AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I listened in stunned silence as Ace told me about the Hale brothers over the years. The divide between them began right after I left town. They parted ways, doing their best to avoid each other completely until their shady business eventually brought them face to face. Every meeting was rife with conflict. Ruthless seemed apathetic to it all while Ace did his best to keep the peace.
It didn’t fit with how I remembered them. Back in the day, if you fucked with one Hale brother, you fucked with both of them. It went without saying that rule included Ace and Ruthless. And me, once upon a time.
“I didn’t want this,” I said softly.
Somehow Ace heard me. “You didn’t do it to them, Bright Eyes. They let something that should have united them divide them instead. Nobody can fix it but Mads and Wolfe.”
My mind raced, searching for a solution to a problem that I hadn’t caused. The men I’d loved and left were lost without me. Would my return fix what was broken? Or make it so much worse?
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
MAVEN
Sweat trickled down the side of my face. I gave it a halfhearted wipe with the back of my forearm, ignoring the leering creep two treadmills over from me. My ponytail swung hard from side to side as I ran, staring straight ahead out the window of the gym. The parking lot of the strip mall housing the gym provided ample foot traffic for people watching, but I barely noticed. My mind was elsewhere.
Seeing Ace last night at the MC bar had left me shaken. Hearing him confirm how bad things were between Wolfe and Maddox made me ill. They’d been unshakable, or so I’d believed.
I left the city to keep from being their weakness. How was I to know that it would only weaken them further? They’d have dismantled the Archer Syndicate by now if they’d stayed together. Dividing their power kept them at a disadvantage. Didn’t they see that?
Gritting my teeth, I pushed myself to run another mile on the treadmill before slowing my pace for a cooldown. All night I’d tossed and turned on my air mattress, staring at the ceiling while replaying my conversation with Ace. I’d been a restless, bitchy mess this morning. At Rumer’s insistence, I’d come to the gym after breakfast, hoping to purge the feelings that tormented me.
No such luck. It drove me mad that those dumbasses had let it come to this. What were they thinking?
“You have a killer body.” The douchebag two treadmills over openly ogled me. “Can I get your number? Maybe we can hang out sometime.”
It took a moment for me to realize he was talking to me. Pulling myself from my thoughts, I shook my head. “I don’t think so. I’m just here to run.”
“I noticed.” He wiggled both brows at me, growing a hundred times more obnoxious with that gesture. “Come on. I don’t bite. Unless you want me to.”
How incredibly fucking cringey. My face morphed into a mask of displeasure. I didn’t hide my feelings well. I wasn’t into men who used the gym as a place to harass women.
“Listen, buddy. I’m not interested. In fact, I can promise you that no woman in this building is interested. Leave us alone so we can work out in peace. Cool?” My tone got short and snappy. I couldn’t help it. I wasn’t in the mood for this shit.
His smile disappeared. He hopped off the treadmill and slung a towel around his neck. “Speak for yourself, bitch. I hardly think you’re qualified to speak on behalf of all women. If I’d known you’d be so stuck up, I wouldn’t have bothered.”
I bounced off my treadmill and cleared the empty machines between us in a heartbeat. Grabbing the muscley jerk by the throat, I slammed him against the handrail of the machine he’d used. “Newsflash, asshole. Women aren’t here for your entertainment. Back the hell off before I have to get real nasty. I promise that you won’t like my dark side.”
The weight of several gazes upon us made me uneasy. I didn’t need to draw attention right now. Unfortunately, the tattoo on my forearm did it for me. The guy’s gaze landed on the ink, and his whole tune changed.
“Oh shit. I didn’t know you were Hale Syndicate. I swear.” Holding up both hands, he vigorously shook his head. “I don’t want any trouble. I’m sorry, I’ll leave.”
With a frustrated huff, I released the guy and stepped back. My initial instinct was to deny it, but gang ink doesn’t lie. There were several reasons I could give regarding why I’d never had it removed. The harsh truth was that I couldn’t bring myself to sever the only link I had left to the men I’d left behind.
Deciding that my workout was over, I wiped down my machine and slipped away to the locker room. A run on the treadmill wasn’t what I needed. Throwing a few punches at a deserving target may help. As soon as I found my own place, I was having a punching bag installed.
The locker room was large with several rows of lockers on one side, sinks and showers on the other side. The sound of water running followed me to my locker. I started to undress, pausing when I got the sensation of being watched. I turned around, finding the row of lockers empty. Paranoia had a way of creeping in.
Eager for a shower, I stripped out of my clothes and wrapped a towel around me. I closed the locker and headed for the showers. As I rounded the corner, I almost bounced off the chest of a smirking man. Clutching my towel tighter, I cursed my lack of weapons. Could I make it to my locker and get it open in time? Doubtful.
“Don’t scream,” the man warned, backing me up against the lockers. “I’ll gut you like a fish if you make a sound. I’m here with a message from Mr. Archer.”
Oh, fuck me. Of course he was. I knew better than to panic. After what the Archer crew had already done to me, staying calm proved difficult. My chest heaved as my breath came faster. I willed myself to calm the hell down. This was a public place. He wouldn’t want to draw attention to himself.
“Fine. What’s the message?” My gaze traveled over him, taking in the tip of a chunky A tattoo peeking from beneath his collar.
Hair buzzed short combined with a thick beard made him appear scarier than he was. He used his larger stature to trap me against the locker. “Mr. Archer wants his stolen delivery back. He’s confident that you’ll be able to convince Hale to return it. He wouldn’t want to have to finish what he started with you all those years ago.”
An icy chill made my body break out in goosebumps. Archer had given the order, but he’d never had the guts to show his face that night. He paid others to do his dirty work, unlike Maddox who preferred to do his own.
