Chapter 3
Ivy woke to the sound of engines and shouting. Sunlight streamed through the barred window. She'd slept in the oversized clothes, her body stiff from the narrow bed.
The lock clicked. Axel walked in without knocking.
"Get up. Time to eat."
He looked different in daylight. Older. The scar on his face was deeper than she'd noticed. Dark circles shadowed his eyes like he hadn't slept.
"I'm not hungry."
"Wasn't a request." He leaned against the doorframe. "You can walk down there, or I can carry you. Your choice."
Ivy stood slowly. Her legs were still unsteady from yesterday's terror. "I need to use the bathroom first."
"Five minutes."
She locked the bathroom door and splashed cold water on her face. The mirror showed yesterday's makeup smeared under her eyes. She looked like a raccoon.
When she came out, Axel was still waiting. "Let's go."
Downstairs, the bar was full of bikers eating breakfast. Conversation stopped when they saw her. Every eye tracked her movement across the room.
Axel pointed to a table in the corner. "Sit."
A woman brought over a plate of eggs and bacon. Not Candy from last night. This one was older, with kind eyes and graying hair.
"I'm Rose," she said quietly. "You need anything, you ask me."
"Thank you."
Rose squeezed her shoulder and walked away. Ivy picked at the eggs. They were actually good, but her stomach was twisted in knots.
"Eat," Axel commanded from across the table.
"I said I'm not hungry."
"And I said eat."
Ivy threw down her fork. "You can't control everything I do."
The room went silent. Men stopped chewing. Stopped talking. Stopped breathing.
Axel's eyes turned to ice. "What did you say?"
"You heard me." Ivy stood up, her chair scraping across the floor. "You bought me. You didn't buy my soul."
Laughter erupted from the nearest table. A man with a shaved head and spider tattoos slapped his knee.
"She's got fire, Prez. I like that."
"Shut up, Razor." Axel never took his eyes off Ivy. "Sit down. Now."
"Make me."
The words were out before she could stop them. Axel stood slowly. He walked around the table until he was inches away from her.
"You think you're brave?" His voice was quiet. Deadly. "You think standing up to me makes you strong?"
"Stronger than hiding behind revenge for something I didn't do."
His hand moved toward her face. She flinched, but he only tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. The gesture was almost gentle.
"You have no idea what I'm capable of," he whispered.
"Then show me."
For a moment, something flickered in his eyes. Surprise? Respect? Then it was gone.
"Finish your breakfast. We'll talk after."
He walked away, leaving her standing there with every biker in the room staring at her.
Rose appeared at her elbow. "Honey, you just poked a sleeping bear."
"Good. Maybe he'll show his true colors."
"His true colors will get you killed."
Ivy sat down and forced herself to eat. The eggs tasted like cardboard now, but she cleaned her plate. She wouldn't give them the satisfaction of seeing her weak.
After breakfast, Axel led her outside. The compound looked different in daylight. Bigger. More dangerous. Men worked on motorcycles in the garage. Others cleaned weapons on picnic tables.
"You want to know what I'm capable of?" Axel stopped beside a shed at the edge of the property. "Look inside."
He opened the door. The smell hit her first. Metallic. Wrong.
A man hung from chains attached to the ceiling. His face was a mess of blood and bruises. One eye was swollen shut.
Ivy stumbled backward. "Oh God."
"He tried to steal from us," Axel said calmly. "This is what happens to thieves."
The man's good eye focused on Ivy. His mouth moved but no sound came out.
"Please," Ivy whispered. "Let him go."
"Why should I?"
"Because you're better than this."
Axel laughed. Cold and bitter. "Better? You don't know me at all."
He closed the shed door. The man's muffled cries were cut off.
"Your stepfather thought he was better too. Right up until he pulled the trigger."
They walked back toward the main building. Ivy's legs felt like jelly.
"That man in there. What did he really steal?"
"Does it matter?"
"It does to me."
Axel stopped walking. "A picture. Of his dead wife."
Ivy stared at him. "A picture?"
"From my brother's wallet. The night he was murdered."
"That's what this is about? A picture?"
"That picture was the only thing I had left of Jake. The only proof he ever existed." Axel's voice cracked slightly. "Your stepfather took everything from me. My brother. My family. My reason for living."
"So you torture random thieves?"
"I torture anyone who takes what's mine."
They'd reached the building. Axel opened the door for her, playing the gentleman. The gesture felt wrong after what she'd just seen.
Inside, Snake was waiting. The biker from last night looked nervous.
"Prez, we got a problem."
"What kind of problem?"
"The kind with guns and money." Snake glanced at Ivy. "Maybe we should talk private."
"She stays." Axel crossed his arms. "Talk."
"Got word from our contact downtown. Someone put a bounty on the girl."
Ivy's blood went cold. "What?"
"Fifty grand. Dead or alive." Snake shifted his weight. "Posted this morning."
"Who?" Axel's voice was deadly quiet.
"Don't know yet. But word's spreading fast. Every lowlife in the city's gonna come looking for her."
Axel grabbed Ivy's arm. "Come on."
"Wait." She pulled back. "What bounty? Who wants me dead?"
"Good question." Axel's grip tightened. "But first, we need to keep you alive long enough to find out."
As they climbed the stairs to her room, Ivy's mind raced. Someone wanted her dead. Not just dead—willing to pay for it.
But who? And why?
She had a terrible feeling the answer was connected to whatever her stepfather had done to Axel's brother. And if that was true, then Axel might be the only thing standing between her and a bullet.