Page 47 of Drowning

"Or what, Em? Huh? What the fuck areyougoing to do about it?"

"Justplease, stop this."

"You made your fucking bed, now you have to lie in it. I told you what you needed to do, so if you don't want to see the people you love drop dead one by one, I suggest you pack your shit and come back to where you fucking belong. You know where to find me."

He hangs up, not giving me a chance to plead my case, but he was never going to. And I knew that.

So, I rushed to my closet, found my backpack, and dumped its contents out, knowing exactly what I needed to pack. I grabbed my gun case and unlocked it, removing my pistol from the cushion and putting it into the empty bag along with an extra full clip and a change of clothes. And then I zipped it shut and got dressed in my usual riding outfit, ignoring the penetrating chill that relentlessly wracked my body.

Even dressed in tight black jeans and a black cropped sweatshirt, I was fucking shivering, hearing my teeth chatter from the fear gripping my body. I slid my knife into the ankle sheath under my pants and tried to compose myself, trying to not look like a hot mess. But fuck, it was impossible not to.

There was nothing left for me here if the guys were gone, nothing left in this life that I wanted other than my peace and safety and the peace and safety of the men I loved. I refused tosit back and watch, so I started to slide the backpack over my shoulder as I decided there was only one thing left to do—I had to go back to Damon. He was right, it was my fault and my problem, and if it was the last thing I ever did, I had a plan to make it right.

I popped Zanex like they were candy, washing them down with the rest of the water in the bottle on my nightstand, hoping I wouldn't have a panic attack before they kicked in.

With one last deep breath, I slipped out of my bedroom and made my way back to the gathering on the porch, walking out with all eyes on me.

"What's going on?" My brother asked, concern pinching his brow.

"I have to go," I said as I pushed my way through the crowd, my eyes searching for Kane, who met them with anger and worry that mirrored my own.

"Where the fuck are you going?" Seven interjected, stepping in my path to try and block me from leaving.

"I have to go," is all I said, forcing my way past them, knowing I wouldn't have much of a head start if I didn't hurry my ass out of there.

They were all wicked protective over me, and although I loved it, at times it annoyed me. And today was one of those times. I needed to take care of this on my own. I needed closure, and I only knew of one way to get exactly what I was looking for.

Stepping out of the house and into the darkness of the night, facing my fears and my demons, I climbed on my bike and quickly started it, putting my helmet on just as the guys ran around the corner to get onto theirs.

I took off at a high rate of speed, pushing the speedometer past one hundred in a matter of seconds. The wind whipped angrily against my body, trying hard to knock me off my bike, but I held onto the handlebars tightly and made the throttle my bestfriend, pushing limits and breaking boundaries as I tried to get far enough away from them.

But they were right behind me before I knew it, trying to box me in, so I had nowhere to go and nothing else to do but stop. I turned and looked to my right, seeing Seven on his bike right beside me. To my left, Kane was there, trying to keep up with me as my brother, Ace, and Stone stayed behind me, the six of us zooming down the winding road along the beach that led back to Boston.

All I could think about as I pushed my bike harder than ever was the six bullets with each of their names carved into them, and it gave me a surge of adrenaline that I desperately needed. I don't know how, but I managed to gain more speed, inching away from the group as I smiled under my helmet. The rush was intense, and as my bike vibrated between my legs, sending pleasurable hums throughout my body, I couldn't help feeling turned on.

Was it the risk of them catching me? Or the climbing speeds past 160 mph? I didn't know what it was that made me feel the way I did, but I fucking loved it. I focused on that feeling and lowered my chest against my bike to fight the forceful winds as each man faded into the distance behind me one by one. The only bike I heard roaring in my ears was mine. I had finally lost them. I couldn't help but smirk, knowing that I had smoked their asses in a race. Sure, it wasn't what I had in mind when I thought about racing them, but I did it regardless. And even though I knew they were pissed at me for taking off, I also knew that they were proud of me for holding my own.

I still had no fucking clue what I was going to do, but I had to figure it out soon. I had to face Damon again and put an end to this shit.

Gritting my teeth, I continued to speed down the road, feeling a mix of fear and excitement as I willingly headed straight back into the lion's den.

The sad thing was, I was prepared to not make it out of there alive.

twenty-six

The Same Girl

A c e

"So does it feel weird for you that you and your father are fucking the same girl?" I ask Stone out of the blue, sliding his cock out of my mouth.

Looking at the road with one band on the steering wheel, he huffs and shakes his head. "Nah, as long as my dick isn't anywhere near his, I'm golden," he laughs, quickly looking down at me and flashing me a wink.

The rain beat down on the car as we cruised down familiar roads back in Dorchester, searching for any signs of Emerson.

As soon as we lost her, it started raining, and within minutes, it got so bad that we switched out our bikes for our cars. With everyone paired off, we've been scouring the city high and low,hoping to find her. But the fucking rain is making it harder, of course.

"Fuck, where would she have gone?" Stone looks around frantically, at a loss, like the rest of us.