Devil’s Vengeance (Devil’s Disciples MC #6)

Chapter 15

CHAPTER 15

CHASE

The look on her face said it all. She wouldn’t call. Not unless something insane happened. But she didn’t delete my number in front of my face. She pressed her lips together and nodded, tucking her phone away before pulling out of the parking lot. I watched her go, frustration building, and dug my hands into my hair once she was out of sight. After she was gone, I let out a shout and squatted down, trying to get my head back on straight.

I fucked this whole thing up. I was so determined to keep her away, to keep her safe, I drove her into the arms of the enemy. I didn’t even know how he figured out she was on my radar. Never in a million years did I expect him to show up at the damn library. But he’d been showing up everywhere lately. I went to the library to see if I could get an idea of where his club was at now or if it was just him and a couple of his friends in the area. If it was the whole crew, I’d have to tell Croy. I wouldn’t have a fucking choice. I never expected Trick to be there, leaning in to kiss the woman I couldn’t stop thinking about.

Day and night, I thought about her. Whether she was safe. I checked on her by going to that stupid library even when I didn’t need to, and I made some comments to Lacey about her leaving the library late so when I couldn’t be there to watch over her, she wouldn’t be all alone. I thought I was fucking subtle about it. I wasn’t ever going to do anything with it. I wasn’t lying when I said I didn't want her anywhere near the club. But somehow Trick figured it out anyway. And now, she was tired of my shit and ditching me for someone more charming. Just like Hannah did.

It pissed me off, but it also scared the hell out of me. Hannah didn’t survive Trick’s pursuit. He dragged her down and when shit hit the fan, he let her die. I couldn’t let that happen to Mariah. I needed to figure out some way to get her away from him. Before it was too fucking late.

I came back to the library the following morning. I hadn’t gotten much sleep lately. I got home from the club, crashed for a few hours, then headed out to the library to check on Mariah. I only ever stayed long enough for her coworker to show up, but I couldn’t go back to sleep after I left. Once I was up, I was up and my shitty sleep schedule was weighing on me. It made me slow on the uptake, and I didn’t notice at first that someone from Trick’s crew was watching the library. I only noticed when a flash of light reflected off their bike from where they parked across the street. Not Trick himself, but I recognized the asshole from Lacey’s club.

I thought about confronting the guy, but after last night, I knew Mariah’s coworker would call the pigs again if I started something. I didn't want her preventing me from being there to watch over Mariah. Instead, I stayed where I was, watching him watching her until I got a call from Croy I couldn’t ignore.

“Yeah, Prez?” I asked, my voice lowered because this was a fucking library.

“Where are you?”

I could lie, but I’d done enough of that in the last few weeks. At least now I had an excuse to be here without anyone getting suspicious. “Library. Visiting a fling. Did you need me?”

He grunted, ignoring my explanation completely. Good. I didn’t want him questioning it. “We need security for a drop tonight.”

Frowning, I bit back the urge to ask why. He wasn’t going to explain it to me. Prez had an order; I followed it. Plain and simple.

“Alright. I’ll head back to the clubhouse.” My gaze flicked back to the guy watching the library. What were the chances he was watching me and not Mariah? “Now, or–?”

“Tonight. Knox will text you the details.”

He hung up before I could reply, but that wasn’t unusual for him. It was a little surprising he was doing the calling, though. Instead of putting my phone away, I shot off a text to Bear.

Chase: Why the hell is Prez calling me directly for a job?

Bear: Bunch of idiots ate some gas station sushi. Do your business before coming back here. All the toilets are fucking rank.

I made a face. Too much information. But not exactly surprising. I had a sneaking suspicion it was either Clink or Viper’s idea. My money was on Viper. Clink wouldn’t want to interrupt his sex life for a stupid bet.

I got the message from Knox a few minutes later. It wasn’t a lot, we didn’t share shit over text. That’d leave a fucking paper trail. All he sent was a time and a place. No details. I sent a thumbs up back and pocketed my phone, heading for the circulation desk. Some nights Mariah left work early. I wanted tonight to be one of those nights.

“Yeah. Sounds good.” Her voice carried over the quiet as I approached the front desk. I could hear the smile in her voice. “Okay. I’ll see you tonight.”

When I came around the corner, she was on her phone, a smile pulling at her lips. She looked gorgeous at this angle, the sun coming through the windows turning her skin more golden. I had one night with her and it wasn’t fucking enough, but I was afraid of what would happen if I let her get too close. And now, despite my best efforts, she was being drawn in anyway. If I hadn’t avoided her in the first place, she might trust me enough to avoid Trick when I warned her away.

Her face fell when I approached, and she said goodbye to whoever she was talking to. It felt like a kick to the gut. I did that because I was a fucking idiot. It’d take work to crawl out of the hole I dug. I aimed for casual, jerking my chin at her phone.

“Who was that?”

Her eyes narrowed. “None of your business. What are you doing here? You haven’t been here for days.”

Yeah, because I’d been busy chasing down Trick. He conveniently stayed out of sight when I was trying to find him. I wasn’t about to tell her that, though. She thought I was jealous. She wouldn’t believe me anyway.

“I was looking something up. Was it the girls? I can give you a ride if you want to let loose or something.”

Suspicion was carved into her face, reminding me of just how badly I fucked up. She didn’t trust me. It irritated me. Not because of how she was reacting, but because it was my own damn fault. I could tell her I just wanted to keep her safe, but at this point, she wouldn’t believe me without an explanation and I wasn’t going to get into all that with her.

“Why are you suddenly okay with me hanging out with them? You just told me last night to stay the hell away.”

It took work not to grimace. “I realized it’s easier to look out for you if you’re with the rest of the old ladies.”

Not the right thing to say, apparently. Her expression flattened, and she gave me major fuck off vibes as she said, “I don’t need you to look out for me. I’m fine. Now if you don’t need any actual help, I need to get back to work. I have to get out of here early. I have a date.”

Son of a bitch.

“Mariah–”

“No, Chase. Thanks for thinking of me, but I don’t need your protection. I can take care of myself. Excuse me.”

She got up and walked away, pushing a nearly empty cart of books as a bullshit excuse to escape me. So not only was she ignoring my advice to steer clear of Trick, she was going on a date with the asshole on the night when I had to work. I couldn’t even send someone to follow her because then they’d ask why and I’d either come off as a jealous ass or I’d have to spill who the fuck Trick was and why he was dangerous.

With a frustrated growl, I stormed off, shoving the library door open so hard, I nearly cracked the glass. I could feel the stares of the patrons of the library, but I ignored it, heading for my bike. If I wanted a shot at convincing Mariah to trust me, I needed to walk away. She was safe enough for now in broad daylight with so many people around. I needed a fucking ride.

MARIAH

I watched Chase go with a frown. His sudden switch from cold and distant to attentive and concerned was jarring enough, but now he was acting almost violent. Last night, he even attacked someone. I didn’t know who the hell he was anymore. He kept knocking off every perception I had of him and giving me something different to deal with until it felt like I had whiplash from all the quick changes. I almost asked if he was okay, but that might make him think I was open for conversation, and after the way he spoke to me the night before, I wasn’t. He made himself clear. Now he needed to stick to his own damn rules.

Pushing the thought away, I returned the books to the floor and headed back to my desk, stopping to poke my head into the kids’ room on the way.

“Regina?”

“Back here,” she called through the stacks. I found her sitting on the floor in the back corner, stacks of books surrounding her. When I tipped my head in question, she shrugged, a small smile on her face. “A mother with her little boy came to visit. He was autistic and overstimulated with the new environment. I sat down with him to help her because she looked overwhelmed, and we went through every book he could reach. I think it helped, but it’s quite a mess to reorganize.”

Sounded like her. She’d rather have a mess and a happy child than an upset one and a clean library. She looked toward the door with a frown. “Is everything okay out there? I thought I heard a bang.”

Pressing my lips together, I nodded. “Yeah. Someone just opened the door a little hard, is all. We should look into getting one of those slow close doors.”

She made a face. “If it’s in the budget, I will. Windy days are the worst. I’m just glad the glass is shatterproof.”

I wasn’t sure why I was protecting Chase. He hadn’t earned that from me. He’d kind of done the exact opposite. But he also saved my life and while his way of protecting me was a little backwards, it came from a good place. Maybe. Or it was all a lie so he could string me along. It didn’t escape my notice that he was backtracking right after seeing me with Trick. I still felt like he was jealous and lashing out .

I shook my head to clear it. I needed to stop thinking about Chase. I had a date tonight with a nice man who called and apologized for the fight and made sure I was okay the normal way. And he asked me on a date. Not just a drunken hookup where he’d pretend not to know me the next day. I needed to focus on men like him.

“Hey, do you mind if I skip out a little early today? I’ve got a date tonight and I want to look nice.”

“You mean with that shifty biker who keeps stopping by to flirt with you?”

My eyebrows flew up, surprised. “You think he’s shifty?”

“I think he’s trying too hard to impress you. It feels disingenuous. Like he has an ulterior motive.”

Her comment stumped me. I hadn’t gotten that from Trick. I mean, yes, he was a little cheesy, but it was just flirting. And I liked that he tried hard. I deserved someone putting in the effort to spend time with me.

But Chase’s warning rang in my head. What were the odds that Regina and Chase were both wrong about the guy? Was I letting Trick’s charm blind me to red flags I hadn’t noticed yet? Or were they just not noticing what I did?