The Devil's Own- Cassidy's Story Read online

  The first man looked up, and a second later, he bolted towards her. Cassidy slammed the truck into reverse, floored the accelerator, and the vehicle lurched backwards. She wasn’t more than three hundred yards away, when Falcon and Ryder came running out of the warehouse.

  Cassidy hit the brakes as Ryker pulled a gun from his waistband. She cracked the window, “Get inside.”

  The other Creed gang members were right behind the first guy she’d seen, their weapons drawn and aimed at her brother. Tears stung her eyes as a premonition of what was going to happen filled her with dread.

  “Get the fuck out of here, Cassidy.” Ryker yelled over his shoulder.

  Yeah, like she was gonna do that! She shoved the truck into drive and slammed on the gas, it lurched forward, and she steered around Ryker and Falcon, and pointed the vehicle straight at the Creed Gang members. The men scattered in all directions, but as she flew through them, another shot bounced off the truck’s body work.

  The bullet ricocheted off the hood, and was catapulted in a different direction, missing the windshield it was aimed at. With her heart pounding against her chest, Cassidy kept her foot hard on the gas. You’re gonna regret pulling a gun on my brother, you murdering assholes.

  A second round of gunfire ricocheted around the alley, and Cassidy slammed on the brakes. Glancing up at her mirror, she saw one of the men behind her, his gun pointing directly at her back window. Huh, so you wanna play around? I hear bowling is a fun sport! Cassidy shoved the stick back into reverse and looked over her shoulder as she headed backwards.

  When she hit something with a loud thud, she came to a complete stop. Fuck, was that… A scream confirmed it wasn’t a wall, but she didn’t stop to find out what damage she’d done to the Creed man. Instead, she turned the wheel on full lock, crunched the stick shift back into drive, and with the sound of screeching tires and a disgusting smell of burning rubber, she raced off down the road. How about we play chase now, morons?

  As she glanced in her mirror, three bound women leaped out of the white van and stumbled off down the alley. Cassidy sped between the rusted gates at the entrance to the docks, smashing through the stop barrier and sending a million splinters into the air. Fuck, yes! It was like she was the star of one of those car chase movies Ryker and Falcon loved. Except, where did those assholes go? She studied the driver’s mirror and then looked in the side mirrors. Why weren’t they following her?

  A flash of something white emerged from a side road, skidded through the intersection, and appeared huge in her mirrors. Fuck, I should be careful what I wish for! The transit van hit her bumper, and Falcon’s truck jerked right, sending pain up her wrists as she tried to hold onto the wheel. It mounted the pavement. Oh, now you wanna play? Okay then buddy, watch this.

  Cassidy might not have her license but she had been driving since she was twelve. Ryder taught her out in open fields and for a while they both liked to enter a local demolition derby. She’d loved watching them since she was a kid, and Ryker said it was a good way for her to hone her driving skills.

  The truck flew off the sidewalk, but she slammed the gas pedal to the floor, and Falcon’s beat-up old Chevy belched oil as she left the white van in her dust. Cassidy whooped and slapped her thigh with her hand. An image of the grainy cartoon “Wacky Races” appeared in her head as the white van grew smaller in her rearview mirror.

  Come on, guys, you can do better than that! Adrenaline flooded her system, and for a moment, she was invincible. “Fuck you, Creed, you drive like my grandma!”

  Cassidy stomped on the brake, flying forward in her seat, only to be snatched back by her seatbelt. The Chevy came to a sudden stop, two inches from a car that had gone through the intersection. As the woman driver looked at her in horror, Cassidy maneuvered around her and waved her apology. Shit, focus. Get your shit together. Setting off once again, she spied the transit three car-lengths behind her, and that joyful high turned to full on fear. She couldn’t let Creed’s men catch her. They’d kill her, or worse… no, they’d pass her around, make an example of her.

  More adrenaline pumped through Cassidy’s veins, and she whooped again as she took a sharp left onto a narrow residential road. She wove through the parked cars for two blocks, then took another left, followed by a sharp right. She glanced in her rearview mirror and was glad Falcon’s truck was more maneuverable than the transit.

  The white van was nowhere to be seen. Yes! Cassidy yanked the wheel, and shot into a multi-story parking lot, driving up two floors and then ditched the truck between two other dark-colored pick-ups. She quickly exited the vehicle and sprinted on foot to the staircase. As she reached the bottom of the stairwell, she flattened her back against the wall as the transit van screeched through the entrance and up the ramps.

  As soon it was above her, she ran from the stairwell and sprinted down the street. Cassidy didn’t stop running until she had four blocks between them. Then, shoving her hands in her pockets, she slowed to a walk, and crossed the road.

  It was almost ten minutes later, when she found herself stepping onto the street near the Catholic church she’d been at earlier that day. Spotting the white facade, she jogged along the sidewalk and up the stone pathway to the oak doors. The adrenalin from earlier was wearing off, and replacing it was fatigue and the shakes.

  Inside, she scoured the vast space for somewhere to hide. Although she was pretty certain she hadn’t been followed, it wouldn’t hurt to take extra precautions while she waited for the heat to die down. Cassidy spotted the confessional and slipped inside, closing the ornate door behind her.

  She slumped back on the velvet cushioned seat and hunted through her jacket pockets for her phone. “Shit!” I must have left it in the truck. Well, there’s not a lot I can do about that now. She’d let Falcon know where she dumped the truck, and they could retrieve it later.

  After making herself comfortable on the bench seat, Cassidy leaned her head back against the polished wood. Ryker will be out of his mind, but she didn’t dare go back outside yet. Be sensible! Give it an hour or two, you can talk Ryker down later.

  “You okay?”

  Cassidy’s eyes flew open, and she scurried back across the narrow bench, backing herself into the corner.

  “Hey, Cassidy, it’s me. Sorry I startled you.”

  She was already calculating whether she could make it past the man blocking the confessional doorway, when she realized he’d called her by name. She raised her hand to her eyes, shielding them from the bright light as she blinked up at the tall, handsome priest.

  “Sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you. Are you okay?”

  “Yeah, huh. Sorry, Father, I must have fallen asleep.” She scrambled to her feet. “Um, excuse me.”

  He stepped back to let her out, and Cassidy’s legs trembled as she inched past Father Liam. The seriousness of what happened earlier hit her in one gigantic wave. I disturbed the Creed Brothers shifting cargo and ran one of them over! What the hell was I thinking? Oh, God! What if they shot Ryker or Falcon?

  “Hey, are you sure you’re okay?” Liam stepped in front of her, holding onto her upper arms as he scrutinized her. “You look kind of pale. Shit, are you gonna throw up?”

  Cassidy gulped back the bile in her throat. She had to get out of there, had to know what happened to her brother and Falcon. “I said I’m fine. I need to go.”

  “Where?”

  “Sorry?” Cassidy frowned at him. Why is this guy still in my way?

  “I’ll take you. Where do you need to be?”

  Seriously? She’d like to see Kane Munch’s face if she rocked back up at the Devils’ motel with a damn priest. “No, it’s fine. I’m fine, honestly. I…”

  “You’re as white as a sheet, Cassidy, and you were hiding in my confessional. What happened?”

  “Nothing. I wasn’t hiding, I just wanted some peace and quiet, that’s all.”

  Liam folded his arms in front of his chest. One dark eyebrow arched up high, and the
amused expression on his face told her he wasn’t buying a word of what she said. Cassidy forced a smile and tried to relax her shoulders.

  “I really should go. My brother will worry if I stay out much longer.”

  “I could call him for you, get him to pick you up. It’s dark outside, you shouldn’t walk across town on your own.”

  It was? Jesus Christ! How long had she been sleeping? Cassidy laughed at his concern; she’d been crossing town all on her lonesome for years. She stuck her hand in her pocket and pulled out a flick knife. “I can protect myself.”

  Liam took her by surprise, and instead of backing away, he grabbed her hand and forced her to drop it. Before she could react, he’d swept it up off the floor, and waved the thing at her. “Jesus, what the hell are you doing with this?”

  Cassidy’s eyes widened, and she flexed her hand where he’d crushed it in his haste to make her drop the knife. “That wasn’t very priestly of you.”

  Liam scratched at the light stubble that covered his jaw line. The sexy dark hairs were neatly shaped and added to an edgy look that would have been more appropriately at home on one of the Devils’ gang members, than a man of the cloth.

  “No, it wasn’t. But you pulled a fucking knife on me! Seriously, you’re gonna get hurt doing shit like that.” He placed her knife in his jeans pocket, and then pulled out his phone. “Give me Ryker’s number.”

  “Ryker? How do you know he is my brother?”

  Liam hesitated for a fraction of a second. “You called his name this morning. Huh, guess I just assumed… you look like each other.”

  Cassidy narrowed her eyes. Did she use Ryker’s name?

  “Stop detracting. You’re still not going out on your own. It’s not safe, some of the Creed boys shot up a place on MLK a couple of hours ago.”

  “Th-they did?” Cassidy’s heart began to accelerate again. Kane had a pawn shop up on Martin Luther King Street that he used to shift some of the stolen goods through. Had the Creed men known she was from the Bowker Street Devils?

  “Yeah, they trashed the place and then torched it. You know anything about that?”

  “No.” She turned away from him. Lies generally trotted off Cassidy’s tongue, and it never bothered her—but lying to a priest? In a church? It felt kind of wrong.

  “Word on the street is they’re looking for someone who took some valuable merchandise from them.”

  Cassidy sidestepped the priest and wandered over to the altar while she adjusted her expression. She couldn’t let him see how concerned she was. Absentmindedly, she reached out for the fake Madonna statue and traced it with her fingers. Think, think! “Well, that has nothing to do with me.” She glanced sideways at the man in the dog collar expecting to still see suspicion but now he just appeared amused by her obvious lies. Damn it. He really was too attractive to be a priest. Shouldn’t there be some law against cute guys dedicating themselves to God? Seriously, what a freaking waste being cooped up in this musty building! He could easily be an actor, or a model, or…

  Liam’s gaze went to her hands, and she became conscious she was still holding the statue. She placed it back on the altar. Perhaps the priest could give her some information. What was that saying—to be forewarned is to be forearmed?

  “Did you hear what was taken?” Perhaps the Creed aren’t after me. After all, I didn’t take anything, I just… saw something.

  “It seems three women were picked up by police a couple of hours ago. They were beaten and scared out of their wits. Word has it those women belonged to the Creed Brothers. They are victims of a human trafficking ring.”

  Cassidy staggered back from the altar and sank into a nearby pew. She hadn’t known what to think when she’d seen the Creed men shepherding the women into the van, but she knew it wasn’t anything good. Well, I’m glad I disturbed them!

  “Three?” Wait, that wasn’t right. “You said there were only three women?” She’d distinctly remembered counting five. Her hands grew sweaty and her heart clattered against her chest. That meant two of those poor girls didn’t get away. Fuck!

  Liam stood in front of her. “Are you sure you don’t know anything about this?”

  For half a second, she wanted to tell him everything, but self-preservation kicked in. “I told you, I just wanted to be alone for a while. I’m fine.”

  Liam pulled out his phone again, but he didn’t take his eyes off of her. They lingered on hers, and for a moment she thought he was going to push things, but he didn’t. “Give me your brother’s number.”

  “Why?”

  “Because Ryker doesn’t look like the type of man that would appreciate me sending his sister home on her own when the streets are crawling with cops and Creed men. So, if you won’t let me take you home, then I have no other choice but to let him know where you are.”

  Cassidy reluctantly nodded. Ryker would be going insane by now—out of his mind with worry. “Okay, you’re right.”

  Liam’s finger hovered over the phone’s keyboard. “Why don’t you tell me his number.”

  Cassidy recited it, and while she waited for it to connect, she wandered around the church. Now I’ll have more explaining to do. Ryker will shit a brick when he knows I gave out his number. Across the church she could hear Liam talking calmly and could only imagine her brother’s fear and questions. Lord, I’m gonna have to have a good story when I get home.

  She sat down on a pew and put her head in her hands. Plus, it wouldn’t just be Ryker that she’d have to explain herself to. If this was as serious as Liam said, Kane Munch would require details, too. And if the Creed brothers had declared war on the Devils over this, then she’d have the whole damn gang to explain to.

  “He’s coming out as soon as it is safe.” Liam sat down beside her.

  “Thanks.” The words came out automatically, but she didn’t feel thankful—far from it.

  Liam reached out, and his thumb swiped her cheek. It was only then that she realized she was crying. Huh, get a grip, now you look weak and pathetic. Hurriedly, she brushed away the other stray tears, but she couldn’t eradicate how vulnerable she felt right now. Without thinking, she leaned against Liam and buried her face into his shirt. A moment later, his hand rested on her back, and another stroked her hair.

  Bizarrely, it was the only moment of affection Cassidy could ever remember receiving—a sad thing when you were only a few days away from your eighteenth birthday. A strong urge to pull away from the priest almost won out, but when his arms enveloped her and he held her tighter against his chest, she surrendered, and allowed herself a moment of weakness as she relished the comfort of his arms.

  Chapter 3

  “Was Ryker mad at me?” Cassidy chewed on her lip as Liam held her. She should pull away, but those arms were too damn nice to push away.

  “No, he’s relieved you’re safe.” Liam broke the moment and let her go, sliding a few inches away from her along the bench. He shoved his hands in his pockets, and a frown appeared on his brow. “But it’s too dangerous for him to come and get you at the moment. The police are all over the place, and there are blockades erected near the docks.” Liam got up and leaned against an ornate marble column.

  Cassidy got the distinct impression he was trying to put distance between them. Maybe now he realized how seriously involved with the Devils she was and hated her for it.

  “There were four seriously injured at the docks. Looks like shit got crazy after you left. “

  “I wasn’t there.”

  “Don’t lie to me, Cassidy. I know you were.”

  She dropped the pretense. Although she knew he could only be guessing, it seemed futile to continue lying to this man. Besides, didn’t priests take oaths like lawyers and doctors? She was pretty sure she’d heard that they couldn’t reveal people’s confessions. “Is Ryker okay? What about Falcon?”

  “They are both fine, but what you did was fucking crazy. Two women were transported to the hospital with knife wounds.”

  H
er hands flew over her mouth. Those poor girls! “W-will they be okay?”

  “They’ll survive, but they were cut really bad. But that’s not all. The police have two Creed gang members under armed guard at the ER. One was hit by a truck and the other shot in the leg.”

  Cassidy’s hands began to shake. She’d hit someone when she reversed? “What happened to the three women picked up by the police?”

  “I’m not sure, but if the police have them, they’re safe. Did you know them?”

  “No. Just hoped they’d be okay.”

  Liam strode to a side door of the church. “Come with me.”

  “What?” Cassidy remained where she was. Liam might be a priest, but he knew she was involved in what went down, and she still wasn’t sure if he’d turn her in. “Stuff I tell you, it’s confidential, right? You can’t tell anyone, can you?”

  He studied her for a moment. “Why, do you have a confession to make?”

  “No. Just curious.”

  “Whatever you tell me stays with me. This is a sanctuary, you are safe here, from the police and from the Creed Brothers.”

  “You seem to know a lot about this stuff.”

  “Stuff?”

  “The gangs, and what the police are doing.”

  “I work with local gang members, helping them if they need it. I don’t judge anyone, Cassidy, I just lend an ear, and I will help anyone who asks for protection.”

  Cassidy still stayed where she was. There was more to this man than he was telling her. The hairs on the back of her neck were standing up, warning her to be cautious.

  “Ryker’s going to be a few hours before he can come get you. We might as well make ourselves comfortable while we wait.”

  Still she hesitated. Damn it, she wished she’d spoken to Ryker instead of letting the priest do it.

  He smiled at her and held out his hand. “Please, you’re safe. I won’t let any harm come to you.”