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  Stalked

  Predators MC, #4

  Jamie Begley

  Young Ink Press Publication

  YoungInkPress.com

  Copyright © 2018 by Jamie Begley

  Edited by C&D Editing & Hot Tree Editing

  Cover Design by Cover Couture

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the author. The only exception is by a reviewer, who may quote short excerpts in a review.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  This work of fiction is intended for mature audiences only. All sexually active characters portrayed in this ebook are eighteen years of age or older. Please do not buy if strong sexual situations, multiple partners, violence, child abuse, domestic discipline, and explicit language offends you.

  Connect with Jamie,

  [email protected]

  www.facebook.com/AuthorJamieBegley

  www.JamieBegley.net

  Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Epilogue

  Prologue

  He was late again. The school bus riders had already left, and she was the only one waiting to be picked up.

  Pulling her backpack farther up her shoulder, Zoey started tapping her foot in frustration. Her father was always late, despite knowing the time she got out of school.

  “Let’s go in the office, and I’ll call.”

  Embarrassed that the teacher was irritated at not being able to leave herself, she followed her fifth-grade teacher back inside. Her father’s increasing habit of picking her up late was wearing on the school’s staff. Zoey might only be eleven years old, but she was smart enough to see the irritation between the teacher and the principal when they came through the office door.

  Zoey took a seat where she could see out the window to the parking lot, hoping her father would pull up and get out with the same happy-go-lucky expression he always wore on his handsome face. The women behind the desk couldn’t hide their aggravation with her, but the second her father walked through the door, it would disappear.

  Her father was not only handsome but could draw their anger out of them without a word spoken. It made no difference if the teacher was male or female; he could charm both sexes with very little effort.

  Swinging her legs, she glanced down at her lap and stopped tugging her short dress lower. She hated the dress. It was too small and the pattern made her body look like a pineapple was shoved inside of it.

  Not only was her father late, but he had taken back the clothes they had bought her for the start of the school year. She had managed to wear them for a couple of weeks before she returned from school one afternoon to see them all gone. Just like the furniture he had leased to fill the lavish home he had rented to lure clients into whatever deal he was trying to sell them.

  “There he is.”

  Zoey raised her lashes to see her principal smoothing her hair and her teacher straightening her dress. Rolling her eyes, she picked up the backpack she dropped to the floor when she came inside the office.

  “Sorry, kiddo. I was held up in a meeting.” He shot her the quick apology before turning his charismatic appeal on the women, who were both becoming flustered as he drew closer to the desk.

  “Ladies, how can I make it up to you? The traffic took me longer than I expected.”

  “That’s okay. I know how busy you are.”

  “I need to find a wife to help me out. Either of you beautiful ladies available?”

  Her stomach clenched in a gut-twisting motion that had her regretting the afterschool snack she had eaten. The only thing worse than dealing with her father was having to put up with another stepmother.

  She’d had four so far, and those were the ones she was old enough to remember. She had grown out of being excited about having a mother who would provide stability to the chaos her father created from his lies.

  “Sue is married, but I’m as free as a bird.”

  “Are the men in this town blind?”

  Their blushes grew darker as they became even more flustered.

  The nausea that was churning in her stomach began to burn as it tried to escape at her father’s cunning smile that she had no problem recognizing, while the women didn’t.

  Ms. Reed raised her a ringless hand, showing her naked ring finger as proof. “It seems so.”

  The teacher nearly gushed when he took her hand in his.

  “Then you have to let me show you that not all men are too stupid to recognize a beautiful woman when they see one.”

  The principal, wanting her own share of attention, moved closer to his other side. “George and I are on a break. We’ve grown apart since he changed jobs and he’s on the road so much.”

  “You need to tell George that all work and no play makes George a dull boy.”

  Her principal’s laughter at her husband’s expense had Zoey clutching her belly in pain.

  “Dad….”

  Her father turned and easily recognized the signs of her distress. “Can you make it home, or do you need to go to the restroom?”

  “I can make it home.” Putting a hand over her mouth, she rushed to the door, needing to get away from the women who were vying for his attention.

  “Sorry, ladies. My little princess’s ulcer is acting up again. I need to get her home before you have to call the janitor.”

  “Zoey has an ulcer? I didn’t see that on her file when you registered her.”

  “It’s a new diagnosis; nothing to worry about. I give her medicine before I bring her to school and in the evenings. As soon as I get her home, she’ll be fine.” Giving them both a promising smile, he turned to follow Zoey out of the office.

  Once in the car, she doubled over in pain, breaking out in a cold sweat as her father got behind the wheel.

  Turning the air conditioner on high, he then pointed all the vents in her direction before rubbing her back as she choked the nausea down.

  “You okay?”

  Nodding, she managed to straighten in her seat and glance at her father. “I don’t want to move again.”

  School just started a few months ago. Her father hated to move during the winter months.

  Even his frown didn’t mar his perfect features. “We’re not moving. I promised you the last time we moved that it was the last time.”

  She sniffed back her tears, knowing he was lying. He always lied. Her father couldn’t tell the truth if his life depended on it.

  “I want to go live with Mom.”

  “Sorry, kiddo. She doesn’t want you; never did, never will. You don’t fit in where she likes to hang. Bikers don’t want their women tied down with a kid. I’m all you have. Remember that.”

  “I don’t want you hurting Ms. Reed and Mrs. Shepherd. They’re nice to me—”

  “Jesus, kid. You have an
overactive imagination. I was just being nice. Are you feeling better? I’m starving. How about I swing by Dairy Queen on the way home and grab me a burger and you an ice cream cone?”

  Zoey turned her head to stare out the window. There wasn’t enough ice cream in the world that would settle her stomach, a stomach that hurt because her father was lying to her.

  “Don’t look so serious. You need to be more like me and have some fun. How about I invite some of your friends over for a sleepover?”

  “Really?” Her stomach stopped cramping at the promise.

  “Why not? We can stop at the store after we eat, and you can pick out the invitations.”

  Excitement bloomed as she planned on who to invite.

  “You can invite Celia.”

  “Celia?”

  “Celia Shephard. You know her. She’s your principal’s daughter. You met her during the open house.”

  Zoey went back to staring out the side window. “She’s only in the second grade. It doesn’t matter anyway. I don’t have time for a sleepover. I need to catch up on my math homework.” Back to feeling sick to her stomach, she nixed any plans she’d had for the sleepover.

  “You’re that behind? I’ll get you a tutor.”

  “I don’t want a tutor.” Her stomach had started cramping at his words. “Dad—”

  “I can’t have my daughter failing,” he interrupted her. “Leave it to me. You’ll be at the top of your class in no time… Dammit, Zoey! I just cleaned the car…. Did you eat the cafertia for lunch?” Disgusted, he rolled the windows down. “If you didn’t have to eat like a pig everytime you saw food, you wouldn’t be sick all the damn time.”

  Zoey couldn’t hear her father’s recriminations. He was going to do it again.

  The ache in her stomach extended to her heart. When she grew up, she was going to find a town to call home and never ever leave. Unlike her father’s promises, she was determined to keep hers.

  She woke up, jerking up in bed to see her father standing over her in the darkened bedroom.

  “Shh… go back to sleep,” he murmured, scooping her into his arms as she reflexively reached back for the stuffed rabbit that she had slept with since her first birthday.

  “What are you doing?” She tried to struggle out of his arms, unable to make out where they were going as he carried her through the darkened house.

  “Be quiet. You’ll wake up Sue!” he whispered angrily as she heard him opening a door. When the door shut, a blinding light had her scrunching her eyes closed.

  Carefully opening them, she saw they were in the garage.

  Her father jostled her as he opened the back door to his car and shoved her inside with her rabbit. “Go back to sleep,” he muttered, shutting the door before going around the front of the car to get behind the steering wheel.

  “Where are we going?” Using her rabbit to sniff back the tears that were beginning to fall, she raised onto her knees to see the garage door opening as he began to back the car out.

  “Sorry, kiddo. I found a job I couldn’t pass up.”

  “What about my clothes?”

  “I put some in your backpack. It’s in the car. I’ll buy you some more when we’re situated. You needed new ones anyway.”

  “I’m going to be sick.”

  “Go for it. I’m leaving the car at the bus station. The dealership was coming to repossess it in the morning anyway.”

  “Please can’t we stay? I like it here—”

  “Zoey, it’s too complicated to explain, and you’re too young to understand.”

  “What about school—”

  “There’s only a week left before summer break, anyway.”

  “Can’t we stay until Monday? I want to tell my friends goodbye. Please, Daddy?”

  “We can’t. I have to start my job immediately. You’ll make new friends, and next year, I’ll have a big party for you….”

  The cramps attacking her stomach drowned out the last of his promises as she huddled miserably back in the seat, crying as her father drove through the darkened city.

  “You okay back there? Don’t be upset, kiddo. You’ll like this town we’re going to much better; you’ll see. I’m just doing what’s best for us both. You wouldn’t want to see your daddy unhappy, would you?”

  “No,” she choked out after he shot her a glare from over his shoulder when she didn’t immediately respond.

  “That’s my princess. You’re one of a kind. As soon as I get my first paycheck, we’ll go shopping… Maybe you’ll lose some weight by then. You’re getting a little pudgy… I don’t know how you’re getting so fat with as much as you throw up. We need to see about getting those teeth fixed, too. You’re always costing me money. I’ll be glad when you’re old enough to pull your own weight. You’re lucky I love you to death, or I would have given you to that slut of a mother you always whine about. Has she ever called you?”

  “No.” Her empty stomach clenched tighter at the admission.

  “Damn right she doesn’t.” Her father snorted. “I’m the only one who has your best interests at heart; don’t forget that.”

  “You don’t have one,” she mumbled as she doubled over in pain.

  “What’d you say?”

  “I said I won’t.” Zoey raised her voice so he could hear her lie.

  “You better not. We have to stick together. I would say through thick and thin, but I’ll never see that day. But you get my meaning, don’t you?”

  “Yes, I do.”

  “That’s the girl I love to death.”

  “I love you to death, too.”

  Zoey tugged the strap of her backpack over her shoulder as she lowered her head to keep the wind from hitting her directly in her face. Then she pulled the hood of her jacket over her head as she stepped off the bus. At seventeen, she didn’t draw motherly gazes on her as she had set out on her journey; it was the male predatory one she sought to escape their notice.

  The freezing rain wasn’t welcoming her to the city that she picked out. A city that was the farthest she could get away from the last one she left.

  Tiredly, she hunched her backpack farther onto her shoulder, then made her way into the terminal.

  She found herself jostled from behind as the others getting off the bus were anxious to get out of the damp weather. Warily, she moved to the side to let them pass while scanning the crowd of people who were waiting for the arrivals. Her shoulders slumped under the weight of her backpack. Unlike the others, she had no one waiting for her arrival, nor any place to go.

  Her first stop was finding the restroom. Locating it, her lagging footsteps picked up their pace. She was anxious to relieve herself on a toilet that wasn’t shaking, one where no one was waiting for their turn, she had tried to not to use the restroom on the bus, but the nearly four-day journey had made that impossible, despite the stations and breaks she had been given.

  As she came out of the stall to wash her hands, a flyer taped to the wall by the hand dryer caught her eye.

  New Chance Café,

  Where everyone deserves a new chance to start over.

  Free coffee and sandwiches.

  Free Wi-Fi.

  The flyer had her at the free. A meal that she wouldn’t have to pay for would save some of the precious money she had left.

  Zoey memorized the address, then lifted her backpack onto her shoulders. Not only could she use a free meal, she wanted that chance to start over too. Her teacher had advised her to be open to new opportunities, setting her onto this path. Now it was up to her to do the rest.

  Taking a deep breath, she reached for the handle of the door then swung it open.

  “Queen City, here I come.”

  1

  MOM,

  XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXXOOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXXOOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXXOXOXOOXOXOXOXXOXOXXOXOXOOXXOOXXOXOXOOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXXOOXXOXOOXOXOXXOOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXXOXOOXXOOXXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO
OXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXXOOXOXOXXOXOOXOXXOXOXOXOXOX

  LOVE,

  ZOEY

  Zoey juggled her hot lavender tea and the umbrella that was determined to fly out of her hand. It might not have been the brightest idea to go out in the driving rain and blowing wind for the tea.

  Using her cup to press the button for the walk sign, she waited for the light to turn so she could cross the busy street. Then she lifted the cup to her lips and was about to take a sip when she heard the loud sound of a motorcycle approaching. Not a second later, she felt a deluge of water striking her body and soaking the blouse and skirt she picked out that morning.

  Gasping, she looked toward the culprit, seeing the motorcycle ride past her, uncaring that he had just drenched her.

  Zoey could only look down at her sodden clothes and the now ruined, flimsy sandals she had worn optimistically, despite the call for rain.

  Putting her umbrella under her arm, she hurriedly slipped her phone out of the pocket of her skirt, moving her finger nimbly over the keys and snapping a picture of the motorcycle and the rider who doused her. Satisfied that she caught him on camera, Zoey then noticed the light changed to green. Pocketing her phone, she hurried across the opposite street, mentally chanting her favorite mantra to put the irritation of the inconsiderate rider out of her mind.

  Ignoring the damp swishing of her sandals, she took a sip of her lavender tea as she walked down the next street. Turning the corner, she was relieved to see her office building in sight. It would have been easier to go barefoot than wear the flimsy scraps of cardboard that was all that was left of her dainty shoes. She had known she was courting disaster when she decided to run out for the tea to pass the time until her first appointment arrived and decided to walk to the tea shop instead of driving.