scantily clad girls huddled on the bar stools watching them play pool ogled us like fresh meat.
Ignoring the unwanted attention, we sauntered over to the bar in the center of the room like we just stopped by for a beer. The burly bartender in the wife beater stepped up to us.
“Two Buds,” Remy ordered, his eyes scanning the room.
I settled on a stool, figuring Remy would tell me which guy we were there for. But instead, he grabbed his beer from the bartender and took off, stopping to talk to different groups as he circled the room. Some of the guys clearly knew him, and others probably knew of him because of his ties to Cooper. But none of them looked happy to see him.
A redhead in a low-cut black top and tiny jean skirt slid onto the empty stool beside me. “Hi,” she purred. “Haven’t seen you here before.”
I took a long pull of my beer, keeping my eyes on Remy. “Haven’t been here before.”
“You looking to have some fun?”
“Nope.”
She ran her fingertips up and down my forearm. “You’ve got no idea what you’re missing.”
Ignoring her and her damn hand on my arm, I watched Remy follow a lanky bald guy in a leather vest out the back door.
“Erica,” an angry voice shouted across the room, sending my head snapping in its direction.
A guy with a shaved head and snake tattoos wrapped around both arms advanced. He looked about ready to kill the woman beside me.
“What the hell are you doing?” he asked her, but his eyes slid to mine.
“What’s it look like?” she responded.
Oh, no fucking way. I leapt to my feet and headed to the same door Remy exited through.
“Smart move, pretty boy. Get out before you need to be carried out,” he shouted.
I shoved open the back door, sending a gust of cool air wafting inside. Shit. Remy twisted on the ground, shielding his head from the bald guy who stomped relentlessly on his chest.
I bolted toward them, grabbing the guy from behind and pinning his arms to his sides. His long legs kicked out in front of him in an attempt to escape my hold. “Relax, man. Relax.”
Remy struggled to his feet, staggering back a foot or two. I tightened my grip on the guy, knowing he wasn’t finished with Remy yet.
Out of nowhere, pain ripped through me like nothing I’d ever felt before. Shards of broken glass rained over my head, splitting my scalp in two. I released the guy and cradled my throbbing head. As I sank to my knees, broken bottle crunched beneath me.
I brought my hands around to see how much blood gushed, but a heel to my back sent me face-planting into the concrete. I braced my hands on the glass-covered ground, but heavy boots kicked me from all directions, preventing me from getting up.
I covered my head, steeling myself and enduring the attack on my body until I could find a time to take out their legs. But that just left my throbbing shoulder unprotected.
My attackers showed no mercy. Their blows alternated between the right and left. They were unyielding, beating every inch of my body. Their voices were muffled, all meshing together. I caught my girl and Cooper. Then something inside my body literally snapped.
Holy fuck.
Like a vacuum, the air sucked right out of my lungs.
Stabbing pain shot through my sides. My shoulder burned as if on fire. I groaned loudly, but it didn’t stop them. They were driven. Angry. Psychotic.
After a fierce blow to my head, I felt myself slipping. Fading. Teetering between consciousness and darkness. If they kicked one more time in just the right spot, they’d surely kill me.
“Fuck, Hayden. You probably killed him.”
I couldn’t shake off the image this time. It’s what my life had come to. I’d taken a life and now mine sat on the brink. I deserved their rage. Their hatred.
I deserved to die.
“Hey!” a distant voice shouted.
Feet shuffled. Footsteps withdrew. Sounds grew further and further away.
Until nothing.
Thunderous roars whooshed through my ears. My pounding chest heaved. Sweat drenched every part of me. Pain engulfed me whole.
I cracked open my eyes. Black spots clouded my vision. I could see enough to know Remy and I were alone in the alley. Both on the ground. Both writhing in something worse than pain.
Blood covered Remy’s face. His shredded T-shirt hung off his skinny body. We needed to get the hell out of there. My head whipped around seeking an exit. Déjà vu stopped