means nothing to anyone.”

Atomic hums under his breath. “Leave it with me to check into it further, but as you said, we don’t have much to go on. Looks like a dead end. Are you going to talk to Nycto about this?”

I think it through for a moment, then say, “I’ll let it play out for now.” I don’t want this to blow out of proportion, but I do have to admit I feel fucking weird.

Like someone’s watching me.

First someone taking pictures of me and Ivy, now this? That fact is really damn unsettling.