Shadow: Golden Skulls M.C., page 1
SHADOW
GOLDEN SKULLS M.C.
THE NEXT CHAPTER
REBECCA JOYCE
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SHADOW
GOLDEN SKULLS M.C.–The Next Chapter
COPYRIGHT: © 2023 by Rebecca Joyce
Proofreader: Jenni Spalding
Editor: Kelly Wyvell
Copyright Editor: Rose Jung
First E-book Publication: July 04, 2023
© TRUTH REFUGEE [TM] ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.
All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is strictly coincidental.
INFORMATION:
Known facts about Human Trafficking.
Human trafficking is a global problem affecting people of all ages. It is estimated that approximately 1,000,000 people are trafficked each year globally. Between 20,000 and 50,000 are trafficked into the United States, one of the largest destinations for sex-trafficking trade victims.
The International Labour Organization estimates that there are 40.3 million victims of human trafficking globally. 81% of them are trapped in forced labor. 25% of them are children. 75% are women and girls.
Sex traffickers often recruit children because not only are children more unsuspecting and vulnerable than adults, but there is also a high market demand for young victims. Traffickers target victims on the telephone, on the Internet, through friends, at the mall, and in after-school programs.
A human trafficker can earn 20 times what he or she paid for a girl. Provided the girl was not physically brutalized to the point of ruining her beauty, the pimp could sell her again for a greater price because he had trained her and broken her spirit, which saves future buyers the hassle. A 2003 study in the Netherlands found that, on average, a single sex slave earned her pimp at least $250,000 a year.
Human trafficking worldwide is estimated to generate a profit of anywhere from $9 billion to $31.6 billion. Half of these profits are made in industrialized countries.
Victims of human trafficking suffer devastating physical and psychological harm. However, due to language barriers, lack of knowledge about available services, and the frequency with which traffickers move victims, human trafficking victims and their perpetrators are difficult to catch.
The FBI estimates that over 100,000 children and young women are trafficked in America today. They range in age from nine to 19, with the average being age 11. Many victims are not just runaways or abandoned, but also from “good” families coerced by clever traffickers.
Today, a slave costs about $90 on average worldwide.
Human trafficking is complex and dynamic. It is widespread, but exact numbers are hard to come by. It follows patterns, but every situation is also unique. There is so much more to learn and so much misinformation already out there.
If you believe you are the victim of a trafficking situation or have information about a potential trafficking situation, call the National Human Trafficking Resource Center (NHTRC) at 1-888-373-7888. NHTRC is a national, toll-free hotline with specialists available to answer calls from anywhere in the country, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Personal Note from Author:
Dear Reader,
The Golden Skulls Motorcycle Club is a series of books that deal with human trafficking and the men and women who survive it. I did not write these books lightly and show aspects of what life is like for individuals of such depravity.
Please, before reading these books, know that there will be many triggers. When I decided to write this series, I thought long and hard about approaching this topic and concluded that I needed to tell the truth to understand how profound this malicious network went. I couldn’t write a series about human trafficking in good conscience unless I covered every aspect of such atrocity.
Each book in this series will center around a female or male dealing with human trafficking. Whether they lived it or saw it or tried to stop it. Each story is fiction, but the acts are real.
For that very reason, I decided to write these books, because everyone deserves a happily ever after.
Please don’t let me discourage you from reading these books because they are romance books with a twist, after all. Romance isn’t all sweet and lovely. It’s messy, hard, dirty, and frightening. It challenges most of us, but it’s the journey, what we learn along the way, that makes us stronger, more resilient, more definable.
Rebecca Joyce
Thank You…
I want to give a BIG Thank you to Truth Refugee Radio for allowing me to use your media center in my book.
If you are interested in listening to any of the radio hosts, please check out Truth Refugee’s Website: TRUTH REFUGEE (trmedia.io)
© TRUTH REFUGEE [TM] ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
GOLDEN SKULLS M.C. MEMBERS
Max Doherty aka REAPER (Book 1)–President
Balthazar Miller aka GHOST (Book2)–President
Lucas Keller aka SAVAGE (Book 5)–Sergeant at Arms
Regional Buchanan aka PLAYER (Book 4)–Intel
Lena Collins aka PHANTOM (Book 7)–Intel
Dylan Franks aka BULLSEYE (Books 3 & 8)–Vice President
Zane Savage aka MATRIX–Intel & Treasurer
Ezekiel Miller aka SHADOW (Book 11)–Former Club Interrogator
Chris Smith aka VIPER (Nomad)
Jaxon La Fontaine aka BAYOU (Nomad)
Karl Ingalls aka INK (Book 9)
Gregory Von Otto aka VICIOUS (Book 10)
Solomon Goldman aka SANDMAN–Executioner
Jackson Williams aka RAVAGE
Chase Nevers aka WHISKEY
Bailey Franks aka CHIPPER
Charlie Franks aka TROUT
Quinton Moore aka DIGGER–Demolitions Expert
Chapman Moore aka SLAUGHTER
Danny Franks aka SYPHER–Intel
Prospects:
Tommy Hightower
Yancy Owens (SPECTACLES aka SPECS)
Ethan James
DEDICATION
Don’t let anyone tell you, you can’t do something.
You are the MASTER of your own life.
Live it!
SPECIAL THANKS.
To my Ravenous Ladies ~ Wow, what can I say? You ladies ROCK! When I started this crazy ass journey of writing, never in my wildest dreams did I ever think an AMAZING group of ladies would bend over backwards to be a part of my world. Taking time out of your days to read, promote and share my crazy world means so much to me. Everything you all do, from listening, offering advice to just letting me be my spasmodic self. It’s because of women like you that make what I do worth it.
Jayne ~ Oh, my dear Jayne. My friend, my drill sergeant, my spreadsheet QUEEN of the Universe. There is not a single person on the planet that can ever come close to you, though maybe a book Heroine, but she better be a damn good woman! Thank you for all the conversations, the advice, the help, the swift kick in the pants. There are not many people out there who will take the time to calm down a crazy person with multiple personalities, but you have taken on the challenge and tamed them all. Everyone in my head LOVES you!
Jenni ~ Words cannot describe the depth of gratitude and respect I have for you. Your keen eye and gentle nature blows me away. To offer help when I was struggling and then to jump right in…you are a godsend. An ANGEL. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
Kelly ~ The woman who refuses to let me bite off more than I can chew. The woman who keeps me grounded to reality. My best friend. The woman I call at a moment’s notice, even when you’re barely awake. I know these last months haven’t been the greatest but know that I am always here for you. ALWAYS.
Rose ~ The best thing about doing what I do is meeting people like you. A simple hello can change a life forever. Thank you for reaching out to me when you did. I think what we have is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
To enjoy the full story of the world I’ve created, I highly suggest reading my books in order, as characters overlap and interact with other series.
Suggested Reading Order:
REAPER (Golden Skulls M.C.)
GHOST (Golden Skulls M.C.)
BULLSEYE (Golden Skulls M.C.)
GIOVANNI (The Valentinetti Crime Family)
PLAYER (Golden Skulls M.C.)
&n
bsp; LORENZO (The Valentinetti Crime Family)
SAVAGE (Golden Skulls M.C.)
ANTONIO (The Valentinetti Crime Family)
THE GOLDEN WEDDING (Golden Skills M.C.)
PHANTOM (Golden Skulls M.C.)
DYLAN (Golden Skulls M.C.)
INK (Golden Skulls M.C.)
VICIOUS (Golden Skulls M.C.)
KING (Sons of Hell M.C.)
KANSAS (Diamondback M.C.)
SHADOW (Golden Skulls M.C.)
SINNER’S REDEMPTION (Soulless Sinner M.C.)
SHADOW
Golden Skulls M.C.
The Next Chapter
Rebecca Joyce
Prologue
Eighteen months ago in Lawton, Oklahoma
“Well, my universal brothers and sisters, that’s it for me tonight. Thank you for listening to Lady Luck. I’ll be back tomorrow night with more news, stories and celestial happenings around the world. And for our local riders heading out for tomorrow’s charity ride, may the wind always be at your back and the sun, shine warm upon your face. I love you. Take care of yourself and ‘til we meet again.”
Clicking the button on my microphone, I looked up and smiled at Conner, my sound guy and friend. Giving me two thumbs up, I stood and stretched my back. It was a long night, but worth every ache. Grabbing my bag, I gave Conner a two-finger salute before walking out of the small Truth Refugee Radio station on the north side of Lawton, Oklahoma. Unlike the regular radio broadcasting stations that aired the latest music craze or spouted propaganda garbage, the shit big government wanted drummed into listeners, Truth Refugee Radio spoke the truth.
Well, truth in general, even if it was stuff we didn’t enjoy talking about.
Some called our little station Conspiracy Radio. They belittled us, tried to discredit us or made us out to be radical right-wing terrorist, which was the farthest thing from the truth. Big brother had banned, censored, de-platformed, demonetized and harassed us so much that we’d become numb to the government. All because we tell the uncomfortable truth from our point of view. We had wiccans, news, science and, yes, we even have people who cover the latest in spiritual healing, farming and the occasional esoteric debate. That didn’t make us any less than those who disagreed. We love what we do and wanted to share our unique knowledge and beliefs with the universe.
In today’s world where everyone has a voice, it seemed our voice was always being silenced.
Not that we would let that stop us.
Like my vocal brethren on this planet, my voice mattered too.
Not that many listened, but I had my loyal listeners, those who valued my opinion and were eager to talk about theirs.
Growing up, I never planned on being a radio host. Instead, my parents raised me to keep my mouth shut at all times. I never talked about my life before I became the woman I was today.
Not that I didn’t want to.
It was more about self-preservation.
Heading for my car, I looked at my watch and noted the time. If I hurried, I could meet my contact at the Diamond Bar.
I’d been conversing with a private investigator for months now regarding information about my father. Not that I cared one iota about the son-of-a-bitch, but I needed to know his whereabouts. The more I knew about him and what he was up to, the better prepared I would be. I hated being on guard, but it was the only way to ensure that my siblings and I survived.
I was the oldest of four siblings.
I had a sister and two brothers.
They counted on me, and I refused to let them down.
Making my way through the empty streets of Lawton, I made good time as I pulled into the almost empty parking lot. Parking close to the entrance of the bar, I could hear the loud music and patrons having a good time. Some small part of me wished I had the courage to join them. Not that I was ever a party girl, but sometimes it would be nice to get out of my comfort zone and meet new people.
Getting out of my car, I looked around and found nothing out of the ordinary. Never could be too careful in today’s society. Danger lurked in the most unsuspecting places.
The investigator texted me while I was live on the air and told me he would wait for me. He never gave me a reason to doubt him.
Only I didn’t see him anywhere.
Reaching inside my car for my phone, I heard a noise that had me looking up as a tall man walked from around the bar, out of the shadows, dragging something behind him. It was too dark to see what it was. But whatever he was dragging was big.
Upon seeing me, he stopped dead in his tracks.
My body glued to the pavement as I stared in disbelief.
I couldn’t stop staring at the body at the man’s feet.
Was he really dragging a dead body as if it were nothing?
Glass shattered, making me jump into action, and so did the shadow. Fumbling with my keys, I dropped them on the ground. Reaching for them, I almost had my hands on my keys when the shadow grabbed me by my hair and forcefully yanked me away from my car, throwing me down to the ground, hard.
I ignored the pain in my knees and hands from hitting the asphalt. Turning, I scooted away from the man looming over me.
“Please. I didn’t see anything.”
“Yes, you did.”
Before I could say another word, his fist connected with my face, causing me to fall back, hitting my head hard against the ground. Moaning, I curled into a ball just as his foot connected with my ribs. Gasping for air, I moaned as I knew he broke a few of my ribs. It was a familiar injury. One I’d survived many times before. But when he grabbed my hair and yanked my head up, I knew this man intended to kill me. I saw his determination clearly in his eyes.
He was a killer.
“Hey!” someone shouted, as the man kept punching me repeatedly until my body went lifeless in his hands. With a loud crack, my head hit the pavement again as my savior tackled the man to the ground. Rolling to my side, I tried to see what was happening when my attacker fled.
Moaning, I rolled to my knees and coughed up blood.
“Don’t move, honey,” my savior said. “Shit. You need an ambulance.”
“Don’t touch me!” I screamed, stumbling away from the man. Logically, I knew he was only trying to help, but I didn’t know him. Shaking my head, I croaked, “I’ll be fine. Just give me a minute.”
Fuck, my head was pounding.
I couldn’t focus and I knew I was going to be sick.
Holding my stomach, I winced when my fingers touched my ribs.
Yep. He broke them.
“Honey, you look like minced meat. It’s not a good look. Here, let me help you up?”
“No! Don’t touch me!” I screamed, as someone else tackled my savior to the ground and started beating on him. Falling back to the ground, I closed my eyes, trying to stop the drum solo pounding in my head.
Fuck, this was bad.
Turning my head, I saw the newcomer grab my savior’s head and, with a hard twist, my savior fell to the ground, lifeless beside me.
Looking away, I closed my eyes when I felt someone push my hair away from my face. “Hang on, Angel. Help is coming.”
Blinking a few times, the last thing I saw was the most beautiful, haunted silver-blue eyes I’d ever seen before as I fell deep into a black void.
Chapter One
Shadow
One month ago,
Screams echoed all around me as the rotten smell of death seeped into my soul. They were everywhere. There was no escape. I saw them lurking in the shadows. Their eyes condemned me for what I’d done. Their faces let me know it would be my time soon. Moving about the room, I could hear the slosh of blood as I made my way to the center of the room. The floor was sticky with their remains.
