Ink (The Skulls Book 17) Read online

  Chapter Four

  Three years later

  Darcy stared at her reflection in the mirror. She’d turned eighteen six months ago, but now, she was finally getting a party. There was no doubt there was cause for celebration. After three long years, she had finally been given the chance to call herself cancer-free. She would have to undergo regular tests in case her cancer came back, but the doctors were hopeful she’d made a full recovery.

  She ran her fingers through her short hair.

  Her hair had been completely gone during one stage of the chemo, and it had eventually grown back. It wasn’t as long as it was, and she wasn’t the same person.

  She’d been a chubby kid, and prior to her diagnosis she’d weighed a lot more than she did now.

  The chemo, the medication, all of it had lost her most of the curves she’d been more than happy with.

  “Seriously, you look beautiful,” Tabitha said, dropping onto the bed. She wore a pair of jeans, a long vest shirt that held a single rose in the center, and it looked like the rose was bleeding, and a leather jacket. She also wore trainers that looked like they’d seen better days.

  No matter how pretty people tried to dress Tabitha up, she always went back to the same kind of clothing, practical.

  “Aren’t you going to get dressed?”

  Tabitha rolled her eyes. “I’ve got it all waiting for me in your closet. Mom picked it out for me. Don’t worry, I won’t spoil your party by looking like me.”

  Darcy laughed. “You know I don’t have a problem with the way you look.”

  “I know, but it’s so … delicate.” Tabitha got to her feet and walked to the closet. “Look at this. There’s no way I can even get away with running out of the party.” She pulled out a white lace dress. It was beautiful, feminine, and when Tabitha was in it, she looked like a delicate, beautiful woman.

  The Tabitha who stood before her now was a fierce woman, a fighter.

  “Do you think I look pretty?” Darcy asked.

  The moment she did, Tabitha lost the attitude. Her scowl turned into a smile. “I think you look stunningly beautiful.” Tabitha put the dress on the bed, walking over to her. “I’m so happy for you. We did it, together.”

  Tabitha had been her rock during the worst of the procedures and medications. It didn’t take their families long to realize they were both helping each other. Tabitha wrapped her arms around her waist, resting her head against her back. “I don’t want to lose you.”

  “I know.”

  In the last three years, she’d gotten close to Tabitha, and to Miles, Daisy, and Anthony. They were the main group of The Skulls’ kids. There were others, but they were the four main protectors, and the ones who upheld The Skulls’ name.

  Much to Darcy’s shock, Tabitha had also put Michael in his place three years ago. She didn’t know what exactly happened, but the guy did a complete U-turn, and had even graduated from high school, and was looking at college within the next year.

  “You better get dressed,” Darcy said.

  There was a knock at the door, and Darcy called for them to come in. It wasn’t surprising to see Daisy already dressed and ready. She wore a purple dress, one that fell to her knees.

  All of the women, as per her request, were being forced to wear a dress. She never got to go to prom or have a dance, and seeing as this was her party, she wanted it to be perfect.

  “You two okay?” Daisy asked.

  “Yeah, we’re good. Can you help me with my zipper?” Tabitha asked.

  Daisy nodded.

  Darcy ran a brush through her hair as she watched the two girls by her bed. Tabitha stripped down and stepped into the white dress. They didn’t know Darcy had been the one to pick all of the dresses.

  Her mother had offered to help her, but Darcy wanted complete control.

  There was another knock on the door as Tabitha was pinning up her blonde locks.

  “Come in.”

  It was Emily, her mother.

  “You look beautiful,” she said.

  Emily was dressed in blue. Darcy looked down at her own dress before offering a smile to her mother, who pulled her into an embrace.

  “We’ll leave you alone,” Daisy said, grabbing Tabitha’s hand and forcing her out of the room.

  The door closed silently behind them.

  “You spend a lot of time with Tabitha now.”

  “I know.”

  “So, you managed to graduate and you’ve been avoiding the college subject for some time now, Darcy,” Emily said.

  “You want to talk about that now?”

  “I want you to know I’m here for you. That we’re all here for you and whatever decision you make, we’re all going to support it.”

  “I haven’t made a decision yet.”

  “You haven’t?”

  “I don’t know what I want to do.” For a short time during her road to recovery, there were moments she really didn’t think she was going to make it, and she thought about dying. What she’d done in such a short time had been nothing.

  There was a chance the cancer could come back, and she didn’t want to spend her life waiting for something like that to happen, scared of living.

  She wanted to live. She wanted to do something with her life. Whatever it was, she didn’t want to go to college, not yet anyway.

  “I don’t want to go to college,” she said.

  “You don’t?”

  “No. I don’t. I’m not entirely sure what I want to actually do, but can I just have tonight where I don’t think about the future and what it could mean?”

  Emily nodded. “Of course.” She got to her feet and pulled her in for a hug. “You have been amazing, strong and brave. You make me so proud.”

  Darcy held her mother, but again, she felt a little closed off from it all. There was no real connection there, and hadn’t been for some time.

  “Love you, Mom,” she said. She did love her mother, both of her parents. But there was just something missing.

  “I better head downstairs.” Emily kissed her cheek one last time before leaving her alone.

  Darcy sat on the edge of the bed. Her hands rested on her knees, and she hated as she thought about Ink.

  He’d not returned in the three years he’d been gone. She wouldn’t have made him uncomfortable. It wasn’t her intention to do that. Whenever she thought about him, she always felt an unwavering sense of guilt and responsibility for sending him away. She never wanted to do that, and yet, she’d succeeded.

  Getting to her feet, she didn’t wear heels. Her balance had been off for some time, so she always wore flats.

  Seeing no reason to linger in her room, Darcy opened the door, and sure enough, Drew was there. He’d gotten his patch a couple of years ago after helping out a couple of women who’d needed protection. He’d nearly died after taking a bullet to the chest, and because he’d put his life on the line for the women and for the club, he’d earned his patch.

  “Hello,” he said. “That’s a good look for you.”

  “What? A dress?”

  “No, the smile.”

  She put her fingers to her lips and rolled her eyes. “Of course, the smile.”

  “You’ve not been doing it a whole lot lately, and I’ve got to say, it doesn’t suit you. You need to keep on smiling.”

  “You don’t smile around Sally as much as you used to.”

  Drew laughed. “You know, I loved that girl, and I still love that girl, but I’m happy for her.”

  “You are?”

  “You know it.”

  Drew had been in love with Sally, but her heart had belonged to Steven. There hadn’t been a fight, not really. There was no way Drew would have ever won Sally’s heart.

  He offered his arm. “You want to head down together?”

  “Why not?”

  She was friends with all of The Skulls. Each one had come to her during her stays in the hospital. She had gone home a couple of times, but her sickness had only
gotten worse. With a donation from The Skulls, she had stayed in a private room for more of her illness. Pushing all of those thoughts out of her mind, she took Drew’s arm, and together they walked down the long staircase.

  “You’re beautiful,” he said, leaning in close.

  “Thank you.” Drew was always a sweet guy, and she adored him. Even though she loved Sally and Steven together, she always felt sorry for Drew. He’d not moved on or found anyone else. She wanted him to find someone else, to be happy. He was a good guy, and he deserved someone who would love him how he wanted to be loved.

  “Just so you know, Devil and some of his crew are here.”

  She was already aware because Tabitha had told her Simon was coming. “That’s okay.”

  Drew paused before they entered the main clubhouse. “Ink’s with them.”

  This made her heart skip, but she didn’t have time to dwell before Drew was leading her into the throng of people. Everyone she turned to hugged her, and she saw the happiness in their eyes.

  Getting the all clear was amazing news, and she was even happy by the fact she no longer had cancer. There would always be the chance it would come back, but she had to stop thinking about that. It would be a lot easier for her.

  When Whizz pulled her into a hug, she let out a little yelp.

  “Not so hard.”

  “We were all worried about you, kid, but so pleased to have you back.” He went to ruffle her hair, but she quickly pulled away from him, wanting some space. She spotted Tabitha and Simon together, hanging out, along with Daisy and Anthony.

  They were still younger than she was, and she couldn’t keep hanging out with them.

  Taking the fresh orange juice from her mother, she hugged her back.

  “I’m so damn proud of you, baby,” Emily said.

  “Thank you, Mom.”

  Her father was next, holding her. “I love you, sweetheart.”

  “I love you too.”

  The love kept on pouring her way. Lexie and Devil held her close, and she laughed as Pussy and Sasha did the same.

  Then after three years, she finally saw him.

  Ink.

  He stood by the bar, chatting with Steven and Lash. He looked … different.

  Just from seeing him from the back, she could tell he wasn’t wearing a leather cut, but the ink on his arms and the back of his neck was distinctive enough for her to recognize him.

  When he turned around, she averted her gaze, heading toward Sandy, who was standing with Stink. Most of the kids were out by the play area, being watched over by a couple of brothers and old ladies. There was no room for club whores at a time like this.

  “You okay?” Sandy asked.

  “Yeah, I’m fine.”

  “I will go and get my lady another drink,” Stink said, taking the empty glass from Sandy.

  “Are you having a good time? Or are you just avoiding Ink?” Sandy asked.

  “Why did he come back?”

  “This is his home as well.”

  “Not for the past three years.”

  “I’m sure he has his reasons.” Sandy touched her arm. “What about you? How are you feeling?”

  “The same as always, you know. I’m good though.” The party wasn’t how she imagined. She had expected to come downstairs and to just feel like herself before the cancer diagnosis, but instead, she felt … lonely. Incredibly so.

  She kept trying not to look toward the bar when Stink came back. Making her excuses to the couple, she left the main clubhouse, searching for fresh air outside. After spending so much time in a hospital room, she preferred the great outdoors. She found herself now going out for long walks, and just spending hours either sitting near a tree, or just standing, staring up at the sky.

  “Hello, Darcy.”

  She tried not to tense up, but his voice seemed deeper somehow. Rather than ignore him, she glanced over her shoulder at Ink. He’d not changed a bit. He’d gotten more muscles since she last saw him, and he seemed bigger, but other than that, nothing else had changed.

  “Hey, Ink,” she said, turning back to watch the club kids play. The playground had been installed years ago, and she recalled being a child and having the same kind of fun. It had changed throughout the years, and more area of the back of the clubhouse had been developed into a child’s play area.

  Lash had turned the club legit, and in doing so, he’d made it safer for all of them. There were no random shootouts, no nothing.

  Just peace and quiet.

  She knew most of the men and women preferred it that way.

  “Are you just going to ignore me?” he asked.

  “Last time I asked you any kind of question, you ran away. I figure if I keep my mouth shut, you won’t have to keep on running anymore.” She sipped at her drink, very aware of how close he stood beside her.

  “I believe congratulations are in order. You beat it.”

  She smiled. “I did. How is Piston County?”

  “It’s fine. Not home, but I’ve been able to make a place there.”

  “Do you have anyone special in your life?” she asked. “Actually, scrap that. I’m just trying to make conversation. Being here with you makes me nervous, and well, I don’t want to keep on talking about being ill. A couple of the nurses helped me learn some small talk while I was with them.”

  He chuckled. “It’s fine.”

  “I didn’t mean to make you run away,” she said. “It wasn’t about that. I just, I had a bad day.”

  “I know.”

  The guilt of forcing him from his own home still weighed heavy on her. “I didn’t mean for you to leave Fort Wills, or to hand in your cut. I’m so sorry.”

  “I’m not seeing anyone, and it’s fine.”

  “No, it’s not fine. You shouldn’t have to give up your whole life because of me. What I said was wrong and selfish.”

  Ink silenced her when he took her hand. “We can’t take back what happened. You were young and scared, and I made the decision that was right. I could have told you how pretty you were, but you were fifteen. I didn’t want to be put in that position. I had my reasons for doing what I did. I don’t want you to feel guilty about this.”

  “But I do. If it wasn’t for me, you wouldn’t have left.”

  “Stop it. It doesn’t matter anymore. What was done, was done. I don’t want you to feel upset or guilty. It’s over, understand?”

  She nodded.

  With his hand touching hers, she felt so incredibly vulnerable right now. She had hoped that these feelings for him would have evaporated or disappeared. Instead, she felt even more in need of him, and it was driving her crazy.

  “So, erm, are you heading back to Piston County after this weekend?” she asked, needing to put space between them.

  “I don’t know, to be honest. I thought I’d know what I wanted the moment I walked back into the clubhouse.”

  “You don’t know?”

  “I don’t have a clue.”

  He shook his head. “I guess I’ll just deal with what the future brings.”

  Chapter Five

  “You know I can just give you back your leather cut, right?” Lash asked. “You didn’t leave the club for being a pussy or anything. You had valid reasons. Just ask for it.”

  Ink laughed. “I’m not asking for it.”

  “Why not?”

  “I don’t deserve it. Not yet.” He ran his fingers through his hair, looking out of the window into the main yard.

  There was no denying he’d missed this, all of this. The family, all of it. Devil and Chaos Bleeds had a family, but they weren’t The Skulls. They were just different. Being back here, he’d expected to know what he wanted out of life, but if anything, he was even more confused than normal.

  “So, what are you going to do?”

  “My old apartment is available. The last couple finished their rent a month ago, and well, I’m going to head out over there, fix it up, I think.”

  “You know your plac
e is still here. The boys know why you left.”

  “No, they don’t know the whole story, and I know I look like some kind of coward for running away.”

  “You don’t look like a coward to any of us, Ink. You need to stop thinking like that. Darcy was young, and you did the right thing by leaving. No one knows what could have happened otherwise.”

  “I can live with the guys thinking whatever they want. For my cut, I need to earn it back. I left, and I haven’t been part of the club for a long time. I think I should just stick around, you know, get used to being here again.” He didn’t know what the fuck he was saying.

  “Are you okay?” Lash asked.

  “Yeah, I’m fine. She made it through.” He saw her sitting at the large picnic table, a small plate of food in front of her, surrounded by Tabitha and the others. They were all a happy family, a happy unit.

  Only, he saw the sadness in her eyes, and he wished he knew how to make it better. Darcy wasn’t anything like his sister.

  He’d done the right thing. He couldn’t forget what had led up to his leaving. It was for her own good and for his as well. She didn’t need rejection on top of everything else she was going through.

  He was stronger than this, dammit.

  “My baby sister didn’t get this chance.”

  When Lash didn’t say anything, Ink turned to look at the other brother. “You’re not going to ask me what I’m talking about?”

  “No. I’ve known you for a long time now, Ink. I figured if something like this could make you run, there had to be other problems you were keeping to yourself besides the obvious, and I respect your decision for leaving. You did the right thing.” He shrugged. “I don’t make a habit of forcing the men to have a heart to heart with me if they don’t want it. If you want to tell me, you will, and if you don’t, you won’t. It’s simple as that, really. Darcy is a fighter, but something happened to her in the past three years. She’s not the same kid I remember who’d laugh so easily or play pranks. In fact, if there are pranks being played, she’s gone. Usually at home, or near a tree somewhere, reading. That’s what she does a lot, read.”

  “You think it’s because I left her?”