1. Chapter One

Chapter One

Mackenzie

“ I need you…” My words trail off, broken by a sob that wrecks my heart.

“I’m on my way, babe.” The jangle of keys sounds through the phone, followed by rustling and a door closing.

“Thank you.” I sniff, trying to push down the never ending tears.

“But, babe, I need to know what I’m walking into here. Stay on the phone with me while I drive. What happened?” The engine of Spencer’s car rumbles to life, and there’s more shuffling as he places his cell in the holder—at least, that’s what I’m assuming. It’s something I’ve seen him do plenty of times before when I’ve been in the car with him. His tone is calm and soothing, and once again, I’m so grateful to have him as my best friend.

The words are stuck in my throat and I want to believe this is all a horrible nightmare, that I didn’t read the letter stating Aleko is not the father of my baby. That I didn’t throw those words at him full of spite and hatred. That I don’t need to leave this place for all our sanities.

Spencer stays silent as I quietly sob for I don’t know how long, doing what I can to contain the overwhelming heaviness spreading through my limbs.

“I…It…” I take a deep, steadying breath, one stuttered from all the crying, but now that I’m talking to Spencer, it’s a little easier. “The baby isn’t Aleko’s.” Oh God, just saying the words has tears streaming down my cheeks once more. My whole face feels almost numb from the emotion.

“Oh, sweetheart. Did you tell him?”

“More like screamed it at him right before he left for New York without saying goodbye a couple of hours ago. Oh, then he locked me in my room.” I huff a laugh through my tears, even though this isn’t the slightest bit funny.

“He what?”

“Yup. So I need to leave. We’re staging a break-out.” I’m aware my decision is rash, but I feel like this is for the best. Aleko and I raced forward with this whole relationship thing with the speed of light. I mean, what do we really know about each other?

Spencer laugh-snorts down the phone. “Of course we are. Your man’s cleaning crew did a great job at freshening the cabin up after your last stay, so we’ll go there. You gonna meet me by the gates or am I coming in? What’s the plan? Because I know you have one. When we’re settled is when we’ll discuss what a bitch move it was to tell him like that, but we’ll get you outta there first.”

Whatever I did to be blessed with a best friend like this, I’d do it again a thousand times over. He doesn’t question my madness—and make no mistake, that’s what this is—he just blindly supports me in everything. I can only hope that, one day, I can do the same thing for him. Well, not exactly the same things because we’ve done some fucked up shit over the last few months, but if that’s what he needs, I’ll be there.

“I’m still locked in. Bash is just outside the door.” I take a moment to breathe, because my body is still on a comedown from sobbing so hard, my cheeks streaked with drying tears and my vision a little blurry. “Grab Mom on your way in, bring her to my room. They should keep it unlocked if you’re here. Then we’ll go from there.” I don’t actually have a fully formed plan yet, but I’m working on it. All I know is that I have to leave. I need the time to get my head on straight and being surrounded by all the things has just been another excuse to pretend the real world doesn’t exist.

“Okay, I’m coming down the road to the compound now.” The tick-tick of his turn signal is calming, and suddenly, I don’t feel such despair at my situation, knowing he’s so close. “Waving to the guys in the garages…avoiding the motorcycles…pulling up out front. I’m gonna hang up, babe. Be with you in two shakes.”

The line goes dead and I breathe a stuttered sigh of relief before finding a bag to stuff some underwear into. The prez’s wife, Vanessa, gave me a shitload of maternity clothes, mostly dresses and sweats, so I put that to the side to take with me too. It’s difficult one-handed, with the other clinging onto my crutch, but it’s doable, and with my meager possessions, it doesn’t take long.

Muffled voices just outside the door make my heart race in anticipation just before the click of the lock sounds and it opens. In rushes Spencer, his arms held out for me before he crushes me inside them.

It’s like the floodgates open all over again and I squeeze him right back as tears spring free once more.

I can sense other bodies in the room, so I lift my head to find Mom standing there, eyes wide, confusion and sorrow written all over her face. With one last squeeze around Spence’s waist, I hobble on my crutch toward my mom, allowing her to wrap me in her embrace next. I can’t control the sobs even a little, and I don’t know how long we stay there. At some point, Spence stands beside us and holds us both.

Eventually, I take yet another deep breath and pull away, moving to sit on the edge of the bed. The pounding in my head is so thick it’s making my eyes heavy, or that could just be all the tears.

“Darlin’, what’s goin’ on?” My mom’s soft, soothing Southern drawl is everything I’ve wanted to hear for the last several years, and now that I have it, I still don’t feel complete.

I look to Spencer because saying the words out loud again is too difficult. He responds with a wink and a light smile, letting me know he’s got this.

“The baby isn’t Aleko’s. They’ve had a fight. She wants to move into my cabin. I think those are the main points you need for now.”

Mom’s eyes widen, brimming with unshed tears as she looks at me, but I think my own tears are beginning to dry up. My body just can’t cope with any more.

“Oh, darlin’. I’m so sorry. But do you think leaving is the best idea?”

All this talk is making me a little jittery, because if any of the brothers find out what I’m planning, they’ll put a stop to it straight away. Luckily, it seems as though the prospect, Bash, has disappeared from his post outside my room.

“I have to, Mom. Being here is too much. I’m a prisoner all over again. I promised myself I wouldn’t allow that to happen after…Jake.” Determination begins to take hold and I’m more certain than ever that this is what I need to do.

This baby isn’t Aleko’s baby. I would never expect him to want to live with me the way we have been. His obsession with me seemed to grow with the news of my pregnancy, and I don’t want him to feel pressured in any way to stand by me through this.

There are a thousand reasons running through my brain as to why I shouldn’t leave, but there are almost as many for why I should.

He locked me in this room like a prisoner.

Me leaving gives him the chance to let me go, because if I’m here, he’ll feel obligated.

The baby isn’t his.

I’ve done and said unforgivable things.

It’s my fault that Grinder is still in the hospital.

The list goes on and on…and on and on…

Yes, I’m mid pity-party for one.

I’m such a bitch.

“I really like it here. The people are wonderful, so welcoming, it’s like a little community. I honestly don’t know how I’d fare in the outside world anymore.” My mom’s head lowers a little. “Especially after, you know, the incident with the vice president.”

Okay, so Mom has every right to be holding her own pity party too, but I’m kinda proud of her for being so open about it. We all kind of swept it under the rug a little to avoid triggering her, so I’m thinking this is progress. I sigh. The progress is because of her environment and all the time she’s been spending with Sabrina. Albeit silent time.

“I understand, Mom. I—”

“Sweet girl of mine, there is nothing for you to understand. This is my issue. I’m just talking through my worries. When do we leave? Should I pack a bag?” I’m not sure when we all sat down, but mom now stands, stepping forward from the armchair, and bends to kiss my cheek. “Just let me know the plan, darlin’. Okay?”

Tears slide freely down my cheeks once more, but this time, it has nothing to do with me and everything to do with my brave and courageous mom.

After everything she’s been through…

There’s a part of me that thinks I’m making a mistake, but I’m pushing that deep down and trying desperately to replace it with the common sense I know I need. Following my damn heart is not an option, but neither is listening to reason. My mind is already made up.

Nodding to my mom, I smile. “I still have a stash of cash beneath the floorboards at Spence’s cabin. So if we need anything new, I can buy it, but pack a small bag of essentials. We need to keep this between the three of us for now though, so try not to let Sabrina see what you’re doing. We’ll have to wait for an opportunity to leave, so you have time to be selective.”

“You got it, darlin’.” Mom nods her head knowingly before leaving the room.

Spence turns in his chair to look at me sitting on the edge of my bed, and he smirks. “Never a dull day in the life of Mackenzie Wilson, ey?”

The visit from Spence turned into an all-day affair because Bash perched himself outside my door like a damn guard dog, making me feel akin to an evil villain who’d had their plans foiled. So, we ate in my room, watched some K-drama on TV, then settled down for a ‘sleepover.’ One of the Khaos Khunts, Violet, dropped by with an air-mattress and some bedding for Spence, but that’s still piled in the corner of the room because the bed is big enough for us both. Bash disappeared a few minutes at a time for a few trips to the bathroom or for food, but it wasn’t until another of the Khunts, Eden, came to offer him a beer and a blow-job that we really had our opening.

When Spence and I discussed my plan over lunch, I hadn’t considered that Bash would still feel the need to babysit me tonight seeing as Spencer is here, so Eden turning up and dragging him, no doubt, to her room on the other side of the building is a blessing.

I send Mom the thumbs up text that we decided earlier would be our signal, and my gut churns with a mixture of guilt and self righteousness.

There’s a gentle knock on my door before it opens and Mom peeks her head through the gap.

“Are we ready for my second break out?” She grins, but it doesn’t quite reach her eyes. It’s clear that she’s struggling with something, but maybe the money I have saved will pay for some help—not the kind where she ends up locked up again, more like a weekly visit to a therapist or something. She places her bag beside mine, against the wall by the door.

“We are. Spence is gonna head out first and will text me if it’s all clear before he gets the car started. As soon as we get his text, we go. Straight across the hall, down the stairs, through the lobby and out the front door.” My head still feels foggy from all the crying earlier today, but it’s nothing a little sleep won’t cure. I mirror Mom’s grin, putting on my happy face. The one that says I’m worry-free, not a care in the world, and it’s all total bullshit.

Again, that small part of me that thinks this is a bad idea tells me I’m being impulsive, but I tamp it down because I can’t—and won’t—change my mind now.

“It’s on like Donkey Kong.” Spence winks and pokes his head through the doorway, looking to either side of the doorway for any signs of people. Without glancing back, he bends to pick up our bags from the floor and slides through the gap, then he’s gone.

“You sure you want to do this, darlin’?” Mom sits beside me on the edge of the bed and lays an arm across my shoulders.

No.

“Yeah.” Standing, I grip my crutch and pick up my cell from the bedside table just as it begins vibrating. The screen goes blank before I can fully read Spence’s message because the damn battery died, but I got the gist.

We’re good to go.

It’s raining heavily when Mom and I eventually get outside. The cold night air bites at my skin, but we head straight for Spencer’s car near the exit. The garages are closed down for business, seeing as it’s two in the morning, and we have been lucky enough to not come across anyone yet. Mom grips onto my elbow as we move faster, and I open the back door for her before getting into the passenger side.

“This what you really wanna do?” Spence’s hands are poised to start the car and he raises both brows as he looks at me.

Again, no. But it’s what I have to do.

I nod, incapable of voicing what I want because of how unsure I am.

“Then let’s go, ladies.”