Page 29 of King's Claim
“King’s not here to save you this time,” Riker said, stepping closer.His shadow stretched long across the cracked pavement.“And I’ve been waiting for this.”
The two Serpents grabbed her arms before she could react, rough hands clamping down on her biceps like iron bands.She thrashed, kicked, but her boots barely grazed one man’s shin before they hauled her off balance.Her bag slipped from her shoulder, falling to the ground with a dull thud.
“Let go of me!”she shouted, her voice echoing across the empty lot.
No answer.No one came.The hospital doors were too far, and the few cars parked nearby showed no movement inside.
Riker leaned in close, his breath reeking of cigarettes and whiskey.“Scream all you want.No one’s listening.”
Her blood ran cold.
The men dragged her toward a black van idling at the far end of the lot.Its engine purred, exhaust curling into the chilly air.Lena kicked harder, nails clawing at the grip on her arms, but their hold was unyielding.
Terror surged, sharp and suffocating, but beneath it was a thread of fury.She’d lived too long fighting for scraps, too long refusing to be a victim.She wasn’t about to let them see her break.
“You’re pathetic,” she spat at Riker, forcing the words through clenched teeth.“Hiding behind your little gang, ambushing women in parking lots.King was right.You’re nothing but cowards.”
For a heartbeat, Riker’s smile faltered, anger flashing in his eyes.Then his fist lashed out, striking her across the face.Pain exploded in her cheek, white-hot and blinding.
The men holding her laughed, cruel and sharp.
Lena tasted blood on her tongue, coppery and thick.Her head rang, but she lifted her gaze anyway, glaring at Riker through the haze.
“That all you’ve got?”she croaked.
His jaw tightened.He stepped closer, until his face was inches from hers.“Oh, sweetheart, we’re just getting started.”
The van door slid open with a metallic groan.Darkness yawned inside, the smell of oil and leather spilling out.The men shoved her forward, ignoring her struggles.Her knees banged against the step, her palms scraping as she tried to catch herself.
“Get her in,” Riker ordered.
Hands shoved her from behind, and she stumbled inside, landing hard on the metal floor.The door slammed shut, sealing her in with shadows.
Her heart hammered so loud it drowned out everything else.The van lurched as the driver hit the gas, tires squealing against pavement.
Lena scrambled to the side, pressing her back against the cold wall.Her cheek throbbed where Riker’s fist had landed, swelling with each heartbeat.Fear pressed in, suffocating, but her mind spun past it.
If she panicked now, she was done.
She thought of her mother upstairs, waiting for her visit.She thought of The Pit Stop, reduced to ashes.She thought of King.His scarred face, the rough edge of his voice, the way he’d kissed her like she mattered.
No one knew she was here.No one would be looking.Except maybe him.
A part of her she hated clung to that hope, fragile as glass.If anyone could track the Serpents, it was King.If anyone would come for her, it would be him.But until then, she was on her own.
Lena drew in a shaky breath, pressing her fists against her knees to stop them from trembling.She didn’t know where they were taking her or what they planned to do, but one thing was certain.
She’d fight.She’d fight until she couldn’t anymore, and she prayed King would find her before it was too late.
****
King angrily stormedout of his office, his phone still clutched in one hand.The call replayed in his head like a taunt, Viper’s grim voice, two words that made his blood ice over.She’s gone.
Gone.Lena.His heart hadn’t pounded like this in years, not even in the middle of shootouts or knife fights.Not even when the Devil’s Crown had been backed into corners no sane man thought they’d claw their way out of.
He could live with his own skin in the fire.But her?No.King shoved through the clubhouse door and into the gravel lot, the cool evening air scraping against his lungs.Rage stood there, pale, shoulders stiff, a cigarette crushed under his boot.
On the ground between them lay Lena’s bag.
