Page 7 of Hades

I nodded, knocking on Raven’s door before I pushed it open. “Hey. Can I come in?”

She shrugged and when I didn’t move, she nodded. “What’s going on?” Her pink hair had dried into wild ringlets that made her look years younger than twenty-three.

I thought about a dozen different ways to soften the blow but in the end, Raven was a straight shooter, and she wouldn’t want me tap dancing around the truth. “Falcon knows the truth,” I finally said. “You gonna tell me?”

She sucked in a sharp breath, her skin paled and when her legs gave out, she dropped onto the bed making the springs squeak. “What?” she stammered out. “But, how the fuck does he know anything?”

I held my hands up. “I asked him what he knew about the years you were apart and he told me about the boyfriend and the drugs. Macy overheard us and shut that shit down quickly, said it wasn’t fair to you that he go on thinking that, but she didn’t give any details other than a living hell.” I rubbed a hand over my head and down my face, letting out a heavy sigh. “Fuck, Raven, I’m so sorry to hear about it. I hate that you went through that shit.” I more than hated it; I wanted to avenge all the shit she’d gone through until that haunted look in her eyes went away.

She looked away and crossed her arms, anger simmering in her small frame. “I’m not a victim,” she insisted.

I smiled, happy to see she hadn’t lost her fire. “Hell no, you’re not,” I shot back. “You are a badass, a fucking survivor. But Falcon is your big brother and he’s feeling a whole lot of shit right now, none of it good.” I didn’t blame him one fucking bit, but he hadn’t seen her earlier, how shutdown she was.

“I can’t worry about his feelings right now.”

“I’m not asking you to. Falcon is a big boy, and he’ll calm down soon enough. Maybe. I hope.”

She huffed out a laugh, but her walls were still up and impossible to scale. “So what are you asking?”

I let out a heavy sigh and crossed the room, dropping down on the bed beside her for the second time that day. “I’m asking you to let me in, Raven. Now that I have some clue about the hell you’ve been through, I know enough to know that you need help. If you don’t want to trust me, trust the MC.”

Her gaze met mine and she let out a sharp exhale. “It’s my past,” she whispered.

“Based on what happened to that girl and that look in your eyes, I’d say it’s now your present.”

Her breath hitched again and tears pooled in her eyes, but she blinked them back and shook her head. “Shit.”

“I know it’s not easy, Raven. The shit that’s going through my head right now is making it really fucking hard to stay calm, but this ain’t about me either. It’s about you and keeping you safe, if that’s what’s needed.”

“I’ll think about it,” she whispered softly.

My shoulders relaxed instantly. It wasn’t agreement but it was as close to it as I’d get tonight. “That’s all I ask.” I did something I rarely did but had done far too much of today, I wrapped an arm around her and held her close. “If you need anything, I’ll be here tonight. All night.”

She stiffened for a quick second and then relaxed again, nodding against my chest. “Thanks, Hades.”

“Of course.” I don’t know how long I held her like that but eventually she grew heavier against my chest and I knew she was asleep. After settling her in bed, I kept the light on and left the room, finding Falcon still leaning against the wall beside her door. “She’s okay,” I told him. “But give her some time. She’s sleeping now and she didn’t tell me any details. She will,” I said with a sudden confidence that felt real.

His jaw clenched with frustration and I clapped him on the back.

“Let’s grab a beer. She’ll talk when she’s ready.”

Chapter Five

Raven

This is what I get for being a sucker for a pretty face. And Hades was a really fucking pretty face, damn him. His black buzz cut, steel gray eyes that saw too much, a chiseled jaw bracketing a straight nose and a full, kissable mouth. The memory of his words telling me I was a survivor played through my mind all night long.

Like most of the Steel Demons he was more action than emotion, but yesterday he’d been more gentle than gruff, more encouraging than annoyed. It was a mindfuck on top of a mindfuck of a day. But it was him begging me to let him help me—and being sincere about it—that stuck with me. What he didn’t know and what my brother didn’t know was that they’d be helping me again.

That part would come out soon enough, but first I hit the shower and dressed so fucking early that I didn’t hear a peep on the other side of the door. I spent nearly an hour staring out the window, mulling over Hades’ words and my past. He was right that it wasn’t completely in the past anymore, which meant I needed to figure my shit out. Quickly.

Hades said he wanted me to think about it, but I knew he wouldn’t give me too long, not with my safety potentially at risk. So after another thirty minutes of staring at cars rushing by on the highway, I made up my mind.

The last time I went through this, I was a naïve teenager with a bad attitude and a big ass chip on my shoulder, and I was alone. This time I’d have my brother and his brothers, the entire Steel Demons MC. This time I could face it, and if I couldn’t, they could.

With determined steps, I forced myself to walk down the stairs and through the clubhouse until I stood outside the office. Slate would be in there, he always was and he was the man I needed at the moment. I raised my hand, knocking as I opened the door. “Oh shit. Sorry.” I looked away from Emma straddling Slate in his office chair, making out like horny teenagers. “I’ll come back later.”

“No, don’t,” Emma insisted. “You interrupted at just the right moment,” she offered with a slow smile, her cheeks flushed.