Damaged and the Outlaw (Damaged #4)

“The coward fucking ran off. He said he was finding us a new place to hold up at after those cunts killed Peter. When we called him, he said he wasn’t coming back. He told us to walk to the road and find a ride and get out of town. The bastard ditched us and ran off.”


Knowing Caleb, leaving his guys to die made sense. He had always viewed himself as superior to the other club members. Like Cooper, Caleb had things handed to him. Unlike Cooper, Caleb viewed the club as serving him without him having any responsibility to the club.

“You know what happens next,” I said to Freddy who stared at me with pleading eyes.

“This is bullshit. You killed Playboy. You stole our money. You deserve to die. I didn’t do anything wrong.”

“Man, you came here looking to spill blood in Reapers’ territory. You grabbed those girls.”

“That wasn’t me. It was Caleb and the others.”

Doing the math, I knew four guys grabbed Harlow and Winona before shooting Dylan. When I glanced at Kirk, I realized he knew what Freddy had been up to while the others were at Cooper’s office.

“I’m not going to kill you, bud. I’ll leave that to the dad of the girl you took a shot at.”

Freddy tried to talk his way out of getting a bullet to the head, but Kirk wasn’t in a forgiving mood. Not when his kids were involved.

As I stepped away and the Johanssons handled Freddy, Judd joined me.

“You think he’s telling the truth about Caleb?”

“Makes sense. Why else would they be walking? They ditched two cars near the road. They had three, leaving one to take them to the cabin.”

“Caleb took the car, but would he leave Ellsberg?”

“I don’t know. He wanted revenge, but once the girls escaped, he likely knew we’d catch up to them.”

“He had time to get away. Why not take his buddies?”

“Bait,” I said, sighing. “Every minute, we’re dealing with them, we’re not chasing him. As the club VP, he has access to the club’s hidden funds. He could go anywhere with that money. If he takes the guys, he has to hide them too. They might even want to go back and fight for the club. If he figures it’s a lost cause in Tucson, he’d save himself and never look back.”

“Fucking cold.”

“Yeah, but we should head back to the compound just in case he gets it into his head to start shit again. Make sure word remains out about him. He could be lurking around my place, Kirk’s bar, anywhere he think he can hit us.”

“Not the compound though?”

“I don’t know,” I said, feeling uneasy. “It’d be suicide. I don’t know if he’s ready to die. The fucker’s always had life handed to him. I have trouble thinking of him giving it up when he has an out.”

Maybe feeling uneasy too, Judd rubbed hard at his neck. “Let’s just head back and regroup. I know Tawny and Jodi can hold their own, but I won’t feel right until the Devils are dust.”

While Kirk sent out word that Caleb could still be around town, Cooper called his guy out at the compound. Even knowing Raven was safe, the ride back felt too long and the heat irritated me. An hour earlier, I hoped we’d hit the cabin, kill the bastards, and be done with it. My life with Raven could begin without the contract on my head and worries about our safety.

The Johansson place was quiet when we arrived. In the distance, dogs roughhoused by the river. Hearing a TV playing inside the house, I smiled at how loud Jodi kept it. Nothing seemed out of place as we parked our Harleys in the massive driveway.

As Cooper and Judd started for the house first, I wondered about Raven getting ready for my caveman needs. Unsure if she was at the house or the apartment, I decided to go for the house.

A scream broke through the stale summer air. Without thinking, we were all running towards the house except the Rottweilers were barking at the apartment. A few were running down the stairs in that direction too, so I switched gears.

The scream lasted only a few seconds. As I barreled up the stairs to the apartment, I felt like I was trapped in a horror movie. Her screamed echoed in my head and the staircase seemed to go on forever. I feared I would never reach the top. A million horrible possible outcomes lingered in my thoughts, but nothing was as horrifying as what I found.

When the door burst open and I rushed inside, Caleb was covered in blood. No longer was he my cousin or friend. Caleb was less than a stranger. He was the fucker who caused my woman to bleed. There was no time to consider my feelings about him. The moment I caught a glimpse of my battered love, my humanity snapped off and I was no more than a killing tool.

Caleb reached for the gun in his waistband, but never had a chance to point it at me before I was on him. We fell to the ground where I easily ripped it from his grip. Realizing the fucker was worn out from beating on Raven, I wanted him to bleed now.