Page 39 of Saving Her
“She was older than Diego. My son will never get to see her age and yet, he was more adult than her. The things she did to try to trap your son … It blows my fucking mind. That is not the daughter I raised, Dragon. That is not the Gabriella that I carry in my heart.”
“Kids make mistakes, Skull.”
“This mistake cost my son his life. If Gabby had left Dom alone, she wouldn’t have been here. My son wouldn’t have been here, helping me seek revenge in her name. She caused all of this.”
“Papi.”
Skull and I look up at the door to see a shattered Gabby. There’s no doubt that she heard what her father just said.
“Gabriella—” Skull calls, but she interrupts him with her soft voice, devoid of any emotion.
“I’m going to have one of men take me into town so I can get a change of clothes. I don’t have anything to wear home. Well, except for the outfit Ayita gave me when I got here. I won’t be long. I would like to travel back for Diego …” Her body trembles as she tries to contain her pain. Sympathy for her fills me. I wait for Skull to go to her, but he doesn’t move. “Diego’s funeral,” she continues. “BB has offered to take me back in the morning, if that’s okay.”
“Si,” Skull answers, “that’s fine.”
She nods. “Thank you, Papi,” she adds, not looking at him. In fact, she’s looking anywhere but at him. She backs up, hastily shutting the door that neither Skull nor I heard open in the first place.
“Skull, you need to go talk with her.”
“I will later. My mind is a mess, I am afraid of what I would say to her right now. I need to make sure I get vengeance for my son. Then, I will see to my daughter.”
“Skull, she’s not to blame for what happened to Diego. If you’re going to blame someone, blame Eyeball and his crew. They’re behind this. We did nothing to provoke this. Gabby got caught in the crossfire and sadly, I think she paid for it in ways a woman should never be subjected to.”
“Si,” he says. “I know this logically, but my brain is not logical at the moment. Anything I say to my daughter may hurt her more. I must see to everything else first. I will talk to her after that.”
I don’t truly agree, but I let it drop when my phone vibrates. Reaching down to the case that is clipped on my belt, I grab it. I grimace as I read the message. “Well, we can begin that vengeance a little early. I didn’t want to tell you until Hangman had located the man and had him contained.”
“What do you mean?” Skull asks as we stand.
“We’ve been trying to figure out how the Feral Kings found out what roads our boys were going to travel. We knew that they had already passed through that area. We couldn’t figure out what made them turn around and ambush Breaker and Diego. There were only a handful of people who knew our plan. The rest were told we’d be attacking them in Rutledge. I carefully eliminated any of our guys that knew. No one we trusted would betray Breaker or Diego. That left the Outlaws.”
“I assume you asked Hangman who knew from his club?”
“Yes, there were three people. Hangman and Viper are two that I trust. Dom has been close to Viper for a while. The same can be said about Breaker too.”
“Who does that leave?”
I stare at Skull. “Their Sergeant of Arms, Ranger.”
“Do we know where he is?”
“We do. They have him chained up and waiting for you. It seems your revenge will begin now, brother.”
“Let’s go,” he growls, as I nod my agreement.
I’m hoping this will get him under control enough that he won’t be a loose cannon when we attack the Feral Kings MC tonight. Knowing there won’t be any containing Bull, I need at least one of them to listen to common sense. Releasing a pent-up breath, I hope all of this doesn’t blow up in our faces.
We’ve lost too much as it is.
Chapter 27
Gabby
The funny thing about pain is that there is no fill line. Logic should tell you that there’s a point when you can’t take anymore, where it overflows and your body just says, “Sorry, can’t do it. That’s enough.”
Today, I’ve discovered that’s not true. My body and mind are bruised so violently I am positive I’ll never find the person I used to be. Admittedly, I’m realizing that person wasn’t that great, but she was better than the shell that I am now. I’ve been forcing myself to function. It hasn’t been easy. The looks of pity have nearly killed me. I could see it shining in Dom and Thomas’s face. Even Dragon feels pity for me. I hate it. It makes the shame I feel even worse. I’ve not spoken a word about what happened, but it’s clear everyone knows I was raped. The mere thought makes me want to vomit. The only people around here who treat me halfway normal is Nicole and King. Since we got here, however, even Nicole looks at me with sympathy. I want to tell her—tell everyone—that their stares are mercilessly tearing me apart. I don’t. I know the truth. I brought this on myself. It appears karma is a bigger bitch than even me. She got her claws into me and served me with double the pain that I caused—maybe more.
Then, Ayita let me know about my brother. I don’t feel bad about my father and his reaction. He must be destroyed. My father may have faults, but he loves me and my brothers with everything cell of his body. He’s the only reason I’m able to walk around right now. I’m safe when my papi is around. He would fight the fires of hell to protect me. No one but him could have rescued me like he did. Without him, I don’t doubt that I would be dead. I seriously doubt Dom, or any of them, cared about me. I’m not saying I even blame them. I just know how it is.