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“Don’t youeverfucking imply that I’d ever hurt my mate or allow anyone else to harm her in any way. She will be cherished and protected for the rest of her days. As to what I intend to do for work, I guess that’s up to Joaquin now, isn’t it?”
Jaxson shifted the papers away from the inky mess, shaking his head. “Can’t believe he’s taking you on. I know full well he wasn’t your Alpha before today.”
“Yet you still called him.”
He frowned at me. “Be grateful I want to get back to Alina more than I want to do all the paperwork required to keep you in here.”
Joaquin returned and he raised an eyebrow at the black blot of ink on the table before taking another pen from Jaxson and signing the forms. Once that was finished, Jaxson stood. “You’re free to go. Wait for me in the reception area. I’ll bring Lily-Rose out to you in a few minutes.”
I would have preferred to go with him to get her but realized he was bending the rules for me already and since I didn’t want to risk him changing his mind, I went with Joaquin toward the front of the building.
“Thanks for coming for me.”
Joaquin nodded. “Anytime, brother. You’ve always been welcome with the Iron Hammers, you know that. It’s your lucky fucking day that a bunch of us were already in the area.”
I shook my head. “Yeah, luck. You know where my SUV is? I should have asked the deputy about it.”
Joaquin nodded. “Jaxson told me where it’d been towed. I had a couple of the men go pick it up for you. It should be out the front. Although, you’re gonna need to get yourself a sled now that you’re with us.”
I shrugged off his suggestion. “I had a bike. Switched it out for an SUV for this last job.”
Joaquin shook his head with a chuckle. “Yeah, well, your nomad days are fucking over. You can find a place in Galveston and settle down. With a home base you can own, however many vehicles you fucking want at the same time. No need to switch out your sled when you need a cage.”
Her scent hit my nose and instantly had my full attention. Drawing a deep breath, I turned to watch as Jaxson led Lily-Rose toward us. She looked scared and her fear tainted her scent. Jaxson lowered his head and said something to her that didn’t carry but she nodded and tentatively stepped toward me. I didn’t wait for her to get to me, I strode over and wrapped an arm around her middle, pulling her in flush against my body, reveling in how peaceful I felt with her that close.
“C’mon, Lily-Rose, let’s get the fuck outta here.”
Shaking her head, she tried to pull away from my hold on her. “I can’t go with you! It hurts if I’m too far away from him.” She tugged at the bracelets. “No matter where I go, he’ll be able to find me. The longer it takes him, the worse the beating will be. You have to leave me here.”
Anger flashed hot through me. He beat her? I glared at Jaxson. “Some fucking deputy you are. Her father beats her. Pimps her out. And you do nothing? Law, my ass.”
Jaxson’s voice had more growl than normal. “This is the first I’ve heard about any beatings, and she’s never been willing to press charges against her father. I have to follow the law. I need proof, witness statements… I can’t just run off and haul people in, no matter how much I might want to.”
With a shake of my head, I dismissed the deputy and his bullshit to focus on Lily-Rose. Releasing my hold on her waist, I lifted her right arm and after allowing a single wolf claw to grow from my index finger, sliced through the leather easily, tossing the now useless material into the trashcan in the corner. I quickly repeated the action on her left wrist, disposing of it in the same way.
I turned to Jaxson one last time. “You might want to burn those fuckers.”
Then with a palm on her lower back, I guided my mate, who was staring at her wrists and touching the newly revealed skin like she couldn’t quite believe I’d done what I said I would, outside. Joaquin followed us, chuckling.
When we got to the parking lot, there were six men all wearing Iron Hammer MC cuts waiting for us. Spotting my ride, I moved toward it and a man I recognized from when I’d done a job for Joaquin a while back stepped into my path. Chaos and I hadn’t seen eye-to-eye on a couple of things. He was impulsive as hell and had a tendency to run headfirst into a situation with no escape plan.
“Keys are in it. There’s not much in there, so not sure how much the cops stripped out on you. If you let me know what’s missing, I can chase it up. See if we can’t get it returned.”
I shook my head. “There wasn’t anything much in there to grab. Thanks.”
He nodded toward Lily-Rose, who was still staring at her arms in awe. “Who’s this? Entertainment for the road?”
Fury raced through my system and I pulled Lily-Rose so she was behind me. Joaquin stepped in front of me before I could knock the fucker’s teeth in. “Back off her, Chaos. She’s Cujo’s mate, not a plaything.”
That was the other thing Chaos was known for. The man had no fucking filter on his mouth.
Lily-Rose
He’d done it. He’d actually managed to remove the bracelets and accomplished it so easily. I was barely aware of the fact I was moving as I allowed Cujo to guide me outside the police station and into the parking lot. It wasn’t until Cujo’s fury hit me like a freight train a moment before he moved me behind him that I snapped out of my daze.
Clearly, the man standing in front of us had said something nasty that I’d not heard. The other man, the one who’d first come in to get Cujo with Deputy Jaxson, pushed in front of Cujo and shoved the other man further away, but I wasn’t focusing on the drama. Not once I saw the back of the vest the man wore.
“Iron Hammers MC.” My voice was barely a whisper as I repeated out loud those words I’d been taught to hate. It was the Iron Hammers MC who had taken my mother, drugged her up, raped her then sold her into human trafficking. Eventually she was bought by Kevin, who hadn’t realized she was a shifter. Hadn’t realized the birth control shot he insisted she get wouldn’t work until she was pregnant with me.
