Page 56 of Fury

“You better start fighting,” he warns, “cos if you don’t, I’m gonna get her back and give her a night she’ll never fucking forget. Am. I. Clear?” he bellows.

The next round is as brutal as the first. Letting Ripper get so many shots in the first round has put him at an advantage, andeven though I manage a few moves, I don’t execute them in the way I usually would.

Round three is better. I manage to break his nose and possibly his cheekbone. I just need to hit him one good time to knock him out, and then maybe this madness can stop.

When the bell sounds for round four, I’m feeling more like myself. This fucker isn’t even a brother anymore. He’d made that perfectly clear when he asked Axel’s permission to end me. I owe him nothing.

I slam my fist into his face, hitting the same cheek with two quick jabs. He stumbles back, and I follow up with a round kick, which makes him lose his balance and he crashes to the floor. I dive on top of him, straddling his waist and punching him over and over. The crowd is going wild, and then I hear her calling to me. I glance to my left, and there she is, with tears streaming down her face.Joanne.“Please,” she begs. “Don’t.”

It’s not lost on me just how much she looks like Xanthe. Maybe that was the reason I was so attracted to her. But it was never love, and that’s the reason Ripper could never forgive me. I fucked his old lady . . . I got her pregnant when he couldn’t . . . and it wasn’t even about love.

Joanne’s distraction gives him enough time to shove me back, and I realise he must have been holding back before, because now, as he lands each precise blow, I feel as though my skull is breaking. The crowd is cheering, they’re so fucking fickle, and I pray for the bell to ring. But as he pins my hands under his knees and continues to rain down blows, I know it’s not going to sound.

This was always Donnie’s plan. This way, he wins.

Xanthe

The atmosphere has changedaround the room, and the bikers are quiet. Even the women have felt it and have asked several times what’s wrong. It’s not until Axel storms in, followed quickly by Grizz, that I realise it might be something to do with Fury. “Motherfuckers,” Axel yells, kicking a wooden chair that flies across the room and breaks against the wall.

“What’s the plan?” asks Fletch.

“I don’t have a fucking plan,” Axel shouts angrily. “My plan was to monitor the situation from inside, but that stupid fucker made sure we didn’t get in.”

“How bad is this gonna get?” asks Coop cautiously.

The men exchange a look I don’t understand, and I push to my feet. “What’s going on?” My voice comes out less confident than I wanted it to, and Axel stares at me with a mixture of worry and pity.

He looks away. “Lexi, get her out of here. Get all the women out.”

I feel her gently tug my arm, but I shrug her off, frowning. If this is about Fury, I have a right to know. “Where is he?” I demand. “Has something happened to Fury?”

“Church,” he barks, heading for their sacred room, which Fury made very clear women weren’t allowed to enter.

The men file into the room and then the door slams shut. I turn to Lexi, who offers a pitying smile. “I’m sure he’ll fill you in when he can.”

“That’s not good enough,” I cry. “Something’s very wrong, I can feel it,” I add, rushing after them and shoving the door to church open. My breathing comes out in fast bursts as the men all turn to look at me. Axel stands, his large frame looking scarier than usual as he grips the edge of the table. “I need to know if he’s okay.”

“You can’t be in here,” says one of the bikers, trying to guide me from the room.

“If you don’t tell me what’s going on, I’ll go and find out for myself,” I threaten, looking Axel in the eyes.

He scrubs a hand over his brow. “I don’t know if he’s okay,” he admits. “I don’t know fuck all because Donnie wouldn’t let us in. But I’m guessing it’s not good.”

I let his words sink in, pain searing my heart. I almost fall to my knees as the realisation of what he’s saying hits me. The biker who was pushing me out is now gripping me to keep me upright. “I’ll come find you when I know more,” Axel says. “Try not to worry. He could be fine, and I might be overthinking this.” But we both know he isn’t.

The biker leads me from the room, but I pull free of his supporting arms and head out. I need air because I feel like the walls are closing in on me. Shoving the door hard, I inhale the cool evening air.Fuck.I knew something bad would happen. I had a dread in the pit of my stomach all day. What if Donnie knows I’m here? What if the fight went bad? I pace back and forth, not leaving the safety of the doorway, just in case.

A movement catches my eye, and I glance up in time to see a cat running across the carpark. And then my eyes land on a dark heap in the gateway. I can’t see what it is, but it doesn’t look like it belongs in the centre of the driveway. I take a few steps closer. “Hello?” There’s no movement or sound. I look around, but there’s no one else here, so I go closer. It’s only when I’m a few steps away that I realise it’s a person because I see a hand splayed out to the side. “Shit,” I mutter, dropping down beside the body. My nursing instincts kick in, and I gently place my hand to their shoulder. “Hi, I’m a nurse, are you hur . . .” My words trail off as the hood falls away and I’m faced with Fury. “Oh shit,” I gasp, falling back onto my arse and covering my mouth so I don’t scream. His face is a bloody mess. His eyes are completely swollen shut, and his lips are bloody and busted. His nose is broken, and he’s covered in small cuts.

“Reese,” I cry, scrambling to my knees and unzipping his hoody. I run my hands over his chest and feel wetness there. When I bring my hands up, they’re soaked in blood. “Help,” I scream. “Somebody help!” Seconds later, Lexi appears in the doorway. “Get Axel,” I yell. “It’s Fury!” I lean down to check his breathing.

The men run out, and Axel reaches me first, skidding to a stop beside us. “Holy shit, is he breathing?”

I nod. “Barely.”

“We need to get him inside,” says Grizz, looking around cautiously.

“We can’t move him,” I cry, wiping my tears on the back of my hand. I lean my ear back to his nose and mouth to monitor his breathing. My fingers dig into his wrist, feeling a faint pulse. “Call an ambulance.”

---