CEASE
(BAYONNET SCARS #7)
By JC Emery
Death silences. Love echoes.
Ruby Buckley is no stranger to loss. She lost
her twins in their infancy, lost her son to his demons,a and lost herself to a
life she never wanted.
Until him.
Jim Stone is lost. He’s a father who doesn’t
know how to parent, a brother how doesn’t know why he ever patched in, and is
completely numb to everything around him.
Until her.
Craving normalcy, Ruby wants to live straight,
but that’ easier said than done with a member of the Forsaken Motorcycle Club
is determined to make her his old lady. She’s plagued by a past she can’t
escape. He vows to give her a better future, even if it means delivering on the
impossible.
But falling in love was only the beginning.
Twenty years later and they’re still going
strong, even if the world around them is crumbling. Jim’s put his club on the
line and given Ruby the impossible—her now adult twins she thought she’d lost
forever. She has everything she’s always wanted.
But at what cost?
Love is never more real than when it’s forever.
PROLOGUE
Time after time, I never cease to be amazed at
how deeply I can be hurt.
Just a flesh wound,
Mama.
Jim’s words echo in my
mind over and over again. They’re all I hear as I watch my husband— the man who
taught me that men can be good— being lifted into the back of the van by his
brothers. Blood pools at the bottom of his vest and drips to the pavement.
My daughter— the
precious baby I thought I’d lost forever— is being carried to the van by the
boy who became my son at the age of eight. She’s lost so much blood. The dark
red liquid completely covers her face, neck, and chest. My heart falls into my
stomach as I catch sight of the blood smeared all over Ryan’s cut and his face.
My husband’s been
gutted and my daughter’s been sliced open.
Both bleeding.
One dying.
Maybe two.
Hopefully none.
And all I can think
about is my own selfish need to keep them with me. If I’m not a mother to my
daughter or a wife to my husband, then I don’t know who I am. I’ll still have
my sons— all three of them— but it’s not the same. My boys don’t need me the
way my man and my girl do. I won’t get to hang on to Michael for much longer.
He’s a Mancuso and he’ll be staying in New York to take over the family— and it
doesn’t matter how I feel about that. Ian, my eldest, has his wife Mindy. He
thinks he still needs me, but he doesn’t. Ryan, the boy I have to remind myself
isn’t really mine, has Alex. My daughter.
If we lose her,
there’s nothing anyone can do to make it better. Ryan will never recover and
neither will I. He’ll shut down, just like Rage did when we lost Sylvia, and
even I won’t be able to reach him then.
If we lose Jim, we
lose our rock. I lose the only person I ever trusted enough to give my whole
heart to besides my children.
I won’t survive it.
DON'T MISS THE PREVIOUS BAYONET SCARS NOVELS!
RIDE
(BAYONET SCARS 1)
Death
comes Armani. Salvation comes in leather.
Principessa
to the Mancuso crime family, Alexandra knows a thing or two about living
outside the bounds of the law. Suffocated by the future her father has laid out
for her, she makes a choice she can’t take back, changing the entire trajectory
of her life.
Thrust
into the dark and dangerous world of the Forsaken Motorcycle Club for her own
protection, Alex finds herself faced with the last thing she needs right now:
the man of her dreams. He’s sex in leather, the devil incarnate, and one hell
of a kisser. But he’s also off-limits. Ryan Stone can be her friend but he’s
forbidden to be her love.
Third-generation
Forsaken, Ryan knows nothing other than life on two wheels, and he would’t have
it any other way. He enjoys the many privileges that come with the patch, and
the only laws he recognizes are the ones set-forth by his club. That is, until
who he wants more than anything isn’t allowed on the back of his bike—or in his
bed. Balancing his desire for her body, and need to keep her safe, Ryan tried
to keep Alex at a distance. Finally having made a choice for herself, she’s
done hearing the word “no” and will push boundaries even Ryan himself doesn’t
dare cross.
Love is
never more tempting than when it’s forbidden.
Loneliness suffocates the heart. Acceptance
breaks down walls.
THRASH
(BAYONET SCARS 2)
As a Lost
Girl to the Forsaken Motorcycle Club, Nicole Whelan knows how to party. She’s
not cut-out for relationships and her life is way too complicated for anything
more than casual encounters. But one night when she falls into Duke’s bed at
the clubhouse, he sees something in her that he can’t let go of—no matter how
many times she tries to run.
Having
been left to raise her teenage brother, Jeremy, she’s already got her hands
full and isn’t looking for anymore complications. But Duke’s just watches his
best friend fall for the only girl he couldn’t have, and then almost lose her
so shortly after, shaking him to his core. Faced with his own loneliness, he’s
more determined that ever to break down Nic’s walls and show her that he can be
good for her; but he’s got a bad track record and she’s got a bad temper.
Changing his ways isn’t easy when he’s not sure what he’s even changing for.
The
violence and turmoil are at an all-time high, and Forsaken is in a vulnerable
place when a twist of fate breathes new life into the club. It’s a much-needed
beacon of hope for the embattled biker family, even if everyone’s not exactly
on board. With Duke and Nic’s relationship already on shaky ground, and
something even more important at stake, the Forsaken Motorcycle Club will fight
like hell to keep their family together and whole.
Love is never more precious than when it’s new.
REV
(BAYONET SCARS 3)
With the
looming threat form the Mancuso Crime Family, the Forsaken Motorcycle Club is
preparing for a war that could destroy them. Grady, the club’s
Sergeant-at-Arms, knows that love makes you weak, and he has zero interest in
adding to his liabilities—especially now. He’s already got his teenage daughter
who keeps him on his toes and a beef within the club that could fracture his
relationship with a fellow brother for good.
For Holly
Mercer, her life is finally getting on track and the last thing she wants is
trouble former her hometown’s resident outlaws. Keeping her nose clean is
easier said than done, when suddenly she finds herself embroiled in club
business. Holly might like the idea of being with a era-life bad boy, but even
being int eh same room with tough-as-nails Grady flusters her.
When Holly
inadvertently finds herself on Mancuso’s radar, she has two choices: trust
Grady will protect her, or continue to refuse the club’s help. Both rads are
dangerous, but only one has the chance to damage her beyond repair.
Love is never more dangerous than when it can
destroy you.
CRUSH
(BAYONET SCARS 4)
You love
is always perfect. Until it’s not.
Cheyenne
Grady is a total daddy’s girl to her bad-ass father, the Sergeant-at-Arms of
the Forsaken Motorcycle Club. She’s funny, and kind, and she just wants that
deep, earth-shattering love like her dad has with her school secretary, Holly.
But Cheyenne’s been looking in the wrong direction, because the only good that
can come from the way she looks at Jeremy Whelan is a lesson in heartbreak.
Jeremy
always wanted to prospect for the Forsaken Motorcycle Club and wear the same
patch as his father. When a life-long dream becomes reality, Jeremy realizes
that eh outlaw lifestyle is not for the faint of heart. Nor is it easy on
relationships. He wants to be a good man, but temptation is everywhere.
Cheyenne
is beautiful, and strong, and exactly what Jeremy could have forever. As long
as he doesn’t screw it up.
Love is
never more powerful than the first time.
VOW
(BAYONET SCARS 4.5)
He refuses
to five in. She refuses to give up.
Alexandra
Mancuso knows all about regrets. She talked other wrong person and started a
war that’s ravaged her newly adopted motorcycle club family and threatens to
cast Alex her life. Now’s cautions with the commitments she makes.
Ryan
Stone, road captain for the Forsaken Motorcycle Club regrets nothing—except
putting Cub in danger one time too many. The Forsaken Motorcycle Club has a
plan to end the war with the Mancuso crime family and they need everyone’s head
in the game. But Ryan can’t focus on the club when he’s so distracted by a
certain reckless brunette. She gives him everything except for what he really
wants.
Today, he
refuses to take no for an answer and maybe, just maybe, this time Alex won’t be
able to stand her sound.
True love always defies the odds.
BURN
(BAYONET SCARS 5)
Tragedy
cuts deep. Revenge burns deeper.
The blood
of their enemies coats the leather of their cuts and a trail of bodies lie in
their wake, but the Forsaken Motorcycle Club isn’t done yet. Carlo Mancuso
still needs to pay for his sins. Nobody knows that more than Ian Buckley, the
Treasurer for Forsaken.
Ian
prefers pleasure mixed with pain and he’s only ever at peace when he’s doling
out justice. Convinced that he’s too unstable and sadistic to take and old
lady, he keeps his trysts, like all of his relationships, brief and anonymous.
But with his club at war, and the stakes being so personal, Ian’s feeling the
events around him more deeply than he expects.
Mindy
Mercer is the sweet daughter of For Bragg’s most respectable cop. At least
that’s how the town sees her. Very few people know the Mindy who hides her
tracks and battles her cravings by lying to everyone around her. She thinks she
has control of her addiction until she suffers as attack that leaves her
searching for a way out of her own personal hell.
Mindy has
never been more desperately in need of a saviour and Ian has never seen a more
beautifully destroyed creature in his life. Their attraction is intense, but
their damage is extreme. Some scars never heal, and some people never get
better.
Love is never more painful than when it can
kill you.
CRAVE
(BAYONET SCARS 5.5)
She’s
heartbroken. He’s a heart-breaker.
Elle Phillips’s
relationship with the Forsaken Motorcycle Club is strained, much like the
relationship she had with her father, a Forsaken brother, before he died. The
only piece of Forsaken that Elle wants to hold onto is their Sergeant-at-Arms
and her former lover, Sterling “Bloody Knuckles” Grady. Unfortunately, Grady’s
moved on and he doesn’t seem to be coming back. With her heart hurting over one
man who’s died and another who’s practically dead to her, Elle throws herself
into her work as a private investigator and tries to keep a low profile where
the club’s concerned. But when a case comes along that she can’t refuse, she
finds herself embroiled in club business in a way that leaves her questioning
everything she thought she knew about Forsaken.
Diesel
knows that keeping tabs on Elle Phillips is going to bring him trouble. He
already loves her even though he barely knows her, but when Grady asks Diesel
to keep her safe, he can’t say no. HIs patience has run out and he’s going to
do anything to get Elle to realize he’s the man she’s been craving—even going
behind the club’s back to help her solve a case she shouldn’t be working.
Real love is always the cure.
HAUNT
(BAYONET SCARS 6)
Kings rule
men. Queens rule kings.
Wyatt
Strand is a hard man. He has hard features, speaks with harsh words, and has a
hardened heart. Having served the Forsaken Motorcycle Club as Vice President,
Wyatt is used to taking responsibility for his brothers, but when he’s handed
the gavel everything changes. His brothers are now his men and the threat from
the Italian mafia still looms in the distance a president needs focus, but
that’s nearly impossible when his old lady blows back into town and drops two
very large bombshells on him.
Amber
Wallace is a tough woman, but an even fiercer mother. She once told a lie to
protect her unborn child that tore her away from the man she loves. And now,
years later, she’s coming home to make amends. Wyatt’s changed, but the club
hasn’t. Women are to be obedient. Unfortunately for Forsaken, Amber’s not about
to let a few rules stop her from living the life she always imagined.
The
Forsaken Motorcycle Club started a war with the Italian mafia and they’ve paid
dearly for that choice. With a new president at the helm, the wheels are
finally in motion to take down Mancuso once and for all. Even if it means
taking the fight back to where it began.
Love is never more beautiful than when it
consumes you.
As a child, JC was fascinated by things that went bump in the night. As they say, some things never change. Now, as an adult, she divides her time between the sexy law men, mythical creatures, and kick-ass heroines that live inside her head and pursuing her bachelor's degree in English. JC is a San Francisco Bay Area native, but has also called both Texas and Louisiana home. These days she rocks her flip flops year round in Northern California and can't imagine a climate more beautiful.
JC writes adult, new adult, and young adult fiction. She dabbles in many different genres including science fiction, horror, chick lit, and murder mysteries, yet she is most enthralled by supernatural stories-- and everything has at least a splash of romance.
