CHAPTER TWO: WHERE MONSTERS SLEEP

The compound sat at the edge of town like a fortress. High fence. Guard at the gate. Rows of motorcycles gleaming under security lights.

Colt's bike rumbled through the entrance, and I felt every eye on us. Men in leather vests stopped mid-conversation. A woman smoking by the clubhouse door crushed her cigarette under her boot, watching me like I was a ghost.

Maybe I was.

The girl who left this town died somewhere between Texas and California. What came back was something else entirely.

Colt killed the engine and swung off. He did not offer to help me down. I climbed off awkwardly, my legs shaking from the ride and everything else.

"Inside," he said. "Now."

The clubhouse was exactly what I expected. Bar along one wall. Pool tables. Worn leather couches. The smell of whiskey and motor oil and violence barely contained.

A massive man with a gray beard looked up from the bar. "That her?"

"Yeah, Hammer. That is her." Colt's voice was ice.

"Well, hell." Hammer laughed, but it was not friendly. "The runaway bride returns. This ought to be entertaining."

I wanted to disappear. To run again. But Colt's hand closed around my wrist, holding me in place.

"Everyone out," Colt said. "Church in ten minutes. Spread the word."

The room cleared fast. Too fast. Within seconds, it was just us.

Colt released me and walked to the bar, pouring whiskey into two glasses. He downed his in one swallow, then turned to face me.

"Sit."

"I would rather stand."

"I was not asking." His eyes were flat. Dead. "Sit down, Jenna."

I sank onto the nearest couch, my ribs protesting. Everything hurt. My body. My heart. My soul.

He stayed at the bar, studying me like I was a puzzle he wanted to break apart. "Tell me about the bruises."

"There is nothing to tell."

"Wrong answer." He poured another whiskey. "You have three seconds before I lose my patience. One."

"Colt, please—"

"Two."

"His name is Derek!" The words exploded out of me. "His name is Derek Monroe. I met him in Nevada two years ago. He seemed nice. Normal. By the time I realized what he was, it was too late."

"What is he?"

"A monster." My voice cracked. "He hits me when he is angry. He tracks my phone. He threatened to kill me if I left. So I left anyway. But he found me in Tucson three days ago and—" I touched my ribs, wincing. "I barely got away."

Colt set down his glass very carefully. Too carefully. "He is going to come looking for you."

It was not a question.

"Yes."

"Good." His smile was sharp. Deadly. "I want him to."

Fear spiked through me. "Colt, you do not understand. He is dangerous. He—"

"I run the Devil's Reign MC." He crossed to me in three strides, crowding me against the couch. "Do you know what that means? It means I own this town. It means when someone hurts what is mine, I make them bleed."

"I am not yours anymore."

"You were always mine." His hand cupped my jaw, thumb tracing the bruise on my cheekbone. "From the first day I saw you in Mrs. Henderson's history class. Remember that?"

I did. God help me, I did.

Sophomore year. I was the new girl, trying to be invisible. Colt Richardson was the boy every girl wanted and every guy feared. He sat behind me, kicked my chair, and said, "You have pretty hair."

I told him to leave me alone.

He grinned and said, "Not a chance."

"That was a lifetime ago," I whispered.

"You are right." His grip tightened. "That boy would have begged you to stay. Would have forgiven you for running. But he is gone, Jenna. I killed him the day you did not show up at that church."

"Then let me go. Please."

"No." He released me and stepped back. "You are staying here. In the compound. Under my protection. You do not leave without permission. You do not talk to anyone I have not approved. You belong to me now."

"You cannot just—"

"I can do whatever I want." His voice dropped to something dark. Dangerous. "You came back to my territory. That makes you mine by default. Unless you want to leave? Go back out there where Derek can find you? Because I promise, he will. Men like that always do."

He was right. I hated that he was right.

"How long?" I asked quietly.

"How long what?"

"How long do I have to stay?"

"Until I say otherwise." He walked to the door, then paused. "There is a room upstairs. Second door on the left. Shower. Clean clothes in the closet. Someone will bring you food."

"Colt—"

He looked back, and for just a second, I saw the boy I loved. The one who held me when my father got drunk and mean. The one who promised we would escape this town together.

Then it was gone.

"Welcome home, Jenna," he said softly. "I hope it was worth it."

The door closed behind him with a final click.

I sat alone in that empty clubhouse and finally let myself cry. Not because I was trapped. Not because Derek was still out there hunting me.

But because the boy I loved was gone.

And the man who replaced him terrified me more than any monster ever could.

A phone buzzed somewhere in my jacket pocket. I pulled it out with shaking hands.

One new

message. Unknown number.

"Found you. See you soon, baby. —D”