Chapter 14

Chapter 14

The Monster Inside

Psycho

I plucked my phone from my jeans pocket. "Yeah."

"Psycho, it's Hawk. Just calling for an update."

I glanced at Nera, who was watching me curiously. I was grateful for the distraction of the server asking her if she liked the wine and if she wanted more.

"Not much to update. We got sketches but the place was cleared out by the time we tracked down the house where they were holding the girls. I've put out some feelers, and I've got my guy scouring the dark web for buyers."

"Good. My guy Duke told me the girl contacted his cousin, she said she was fine, but she hasn't been sent back to Tampa yet. Why's that?"

Who the fuck was he to question it? "Because she doesn't want to."

"You sure? You're not forcing her to stay, are you?"

"Are you…" Nera's head popped up from where she'd been looking at her phone. I lowered my voice to a stage whisper. "Are you fucking questioning me? Why would I force her? You know we don't get down like that. Stop being so goddamn paranoid, Hawk."

He huffed. "Fine. I was just checking."

"Once we find these fuckers, I'll let you know." When I feel like it. I ended the call.

Nera had the wine glass to her lips and she smirked at me. "Aw, is that big, bad biker worried about me? I'm so touched." She put her hand on her heart.

I couldn't help but grin back. She was so damn cute. "Something like that. Amanda told her cousin you contacted her. He was just following up, I guess."

"That whole club seems like trouble," she said, setting her glass down.

I shook my head. "They're not too bad. They're just careless and sometimes stupid. Which is why Hawk is always paranoid and has the pigs watching him."

I usually didn't like calling cops pigs. They were just doing their jobs… however, there were a few dirty ones and those ones were definitely pigs. The ones we paid off to the look the other way were the filthiest of all, but they served a purpose.

The check arrived and I paid it quickly. I grabbed Nera's hand and led her outside, where we walked around the quieter parts of the Quarter, avoiding the super touristy areas.

"I don't know why I hadn't visited here before," she said, looking around. "It really is pretty, especially at night."

"We'll have to come back during the day and go for a walk along the Mississippi. Watch the riverboats," I said, squeezing her hand.

"Why can't we go down there now?" she asked.

I shrugged. "You're right, we can."

We left Jackson Square and crossed the small street next to Café Du Monde and walked over the hill and down toward the water. There were a few lighted boats out on the river, the sounds from the patrons having a good time floating on the breeze into our ears. It was a perfect night, too. Late spring was like that down here, I'd noticed. Until the hell months hit, it was a great place to be.

We held hands as we strolled, and she would point at things and ask questions, and I would answer her the best I could. I was no native, but I'd learned a lot in the over two years I'd lived here. Not that I usually had time for leisurely activities.

We stopped walking to sit on a bench. I stared at Nera's profile as she looked out over the water, lights sparkling in her eyes. When she turned to look at me, I put my hand on her face and leaned in, brushing my lips gently over hers. "I'm going to kiss you," I whispered.

She nodded.

"Say you want me to," I breathed.

"Kiss me, Sheppard," she demanded on a whisper.

I felt her smile as my lips met hers. She kissed me back softly, and the rising beast in my pants immediately wanted to come out to play. I wanted to kiss her harder, swirl my tongue with hers, but she seemed content to sit and kiss like this. I ran my thumb along her jaw, relishing in her small sighs when we came up for air.

She surprised me by standing and then straddling my lap. She looped her arms around my neck and continued the kiss. I had to stop my hips from thrusting up to meet her core, where I wished she was naked so I could sink into her heat. I smelled her arousal and my wolf began howling inside, wanting to come out and fuck.

But I was no savage, so I tamped him down and broke the kiss. "Want to get out of here?"

"Yeah."

It took over thirty minutes to get back to LaPlace from the heart of New Orleans, but the ride on my bike was perfect. I made her wear the brain bucket while I went without. She jokingly called me a hypocrite. I didn't care. Her safety was more important than mine. As we'd proven, we would heal from just about anything.

Except a motorcycle versus semi, when Demon's head came off his body in one swipe. There's no coming back from that.

I turned my thoughts back to Nera. I parked in front of the clubhouse. "Do you want to go in and have a drink?" I pointed at Rumble." Or do you want to go back to your room?" I glanced at the front door to the clubhouse.

"How about your place?" she suggested, her lip between her teeth.

"You sure?" I asked, knowing where this was going. My wolf whimpered and clawed at me, wanting out.

She sucked in the side of her bottom lip. "I'm sure."

I hadn't killed the engine yet, so I zoomed off toward my house, my dick already awake and ready to play. So presumptuous of me.

I parked my bike and we ran up the steps to my front door, tumbling inside as we kissed. I couldn't believe I'd only known this woman a couple of weeks and we were already about to hook up.

She continued to kiss me after I locked my front door. I picked her up under her ass and carried her to my bedroom. She kicked off her cowboy boots, and after dropping her on the bed, I leaned down and flipped up her dress, looking at her soaked panties hiding that sweet pussy.

I unbuttoned my pants and slid them down over my hips, toeing off my shoes and climbing on the bed like a hungry wolf. Nera watched me with an unreadable expression, so I tugged on her pink lace panties and slid them down instead of ripping them off like I wanted to. Her cunt glistened in the light from the window, her juices showing she was ready for me. My cock ached with need behind my boxers.

"Just a taste can't hurt," I murmured, licking my lips and ready to devour her.

Her legs stiffened and I paused, wondering what was wrong, but she said nothing. I leaned down and spread her lips apart lapping her juicy pussy with my tongue. I looked up to see her reaction, and it looked as though she had tears standing in her eyes, but she closed them quickly, then leaned her head back.

"Your cunt is so delicious," I murmured against it, licking and lapping at her tiny bundle of nerves. I pushed her legs apart further and devoured her, spearing two fingers inside her tight channel. I felt her tremble and let out a small whimper, then she groaned softly as she came.

I quickly shoved my boxers down and kicked out of them, my cock springing free. She sat up and threw her shirt off, revealing her perfect small breasts. I kissed them as my cock rubbed on her thigh.

We were kneeling on the bed now, face to face, kissing. Her tongue came out to play and mingled with mine and when she broke the kiss, I had a strong desire to bite her—to mark her—but I tamped it down. No way was she my mate. Right?

But deep down I knew I was probably denying the inevitable. I closed my eyes as she ran her hands and mouth down my chest, stomach, and then latched onto my cock, licking and sucking me, causing me to hiss and growl.

She bobbed up and down using her hand to guide her mouth. I looked down at her. Her eyes were closed, and she seemed to be enjoying it, but she also seemed closed-off and quiet. Maybe she was shy during sex? I would be changing that.

I closed my eyes, my hands massaging her hair as she sucked me off. I again wondered why I had this strong desire to mark her as mine. I could smell her musky arousal as she pleasured me and I had an intense need to come inside her, fill her with my seed and sink my teeth into her shoulder. Just the thought had me—

My balls tightened and I immediately came, shooting cum into her small mouth.

"Fuck," I murmured.

I was about to kiss her, but without a word, she got up, went into the bathroom, and spit it out, used the toilet, then came back and got dressed.

"Can you take me back to my room now please?"

What the fuck?

I was going to demand she stay here so I could fuck her properly. Instead. I'd blown my load, unable to hold it in. Guessed she was done with my ass.

"I'm not doing that!" I told Uncle Jimmy, setting my jaw and narrowing my eyes at him. "It's not right."

"You have a warped fucking sense of what's right or wrong," he snapped, punching me in the mouth. Thankfully, at eighteen, I was already a big motherfucker, and his assault didn't do much except split my lip and enrage me.

He pointed at the vampire standing across from me, being held by his arms by two of my wolf club brothers. "Do it now, son. I'm not fucking around here."

I eyed the buck knife in his fist and watched as he handed it to me, hilt first. I took it and used it to point at the vampire glaring daggers at us. "You seriously want me to kill someone?"

"It's not a someone, it's a filthy leech. You'd be saving more lives by taking this thing's."

The vampire's eyes turned black and he hissed at Uncle Jimmy.

My uncle went over and punched him in the mouth. "Don't. Fucking. Hiss. At. Me."

The vampire spat blood and a tooth out onto the concrete floor of the garage where we were holed up.

Uncle Jimmy told me he'd found this one feeding from a prostitute. Who fucking cares? What business of the Hellcats' was it?

"Blood in, blood out," he reminded me, since he was forcing me to join their stupid MC that I honestly wanted no part of. Neither did my cousin.

I looked at Jake—Trigger—and he just stared at me with an unreadable expression.

"Kill me and get it over with or release me. All this hemming and hawing like a bunch of fucking hens is boring me, you filthy dogs," the vampire hissed.

My uncle laughed—he actually laughed—and pushed me toward him. "Finish him." He gestured toward the two holding him back and they let him go. The vampire lunged at me with his stupid super speed and got me on the ground quickly. But I was bigger and stronger. I bucked him off and grabbed the knife I'd dropped. We began to circle like a couple of rabid dogs. He again used his super speed to lunge at me, taking a bite out of my neck.

I howled in pain as my blood dribbled out of his mouth.

"Fucking disgusting," he spat.

"You did not just bite me!" I snapped, lunging for him. I cut him in the pec muscle but he moved too fast so it was just a swipe.

He moved fast again, this time knocking me down. I knew he wouldn't kill me—my uncle was only doing this for entertainment purposes because he and the others were sadistic fucks—but this asshole was seriously pissing me off.

I wished it was a full moon so I could turn and tear him apart with my claws and teeth. All I had now was my knife, strength, and super healing.

With the vamp on top of me, I managed to get the knife into his stomach. He fell back and grappled for it, but I used my palm to push it in deeper. Then I pulled it out and jammed it into his heart. Well, it must not have hit his heart because he hadn't turned to ash like I'd seen other vampires do when they died. It wasn't just the sun that turned them to ash—their very death did that to them.

I punched him the mouth and twisted the knife. His face went from livid to frightened, right before his skin began to turn gray. Then, he slowly crumbled. I snatched the knife and stood as my wolf brothers whooped and hollered, patting me on the back.

"Welcome to the Hellcats, son."

"Fuck off," I told my uncle, skulking out of the garage to go lick my wounds in peace.

I found no pleasure in killing another creature. Undead or not.

I woke from the dream-memory alone in my bed and shook my head. My first kill was one I'd never forget.

There had been so many since then, they started calling me Psycho with the rage I'd fly into on doing it. Didn't matter—vamp, wolf, warlock, even a few humans. Something inside me snapped when the red-hot rage hit. I looked at my empty bed and hoped Nera never saw that side of me.