Page 26 of Crave You

Lucien stands up, his face clouded. “The Hawks caught Liam on the way back from class, Zan, and set on him. Matthew and a couple of his guys said that it was payback for changing his mind about pledging to The Hawks and then coming to us instead,” he adds.

“I— I am— I didn’t—" Liam starts, but I cut him off with a look.

“Is this true?” I ask him after a second of silence has passed.

He nods miserably.

“So, now we pay a visit to Hawk House and show them what happens when they mess with us then,” I say. I could kiss Liam. He’s just given me the perfect reason to go beat the crap out of someone. I feel the anticipation as keenly as foreplay.

“Let’s get going,” I say. “Liam, you stay here. I’m not sure you could take a third beating in as many weeks,” I say with something approaching a smile.

We all pile into Shawn’s car, and he drives over to Hawk House. After we pull up, Damien goes to speak to one of Matthew’s minions, who is manning the doors. It is almost as if they are expecting us. Well, I guess they are.

Damien turns back towards us and gives us a thumbs-up sign. We walk to the lawn and stop. We could trash the outside of the place; beat up the minions and then storm the house, but I prefer to take things straight to the top. We don’t have long to wait before Matthew and three members of his inner circle come out of the house and join us on the lawn.

Matthew starts the trash talk straight away, but he doesn’t get far.

“Fuck this shit,” Damien says. He walks forward and punches Matthew and that ends the chat and starts the fight.

I face off with a guy I vaguely recognize. He’s about my height, but a bit bigger built. I can take him, though. I swing for him and land a good solid punch on his jaw. He stumbles, but he doesn’t go down. He swings back at me but I duck. Then suddenly he swings with his left hand and takes me by surprise. His fist connects with my eye socket, and I feel a dull pain there. I will have a black eye tomorrow, no doubt.

The fact that I let him take me by surprise angers me and I swing my fists again, this time not stopping when I connect. I keep punching with both of my fists, pummeling the guy’s face. Blood sprays — I think from his lips — but it could also be from the cut on his forehead or his broken nose. I don’t care which. I swing again and he goes down and doesn’t get up.

I take a few steps back. Thrashing this guy has let the last of my anger out and I’m thinking fully rationally again. I decide not to kick this guy while he’s down. He does deserve a boot to the stomach, though, so I pull my foot back and slam it into him. I watch as he curls up in the fetal position, his arms wrapped around his midriff. His mouth hangs open as he tries to breath, but he’s not getting any air and his eyes just get wider.

After a long moment, he pulls in a big breath and releases his hold on himself. He gets up and I tense up, ready to put him back down again, but he holds his hands up in a gesture that tells me he’s done. I nod to him. He nods back and then he backs up across the lawn. It’s only then that I glance across at the others and see that the fight is done.

Matthew has backed off and his other two guys are bloody. One is down and showing no signs of getting back up. Shawn and Lucien don’t even look as if they’ve been in a fight and Damien is as cool as if he’s been for a stroll. God knows how he has put the other guy down, without taking a single hit.

“This isn’t over,” Matthew says when he is close enough to Hawk House to be brave. “Mark my words, you will regret this.”

In my mind, the pleasing image of my fist connecting with his head flashes. Over and over and over again. Until his face is obscured. I smile.

“You will be the one who regrets it,” I say. “Yes. And I will be the one who enjoys it. Just how I enjoyed your French girlfriend a few months back.”

“You fucking liar,” he hisses, but he doesn’t come back.

Although I do take Matthew at his word. We won this time and we won’t regret it, but that doesn’t mean it’s over. Matthew will go off and lick his wounds and — one evening — he and his boys will try something else on us. It’s the way; it’s always been the way, and it’s probably the way it will always be. Is it wrong knowing that Matthew and The Hawks are about keeps me on my toes? No, it’s simpler than that. I know fighting is always on the cards and that helps me to keep my need to smash bones and break open skin under control.

We head back to Valens House and wash away any residual pain with a few beers.

“Anyone got any plans for tonight?” Lucien asks.

“I’m going out with Lara? Laura? Someone,” Damien says.

“Her name is Kate,” Shawn says with a laugh.

“Ah, close enough,” Damien says.

“Me, I’m going to watch the game,” Lucien says.

“Me too,” Shawn says. “You fancy it, Zan?”

I shake my head. The adrenaline is still pumping through my veins after the fight, and I know if I try to sit and watch the game, I’ll only be restless. I may have myself under control, but that doesn’t mean that my body doesn’t still crave the violence, it just means that I won’t give in to my bodily needs so readily.

“I might see what Leona’s up to,” I say slowly, a rare admission of plans.

“You like her, don’t you?” Shawn asks.

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