HAPPY LOOKED DOWN at his work with satisfaction, sweat pouring down his face as he stood there in his white tank. He hadn't taken so much time to inflict pain and torture someone in forever. Club business was going well at the moment, there were hardly any problems where his special services were neededᅳ all the more he enjoyed taking out his pent-up tension on the man who had laid hands on his mother. Too bad Happy didn't have his own tools at hand. But they were in his house in Charming, which meant Mike was one lucky fucker.

But, he had to get creative in other ways and had searched the small motel room for anything that would be useful for inflicting pain on someone. However, that wasn't much. Happy could've broken the already old mirror in the bathroom with a few cracks in the glass, but that would've been too boringᅳ he could've just used his own knife, which was just as sharp.

And that's what he had done. His gaze slowly slid over the individual, deep cuts that were spread across Mikael's upper body. Some deeper, some just on the surface. Blood oozed from several wounds and ran down his stomach, soaking his jeans with the red liquid. Salt and mouthwash stood on the counter in the small kitchenette, next to the chair on which Mikael was tied to.

Since Happy didn't have anything with him, he simply took belts from Mikael's suitcase and tied his legs to the wooden legs of the chair. His hands were tied behind his back with a tie, which Happy was still surprised to have found in Mikael stuff.

At the moment the older man was unresponsive, the pain Happy had caused him had become too extreme. Mikael had been able to cope with the cuts, and he had also endured the mouthwash and the salt in the wounds for quite a while with gritted teethᅳ but when Happy poured boiling hot water from the old, filthy kettle over his legs, first one and then slowly agonizing over the second, Mikael's body had given up.

However, Happy thought that Mikael had had enough of a break and filled the kettle with water again. While the water was heating up, Happy circled the man slowly and with long strides until he stood behind him and reached for the mouthwash, which he slowly poured into the open wounds.

Even before Mikael opened his eyes, his body was tremblingᅳ it looked like he was a fish on land, or as if he had been electrified. With a dry, throaty pant, the older man opened his eyes, panic immediately rising inside him as he realized that all of this hadn't been a bad dream but really happened.

"What..what else do you want..from me?", he asked with a bone-dry throat, barely able to say a word. "You got your revenge for your mom..I told you..I'm sorry..", he panted as he tried to rub his wrist freeᅳ without success.

"Nah, I should actually kill you for that", the Killer replied calmly, which made him sound even more menacing. "But I can't do thatᅳ because I promised Tessa something. And I keep my promises."

When the kettle made a clicking sound and signaled Happy that the water was now hot enough, a sinister grin formed on his lips as he surrounded Mikael again and sat down the mouthwash only to reach for the kettle a moment later.

"No..no..please don't", Mikael pleaded, which was better than music for Happy. "TᅳTessa will call the cops..they'll find me. She knows..she knows she has to help me or..she'll never see him again."

Happy could've laughed at the sight. Mikael, who was once pretending to be such a strong guy, was now begging after Happy had started his torment. From that point on he had heard nothing other than begging and crying from Mikael.

"You mean Sawyer? Oh, we'll get to that in a moment", Happy growled lowly as his eyes darkened. He stepped towards the old man as he fidgeted more and more in the chair. "Tessa won't call the cops, she's tired of letting you ruin her life and calling the shots. She's safe, and so is Sawyer."

"What the fuck..does that mean?!", Mike sneered, letting a scoff fall over his dry, chapped lips. "She's nothing..but a submissive bitch who can't handle her..own life. Sawyer needs a man in his life..not someone like Tessa!"

Happy's head snapped up, his almost black eyes staring into Mikael's. His menacing, cold gaze made him look almost psychotic, which of course he wasn't. But something in him snapped when Mikael spoke like that about the young woman who Happy had gotten to know even better in the last few days.

Tessa was anything but incompetent. She had a well paid job at a garden center and a second job at a bar so she had extra money each month that she put aside for Sawyer. In addition, the woman regularly looked after Maria when his mother had bad days due to her illness. And Tessa was brutally honest but always exuded a certain respect that Happy appreciated. She was also a great mother who only wanted the best for her son but was simply too scared and cautious due to the emotional blackmail of her father and aunt.

Happy wouldn't accept Mikael talking shit about Tessa like that, not in front of him, not behind his back. Never.

Happy rolled his shoulders, grabbed Mikael's neck and pulled his head close to his. "You're calling her a submissive bitch again and I promise you that you wish I would just kill you, you hear me?" Happy barked, spit flying out of his mouth as he spoke with so much anger.

"Shit.." Despite his condition, Mikael managed to let out a laugh, blood oozing from the corners of his mouth because Happy had knocked out two of his teeth earlier that were still lying on the wooden floor next to him.

"You pervert seriously like..your stepsister. What do..you expect from her, huh?! I mean, she's probably good at sucking dick..her ex always said that she is..but will she suck your dick? Not sure..if she's that kinky", Mikael spat, ending up coughing from the many words.

Happy's glare became murderous. Straightening his shoulders, he stood in front of Mikael again. It took every muscle in his body to hold him back from losing his shit and kill the fucker in front of himᅳ but boy was he close.

Mikael's laughter stopped, staring up at the man in resignation. "Are you going to kill me now or not?"

"No, not yet", Happy shook his head and sniffed aggressively before grabbing the kettle again, clamping the gag that he snatched from the table between Mikael's teeth like before. Slowly, he let the hot water trickle down onto Mike's upper body.

Muffled, barely audible screams came from Mikael's throat, drowned out by the gang in his mouth. Tears pooled in the man's dull eyes while snot shot out of his nose as he breathed in and out heavily. Saliva came out of the corners of the mouth and the smell of burnt skin filled the small, already stuffy room, which was only lit by a small lamp. To avoid spectators, the curtains were closed and didn't allow any sun to shine through the windows.

An almost satisfied smile appeared on Happy's lips as Mikael's eyes rolled back, but he was still awake and felt every pain Happy was inflicting on him. Placing the kettle back on the table, he roughly grabbed Mike's chin.

Happy stared at the man expressionlessly. "You want this to stop?"

He had never seen someone so weak nod so quickly. Mike started fidgeting again, but much slower than before. He simply didn't have the strength to free himself anymore, his body was too weak.

"Then you now have exactly one task to complete in order to get out of this", Happy hissed at the fucker, making him nod again, the older man almost pissing himself. "You go to court tomorrow to voluntarily give up your rights for Sawyer and insist that he be allowed to live with his mother. You tell them the truth, that you have been lying all these years, letting them know that Tessa has always been a good mother", Happy's hand went to the blood-stained knife on the table that he held against Mike's throat. "If you don't do that, I'll torture you for days until I finally kill you. And believe me, it'll be a lot worse than what I did to you today."

Desperate tears and snot streamed down Mike's face, muffled, panicked pleas pushing against the gag in his mouth that Happy roughly removed. "Do you understand, asshole?!"

"Yes..fuck yes", Mikael cried out, nothing left of the strong guy he always claimed to be. "She'll get her..son back. And then..I want her..out of my life", he roared desperately, the snot running over his lips before he broke into painful sobs.

Happy just shook his head. What a weak bastard. The Killer found it amusing that Mikael seriously believed that he would still get out of this alive. As soon as Tessa officially had custody back, Happy would kill him.

ᚔ

TESSA LOOKED UP when she heard the key in the lock and soon Happy came through the door. Without a word, she let her gaze wander from head to toe as he kicked off his boots. She only saw more of his face when he pushed the cap of the hoodie he was wearing under his kutte back.

When their eyes met, Tessa's look was full of curiosity and partly concern while Happy's expression seemed..relaxedᅳ something very rare. Tessa could count on one hand how many times she had seen the tall biker relaxed, and that was usually only when he was here for a few days at Christmas.

Maria just had that effect on peopleᅳ even someone like Happy Lowman allowed himself to relax around her or when he was here.

Tessa didn't know much about him, or rather his life. He was part of a motorcycle club, a pretty well-known one, and she was aware that he wasn't an innocent lambᅳ which didn't mean he was a bad person.

Nobody had ever helped her as much as he had in the last few daysᅳ he couldn't be a bad person. On the contrary.

"I'm sorry about earlier", she said sincerely as Happy plopped down on the chair next to the couch, her voice lowered so as not to wake Sawyer after he fell asleep on her lap an hour ago. Until now she just hadn't been able to lay him down.

No one was here to take her son away from her right now and yet she held him close, refusing to let go of him.

"It's okay", Happy grunted quietly, his eyes scanning Tessa and the little boy in her arms. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully as he rested his feet on the small coffee tableᅳ which he could only do because his mother was apparently already in bed. "Why didn't you wait? We had a plan, Tessa."

"I know." Sighing, she dropped her gaze, moving her hand in circles over Sawyer's back. "I wanted to stick with it, I really did", she defended herself firmly as she raised her gaze again. "But then Sawyer practically begged me not to let him go back to my dad and auntᅳ I couldn't leave without him. Plus I was so angry.."

Tessa didn't have to justify herself, not for him. Even though he didn't have a kid himself and never planned to have one, he could understand how desperate a parent must be in such a situation. Just because he didn't care about a lot of things didn't mean he didn't have a conscience or a heartᅳ he did. But only with people who meant something to him.

"Why angry? Something happened?", Happy asked, his eyebrows furrowed.

"You could say so." The soft snort that fell from Tessa's lips caused the little boy on her lap to stir, but then his snores filled the living room again as Sawyer's arms wrapped themselves around his mom's waist.

"Sorry baby", she whispered against his hair, running her hand gently over it before she looked back at Happy. "Sawyer said that Susy, my aunt, refused to buy him new glasses after he accidentally broke them. He's been having headaches and other ailments for days because of it. And all my aunt could think of to do was give him painkillers and tell him not to act all dramatic."

Happy could practically hear the venom dripping from Tessa's tongue with every word that fell from her lips and he too just felt anger and disgust. In his eyes, such people were the real scum of society and should never be allowed to have children around them.

"You did the right thing, Tessa", he assured her, his raspy voice firm despite the tiredness that was beginning to overcome him. "Mikael will make sure you get the rights for Sawyer back."

"No shit? Is he really going to do that?" Happy watched as Tessa's dark eyes suddenly lit up and a big smile formed on her lipsᅳ a pretty smile, he realized.

Fuck, he couldn't be seriously pussy whipped, not after just a few days with the woman who had recently been his stepsisterᅳ even if the term was an exaggeration, because she simply hadn't been officially his stepsister.

"Yeah. In a few days you should be Sawyer's legal guardian", he told her, the tiniest smile on his face as Tessa put a hand over her mouth, her eyes filled with nothing but joy.

"Jesus Happy, how did you do that?", she asked after a long moment, the relief clearly audible in her soft voice. "How can I return the favor?"

"You don't have to know that, don't worry about it", he told her with a grunt, but he certainly wouldn't tell her the methods he uses to force people to do certain things. "You don't have to return the favor. But you should know one more thing."

"Yes?" Tessa looked at him expectantly, her head slightly tilted to the side as she gently rocked Sawyer's small body in her arms. She also didn't ask any further questions about how Happy got her father to give Sawyer back to her.

Sure, she was curious, and she had an idea. But he never wanted her to find out how brutal he could actually be and even enjoy torturing people. Would she judge him for that if she would ever find out? Most likely not. But Happy wasn't taking that risk.

"As soon as you officially get Sawyer back, your dad's gonna disappear", Happy let her know, his voice now just as low in case his mother was still awake. Maria didn't need to know all sides of him either. "I'm sure you know what I mean."

"Yeah, I think so", Tessa murmured, her eyes immediately turning to Sawyer. She slowly ran her fingers through his dark blonde hair, smiling. "And that's okay with me. Normally I would never say something like that about my own parentᅳ but he deserves it."

Either way, even if Tessa had been against it, Mikael's life would have come to an end. But Happy actually felt better having Tessa's approval. Since she was okay with it, there was a chance she wouldn't judge or even hate him for it afterwards. And somehow, as much as he was reluctant to admit it, what she thought of him mattered to him.

With a slight nod, the SAA ran a hand over his tired face before he stood up and took long strides over to her. After hesitating for a moment, he put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed it gently.

"Go to bed, you need sleep just as much as your son." It was more of a request than advice that he gave, his tone almost stern but with a certain gentleness that made Tessa's knees weaken again.

"What about you?", she asked softly, enjoying his touch more than she should. But Tessa took all the affection she could get and soaked it up like a sponge soaking up water. "You should get some sleep too."

"I will, I'll just take a shower before that", he croaked, flashing her the slightest smile. "You don't have to worry about me."

"Well", Tessa slowly stood up, her arms still carrying Sawyer, who took a different, more comfortable position as his mother stood up.

She looked up at Happy with a gentle smile after he had watched every move she had made. Without her platform boots, she was quite small compared to him and even had to tilt her head back a little. "But I care about the people I like. So..go take a shower and make sure you get enough sleep."

Happy was a bit perplexed, almost speechless when she actually gave him an orderᅳ something no one else has ever done except his mother. But she meant well, out of concernᅳ and that was something he still had to get used to. That a woman actually had an interest in his well-being and didn't just want to end up in his bed.

He placed his hand on Tessa's small waist as she placed a kiss on his cheek, or rather the corner of his mouth, before she left the living room and shortly afterwards closed the door to her room.

Surprised at himself and how good he felt around Tessa, he could only shake his head as he made his way to the bathroom. But Happy did what the woman with the raven hair had told him. After a quick shower to wash off Mikael's blood and other bodily fluids, he threw his clothes into the washing machine, turned it on and turned off the remaining lights before lying down on the couch, drifting off to sleep with the television as background noise.

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