Chapter Seven

Andrew

“We have to get them out of there. We have to.” Cillian paced the room then slapped his hand on the wall next to the screen. “We can’t just sit here.”

“We’re not just sitting here,” I said. “We’re working out a plan?”

“What fucking plan? We’ve been talking since we got back. Words ain’t gonna get Finn and Grant outta the nick. Me Ma is gonna go nuts.”

Dalton sat at the table with his head in his hands. “Maybe Mitch will get some information, while he’s on duty, like.”

I nodded. We could hope. But still, it wasn’t like our resident cop could break the guys out. They’d been caught in a drug and sex slave raid, all carrying—unless they’d been smart and tossed their weapons away at the first sound of trouble.

My phone rang. I picked it up. “It’s Mitch.”

All eyes went to me.

I clicked it to speaker. “Hey, what you got?”

“Not good, our guys are being held. There were thirty-four Albanian girls, all coked up, bad fucking way, all of them, two are in hospital.”

“Thirty-four?” Phil’s mouth dropped open. “Fuck.”

“And the others?” I asked.

“They’ve been stashed in some old hotel, not much better than the warehouse. God only knows what will happen to them.”

“They need rehab.”

“I know, but the state ain’t going to pay for that, not when they’re all here illegally in the first place.”

I squeezed my eyes closed, knowing he was right. “What have they got Finn and Grant on?”

“From what I can tell, just being there is their most serious offence. They weren’t engaging with the girls, hadn’t paid for anything. Four other bastards were, though, sick fucks, they were brought in by the cops.”

“Do they have any leads on Ranson’s killer?” We’d had a close shave getting away. Too close.

“Killers, in the pleural, that’s all they’re sure of,” Mitch went on, “that it was more than one attacker, but I’ll be honest, not much love lost there, the cops hated Ranson, knew what he was and what he did. Hey…I’ve got to go.”

“What can we do?”

“Raise some cash, fast. We’re gonna need a shit-hot lawyer for the guys and we’ve got a ton of girls to put through private rehab.”

“Okay, on it.”

The phone went dead.

“Thirty-four girls to put through rehab.” Dalton let out a whistle. That’s a lot of money. It’s at least a hundred grand each for private, and then they’ll need a startup package or flights home.

“And shit-hot lawyers aren’t cheap.” Phil sat back and folded his thick arms.

“How much do you reckon?” I directed at Cillian who was tapping on a calculator.

After a moment he sighed. “Four million or thereabouts.”

“Jesus Christ.” I stood and paced to the window, stared out at the darkness. I gave what I could to Galahad but I hadn’t gone into teaching criminology for the money, it was because of my passion for the subject. I couldn’t contribute financially any more than I already did.

“Jamie? We could call him?” Phil suggested.

I sighed. We’d relied heavily on Jamie this last year for shortfalls. Asking for more just didn’t sit right with me.

“I don’t see what choice we have,” Dalton said.

“Call him,” Cillian snapped at me. “Call him, Professor, sort this out.”

I turned, hands on hips. “I will, of course I will, but is there another way?”

“We don’t need another way if he agrees.” Cillian shrugged; he was getting more impatient and irritated by the second. A flush had risen on his cheeks, a sign he was getting ready to punch or kick something.

“We have a common bond.” I looked around the room and took a deep breath. “And that bond is a soul-deep belief in justice, equality, and respect, right?”

They all nodded.

“And I just think we’re taking the piss asking Jamie again, it’s disrespectful, it’s not fair, and besides, four million, he’s not going to be able to hide that from Daddy Dearest, is he? That’ll raise a lot of questions.”

Silence descended.

I sat heavily.

“So do we know of any other rich motherfuckers?” Phil asked.

Again, we were all quiet.

And then Chelsea’s face popped into my head. The spoilt little rich girl that had my testosterone raging and my cock springing to attention every time she was near.

“What are you thinking?” Cillian pointed at me. “You’ve got an idea, Professor, haven’t you? I can tell. It’s written on your face.”

I nodded, hardly believing what I was about to say.

“Tell us.” Phil stood. “And let’s get on with this.”

“There’s a girl…a student,” I managed then cleared my throat. There’d be no going back once I’d said it. Once the words were out there, the guys would be like a terrier after a rabbit. “Her father would be good for four million.”

“And…” Dalton rolled his hand, encouraging me to go on.

“And…” I said. “He’d pay that to get her back.” My heart rate picked up, my underarms heated, and my cock pressed against my pants. “If we kidnap her, keep her captive, he’ll pay up fast, I’m sure of it.”

“Fuck, that’s hardcore.” Dalton stood. “But it could work.”

“She wouldn’t get hurt,” I frowned. “She’s an innocent, you know.”

“Of course.” Phil nodded seriously. “If we hurt her it would make us as bad as the bastards we hunt down.”

“Exactly.” I squeezed the bridge of my nose. What the hell had I just done?

“So that’s the start of a plan,” Cillian said, a faint smile playing on his lips. “Now let’s get down to the details.”

* * * *

Chelsea

“Vince! Vince! Vince!” I yelled as I peered out of my bedroom window. “What the fuck is going on?”

Twenty shiny Harley Davidsons carrying big mean-looking hairy bikers were crunching up our long gravel driveway.

“Ah, they’re here.” Vince scooted past my open bedroom door, dragging on his leather jacket.

“But…why the hell are they here? Did you invite them?” I raced after him and followed him down the stairs.

“Miss Chelsea, what is happening?” Tina was standing in the entrance to the kitchen, wide-eyed and twisting a towel in her hands.

“It’s okay, go do something out of the way. Vince will see to it.”

“Mr. Taylor will not be happy.” She appeared utterly terrified. “He will shout and shout.”

“I’ll handle him.” I nodded in the direction of the laundry room as the engines were killed. “Go, if you’re scared, go, but it will be all right. I promise.”

She scurried away, and I hoped to hell it wouldn’t kick off. I had no idea if The Beasts had turned up uninvited or if Vince had called them.

Vince flung open the front door. “Welcome to my humble abode.” He spread his arms wide.

“Hey, man, this is a cool fucking place.”

“Yeah, you didn’t say you were fucking royalty.”

After a barrage of backslapping and grunts, I was surrounded by huge guys who smelled of tobacco, leather, and petrol.

“Who’s the pretty?”

“This your secret girl?” A tall guy with long dark hair and a star tattoo on his right cheek peered at me.

Vince laughed. “No, that’s Chelsea, my little sister. Keep your dirty paws off and your mind out of the gutter.”

Star tattoo guy snapped back, hands aloft. “Ah, I see, off fucking limits.”

“So off limits, consider she’s your own damn sister.” Vince huffed and caught my arm. “Haven’t you got to be somewhere?”

“Why? You want me out of the house so your mates can mess it up?”

He scowled. “No. Why would I do that?”

“To get at Dad?” I shrugged. “’Cause they need cash and you’re their new credit card.”

He glanced over his shoulder. “One, I wouldn’t mess this place up because it’s your home, too, it’s where you live and I like you being here, safe. And two, they don’t need my cash, they’ve got their own lines of revenue.”

“So why are they here?”

“They need a place to crash for a few hours, they’ve just driven two hundred miles.”

I tipped my head, not quite believing him.

“And I told you, they’re gonna help me go through what I know about Dad and that night.”

“So I should stay, if you’re talking about my mum and my dad.”

“No.” He held my shoulders. “It’s not nice.”

“But I want to help get to the bottom of what happened.” Did I, though? Because that would mean there was a chance my mother could have been saved and that my father was a killer.

“If Dad arrives home it would be for the best if you’re not here,” Vince said. “Trust me.”

I swallowed, my throat dry. I was torn between wanting to stay and wanting to go to the Professor’s afternoon lecture. I wanted to sit in the shadows, touch myself, and remember him fucking me from behind. I was sure I’d come the moment I saw him, the moment he started speaking, I was still so turned on by the knowledge he’d been inside me.

“Chelsea?” Vince frowned.

“What…er…yes, you’re right. I have got to get to uni. I’ll see you later.”

“I doubt it, I’ll be gone by the time you get back.”

“Gone? For another year?”

“No, not for that long. I promise.”

I threw my arms around his neck and pressed in close. “Be careful, it’s not Dad I don’t trust it’s that Marl Johnson. If he thinks you’ve got something on him, he might get nasty.”

Vince laughed and pulled back. “He can try, but he’ll have to get through this lot first, my new brothers.”

The bikers were making themselves at home. Pouring coffee, rooting in the fridge, helping themselves to the cookies Tina had made that morning.

“I guess,” I said and reached for my tote bag. “But still, be careful, and don’t make a mess, that’s not fair on Tina.”

Vince smiled suddenly, the first I’d seen from him. “We won’t, and I’ll go check on her now.”

“Good idea, she’s hiding in the laundry room.”

I arrived at university and went straight to the lecture theater.

The professor had already started, and I sneaked in and took a seat at the back away from everyone else.

He glanced at me, paused for a heartbeat, and then continued.

My entire body was suddenly alive. It was as though an electrical current was racing through me. He was so big and gorgeous and masterful. He held everyone’s attention, and I had never been more infatuated with anyone in my life. My clit was pulsing just from the vibrations of his voice, and my nipples were hard points beneath my t-shirt.

“Hey.”

I gasped and turned around. Ness.

“You okay?” She studied me. “You seem all out of sorts.”

“I’m fine.” I gulped. I’d been about to finger myself; thank goodness I hadn’t started. “Just… you know…” I gestured to Andrew. “This is important for my thesis, I need to take notes.”

“Er, yeah, sure.”

I grabbed a pen and opened my notepad, stared at the professor even though I was hardly listening to what he was saying.

After a few minutes, Ness passed me a slip of paper.

Did you go to the Sure Thing?

I turned it over and wrote

No

She downturned her mouth, pulling a sad face.

I shrugged. I didn’t want to talk about it. All I wanted was to be alone with the object of my desires, and this time I would make sure he couldn’t resist me. He’d have no choice but to fuck me until we were both exhausted. And my ace card…

To tell him that he already had.