"Oh," I replied, worried that he'd seen through my ruse. I touched him tentatively on his arm. "I thought it was because you like playing in the mud. I've always enjoyed it myself."

His face changed again. The horny idiot returned and I relaxed. He reached over and cupped my left breast. "You haven't seen anything yet," he said, squeezing it.

I swallowed. "I can't wait. Go take that shower so we can get started."

He rubbed my nipple through the fabric and then let go. "I'll be back soon. I do need to lock the door, darlin'."

Damn. I forced a smile. "Sure. Of course."

His eyes bore into mine. "I'm telling you right now that I don't trust you. Just because you're not a fan of the Gold Vipers," he said, backing away from me, a funny smile on his face. "But, after our little fuck session, I might go easy on you. Hell, I might even let you go. If you want to go, that is. You might enjoy my company more than you think."

"Oh, I'm sure I will," I replied. "There's nothing at home for me anyway."

His smiled widened. "I'll be back in a few minutes and then we'll get started."

"Can't wait," I said, faking a smile so wide that my cheeks began to ache.

He shut the door and locked it from the outside.

Sighing in relief, I turned my attention toward the bedroom. I wasn't sure exactly what I was going to do, but I needed to find a way to escape before that disgusting pig put his hands on me again.

Chapter Twenty-four.

My GPS told me that Jensen was just over three hours away. On the way out of town, Tank and I stopped at a gas station, filled our tanks, and grabbed several cans of energy drinks.

"Stay strong, brother," said Tank, holding out his fist.

I tapped it with mine. "Thanks, man. Knowing that you've got my back makes it easier."

He nodded. "I'll always have your back. Just like I know you'll always have mine."

"Damn straight."

We parted and started driving, with me in front and him following in his truck. After thirty minutes of being on the road, my phone rang, jerking me to attention. It was a private number.

"Yeah," I answered.

"Let me guess, you're headed out here to try and save your bitches."

It was Mud.

"Let them go," I said, not answering the question. "Those girls have nothing to do with the shit between our clubs. Nothing."

He laughed. "I already know that. Do I care? No."

"You just keep your end of the bargain and we'll keep ours," I lied, glancing at Tank's headlights behind me. Behind him was some kind of sports car and I began to get paranoid. What if we were being followed?

"I get my money and the piece of shit who you douchebags hired to kill Breaker, you'll get your girls back."

"In one piece," I stated flatly.

"Speaking about pieces, that redhead is a hot number. What's it like, tapping that pussy? I might have to find out."

I gripped my hands on the steering wheel. "You fucking touch her and I'll kill you."

He laughed. "Oh, I've already touched her."

"Repeat that?" I growled, wanting to beat the fuck out of him.

"Don't worry, I haven't shown her what a real man is like. Not yet, anyway. But, I have to tell you. She doesn't seem like she's missing you too much. Now, why is that?"

It was obvious. She was still pissed off at me for earlier. But, I also knew that out of the two evils, she'd much rather be in my company than be kidnapped by Mud.

"Raptor? You still there?"

"Yeah," I mumbled, my head racing with images of Mud forcing himself on her. I pressed harder on the gas.

"I think you've really got it for Adriana, don't you?"

"Leave her alone," I threatened. "Or you won't get your money."

His voice hardened. "Listen, I'm the one making up the rules here, not you. Don't forget it, brother."

"I'm not your fucking brother," I growled.

"That's right. The Judge is. Isn't he?"

"What the fuck you talking about?" I said, wondering how he'd come across that news.

"Don't play me for a fool. I've heard all about it. Guess your mother can't keep her legs or her mouth closed."

"Fuck you."

He laughed and hung up.

Chapter Twenty-five.

I looked around the bedroom for a weapon and even checked under the bed, which ended up being a mistake. I found a couple of used condoms and a monstrous dildo that almost caused me to puke. Shuddering, I got back up and walked over to the bedroom door to listen for sounds. Surprisingly, I heard a woman mumbling to herself.

"Brandy?" I said loudly, hoping it was her and she'd gotten loose.

The person went quiet.

"Hello?" I called.

"Hello, who are you?" asked the woman, just outside the door. It was definitely not Brandy.

"Um, my name is Adriana." I twisted the door handle. "I think I've been locked in here by accident."

"Hold on," she replied, unlocking it from the outside.

"Thanks," I replied, glancing at her quickly. She was a tall woman with platinum blonde hair which was pulled into a ponytail, and dark brown eyes.

"I'm April, by the way. Mud lock you in there?" she asked in a low voice.

"Something like that," I replied quickly, walking around her and over to the bar. Knowing that Mud could pop back in at any moment, I began searching for something I could use as a weapon, like an icepick or a knife. What I found was even better a Remington single-barrel shotgun.

"Where is he?" asked April, looking a little nervous.

"Taking a shower. Why? You his Old Lady?"

Her shoulders relaxed. "Hell no. He's a shithead. I'm here to get some things and leave."

"I like you already," I said, my heart pounding as I checked to see if the gun was loaded, thanking my mother for keeping a similar one in the back of the jewelry shop. I couldn't remember exactly when she'd purchased it, but Vanda had been insistent on having one. She'd even taken gun classes and then taught me the basics, although we'd never fired it ourselves. I'd always thought that the rifle had been a little overkill, but my father's death had scared the hell out of her. Personally, I didn't think she could ever use it, but if it eased some of her fears, that was good enough for me.

April's eyes widened when she noticed the gun. "Whoa, what are you doing with that?" she asked, putting her hands in the air.

Satisfied that the gun was loaded and ready to go, I hurried around the bar. "Relax. I'm trying to save a woman's life," I said, hurrying toward the other hallway where Skull had disappeared with Brandy. When I rounded the corner, I noticed only one doorway. Gripping the gun tightly, I walked toward it and stopped to listen. Inside I could hear music playing.

"That's Skull's bedroom. I wouldn't go in there," whispered April, over my shoulder.

"Oh, I'm going in there. Stand back," I whispered. "So you don't get hurt."

"Sure. Okay," she whispered, backing up. "I hope you know what you're doing."

I didn't but there wasn't any time to work out a better plan. Taking a deep breath, I opened the door as quietly as I could, hoping to surprise them. The first thing I noticed was that Brandy was lying naked and still on the corner of a king-sized bed. Skull appeared to be lying next to her, taking up the better part of it. Curiously, he didn't move a muscle either.

"Oh, my God," I gasped, noticing the blood on the mattress.

"What the hell happened?" asked April, standing behind me again. "Are they on something?"

"I... I don't exactly know," I said, trying to adjust my eyes to the darkness. It was then that I noticed that Skull's eyes were open. He was staring up at the ceiling and not blinking.

"Holy shit, is he dead?" asked April.

"Looks like it," I replied, lowering the gun. I stepped over to Brandy, who I could see was breathing. "Are you okay?" I asked, bending down. There was so much blood on the bed. Too much blood. She obviously needed an ambulance.

Instead of answering, Brandy continued to stare blankly at the wall, obviously in shock. Leaning closer, I pushed her hair away from her face to see how bad the bruises were. When I saw the blood on her lips and chin, I felt the hair stand up on the back of my neck.

"Turn on the light," I told April, standing up.

She did and then we both gasped in horror.

Brandy had bitten off part of his testicles and it looked like he'd bled to death. I stumbled to the other side of the bed and threw up.

Chapter Twenty-Six.

Standing in the shower, Mud's head began to clear. The one above his shoulders. He thought about Adriana, who was definitely one hot piece of ass. But, she was also his prisoner and one whose best friend had been murdered by his orders. It didn't seem logical that she'd be willing to put that aside, much less put out.

Unless... she was a few sandwiches short of a picnic?

Although he would have liked to believe that she was missing some marbles, Mud knew that Adriana wasn't allowing him to jump her bones simply because she wanted him to bang her. She was doing it to save her life and he couldn't blame her. Hell, he even admired such tenacity. This girl was a survivor. One who had enough moxie to do what she had to in order to stay alive. It was just too bad that they'd met in such fucked up circumstances. Not only was she beautiful, but she appeared to have her shit together and there seemed to be a shortage of those types around his neighborhood.

When he finished in the shower, he pulled on a pair of sweats, and walked into his bedroom, which was above the clubhouse. Mud still hadn't purchased a place in Hayward, like most of his brothers had. They seemed to be settling in fine. Then there was his nephew, Skull, who couldn't live by himself, because he was a certified sociopath. The last time he'd rented an apartment by himself, Skull had killed and buried his landlord's body after getting an eviction notice for non-payment of rent. Afterward, Mud let him stay with him, knowing that if he didn't, Skull would end up behind bars and that couldn't happen. He needed his nephew to do the kind of dirty work that most would have trouble doing, like the thing with Krystal. Skull had not only killed her, but had carved a message on her stomach about 'revenge being sweet'. After seeing him do that job, and with such delight, Mud knew that Skull had some issues, but he was not only a Devil's Ranger, he was family. They stuck together, no matter what.

Mud splashed on some aftershave and then headed toward the door. As he gripped the knob, he felt a sudden overwhelming sense of doom and had a suspicion that if he opened up the door, he was as good as dead. It was the kind of feeling that had saved his life a number of times and he knew not to dismiss it. Releasing the handle, he backed up slowly and went for the gun, the one he'd almost stupidly forgotten. As he picked it up, a creak on the other side of the doorway confirmed his suspicion. Someone was standing there. Someone who shouldn't be creeping around. He knew it wasn't one of his boys, they'd have knocked by now. He was pretty sure he'd locked Adriana in the other bedroom, as well. Even if she got out, he doubted she'd run straight into his arms. She'd try to escape. It was someone who wanted to take him by surprise. Probably put a bullet through his head. Mud hadn't heard of any Gold Viper Chapters living in Minnesota, but that didn't always mean shit. They had friends.

With his heart pounding in his chest, he raised the gun, pointed it toward the door, and began firing. On the fourth shot, he heard a loud thud. Grinning triumphantly, Mud waited a few seconds and then moved to the side of the wall next to the door. Cautiously, he reached over and opened it. When no shots were fired back, he jerked around the corner with his gun still drawn, and checked the hallway.

It was empty.

Knowing that it hadn't been his imagination, that he'd actually heard a noise, he kept his gun drawn and crept quietly down the hallway. When Mud reached the exit that led to the stairwell, he took a deep breath and opened it. Not hearing anything, he slipped through the door and began moving down the stairs toward the main part of the clubhouse. When he reached the bottom, he began to have some doubts about the noise he'd heard upstairs.

Maybe the drugs had made him more paranoid than usual?

The shit had been strong and he recalled his supplier, Mad Dog, mentioning that it had been laced with something extra special. He just couldn't recall exactly what the man had said. Knowing that Mad Dog knew what he was doing and always kept his clients coming back for more, he'd accepted it without question. He decided that the next time he bought anything from Mad Dog, it would be straight-up and not mixed with anything.

Relaxing slightly, he opened the door to the clubhouse and stepped inside. Not seeing anything unusual, he made his way over to the room he'd locked Adriana in and opened the door. When he found the room empty, he gritted his teeth angrily.

"Adriana?" he barked out. "Where in the fuck are you?"

There was no answer.

Mud quickly raced down the hallway toward Skull's bedroom. When he opened up the door and saw his nephew's body, he sucked in his breath.

"Crazy fucking bitches," he muttered in disbelief. Skull was naked and lying in a pool of his own blood, which was coming from his mutilated groin. He was obviously dead, which was probably a good thing, considering the cause of death.

Outraged, Mud checked the rest of the clubhouse, and outside, for the girls, but they appeared to be long gone.

Fuck!