October’s Ride with Atlas (Mustang mountain Riders #10)

5. Atlas

CHAPTER 5

ATLAS

I try to focus on the email in front of me, but I didn’t get near enough sleep last time with the curvy blonde handcuffed to me and lying beside me in bed.

Now she is handcuffed to the couch so she can relax and read while I answer emails and phone calls in my office. It calms me to know she is right here with me, so her trying to run actually worked in my favor, giving me an excuse to keep her even closer to me.

I’m pulled from my thoughts with a knock on my office door.

“Come in,” I call out.

Thunder pokes his head in. He looks at Bex and nods to her before walking over to my desk.

“One of our guys in the field said there is talk of Malice and the Savage Bones making plans to come to the club to take Bex back by force,” he says in a low tone. I know Bex heard him because her head snaps up from her book.

She is smart and doesn’t say anything, but my stomach turns at the thought of him touching her, much less taking her from me. My mind races, trying to figure out a solution because I know we can’t stay here.

It’s imperative that I get her to safety and draw Savage Bones away from the clubhouse.

“Bex and I will head up to my cabin. Get several guys ready to go. I want them stationed in the woods out of sight. See if we can draw in Malice and what is left of Savage Bones. This needs to end now,” I all but growl as I get up, pulling the key for the handcuffs from my pocket.

I undo the cuff that is attached to the couch and secure it to my arm.

“On it. When are you leaving?” Thunder asks.

“Less than an hour. I want to get away from the club as fast as possible. The last thing I want to do is put the women and children in danger,” I tell him before turning to Bex, who is watching us.

“Let’s go, Princess. It's time to pack up.”

She doesn’t have much to pack, just what we managed to grab the night we took her and a few things the girls at the clubhouse have given her.

I only pack a small bag because I have most of my stuff in my cabin. Crank meets us at the bottom of the stairs.

“Hey, Pappy is here. They just got in and want to talk about what you need from them,” Crank says with a less than amused smile on his face.

Crank secured the alliance with Pappy and his club through some tattoo near his junk that turned out not to be a tattoo. I don’t know the details, and I don’t need to. I’m just grateful he did.

“Shit, we have to move. Where is he?” I ask.

“In your office,” Cranks says.

“Here, take these to my truck and load up a few days of food from the pantry, too,” I tell him, handing him our bags.

With Bex following behind me, though it’s not like she has any choice, I go to my office.

“Hey. Thank you so much for being here. We have to make this quick,” I tell Pappy as I step into my office.

“Crank filled me in on what is going on with…” He trails off, and his eyes shoot over to Bex before looking at me again.

I step in front of her, shielding her. Even though this man is here to help us, I’m still not thrilled to have his eyes on my girl.

“Thunder will be your point of contact. Right now, I’m leaving to try to lure Savage Bones away from the clubhouse. With the women and children here, we don’t need them anywhere near this place. I could use a few guys on rotation to stake out around my cabin. We are hoping to lure Savage Bones there.” I say.

What we will do when I get my hands on Malice is another story.

“Of course. You will want Laser for sure. He is a world-class sniper, and is military trained,” Pappy says.

“Perfect. We have to go, but you and your men let us know if you need anything. Make sure to check out the Mercantile in town. Ask for Ruby and tell her you are here helping us, and she will spoil you guys rotten,” I say on my way out.

Before we leave, I go to the main room to check on everyone.

“While I’m gone, Thunder is in charge here at the Clubhouse,” I announce to the few people in the room.

“Well, you be safe because we can’t wait for you to meet the newest rider in a few months,” Luna says as she places her hand over her belly. Ford smiles and sets his hand on top of hers.

“You guys are pregnant? Congrats!” I’m genuinely happy for them and pull Luna into a side hug before hugging Ford.

With so many new couples, I know babies will be filling up the clubhouse in no time.

“What do you need? I know this isn’t the most comfortable place, but whatever you need, you let us know, and we will make sure you have it. Ford, make sure Luna makes it to her doctor visits, but take a few guys with you when you go. We can’t be too careful right now,” I tell him.

“Thanks, man. Go get you and your girl safe. We have plenty of time to plan. Before our little one gets here, we want this town done with Savage Bones,” Ford says.

I turn to Bex, who is watching everything with an unreadable expression on her face.

“Do you need anything before we go? It’ll be a few days before we can do a supply restock,” I tell her.

“No, I’m okay,” she says softly.

I wish I could read her mind, but I can pick her brain when we are safe at my cabin.

Wasting no time getting to my truck, I pause because there is no getting in easily with us cuffed together.

“Can I trust you to get into the truck if I uncuff you?” I ask her.

Her nod is slow, but I can see the defiant look in her eye.

“Crank, stand at this door, and don’t let her out,” I say as Bex gets in the truck.

I round the truck, get in the driver’s side fast, and head out.

“My dad never let me see where he was taking me, saying the hideouts needed to be kept secret,” she whispers.

“I’m hoping you will realize we aren’t like your dad. I’m taking you to my cabin because I want you to know where it is. Also, I want you to know where the clubhouse is located. If you ever need to get to safety, you need to know,” I tell her, saying a prayer that she will understand sooner rather than later that I am not like her father and we are the good guys.

She doesn't say anything, but continues to watch the road go by. I’m taking the public way that is also the long way circling through town. The more people that see me leaving the clubhouse, the better.

With any luck, someone from Savage Bones will see, and they will leave the clubhouse alone, knowing that I am not there. Once we get to the cabin, I know several of my guys are in the woods. Even though I can't see them, I trust that they're there.

“I'll come get the door for you,” I tell Bex as I step out of the truck.

Using the key fob, I lock all the doors behind me, and I'm glad I thought of it because she instantly tries to open her door. I rush around to her side of the truck just as she is getting the truck unlocked. She opens the door slamming it against my arm.

A searing pain shoots up my arm, but I never take my eyes off of her as she tries to make a run back down the driveway. The gravel under her feet causes her to slip and fall to her knees.

Her legs will be all scraped up because she's worn holes through her jeans. She turns over and just sits down, defeat written all over her face. Squatting down in front of her so I'm almost at eye level with her, I say, “I really hope sometime soon you'll learn to trust me. I don't want to have to keep you under lock and key. In order to give you your freedom, it means not going back to your dad. If you really stop and think about it, you'll realize how much of your freedom he took from you.”

She doesn't make eye contact with me, not that I can blame her.

“Come on, let’s get you cleaned up.” I take her hand to help her up and lead her inside to the bathroom.

Without even thinking, I pick her up and set her on the counter before pulling out the massive first aid kit I keep at the cabin. Being in the middle of nowhere, I like to be prepared because it’s not easy to get down the mountain to get help.

“What about your arm?” she asks gently.

When I look at it for the first time, I see there is blood dripping from my arm and a nasty cut down the side.

“I barely feel it. Let’s get you cleaned up, and then I’ll worry about it,” I tell her.

Grabbing a washcloth, I run some warm water over it before wiping away the dirt and gravel stuck to her legs. I try to be as gentle as possible, but she still flinches, and I have to bite the inside of my cheek. I hate that she is hurt, but it is of her own doing.

She remains silent as I clean her scrapes, apply ointment to them, and bandage them up. When I’m done, I start to step away to give her room to get off the counter, but she takes my hand to stop me.

When I look up at her, she is looking at my arm. Then she reaches for the washcloth I used to clean off her legs and holds my hand with one hand while she runs the washcloth under the water before bringing it to my arm and wiping away the blood that has started to dry there.

“You don’t have to do that,” I say, but at the same time, I don’t want her to stop touching me.

“Yet, I still am,” she says as she cleans the wounds, and begins to dress them.

She appears to be an expert at wound care, which leads me to think she’s done this more than a few times for her dad and the Savage Bones guys.

When I meet Malice again, I swear I’m going to make him suffer for all the things he’s done to her.