Chapter Sixteen

IVY

Void is off on some job with Nycto. He thinks I haven’t clicked that something’s up, but the man has been tense for days. Sure, he loosened up a little after we fucked, but it didn’t take him long to go back to being apprehensive as hell.

Me, though? Since we had sex, I feel different. Not because I lost my virginity—that’s a cliché—but because it is finally like a part of me has been unlocked. I let myself go with Void during sex. I let myself be free. I let poison Ivy out. I tried to hide her back in Cuba, wanted to fight her off by being this extroverted young woman who had so many friends. I was always the life of the party. Because I was hiding the fact that deep down, I wanted to tear the bitchy girl’s hair out by the roots until her bleached-blonde hair was drowning in blood, or slice the popular guy’s balls off for slapping my ass one too many times, then post them to his unsuspecting girlfriend.

There was something in me I knew wasn’t right, but I kept fighting it.

However, here, at the club, that part of me can be completely embraced.

I don’t have to hide.

I don’t have to feel ashamed for thinking that way.

Plus, if I want to slice a guy’s balls off for being an asshole to me, I know Void and the club would happily let me. Hell, they’ll be by my side, cheering me on.

Taking a breath, I stand in the Chamber, right in front of the section of brick where I enclosed Andrés in the wall, sealing him to his death.

My life has changed so much since I was taken from Cuba. That night, I was terrified, and Eva was the one keeping me together, but being drugged and taken from Cuba to Tampa, then Nycto stealing us… it was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. For Eva too.

Meeting Void has filled an emptiness inside me. Now I’m able to be who I want to be because of him, which is a slightly messed-up introvert who loves the darkness.

I stare at the wall blankly.

Is Andrés decaying under there?

What does his body look like by now?

I wonder if Nycto would let me set up some experiments to study decomposition.

Am I completely fucked-up for wondering about these kinds of morbid things?

Footsteps trample down the stairs, but I don’t look to see who’s coming. I already know from the sound of the thump of the boots that it’s Void. He makes his way over to me, standing by my side. I casually glance at him, and his face softens. “You reflecting on what happened to Andrés?”

I shrug. “I’m glad he’s in there. I just… there’s something inside me, and I question if I should be scared of it or not.”

Void reaches out and pulls me to him in a tight embrace, a move not often shown. I wrap my arms around him, cuddling into him completely. “That little bit of darkness in you, Ivy, is what scares me. Not the fact that it’s bad, but because it’s so fucking good. Your darkness matches mine. I’m fucked in the head, but I don’t want to drag you down with me.”

I pull back, peeking up at him. “If you’re going down, Void, then I want to come along for the ride. Bricking Andrés behind this wall made me feel more alive than anything I can ever think of… beside you being inside me, of course.”

Void’s eyes meet mine, and adoration shines back at me. “And that right there is how I know you belong at this club… that you belong with me.”

I lean up on my toes to kiss him. My lips pop and tingle as they always do when I kiss Void. Wrapping my arms around him, I push him up against the bricks holding Andrés’s corpse, and his fingers move straight to my ass to grasp and knead at my flesh. My clit throbs as I press my body against Void’s, needing friction. His cock grows hard as we kiss frantically, our hands going everywhere.

Is it wrong that I’m turned on by the fact we’re making out right next to the body of the man I killed?

Yeah, we’re both fucked in the head.

But I love every messed-up second of my life right now.

A Week Later

Void’s been a little better with his moods. He’s still tense, but with us basically fucking like rabbits, I’m sure it relieves some of the tension he’s feeling. I only wish he would trust me enough to share whatever it is that’s eating him up.

Dash is still not back, and it makes me a little more anxious about his whereabouts. I’ve tried calling him, but it continues to go to voicemail, and my texts are going unread. I want to talk to Nycto about it, but I’m worried if Void found out, it could be misconstrued as something that’s just not there.

As I sit in the main bunker and eat my lunch at a table, Stacey walks in, happy as ever. She’s carrying a parcel, and she slides it across the table toward me. “Delivery for you, Ivy.”

“For me?”

“You not expecting anything?”

“Don’t think so. But I was online shopping the other night, maybe I ended up buying something in my sleepy haze.”

“Ah, the old sleep-shopping trick. Done it many a time. I gotta get back to the bar, but I hope it’s something good, at least.”

I snort out a laugh. “Probably something completely useless,” I tell her as she walks off.

After pulling the tape off, I crack open the lid. A red rose sits on top of some sexy black lingerie. My eyes widen, and I try but fail to stop my lips from turning upward in approval. Taking out the rose, I bring it to my nose and smell it.

I had no idea Void had a romantic side.

I grab the string of the lacy top and pull it out of the box. My brow furrows as something wet coats my fingers. Looking at my skin, I see a pattern of red liquid. “What in the…”

I lift the piece of lingerie out, then scream, shoving the box away from me. It falls off the end of the table and drops to the floor, the bloodied heart landing with a sickening thump, then rolling a few times before coming to a stop.

My hands… there’s still blood on them.

I stand, wiping my bloodied hands on my leggings in an attempt to get the liquid off me as Void, Atomic, Ominous, and Nycto rush over.

Void hurries to my side, but I throw the rose at him, then shove him in the chest. “Why? Why would you send me this? Whose heart is that? Is that Dash?” I scream at him, pushing him again and gaining everyone’s attention.

Frown lines crease Void’s forehead, but he doesn’t say anything. Instead, he simply looks from me to the heart on the floor.

“Fuck you, Void! I get we’re both twisted, but killing Dash is not okay. He was my friend.” I storm off, tears streaming down my face.

I need to get away from him. Now.

I can’t believe he did this.

I make my way to my room, but the tears won’t stop falling. I know Void and I are in this discovery phase of our relationship, but that? That shit’s taking it too damn far.

Dash was my friend—the best friend I had here, aside from my sister—and Void killed him.

Because of me.

I’m not sure I can ever forgive Void for this.

And though I didn’t wield the blade, I’m not sure I’ll ever forgive myself for this.

VOID

Adrenaline spikes, not only because Ivy has taken off, believing this is from me, but because it’s obviously another package from the same assholes who are targeting me. Now, they’re coming for Ivy.

“Atomic, grab the heart and do some testing,” Nycto calls out. “You and Nerve do whatever you need to do to figure out who or what it belongs to. Could be a fucking pig for all we know.” He turns to me. “Void, you need to get your head in the game. Snap out of it, now.”

“This is from the same people who are targeting me. I’m sure of it,” I grunt out.

“It’s a threat… a warning. You need to take Ivy and go to a safe house. Talk to Hurricane from NOLA, use theirs. It’s far enough away to get you out of town for a while. And Destin is halfway between the NOLA clubhouse and Tampa, so if you meet any shit, either of the clubs can come to you. You and Ivy are obviously not safe here.”

I roll my shoulders. “Yeah. First, I gotta convince Ivy.”

“First step is telling her you didn’t send it. After that, it should be easy, brother. And if not, throw her over your shoulder and put her in the trunk. Better she’s alive and hissin’ like a rattlesnake than dead.”

I grip his shoulder, then spin, taking off for the stairs.

“Someone get Dash on the line, make sure he’s okay,” I hear Nycto call out as I run toward the Cell.

Ivy’s sobs echo through the Chamber as I enter, and it rips my heart apart because she assumes I could betray her like that, but also because she’s that bent up over Dash.

It stings.

But I have to accept that, in some way, she cares about him.

As I walk into her room, her eyes lift to meet mine, and her lip curls. Instantly, she launches one of her “calming” candles at me, spewing a tirade that I only half understand. I swerve out of the way as she unleashes.

“Bastardo, no te metas conmigo!” “Dash was my friend! I get you’re jealous that he has feelings for me, but killing him and sending me his heart? What in the actual fuck were you thinking, you hijo de puta!” “You egotistical, maniacal, fucked-up coward! Urgh!” She throws another candle my way, this one barely missing, then she flops on the bed in a huff.

As she sobs into her pillow, I walk over and sit beside her to pull her into my arms. She tries to pull away, but I won’t let her.

“It wasn’t me, Ivy,” I whisper.

She sniffles, stopping her aggressive movements as she glimpses up at me. Wiping under her eyes, recognition clicks over her features. “The box wasn’t from you?”

I shake my head. “It was a threat.”

She pulls back, her eyes widen as she gasps. “Shit! What does it mean?”

“It means we need to leave. Go somewhere safe.”

“But won’t whoever sent it just find us?”

I tense but try not to give myself away. “Hopefully not.”

Her eyes begin to water again, her bottom lip trembling. “But Dash… Was the heart…”

I reach out for her hand. “We aren’t sure whose it is. Atomic and Nerve are checking it out now. It might not be Dash.”

She closes her eyes and lets out a long exhale. “Fucking hell!” She sniffles again, then looks right at me. “I’m sorry I blamed you. The lingerie, the rose… I thought—”

“It’s okay. I’m not mad, but I do need you to pack some shit. We’ll get on the road as soon as we can.”

“How long will we be gone?”

My muscles seize. “Sweet thing, I have no idea. I’m kinda winging this.”

A pained expression crosses her face. “I’ve only ever been apart from Eva when I went to Tony’s, and I don’t want to be away from her again.”

“Ivy… the threat is to you and me. I don’t know who it is, but the targets are clear. We need to get out of here. For your safety, and for Eva’s. We need to leave.”

She wipes under her eyes. “What do you mean? How do you know it’s for us both?”

“I received some packages as well. This last one was obviously aimed at you.” Rolling my shoulders, I exhale. “Seeing as whoever this is came for us both, we need to make the move and leave, for everyone’s safety.”

She scrunches up her face like this saddens her, but nods. “Okay. Can I at least say goodbye?”

I lean in, planting a kiss on her forehead. “We’re leaving in fifteen. You need to pack and be ready. You can say goodbye then.”

“Okay,” she whispers, her voice barely audible.

“I’m gonna go pack. I’ll meet you upstairs once you’re done.” I lean in, pressing my lips to hers gently, then pull back.

She bobs her head in agreement, then stands and starts moving around her room. I rush to the stairs, making my way to my bedroom to grab my go-bag and some essential shit I know we’re going to need, including the small zipper-pouch of cash I have stashed behind my dresser.

I can’t help but think of what Ivy said. She hasn’t really been apart from Eva before.

I’m going to need to be a rock for Ivy through this.

I know I can do that.

I will always be a rock for Ivy.

Her cornerstone.

She may struggle with this, but my top priority is keeping her safe.

This threat, whatever it is, is coming for us both. I need to do whatever I can to keep her protected. Because if anything happened to her, I wouldn’t be able to forgive myself.

After packing my shit and placing a call to Hurricane at NOLA, I head out into the main bunker to see Ivy and Eva locked together in a tight embrace, tears streaming down both their faces.

Nycto stands by, ready to catch his Old Lady if she breaks.

I need to be there for Ivy if she does too.

Hoisting my duffle over my shoulder, I walk to them and place my hand on Ivy’s back to comfort her. “You ready to go?”

She cries, shaking her head. “Just another few minutes?”

Nycto reaches out, grabs Eva, and slowly pulls her away from Ivy.

Eva sobs so hard she can hardly control herself as she clings to Nycto like he’s her lifeline. “You fucking look after her, Void,” Eva warns. “You hear me? You fucking protect her!”

I wrap my arm around Ivy, and she cuddles into my side. “With my life,” I reply.

“You know the drill,” Nycto states.

“I do. I’ll signal when we arrive.”

“Take some cash. You can’t use any plastic in your travels.”

“Already packed.”

Nycto holds Eva tighter and nods, giving me the go-ahead. “C’mon, sweet thing, time to go.” With my arm around Ivy’s shoulders, I turn us and walk for the exit.

“One more thing!” she calls over her shoulder. “Make sure Ominous looks after my crop. If he kills it, I’ll kill him!” Ivy calls out to Nycto, making him chuckle.

“I’ll make sure he’s fully aware.”

Ivy peers over her shoulder, keeping eye contact with her sister as we walk out of the clubhouse. “Te amo, Eva!” she calls, failing to hold back more tears.

“Te amo también! Muchísimo!” Eva calls back.

I lean in and plant a kiss on Ivy’s head as I lead us to a pickup truck. After throwing my duffle in the rear of the cage, I grab Ivy’s and throw it in too, then exhale. “I’m so fucking sorry you have to leave her, Ivy, but it’s the only way.”

She sniffles as she opens the passenger side door and slides in. “I know.” She slams the door shut, making me tense with the sheer brute force she used. But I inhale a deep breath, then slide into the driver’s side. Ivy stares blankly out the window as Nycto comes out with Whiskey to see us off. I nod at him, reverse out, then head for the gate. West lets us straight through, and we’re off, heading for Destin, just over halfway between Tampa and New Orleans—to the NOLA Defiance safe house.

Ivy’s checked out, a coldness in her demeanor. She’s angry—not necessarily at me, but at the situation. I’ll let her calm down, but when we get to the safe house, she’ll have to pep herself up, because we’re going to have company.

Whether she likes it or not.