 by Marteeka Karland.jpg)
Total pages in book: 37
Estimated words: 34042 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 170(@200wpm)___ 136(@250wpm)___ 113(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 34042 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 170(@200wpm)___ 136(@250wpm)___ 113(@300wpm)
*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************
Chapter One
Pepper
I was taking a huge gamble, but I honestly had no idea what else to do. Everyone in town knew about the Iron Tzars, so finding their compound wasn’t hard. The only problem was going to be getting inside and leaving without someone seeing me. The place was locked down like Fort Knox. I finally settled on leaving my precious cargo and a note outside the gate. It wasn’t ideal, but there was no way to get in and out without having to answer questions, and I couldn’t afford that.
Waiting until I knew someone was headed toward the gate, I left the infant car seat with the attached canopy pulled up to protect her from the sun while it sat beside the gate. After draping a bright red blanket over it, I went to hide in the bushes. Thankfully, there was a large shade tree where the heat wouldn’t be bad and the sun would be blocked. My heart broke as I hurried to move into the woods surrounding the place. I’d done this dozens of times while preparing to make the drop. I could watch from a safe distance without being seen. The second someone stopped and found my sweet daughter, I could hurry deeper into the woods until I made it to the ATV I had stashed next to a dirt road. From there, I’d do my best to disappear.
Now I watched from the shadows in the fading light as a man and woman on a motorcycle stopped next to the car seat I’d left at that gate. I’d left my heart sound asleep in the form of my daughter, and the terror of the past three weeks finally caught up with me. Tears came in waves of grief, despair, and fear I was barely able to choke back. The only thing that saved me from openly sobbing was knowing it was imperative that I not be discovered. The second the woman picked up the small bundle inside the carrier, I turned and fled.
This had been my only option. The only guarantee my daughter would be safe. The note inside would explain it all. I only hoped that the man who the note was meant for would forgive me. After all, he was my daughter’s uncle. The older brother of the man who’d taken my virginity, gotten me pregnant, then tried to kill the baby because he thought I’d ratted him out. The joke was on him, though. I hadn’t been the one to tell his boss he’d been skimming money from the company. That had been his other woman. The one I’d known about but hadn’t cared enough to do anything about because if he was with her, he left me alone.
My plan had been perfectly executed. They’d taken Cassie inside with them. They might still turn her over to social services, but I didn’t think so. That wasn’t who Dustin’s brother was. He’d been against me getting with Dustin, but had warned Dustin to make sure the baby was taken care of. My letter explained everything. How he’d been right. How I wasn’t right for his brother, and how things had gone so horribly wrong in our lives. Now, Cassie’s only hope for a decent future rested with her uncle. He was abrasive and straight-talking. He’d never wanted me around but was protective of those he considered his. Cassandra might not be his, but she was his blood.
Who was I kidding? I was betting my daughter’s future on a man I barely knew. One who hated me. The man they called… Rage.
* * *
Rage
“Church!” Sting snapped. The anger on his face gave me pause. As a rule, I was the hot-headed one in the club. It’s one reason I got my name. But something was seriously off. Then I saw Sting’s woman, Iris. There were tears in her eyes and… a baby in her arms?
For some reason, that set off alarm bells in my head. There was no reason for me to think this was about me, but I knew it was. My suspicions were confirmed when Sting walked to me and handed me an envelope. It had been opened, and the contents were sticking out at one corner. When I raised my eyebrow, he gave me a hard look.
“Baby turns up at the club doorstep, privacy goes out the window.”
“Well, the baby ain’t mine. Sure of that,” I grumbled as I opened the letter and skimmed the contents. My eyes got wide, and my heart rate accelerated. “Motherfuck…” So I started over and read it carefully.
Virgil,
I’m sorry. I know you never wanted me with your brother. You were right, though not about what you probably thought. Having a baby definitely wasn’t a reason to stay together. Dustin’s into something bad with his job. I didn’t know until it all blew up and he thought I was the one who turned him in. I can take care of myself, but I can’t risk Cassandra.