Reckless Lies

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual events or persons living or dead is purely coincidental. Any trademarks, product names, or names featured are assumed to be the property of their respective owners and are used for reference only. Copyright 2023 by Nikki J Summers All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any print or electronic form without the express, written consent of the author. A CIP record of this book is available from the British Library. Cover Image: Wander Aguiar Cover Model: Soj Mani Cover Designer: Lori Jackson Design Editing/Proofreading: Liji Editing Caroline Stainburn Interior Designed and formatted by: Lou J Stock Contents Also by Nikki J Summers Playlist Trigger Warning 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 Chapter 26 Chapter 27 Chapter 28 Chapter 29 Chapter 30 Chapter 31 Chapter 32 Chapter 33 Chapter 34 Epilogue Acknowledgments Also by Nikki J Summers Rebels of Sandland Series Renegade Hearts Tortured Souls Fractured Minds Reckless Lies Soldiers of Anarchy Series The Psycho The Reaper The Joker Stand-Alone Luca This Cruel Love Hurt to Love All books are available on Amazon with Kindle Unlimited. Only suitable for readers 18+ due to adult content. Playlist Available to download on Spotify One Step Closer – Linkin Park Boulevard of Broken Dreams – Green Day When I Grow Up – Garbage Painkiller – Three Days Grace Mastermind – Taylor Swift Trustfall – Pink I’ll Stand by You – Pretenders My Immortal – Evanescence Someone You Loved – Lewis Capaldi Turbulence – Pink White Flag – Dido How to Save a Life – The Fray This Woman’s Work – Kate Bush Don’t Give Up On Me – Andy Grammer The Scientist – Coldplay Rule The World – Take That Trigger Warning Reckless Lies tells the story of Zak Atwood, a hero who was burned in a fire. At the beginning of the story, he sees and describes himself as a victim. At the end, he realises he’s a survivor and a warrior. This story deals with the issues surrounding his trauma and how he’s coped with the fallout of the accident that left him scarred for life. Depression, attempted suicide (not the main characters), issues around self-image and self-confidence are all depicted in this story, as well as childhood neglect and mental cruelty. There are also scenes of a sexual nature and some light bondage, praise, and degradation. Therefore, this book is intended for readers eighteen years and over. “Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.” Leo Buscaglia Prologue They say when you die, your whole life plays over in your mind like a Hallmark movie. All rose-tinted bullshit to remind you what a great life you’ve led. But for me, that wasn’t the case. There was no romantic, nostalgic ending for me. All I had was pain, darkness, and despair on the day I died. ZAK ATWOOD Five Years Ago Clarkson’s Plastics Factory, Brinton Manor You’d think after running illegal parties, bare-knuckle boxing matches, and gambling syndicates in Sandland, we’d be used to all the bullshit that followed us around. We were no strangers to running from the police, the do-gooders of the town, angry punters trying to get their money back, or alcohol-crazed groupies who thought we owed them something. It was par for the course in our line of work. But nothing could prepare us for what would happen on the night we took the party to Brinton Manor. * * * “You need to get out. Just go. You’re not getting your money back,” I snapped angrily at the group of irate men standing before me. As parties went, tonight’s wasn’t one of our finest. And here I was, trying to calm an angry mob who felt like they’d been duped. The night hadn’t gone how they’d wanted it to. Well, surprise, surprise. It hadn’t gone to plan for us either, and we’d organised it. Everyone was a loser tonight. The men squared their shoulders, getting ready to fight, baring their teeth as their cheeks grew redder at the realisation that they’d lost a shit-ton of money. They’d bet on Brandon Mathers to win his fight tonight, and after watching him go down in the first round, they were pissed off. He was their hero. The undefeated champion on the bare-knuckle boxing circuit. But he was also my best friend, and if he could be here to face off with them himself, he would, but he’d had to leave. He’d been called away earlier, after finding out his girlfriend, Harper, had gone into labour. He had more important things to do, and so did I. Arguing with these drunken mugs wasn’t on my agenda for tonight, and this needed wrapping up. Clearly, they weren’t going to leave here without their money, and I was never going to back down. A bet’s a bet. Okay, Brandon had thrown the fight on purpose, but they didn’t need to know that. It was complicated. It’d been a shitty night all round. He didn’t want to lose, but life doesn’t always work out the way you want it to, and the sooner these men realised that, the better. Brandon threw the fight because he had no choice. Some things in life are more important than money. The stockiest guy in the group charged at me, his face uncomfortably close to mine as he gritted his teeth. “You either