1. ‘Wildcat’

ONE

‘WILDCAT'

FRANKIE

My God, my club sisters are dropping like damn flies. Never thought I'd see the women I admire and call sisters, and more importantly my chosen family, be able to not only manage but also find men who fit their personalities to a T.

These are the thoughts running through my mind as I've just watched Raven say her I dos to her high school sweetheart, Ash. Never would I have thought our hilarious technology nerd would have fallen for a Montana cowboy, though it makes sense. Raven grew up in Timber-Ghost and her entire family is now right back here in town, well, all around it. Watching them exchange their vows and kiss, it brings back memories I've tried to keep at the back of my mind. Fuck, don't need that shit to surface now, our club has had enough drama to last us all for the rest of our lives. Damn, between Tink, Shadow, Taz, Vixen, Glory, and now Raven, we need a damn break. Or a vacation. Yeah, maybe for the entire club, though that will never happen, there's too many bad people out there inflicting pain on innocents. Seems like I keep picking occupations to try and save people, though this one doesn't have as many rules as my last as a cop.

Hearing everyone clapping, I put my hands together to join the crowd as we celebrate our friend's happy day, which she deserves totally. I mean, she almost died not too long ago because of Ash's asshole father. Moving away from that dark shit on such a beautiful day, I look around and can't believe how we've become such a close-knit community, because at one time no one wanted the Devil's Handmaidens Motorcycle Club anywhere near Timber-Ghost. Over the years, Tink and our club have proven ourselves to the townsfolk. As we all make our way to take a few pictures, I feel someone plow into me from the back. When I turn around, our enforcer has a shit-eating grin on her face. And my God, to see her in a dress blows my damn mind. Shadow is in a dress, I think to myself yet again. Maybe I should pinch myself. And to top it off, there's no blood, brains, or other body matter dripping down the front of her.

"So, you up next there, Wildcat? Let's see if you can live up to your club's name. Some dude would be lucky to have you, sister. Though I haven't seen any wildcat in you lately, or actually ever. Who gave you that name?"

Laughing, I ignore her comment or dig, however I look at it. Little does she know; been there done that. Just that brief thought brings an overwhelming sadness to my heart. I can't change my decisions, even if I wanted to. Life goes on and, unfortunately for me, mine is moving along in Montana and not New York. I do reach out to my family occasionally, though I make sure they have no idea where I'm at. That can't be shared, or I'll be bringing a shit ton of trouble to our neck of the woods. Both good and bad. Especially if my location gets out to Malcolm, he'll lose his ever-loving mind. And I don't want to add any more pain or sorrow to him. I'd done enough the day I walked away, though it was because he pushed me away for good.

Today has been a great day and also a day of hard to remember memories for me. Thank God I have one of the cabins behind Tink's huge ranch home, because tonight I need some quiet and alone time. After I remove my colorful dress and shoes, I change into some comfortable lounge clothes. Once settled, I grab a huge bottle of water since I did some drinking at the reception held here at the ranch. And got to say, Heartbreaker did a phenomenal job with planning and pulling it all together. It was beyond breathtaking with all those wildflowers everywhere, well, because those are what Raven adores and Ash adores her, so he made sure wherever you looked there were wildflowers.

I walk to the bedroom, open the closet, and move stuff around to grab the Rubbermaid that holds my entire life before the Devil's Handmaidens. I drag it to the couch and sit down, pulling the lid off. The memories hit me so hard I have to lean back and take a few breaths. Damn, maybe tonight isn't the right time to go through all this stuff. Last time I spoke to my mom, she told me everyone was doing well and seemed happy. That was all I ever wanted for everyone back home. Taking a deep breath, I lean forward and start to pull shit out and place it on the table in front of the couch. When everything is out, I push the bin over and start to go through it slowly. Pictures of my parents and siblings bring a few tears to my eyes. I gulp some water down as the pictures start to show me growing up, and the first one with both Malcolm and me in it has my eyes let loose. It was our freshman dance and the first one we'd ever gone to, but definitely not our last.

Looking at his handsome face never gets old. Even though he was young, he was always a big kid. By freshman year he was well over six feet tall and would grow another couple of inches before he reached his adult height. His caramel skin was beyond gorgeous, especially with his multifaceted eye color. They were a mix of gray, green, and blue. Depending on what he wore, his eye color changed.

Moving stuff around, I see a couple of the pictures I want and grab them. Leaning back with the photos in one hand and my water bottle in the other, I drink more water before replacing the cap and putting it on the table and then getting cozy on the couch. I start to go through the small stack of pictures as memories flood my brain like an old-time picture show. My God, we were so young and na?ve. Each dance photo shows how fast we were growing up but the look in both of our eyes never changed. Well, it did, we fell more and more in love. That love went from a child's love to best friend love and finally to an adult one. When Malcolm went down on a knee while I was in my last year of college, my entire family was in on it.

We were doing our usual morning routine of jogging through Central Park. As we turned to head back to our apartment, Malcolm came to an abrupt stop by one of the waterfalls and grabbed my hands. Both of us were sweating and kind of out of breath, I didn't know if something was wrong with him or not. Then I heard the music coming toward us. When I turned, both of our families were making their way to us, my baby brother with his iPad and speaker in his hands. The song "At Last" by Etta James was playing and it sent shivers down my spine. When I turned back to my man, he was on one knee in front of me, a jewelry box in his hand. My eyes literally popped outta my head. We talked about this and wanted to wait until I finished college with my Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice Administration and Malcolm finish medical school and got settled into his residence program. His beautiful gray blue-green eyes were glittering as they looked right into my grayish hazel eyes. This had been my dream ever since we first met and even though it was before I thought he'd ask; my heart was pounding as my mind started to see our dream of the future together.

When Malcolm asked, I didn't even let him finish, I jumped him as our families all laughed and cheered. The ring was perfect: it was a diamond solitaire with our birthstones on either side. So, on the left was an opal for my October birthday and on the right was a peridot to match Malcolm's August birthday. The band was thick so none of the stones stood out. He thought of everything because he knew I'd never want to take the ring off and if, no when, I became a cop, couldn't have a huge stone sticking out of the setting.

The next ten months went by in a blur. I planned with my mom, sisters, and Malcolm's mom, aunt, and sister. Everything was so easy, it just amazed all of us. In the meantime, I graduated summa cum laude from college with my degree and immediately was accepted into the police academy—which I flew through—and started my career at the police station as a patrol office with a senior officer alongside of me. Malcolm was headed off to medical school, which meant our time was going to be very limited. So, we decided to take a short trip to Bear Mountain State Park, one of our favorite places to go to relax and unwind. Both of our parents surprised us with a really nice cabin rental. So off we went, na?ve and stupid as fuck. Two young adults off for a short week away before their lives went crazy. Little did we know how that short trip would change our lives forever.

The cabin was quaint and rustic but gorgeous. It had everything we needed. One bedroom and bath, with a small kitchenette and a quaint living room. Outside was a front porch with a barbecue and farther out a firepit overlooking a body of water down the mountain from where we were staying. The next cabin was at least a half-acre or more away and not even sure it was rented at the time we were there. The first couple of days were beyond fabulous. We hiked, swam, and just spent quality time together. On the third or fourth morning, can't recall which, we were sitting on the front porch when two male hikers approached, calling out a greeting.

Malcolm immediately was his friendly self but something about the two men was off to me. My cop training had me casually walk back into our cabin and I grabbed the small handgun my dad always told me to carry, no matter what. This was an argument Malcolm and I had. He hated guns and didn't want me to carry, which was asinine and plum crazy. I was on the fast track to becoming not only a cop but hopefully one day a detective, for God's sake. I also grabbed my mace, putting that in my pocket of my jacket. Then took the gun and put it in the holster in the back of my jeans.

I made my way back outside and the two men were now sitting on the stairs in the front of the cabin. Malcolm looked my way, and I could see his concern about these unexpected visitors, who seemed to be making themselves comfortable. They started to ask some personal questions, like if we were out there alone and if we had a few bucks we could loan them. Malcolm came closer to me and told them our parents had run to get some groceries but would be back shortly, and we were expecting more of our family to arrive later in the day. They looked at each other before their eyes shifted back at us. The look they gave us was not only dangerous but filled with so much evil we both felt it. I knew they were going to try and change the path our lives were on. And I'd fight to make sure they didn't. Or that was my thoughts.

Malcolm took a chance, pushing me back into the cabin and telling me to lock the door. I could hear the struggle outside as I grabbed first my cell phone and then the satellite phone Malcolm's dad insisted we take with. The cell had no reception, but the satellite immediately started up and I dialed 911. When the call connected, I calmly told the operator in a whispered voice our names and what was going on and where we were. She told me to stay on the line as she called the park's rangers. She also put out an emergency call to any available law enforcement officers close to the park. I told her I was also a cop, though new. Just as I started to give a description, I heard Malcolm scream out in pain.

"Frankie, stay inside where you are safe. I know it's hard but going out there puts not only your fiancé in more danger but also yourself. Stay put. Please listen to me, I know what I'm talking about."

"I can't,he sounds like he's ina lot of pain and I can't just stand around. I'll put the satellite phone in the back of the bookcase so you can listen in as much as you can. Will leave the door open too. Thank you for all you've done and for trying to help us."

"No, damn it, Frankie, don't go out there. Come on, stay and talk with me. It won't be long; backup is on its way."

Once again, I whispered a thank you then I hid the phone with its open line so she could hear what transpired. With the gun in my hand and the mace in my pocket, I made my way to the window first. What I saw I'll never forget. The two men were trying to hang a half-naked Malcolm off a tree by the edge of the mountain. He was fighting like crazy, though I could see he was already injured by the amount of blood on him. And where the blood was coming from explained why his pants were hanging around his ankles. That pissed me off, so I took a deep breath or two before I opened the door slowly, though not as quietly as I hoped because it slipped my mind how loud the hinges were. They needed some WD40, which we were joking about before our unwelcome guests showed up.

"Step away from him now, you motherfucking cocksuckers. I said, let him go! Now, before I blow both of your damn heads off."

First one then the other guy turned as they glared my way. That's when I heard the words that would change my life.

"No, Frankie, go back in. There's more than these two asswipes. Watch out, check your six. Don't worry about me, protect yourself, get back in the cabin."

I heard him before I saw him. When I went to turn around, off to my right he appeared. I shifted then aimed in that direction, so when a huge man came barreling toward me, I pulled the trigger, hitting him center mass. He immediately fell backward hard onto the ground off the deck. I could hear boots hitting the ground as I turned and before I could think about getting another shot off, one of the assholes seemed to stagger before he was right in front of me. He swung and managed to hit the gun from my hand. The gun went flying as he tackled me back through the cabin door. His weight sent me to the floor and I immediately lost my breath. By the time I could think, I had banged my head hard on the wooden floor. Looking at the one who manhandled me, I saw another guy was also inside. He slammed the door hard as he stomped toward me.

"Bitch, you're gonna pay plenty for what you just did to Buck. He's got kids, you stupid cop whore."

As I thought to myself, how did they know I was a cop , the first punch took me by surprise. By the seventh or eighth I prayed I'd pass out before they took their party to the next level. Right before my mind went dark and blank, I heard my clothes being ripped from my body. The last thought before I lost consciousness, I prayed Malcolm was okay and still breathing.

Wiping my face, I reach for my water as I've had enough reminiscing for one night. Finishing off the pile, I move through them quickly. Then when finished, I push the photos to the side on the table. I stand up then walk to the kitchen. I open the refrigerator and grab the open bottle of wine. Opening the cabinet off to the side, I pull a wine glass out and fill it right to the top. I sit at the kitchen table and suck back my wine until my hands stop shaking. Not sure why, I pull my phone out and look up contacts. When I see his name, I hit the number and wait. When the voicemail kicks in, I listen to his deep, sexy voice. It hits me in my core, which is a reaction I've not experienced this deeply in a very long time. Well, since Malcolm and I were last together.

"Hi, you reached Mal. I'm not available so at the tone leave your name, number, and whatcha want or need. I'll try to get back to you as soon as I can. And, Frankie, if this is you, hear me, nothing has changed. Please get in touch with me. None of what happened was your fault. I miss your face, Beautiful. Damn it, I was wrong to push you away. Please, Frankie talk to me."

The beep sounds and I look at my cell then hit disconnect. I finish my glass of wine. Immediately I grab the bottle, chugging the rest of it, then lose it, sobbing at the table like I lost my best friend because I did. That life I dreamed about and wanted so bad is gone to me forever.