Axle's Brand (Death Chasers MC 3)

I hear a sniff, like someone is snorting something, then laughter.

“You’re far too annoying. Sure you don’t want some?” Lathan’s voice has chills rising up my spine.

“Snort your drugs with your other junkies all you want. Just give me my half of the money, because there’s no way in hell I can go back.”

“As soon as my sister awakes from whatever drug-induced coma you’ve left her in—”

“I had to sedate her when I realized I was going to have to drive her out here myself,” the traitor growls.

“—I can torture all the account information out of her, and you can take your money and run,” Lathan goes on, pretending there was no interruption.

A phone ringing has the traitor cursing. “It’s Dad. Again. I have to tell him something.”

“He won’t suspect you. Tell him your phone was dead and you were fucking that little whore you love so much. That little excuse has worked for you before.”

Cursing, I hear the traitor answer, and tears cloud my eyes when he walks out, leaving me unable to shout. My lips move in a desperate motion, but my throat is so dry that only a tiny squeak slips free.

It’s only then that I realize my hands are tightly bound behind me, and that I’m tied to a chair, both my legs fastened to a chair leg.

The bag is instantly jerked off my head, and I blink against the blinding lights overhead as a shadow falls over me. A grinning Lathan is staring down at me, and I struggle in vain against the binds that hold me to the chair.

“Hello, sister. You’ll notice I take you a little more seriously now,” he says, gesturing to me. “Last time I never expected you to pick a lock and manage to escape. How exactly did you escape, and where were you these past several, long months?” he muses.

I roll my eyes and cut my gaze away.

He turns and grabs a bottle of water, and I struggle when he grips my chin in his hand, forcing my mouth open as I cry out in pain. Then he pours the water down my throat, causing me to cough and heave.

The water splashes on my face, up my nose, and down my neck as he pours it until its empty.

“Don’t say I never gave you anything,” he says as he flicks the empty bottle to the ground.

Nowhere close to hydrated, I simply glare at him.

“How long have I been here?” I ask in a scratchy voice as Lathan takes a seat behind a table that has lines of coke on a mirror next to a rolled-up dollar bill.

“Two days. You sort of almost died. Had to have a doctor come out and check on you since that idiot dosed you with enough sedatives to take down a horse.”

He laughs, because he’s bat-shit crazy.

“But you’ve survived. Now you’re awake. And it’s time to talk about the money you inherited. See, I’m going to need access to all Blackbird’s accounts. Last time, I was polite and asked. This time, I’m going to tear the information out of you.”

I snort derisively, and his look hardens as he stands.

Before he can make a move, Troy steps back in, and my eyes water as my heart kicks my chest.

“How could you?” I bite out.

Troy looks from me to Lathan like he’s surprised I’m awake, then his lips thin as his gaze turns cold and lands on me again.

“Troy got tired of his family always living in Blackbird’s shadow. His father is like a puppy at Blackbird’s feet, no matter who Blackbird is. And now he’s stuck being the next one in line to be your puppy,” Lathan supplies, clapping his hands together as his grin returns.

I laugh humorlessly, but the laugh turns into a painful cough because I’m so dehydrated that laughing is a terrible idea.

“Your father gets paid like a king to be Blackbird’s right hand. Not Blackbird’s puppy,” I manage to say, a smirk on my lips as Troy glares at me.

“Bullshit. I’ve seen what you have compared to my family, and it’s time to even things out,” Troy snaps.

“Smitty always did want you to work for things instead of just handing you everything,” I say with a dark grin. “Twenty years old and you got impatient, and now you’re going to die when he finds you. Because the thing he hates most is a disloyal little fuck who helped another disloyal little fuck kill his brother. Kill his family. And now you’re going to kill me—the girl he loves like a daughter. The girl who loved you like a brother. Figures you’d be the traitor amongst us. I never did have luck with brothers.”

I spit up some blood from my dry throat, and cast a glare toward Lathan, who is narrowing his eyes at me.