“What made you change your mind?” Ursula asked.
“I’m tired of being left behind. Cadeon is the only person I have left. I don’t want to lose him.”
She buckled her seat belt as Violet floored it. The speed of the car made her grip the handle on her door to try to steady herself. She prayed Stephen was okay. He had to be.
****
Stephen stared at Eugene Black. The disgust he felt towards the other man couldn’t be disguised. Stephen hated any man who abused women. A raise was due to Lucas for finding the way to connect them with his contacts while inside the warehouse. He hoped Isabella and Rebecca would recover in the hospital. Tate and Kevin had promised to keep his woman safe. He saw Lucas and Sean at the back of the warehouse. They wanted to pummel the man who stood in front of him. He hoped everything was in place to take this bastard down. There was a lot of history with Lucas and Sean. Stephen didn’t know if he wanted to understand any of it. Right now, he needed to focus. This f**ker could destroy his life and that of his club, the club he’d come to cherish in more ways than he could imagine.
Possession was part of him. The club was part of his own history, and in its own way a part of his father’s. Being part of the club meant he was still with his father in some kind of way.
“So, we meet again,” Eugene said.
“If all you wanted to do was meet, why cause all this to get to me?”
“Fun. I don’t like you. My father hated you for taking over Possession. He thought he’d convinced your father to give the club to him. When that didn’t go according to plan then dad had no choice but to go to Dominic.”
“Why?”
“Money. Power. My dad had a preference for liking them young. Can you imagine how he felt when I came home with Isabella Sanchez?”
Lucas and Sean tensed.
“What does she have to do with this?” Stephen asked.
“Well, she was so devastated when Sean rejected her. Can you imagine how much fun it was when she pretty much ran into my arms? I took her home, and then my father sent her to Dominic. She was the icing on the cake of a very lucrative deal.”
“She was sold this whole time?”
Eugene nodded. “Like most women, she was a means to an end.”
“I don’t get why you let Isabella Sanchez go?” he said.
“She was so f**king pitiful. Dominic paid a f**king fortune for her virgin cunt, and what did I get? Nothing. She was sold as far as I could tell. Then I saw her wandering around on the street. I decided to point her in the direction of her brother. She was useful. While you were looking for her, Rebecca was being beaten. The perfect distraction.” Eugene shrugged his shoulders and smiled. Stephen saw Lucas losing his temper. “I love the fact I kept her right under their noses for all this time. I thought about taking her to the club to show off, but my dad told me not to. He warned me you’d end me.”
“What’s Lloyd got to do with this?”
“He wants his wife back. Rebecca was a great piece of ass. After my mother let herself go, he wanted a woman he could keep to his exacting standards. Rebecca fit the bill. She was young and had the curves my dad likes. Also, she never defended herself. A true submissive according to your friend, James. He was the one who introduced them, I believe.”
James growled in anger.
They needed to keep him talking.
“What else do you want?”
“When Rebecca drops the charges my dad will be free to go. He wants to run the business. Also, we need some payment to the man who has taken Dominic’s place. We figured Violet and Ursula would pay that bill,” Eugene said.
Stephen’s hands tightened to fists at the mention of his woman. The voice in his ear warned him they were ten minutes away. Sean and Lucas visibly relaxed, but then Eugene pulled a gun. “But I want you f**king dead.”
****
Violet parked the car, and Ursula got out. Her heart was beating so fast she thought she was having a heart attack.
Paul stood outside the abandoned club. He was smoking a cigarette, and she knew he was nervous. The moment he saw her, the cigarette was thrown to the floor.
“What are you doing here?” he asked.
“Stephen is in there. I’ve got to get to him,” she said. As she spoke she walked towards the double doors.
“Don’t be f**king stupid.” Paul blocked her way, stopping her from entering. The man she loved was putting himself in danger, and she couldn’t sit back and do nothing while he put himself at risk.
“I know you hate me, Paul, but I’m getting inside that building. I’m not letting Stephen get hurt.” She pushed at him. His weight was unmoving no matter how much she pushed or tried to get him to move.
“I told you no, Ursula. For once do as you’re told.” He shoved her away. She stumbled, catching herself at the last moment before she fell on her ass. Annoyed at being denied access to Stephen, she picked up a stone and hurled it at Paul. The stone hit him on the chest. Still, he didn’t move out of the way.
“I should have known you’d be working for that bastard. You don’t have a f**king clue how to work at all. All you do is wait for a woman to come and serve you.” She grabbed another stone launching it at him. He dodged the stone, which only made her angrier. “I bet you were the one who got that woman hurt. You know, the one you put in hospital.” Ursula saw the guilt cross his face and knew she was right. Feeling angrier she began looking for more stuff to throw at him. “How could you?” She yelled every word not caring about the attention they got.
“Stop,” he said. Paul was getting closer. She ignored him, the anger inside her growing to a fever pitch.
“Fucking ... lazy ... bastard!” She yelled each word while throwing a stone.
With her back to Paul as she leaned down to pick up another rock, she didn’t see him coming. He hauled her up against the nearest building. Her hands locked over her head.
“Let go of me.” She tried to move. His strength shocked and scared her.
“No.”She struggled some more with no chance of moving. When she settled down, she saw him gazing at her with lust. Her stomach turned at the danger she could be in. Fear gripped her.
“Don’t,” he said. He stroked her hair. The action would have soothed her if it was Stephen. Paul made her feel sick. “I won’t hurt you.”
“You did once. Why should I trust you?”
“Because organising the men to put that woman in the hospital was the last straw. I never knew it was a woman. I knew he wanted several men ready to attack a house. I didn’t know what they were going to do.”