Total pages in book: 47
Estimated words: 43689 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 218(@200wpm)___ 175(@250wpm)___ 146(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 43689 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 218(@200wpm)___ 175(@250wpm)___ 146(@300wpm)
He paid the driver with a crisp bill pulled from a slim leather wallet, then retrieved a single suitcase from the trunk. The taxi peeled away the moment the trunk closed, leaving Blackheart standing before our gate, scanning the compound with calculating eyes.
Ellie had frozen in place, her face drained of color. I moved to stand at her side but slightly in front of her, my need to protect her in overdrive. Her breathing had gone shallow, and I resisted the urge to take her hand, knowing she needed to present a strong front to her father.
“That’s not prison issue,” I murmured, nodding toward Blackheart’s clothes. “Someone’s been holding his stuff.”
“Or helping him,” she whispered back, her voice tight.
Hawk pressed the button to slide the gate open, and Blackheart stepped onto our territory with the confidence of a man entering his own home rather than a stranger on hostile land. His eyes found Ellie immediately, and something flickered across his face. Not love or joy at seeing his daughter, but a cold assessment, as if he were sizing up his chances of using her to get what he wanted. It vanished so quickly I might have imagined it, replaced by a warm, fatherly smile that made my skin crawl.
“Elvira,” he called, his voice carrying across the yard. “My little witch.”
Ellie flinched at the childhood nickname but raised her hand in a stiff wave. I moved slightly closer to her, making my position clear. I was her shield, her protection against whatever this man might try.
Blackheart set down his suitcase and opened his arms wide, stepping toward Ellie with clear intention of embracing her. Something primal roared to life in my chest, and I stepped solidly between them, my arm extending to block his approach. He halted, surprise flickering across his features before smoothing into understanding.
“I see,” he said, lowering his arms. “Protective boyfriend?”
I didn’t answer, didn’t confirm or deny the label. Ellie shifted beside me, and I could feel her indecision. Part of her wanted to placate her father, but part of her needed the barrier I’d created and was grateful for it.
“Dad,” she said, her voice steadier than I’d expected. “I’m glad you arrived safely.”
“The journey was… enlightening,” he replied, his gaze sliding past us to take in the compound and everyone in it. “This is quite an establishment your friends have here.” He managed to sound both impressed and condescending.
“The people here at Kiss of Death have been good to me,” Ellie said, a slight emphasis on the club’s name.
Blackheart’s eyebrows rose fractionally, and he glanced around again as if noticing for the first time the bikes in the yard and the men in leather cuts focused entirely on him. “A motorcycle club? How adventurous of you, Elvira.” The subtle note of disapproval in his tone made my jaw clench. “Though I must say, it’s not what I pictured when you mentioned staying with friends.
“You look well,” Ellie said, changing the subject. “Prison doesn’t seem to have been too hard on you.”
“One adapts,” he replied with a modest smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “I made the best of my situation. Counseled younger inmates, participated in rehabilitation programs. The system rewards those who show genuine remorse and a desire to change.”
I barely suppressed a snort. Men like Blackheart didn’t change. They got better at hiding what they were.
“You look beautiful, Elvira,” he continued, his gaze returning to his daughter. “So much like your mother. You’ve grown into quite the stunning young woman.” His eyes flicked to me, then back to her. “I see you’ve found someone to look after you. That’s good. I worried about you being alone.”
“I can look after myself,” Ellie said, her chin lifting slightly. “I’ve been doing it since I was fourteen and went into the system.”
A fleeting shadow crossed Blackheart’s face. “Yes, well. That was unfortunate. If the courts had allowed me more say in your placement --”
“You gave up that right when you decided to harvest human organs for profit,” I interrupted, unable to contain myself any longer.
Blackheart’s gaze snapped to mine, something cold and reptilian swimming in their depths before disappearing behind his mask of civility. “And you are?”
“Not your fuckin’ business,” I snapped.
Gunnar stepped forward to Blackheart. Surprisingly, Knuckles stayed where he was at the gate to the compound. I figured he was letting Gunnar take point in case Blackheart recognized him.
“I’m Gunnar. I speak on behalf of our president. So let me start by saying you’re here because Ellie made a request of us and we decided to grant it. But you staying here is the extent of her influence with us.”
Tate narrowed his gaze on Gunnar, looking between me and the other man. “I don’t understand what you’re saying.”
“I’m saying,” Gunnar continued, “She gets no say in anything else. She can’t extend your stay or get you a different room or make your guards leave you alone. She can ask or even beg, and the answer will still be no.” Gunnar crossed his arms over his chest. “You will be assigned a room where you’ll have two guards with you at all times. Inside and out. You don’t even get to take a shit without someone in the fucking toilet with you.”