Twisted Steel: An MC Anthology: Second Edition by Elizabeth Knox (top 5 ebook reader txt) 📕

“Thanks, Doc. For everything. We couldn’t have saved them without you. We’ll see that these last few get to where they’re going and get Molly back to you.”

Doc had named his earth-toned RV after the Unsinkable Molly Brown. Quake wasn’t about to say anything when their bikes all had names too.

The trip to The Grove was blessedly uneventful. The women were quiet. Grateful. A bit nervous, but Inferno talked to them. Told them what they had to look forward to. Assured them that they were going to love it there and could stay however long they needed.

Located north of Lake Mead, The Grove was a working orchard and farm, offering shelter for shifter women without families who needed somewhere they could stay safe and learn a range of life skills. Nestled in a valley with artesian wells and natural springs for irrigation, the commune was self-sufficient, supporting itself by what it produced. Colored wool sheep and alpacas provided wool for their spinners and weavers. They raised prawns in tanks, fish in their lake, and vegetables in fields and hydroponic greenhouses. Their orchards had a variety of fruit trees and bushes. Beehives produced honey and beeswax. There were acres of flowers for commercial production, providing cut flowers that were bundled and sold and fields of sunflowers in season. With fall harvest done, there were only stubby rows of stalks to mark where crops had been.

A community of artisans and homesteaders who lived a sustainable lifestyle.

Wraith made it sound like a paradise.

And it probably was, but they weren’t allowed to see it. The owner, Frankie James, met them at the gate and refused to let them go beyond the first house. “No men here,” she explained, unapologetic. “Doc comes when we need him, but other than that, it’s women and children.”

The Dragons had no problem handing them over. The way that Wraith had built it up, the women couldn’t wait to leave the RV and get on with the rest of their lives. Quake admired Frankie for her altruism. He’d love to know her story and how her mission had grown into what he was seeing, but she was already ushering her newest chicks into the henhouse and he was eager to get home.

He just hoped Madam Belle was looking after Magenta half as well as Frankie James was watching out for the shifters here.

15

“You just sit back and relax, sweetie,” Madam Belle crooned. “Take the night off, or two nights—whatever time you need before going back to work. Just so you know, your car’s safe at home, and your purse is in your room. Amos found it under the front seat with your phone. He drove Bee in for you after we found her in the ditch and you were gone. Christ. I’m so sorry.”

Time.

Rory considered what that meant. She’d spent four years in college. Fostered dreams of building her own business. Instead, she spent minutes on the stage and hours on her back pleasing men for money.

One night in a pit had made her reevaluate everything. What she wanted. How to get it.

Working at The Pole Barn was supposed to be the means to an end, but she’d almost lost her life because of it. The trauma she’d suffered and her narrow escape had opened her eyes, making her look at everything in a new light.

And she didn’t like what she was seeing.

“I think I need it,” she told Madam Belle. “Maybe a day or two from the stage, but it may take me longer to go back upstairs.”

She was already dreading the thought of sleeping with other men. None of them could compare to Quake. None of them made her feel more of a woman, less of a whore. But she couldn’t tell Belle that. Let her think she was gun shy after being raped and abused.

Rory thought she was keeping it together pretty well until The Pole Barn came into view and her head started to spin. Breath seized in her chest. She felt her heart squeeze.

“Magenta! You’re safe, sweetheart. You’re safe. It’s okay. Breathe, girl! Breathe for mama. Come on now, chickee. You’re just having a little panic attack. I’ve seen it before. You’ll work through this. There’s help if you need it. Amos knows a counselor. I can get you a referral. Just say the word.”

Clenching her hands until the overwhelming sensation passed, Rory released a breath. “He does?”

Belle smiled. “He gets a lot of abuse from unfriendly customers and needs to deal with those feelings and he doesn’t handle rejection well. Listen, I’m not going to kick you out, sweetheart, if you don’t want to go back upstairs with customers. If you still want to dance, you can go back on stage when you’re ready. If not, I can find you work behind the bar or something.”

Rory searched the lovely face of her boss. Belle always looked out for the women in her employ. Even now, she wasn’t about to abandon one of her own.

“Thank you,” she breathed. “That means a lot to me.”

“You’re family,” Belle insisted, shaking off her gratitude. “And we stick together. I keep in contact with everyone who’s worked for me. All the ones who’ve left. They know I’m here if they need me, and that goes the same for you. Don’t let the bastards who took you break you, Magenta. Don’t give them that.”

Blinking back tears, Rory swallowed the thickness in her throat. “I won’t.”

“Good.”

Belle headed for the shed they used as a garage and parked in her usual spot. “Now, let’s get you inside and settled. I want you to rest. If you need anything—anything at all, you just ask.”

Rory was surprised to find the other women up and waiting for her with anxious and worried faces. When she entered the kitchen, Candy burst into tears of relief. Before Rory could say anything, she found herself being hugged by each of them.

“We were so scared for you,” Candy sniffed. “When the gargoyles found your car