Page 53 of Ride Hard
“It’s not mybusiness.”
“She was taken by a rival Club, passed around, torn apart, had her throat slit, and dumped on Fortitude’s front stoop like trash.” I sniffed, my throat burning with the effort of keeping my tears at bay. “Just like our old buddy Pube Face was planning to do tome.”
The silence was painful this time. Restlessness threatened to overwhelm me, and I tensed in an attempt to staystill.
Don’t cry, don’t yell, don’tscream.
You don’t needanyone.
You can’t count onanyone.
Kill them before they killyou.
Run, Sloane. Run as far and as fast as youcan.
Finally, I felt Chaser’s hand on my thigh. His touch warmed my skin as much as it pissed me off. Why did it have to be him? The universe was torturingme.
“I won’t let anything happen to you,” hesaid.
“Yeah,right.”
My head fell against the window, the fire in my soul dampening. Which way was up? Should I listen to my heart or myhead?
“Besieged on all sides,” Imused.
“You don’t talk like a woman who grew up in a bikercompound.”
“That’s because I don’t belongthere.”
