14 Months 13: April

"Fuck! Yes!" Sophie cried out, elongating the word. The feel of him driving so deeply inside sent her into a spin, and her eyes rolled as her body began to jerk and spasm. She glowed with perspiration as she started to float in the wonderful endorphin fuelled state, as she took everything, he gave her.

Justin smacked her ass with his open palm, bringing her back to him momentarily as she cried out, and continued to spank her between thrusts. He stopped spanking her and changed his rhythm again, stroking now in time to the beat of his racing heart, his fingers gripping her hips again. He knew he would leave marks when he had been trying so hard not to mark her today before their trip home and greeting his family and men who worked for him. He wanted nothing but respect for her and no suspicions or whispered comments about being a submissive slut. Even though he was over-joyed with how far she had come in her training during their honeymoon, he didn't want her known as being that for him or anyone.

She gasped as tears escaped her eyes, and she floated higher if not away from him just yet. He curled one hand under her wanting her to come with him despite how much she had already come. His fingers barely rubbed over her clit when he felt her stiffen below him her pussy so tight as it pulsed around his cock, milking his orgasm from him. He roared into the room as she cried out, and he collapsed on top of her, feeling fully drained.

Sophie could do nothing but lay there, crying softly at the intensity of what she had felt. She wasn't aware of when he picked her up and took her back to their bed and cuddled her to him. She felt her trembling body begin to settle slowly as he stroked her and told her what a good girl she was before she dozed off, completely exhausted by the scene after last night's activities.

*****

"Of course, the fucking Anti-heroes have a lair," Matt chuckled looking at the building they had been directed to, and the marquis over the front bar and restaurant lit up with the name, 'The Lair'.

Tom grunted in response as he stepped out of the car and started walking, not bothering to check if Matt was following. They'd found nothing of use during their time in Sin City only a thirty-minute drive from Calypso Cove where Justin's main base was. The Anti-heroes called Sin City their home town and were the go-to guys for intelligence here, but even they had been unable to find the elusive Justin Marquis until now. Or at least that is what Tom hoped the message they had received meant.

"Hey," Rob greeted Tom and nodded to him then looked over his shoulder at Matt with the same head nod. "Come grab a drink," he invited.

He led them to a small, almost private booth and nodded at a waitress who moved in to take their orders. Nobody spoke until they had their drinks, and the waitress had moved off.

"You've seen him?" Tom said, tired of the silence.

"No, but all indications say that he's back and laying low. What I want to know is what the fuck are you guys doing and more importantly what's so special about these girls that the council are so invested in them that they took them from us to keep them safe?" Rob asked.

"I thought you had a meeting with our brothers about that weeks ago, before all of this drama happed," Tom spoke in a low voice.

"I'll admit that the idea of the girls being wanted because of blood ties to families that were practically eradicated in the last underground war seemed a little too farfetched even for me. I didn't see the preferential treatment your brothers said the girls got. Honestly, I thought they were over-reacting to the situation. All they had were assumptions and suspicions when we talked. Having said that, the reasons I got for taking Chloe into protective care didn't ring true, especially after hearing about the attack on your generation, so I am asking, what the fuck is going on and why are you all so interested in Justin Marquis?" Rob asked his tone becoming hard with frustration and irritation that he couldn't seem to get straight answers from anyone. "Information is a two-way street, gentlemen."

"Alright, I'm all for cards on the table, so I'm your man," Tom said seriously. "You got a protected office?"

"Yeah," Rob said, tossing back the rest of his drink. "This way." He stood and indicated they should follow.

"Wait," Matt said, stalling him. "You want to see all our cards then we need some assurances because you're not going to like what we have to say."

"What sort of assurances," Rob frowned retaking his seat.

"I want to check the room myself and maybe add a blocker of our own, as a show of good faith that what we tell you will go no further," Matt pressed. "or the better idea would be to come for a drive with us."

"If that will make you more comfortable," Rob said. "Because if even a little of what I think is happening is true, you have nothing to fear from my brothers or me."

"Alright, let's go. Grab a bottle for the road; you're going to need it," Tom said as Matt stood and made his way out to the car ahead of them. Then he followed leaving Rob to bring up the rear. When Rob got to the car he wasn't alone, Edward Kelly was with him. Matt grunted, and Tom took a seat in the back. This wasn't going to be an easy conversation, but if they wanted the help of their closest generation, they would have to trust them eventually.

They drove in relative silence for twenty minutes as Rob directed them to the rooftop parking of a long-term parking centre near the marina. He pulled into a central bay and killed the engine before pulling some technical equipment from a bag that rested on Rob's lap before nodding.

Tom began talking explaining the chosen sixes early suspicions to the point where they had been attacked, and the girls had been taken. He stopped and looked at Matt before dropping the bomb about the council members betraying them and setting up the ambushes that went so terribly wrong with the death of Bear and injuries to most of their brothers. He then told them of the new information that Layla believed that Justin and at least two of his closest men were related in some way to the members of the council. The theory they were working with involved this strange affiliation starting a new underground war and taking over the major cities again using the girl's links to bring in the survivors of the decimated families together as foot soldiers bent on revenge.

"Fuck, that explains a few things we were picking up," Edward said, sitting back in his seat and blew out a big breath.

"The Serbs lost a big shipment over the weekend. They're on the warpath not just about the missing shipment, but their men keep showing up in the morgue," Rob began. "We started looking into it ourselves, and it seems there has been an influx of tourist to Calypso Cove via superyachts and cruisers registered in Sutherland. When we checked the Sin City Airport arrivals over the last week, there were an extraordinary amount of new arrivals also from Sutherland on commercial as well as private airlines," he looked at the two men who studied him taking in what he was saying. "If I had to hazard a guess, I would say Justin is building himself an army to take over Sin City's underground and shore up his defences before moving to reclaim Sutherland for his new wife's family."

"That would make sense, Sin City has got to be a gold mine for whoever runs it," Tom agreed. "Does the council know of your suspicions or what you have been doing to track the Serb's movements?"

"As I said, nothing was adding up, and the council were flying in and out of Sin City like they had developed gambling addictions," Rob said.

"Rob told the rest of us what you guys had said once things started to go screwy, on the night they took Chloe. She was a cool chick, we all liked her," Edward leaned forward and clapped Rob on the shoulder. "The more we looked into it and saw what was happening right on our doorstep, the more sense it made, especially after hearing the recent developments from you. We've got your backs, the council won't discover that you know what they're doing from us," He said with tight lips and shaking his head. "The question is, why are they doing it? If they had kids of their own, they could have given them the best lives far away from all this shit. Why send them to war like this? There has to be more to the story."

"Why do you think Justin's back in town?" Tom asked.

"Got a notebook and a pen in that bag?" Edward asked. Then leaned forward on the front centre console between the other men and began to sketch.

"We know that Marquis officially lives in a large semi-residential apartment block in the high-end tourist area of Port Sanctuary on the north end of Calypso Cove but here's what's unusual about that. The block that it sits on is overly large, full of retail shops, restaurants and bars on all four sides that was the original settlement up there. Originally these were houses all surrounding a large convent and church. So, he continued to sketch the layout, that large void in the middle of this block is a hidden sanctuary in itself. We believe that is where Justin truly lives and just keeps the penthouse in the building bordering it as a meeting place," Edward explained.

"Wait, Saint Patrick's church?" Matt asked.

"Yeah, how did you know? It's a pretty well-kept secret, even though they do allow weddings in that church from time to time for those that can afford it," Edward narrowed his eyes.

"Layla said that was where the wedding was held and that she thought it was close to where they were being kept," he explained further. "But she said they drove to the church which doesn't make sense if it is on the same grounds as the house."

"They could have driven them to confuse them. They were blindfolded to keep the secret after all. Probably in case, we figured it out before he got back from his honeymoon and ambushed him," Tom mused.

"We did an aerial run over the area yesterday, and there was a lot of security roaming the grounds. We didn't see the man himself, but all indications are that he is back from his honeymoon," Rob said.

"Do you have pictures of the house itself or the interior of the church we could show Layla to confirm?" Tom asked.

"You realise he married her, right? This isn't as simple as grabbing a working girl no one cares about off the street," Rob asked. "I care a lot about Chloe, but it was never meant to be for the long haul."

"Right now, it's more about being screwed over by the council and why they did it than anything else, and Sophie seems to be central to the whole scheme of things. The Alliance is about to be torn apart from the inside out if we come forward with the proof that the council was complicit in the attack on our generation and the death of one of our own. Not to mention the serious injuries sustained by the rest of us, which is keeping many of our brothers out of circulation at the moment. They crippled the Blackjacks, but they didn't count on the thirteen coming back together to stand united. They could just as easily have done it to any generation, ones who didn't keep their original thirteen close," Tom said and looked at the other men seriously.

"We have men of our own who are more loyal than those who left the mentorship program early. Some of them at least," Rob said.

"Loyal men are great, but brothers have your back. If you're going to side with us in the coming war you better sort your own house out because the council have eyes and ears everywhere, even with those we believe untouchable," Matt growled darkly. "They've been planning whatever this is for a long time, and now the rest of us have to play catch up or become collateral damage."

*****

"I'm not saying we won't get her back only that you can't expect her to think of us like the good guys riding in to save her," Jayce sighed. "What we need to concentrate on right now is the council and why they betrayed us the way they did and come up with a plan to not only pay them back but free the girl who is still being used as a pawn by them."

"You think that's more important than getting her out of there and the danger she's in, right now?" Darius growled.

"What danger? From what we now know from Layla and Stella, Justin has never hurt her or even laid so much as a finger on her in anger. Her consequences were always taken out on those she cared about. So, protecting the girls in the safe house is paramount and unravelling this plan of the council will end whatever Justin is plotting, making him more vulnerable to us. We can't go in there guns blazing while he is at full strength. The heroes say he is building an army that even if the Alliance were all acting together would be hard to overcome," Jayce said again trying to get Darius to see reason. However, he was surprised that Zander was so ready to give up his claim on the girl. He thought he would have to argue with them both.

"All we seem to be doing lately is talking! I need action. I need to do something other than just talking about it!" Darius exploded practically leaping from his chair to pace the room.

"Darius even our thirteen is not at full strength, look at Zander, really look at him. Are you prepared to lose him or Kai or heck any of us because you couldn't wait and went charging in now? You know none of us would let you go in there alone, and you would be responsible not just for anything that happened to Sophie in retaliation but to the rest of us," Jayce didn't pull any punches. "Are you prepared to sacrifice us for her?"

"Fuck, no! But..." Darius deflated as he took in Zanders still recovering body and came back to where the other men sat. They had almost lost Zander and Kai the night of the attack. Their injuries had been so severe the doctors had prepared them for the worst.

"Tom is the best one to make contact. He never lied to her or tried to keep the answers to her questions from her. He's one of us but possibly the most non-threatening to her as he only ever offered her friendship. He also has the added bonus of not having the high profile the rest of us do. Even in disguise, the council would pick us out of the crowd. You and Zander especially, don't exactly blend into any crowd," Jayce said.

"I'm not going to purposely put her in any more danger than she already is and I won't let you either. I may no longer think that being with either of us is the best way forward for her, but I'll be damned if I let you get her and the rest of us killed," Zander growled at Darius. "We wait, we plan, we strategize but always with our eyes on the prise, and if at the end of it all she wants her freedom from not only him but us as well, then that's what she gets," he said brooking no arguments. He wouldn't keep her trapped here with them. It was the one clear point she had made in the contract negotiations; she couldn't stand to be trapped physically or emotionally, and that was precisely what they and now Justin had done to her. Having twenty-twenty hindsight was a dreadful, guilt-ridden curse.

"Jack and Nick have already left for Sin City. We have to trust the four of them to do what needs to be done. The heroes siding with us is a bonus and will give them more resources and local knowledge than we would have been able to get on our own. This won't last forever. We just have to be patient," Asher said. Twice a day they had to talk Darius down from doing something stupid. His temper and stubbornness were continually getting in the way of logic where Sophie was concerned, but they had far more significant problems than a girl brought in to play the game. To this point though they were flying blind without proof and just a lot of supposition, and guesswork. They needed evidence in the form of cold hard facts before they could go to any of the other generations and risk drawing battle lines within the alliance against the council.

*****

Stella frowned as she looked at her phone it had just buzzed with an incoming message. It never rang or buzzed. She used it for music mostly, preferring to shut out the rest of the people in the house by putting her earbuds in and finding a space in the garden to write in her journal. The whole story of her sad, pitiful existence until now was unfolding in that journal, and even though she remembered being happy when she was younger, the taint of her adult existence touched it and took the sunshine from those more carefree days. She looked around the garden and seeing no one she scrolled to the text.

Unknown: 10:25: "Are you alone right now?"

Stella: 10:26: "As alone as I can be in a house full of people."

Her phone came to life in her hands, and she answered it, not knowing who would be calling her but starving for someone to talk to who cared about her.

"Hello?" Stella asked tentatively.

"Bruiser," came the deep-voiced reply and she froze recognising it immediately as Lachlan her former captor and punisher.

"H-how, did you get this number?" she stuttered softly.

"How do I do anything? I thought we made it clear we could get to you or those Alliance idiots you like so much anytime, anywhere," Lachlan chuckled.

"Sophie! How's Sophie?" she asked urgently.

"Mrs Marquis is healthy and happy after her honeymoon and is eager to know you and Layla are in the same condition. Your voice tells me you are not happy; however," he challenged.

"Tequila," she said flippantly. "Can I talk to Sophie?"

"You can," he said, and there was a short pause while the background noise changed, and Stella assumed she had been put on speaker.

"Sophie?" she asked tentatively.

"I'm here, Stella," Sophie said cheerily, and Stella could feel the happiness or at least lack of sadness in her voice as she spoke those three words. It at least didn't sound like forced cheeriness, but she wasn't sure she could tell without seeing her face.

"Oh, thank God, are you okay?" Stella asked in a rush. "I didn't want to leave you there alone, but they made me leave."

"I know which is why I am calling. I'm fine, Stella. I'm being treated very well now, and there are no more threats of consequences. Justin and I have talked a lot over the last few weeks, and I am okay here. Forget the plans I made before you left, I'm not unhappy here, I promise. It has all worked out for the best now that I know you're safe. How's Layla?" she asked, guarding her words and body language as she always did now.

"Happy as a pig in mud. Connor won't leave her side," Stella said, a twist of jealousy and sadness entering her gut. She felt like she had lost both of her friends as well as David once they returned and were sent to this safe house. From the night his ego had caused him to accuse her of wanting to stay with Justin and his men instead of return to him, she had been the one to put distance between them. That wasn't why she had asked to stay at all, although after hearing Lachlan's voice again, she wondered if David wasn't partially right.

"That's great. I know how happy they are together. What about David?" Sophie asked.

"Oh, you know me, never a smooth ride to anywhere. He is around to make sure we are safe, but we never had the sort of relation you or Layla did with the brothers," Stella admitted with a sigh. She felt so alone here and wanted nothing more than to see Sophie and hug her and talk to her in person. To know at least one person in the world truly cared about her.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Sophie said sadly. "I had hoped you know with absence he would be happy to have you back, fonder to have you back, or whatever that saying is. You know what I mean," she chuckled.

"Yeah, well, the Rolling Stones said, you can't always get what you want," Stella gave a mirthless laugh.

"Aint that the truth," Sophie sighed. "I'm sorry I have to go, but I'll try and call again soon, okay? Can you tell Layla I am thinking of her too?"