AllFreeNovel
Share Us
PROLOGUE
LEVI
February 2021
Levi walks around Old Town, soaking in the sights of downtown Fort Collins. The weather is crisp and comfortable for late February, and the nightlife of the quaint city is active, with locals and tourists seeking entertainment for the evening. He likes the constant flow of people around him. Their movements make it easier to blend into the surroundings.
Being incognito has allowed him to pop into town every other week unnoticed. Nevertheless, he takes precautions. He never dresses the same, keeping his head down to avoid the city cameras from capturing his image. And he drives a rotation of undercover government-issued vehicles. Levi did his research once he discovered whereshewas located—the Mercy Ravens Security Company. It is no joke and essentially runs the city’s security.
Good thing he’s trained at being inconspicuous.
A string of crystals hanging in a shop window pulls his attention away from the bustling townsfolk. The city lights shining on the display catch the angles of the cut glass, casting rainbows—rainbows similar to the one adorning the sweet head of the girl who consumes his dark desire.
Olina.
The clever girl changed her name, though not legally. The name she now goes by—Opal—is a fitting pet name for the bubbly sweetheart, vibrant and priceless. Just like her. Levi isn’t happy she streaked her beautiful platinum-blond hair with shades of the rainbow, but he’s not surprised either. The girl he remembers loves them. It’s encouraging to know she hasn’t changed too much over the years.
For years, he searched for her. Long, hair-pulling years. Levi has come close to intercepting her several times, but she’d sneak away at the last second. She could’ve avoided detection forever if it weren’t for her name pinging on the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s radar eight months ago.
The silly girl thought she could request her high school transcripts without it tripping an alarm. Levi’s superiors hadn’t even questioned when he put in a request to resume the search for her. They just signed off on it. There are too many of these cases to get emotionally attached, and too few agents to care about a cold case.
Levi hadn’t anticipated finding Olina smack-dab in the middle of a biker compound in Colorado. That part proved problematic since the Mercy Ravens Motorcycle Club is deeply connected with government security. As far as who Olina became involved with, a government-contracted mercenary group was as bad as it can get for Levi. She’s surrounded by a militia of retired military men who would be hellbent on keeping her secure. He can’t simply approach her and convince her to return to him.
With Olina hiding in the bikers’ sanctuary, Levi needed a fresh approach for extracting her. If he couldn’t get to Olina directly, he would get to her by going after the men who harbored her, specifically the brute who stole her from him.
Using his government resources, Levi scoured case files involving the Mercy Ravens MC. Their missions were clean cut. Unless Levi fabricates a scenario to benefit him, there’s nothing legal to help build a case against the bikers. Hence, Levi is in Fort Collins, spying on the club members as they go about their lives.
Tonight, he stalks none other than the bastard who took Olina. Levi keeps his back to the café, watching the MC’s vice president exit the coffee shop through the display window’s reflection. Getting closer is too risky. This biker is trained to watch his six.
The VP has developed a caffeine addiction, causing him to visit the bistro frequently. Not enough to make it routine, but enough to gamble successfully on finding him. The biker drinks his coffee faster than most, needing the fix quickly before returning to whatever assignment he is currently working on.
With the beverage finished, the biker tosses the cup on top of the overflowing garbage. The cup falls on the ground as he climbs on his hog, peeling away from the curb.
Levi crosses the street to where the fucker’s trash litters the ground. He picks the disposed of cup in his gloved hand, and his fingers constrict lightly around it as he fantasizes the cup being the biker’s neck.
Quickly, he deposits the crumbled cup in an evidence bag. If Levi has learned anything in his years of law enforcement, DNA is vital when building a case.
Rushing the progression of his plotting could cause cracks in the foundation. Levi has waited years to get Olina back. A little longer won’t matter.
CHAPTERONE
OLINA
October 2015
When my mom was sixteen, she discovered she was pregnant. Afraid her family would demand she marry the man who forced himself on her, she ran away from her religious community. She never hid the fact I’m a product of rape, often cursing me for her miserable life. It’s why she drinks—to forget.
Often, I’d catch her glaring at me from the corner of her eyes, blaming me for what he did to her before drowning herself in a bottle. Sadly, I think she enjoys making me suffer, seeing it as some sort of sick poetic justice. Doesn’t matter that I had no say in the matter. I’m guilty of existing.
Why she kept me, I’ll never understand. Why not give me up for adoption?
I wish she had. It would have been better for both of us. Mostly, she neglects me. I may be the child, but I’m the one who takes care of her. A small part of me hoped she would love me back one day if I catered to her. I’m her nurse, cook, and maid, but she still looks at me like a stain.
When my mom met Levi, I thought things would get better. He was successful, dependable, and eight years younger than my mom, making her a bona fide cougar. He treats her like a queen. What he sees in her, I don’t know. She’s beautiful, but she’s also a cruel alcoholic.
My mom sobered for a spell, but depression has a way of hanging on. Slowly, she retreated in on herself. This time, I wasn’t alone in taking care of her. Levi was trapped, unable in good conscience to leave her to her own devices.
Two years ago, when Levi started showing interest in me, I couldn’t understand what was happening. Fifteen-year-old me never once thought I was in danger with mom’s boy toy.
