25. Brea
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Fox takes the wheel for the entire journey, me sandwiched between him and Keira on the bench seat. It's been a mostly silent ride, Keira vocalizing her disapproval of me being brought back to Indiana while Fox stands firm on his decision. The tension hangs heavy between us, casting a frosty veil over the entire trip.
I gaze out the window, watching the blurred lights of towns flicker as we speed by. We’d crossed over the Indiana state line an hour ago. We were close to Lafayette now.
My heart races in sync with the thumping engine beneath us. My stomach twists uncomfortably. Regret swims through every fiber of my being because dragging Fox and his club into this feels selfish. While he was loading the truck this morning, a thought crossed my mind. One that would have spared him, his club, and Keira from the mess I’d made. The Hoosier Hellions wanted me. Not them. Handing myself back over to them would fix this. The Hellions would have what they wanted. Keira would be safe, and Fox and his club didn’t have to go to war over me. The only sacrifice is me. One pitiful life for so many others. It seems like a fair trade, but it’s almost as if Fox was adept at reading minds.
He shoots a sideways glance at me. "You’re thinking too loud, firefly," he says. “Tell me what’s on your mind.”
Keira scoffs beside him, crossing her arms tightly across her chest. “She wants you to take her to them.”
Fox grips the steering wheel tighter, those inked knuckles turning white against the dim interior light of the truck. “What? Brea, no. Absolutely fucking not. Why would you even think for a second I’d let you do that?”
I swallow hard at his words. It would be so easy to lay everything bare. A confession woven with panic and dread. I could feel the pull of it carving deeper into my soul.
“Because this is what she does,” Keira interjects. “She puts herself through hell to protect those she cares about. She’s done it for her mom for years.”
“Stop talking about me like I’m not here.”
“Then, you tell him. Tell him that’s exactly what you’ve been doing your entire life. You give and give until there’s nothing left of you. If I hadn’t gotten you out of there when I did, you’d have never left.”
I grit my teeth, fighting the urge to throw my own words back at Keira, but the truth roots itself in the pit of my stomach. “It’s not like that,” I say, more defensive than I intended. “I’m just trying to keep you two safe.”
Fox’s eyes dart between the road and me. “You think running back to them is going to solve anything? If you go, I’ll follow you.”
“So, will I. I am tired of watching you lose yourself. If his club can help you, you need to let them do it.”
I could feel Fox's eyes piercing through the dimness. It was easier to curl up and let the darkness swallow me than to confront the truth that hung between us.
“I’m not asking you to understand, Keira,” I said, wanting so desperately to strip away this tension. “You don’t know what it’s like." I turned towards Fox, my heart in my throat, trembling with a mix of fear. “But I can’t let them come after you or anyone else."
“It doesn’t matter what they want. You’re not giving yourself over to them.” Fox shot back, his voice steady but laced with pure fire. “I’ve seen what they do to women. One of my club brothers lost his fiancé to them. They left her to rot on his fucking doorstep like a dead field mouse. You crawling back to them will only get you killed. The war will come either way because I’m not going to stop fighting to keep you safe, firefly.”
I turned away from him, staring into the darkness outside. “You don’t understand,” I murmured, my voice barely above a whisper. “They won’t stop until they have what they want. If I hand myself over?—”
“No.” Fox’s grip on the wheel tightens further, the tendons in his arms flexing beneath his tattoos. “You think sacrificing yourself will save anyone? You’ve spent enough time in that cage they built for you. I’m not letting you step back into it willingly.”
Keira shifts next to me, her face pained with concern. “Let him help, B.”
I want to keep arguing, but with the two of them ganging up on me right now, there’s little point of doing so. The night thrums with tension as the truck rolls down the near-empty road. The only light comes from a building just ahead.
“We’re here,” Fox declares as he makes one final turn.
A two-level brick structure sits in the middle of the property. A metal barn sits behind it. Bikes and a few cars fill the parking lot. We pass through a gate. A man appears out of nowhere shutting it behind us.
“Welcome to our clubhouse, ladies.”
Fox parks the truck near the entrance before killing the engine. “Keira, can you give us a minute?” Fox asks as the man from the gate walks up to the driver’s side. “Can you take her inside, Van? We’ll be in a few.”
“Sure.”
Keira peers over at me before she opens the passenger side door, and slips outside, following Van into the building.
Fox unbuckles his seatbelt. He shifts enough so that he can see my face.
“Listen, Brea. It’s okay to be scared. It’s okay to need help from others. But running back to those bastards isn't the answer. I won’t stand by and watch you leap into danger. You know that, right?”
“I do,” I admit. “But?—”
“No, Brea. I need you to make me a promise. Promise me that no matter what happens, you will not go back to them.” Fox’s brown eyes search mine.
I want to make that promise to him, to ease the tension etched into every line of his face, but the thought of what will happen if I don’t submit to their demands paralyzes me. “I…” The words stumble, trembling on my lips.
“I will burn the world for you, firefly. I would wipe the Earth clean if it meant keeping you safe. Please, baby. Promise me you won’t sacrifice yourself.”
“Okay,” I half-lie, knowing that if it came down to his life or Keira’s, I’d never hesitate to save them.
And then he’s kissing me—softly at first—as if testing how far this moment might stretch between us. It feels right. Time loses its grip as the world narrows down to just him and I.
But before I can lose myself completely within this fragile connection, a knock rattles through our bubble. Suddenly Fox pulls back slightly.
A tall man stands in the open doorway, filling most of the space with his presence. “Let me guess, that’s Azrael.”
“The one and only. We better get inside.” Fox opens his door, sliding out before offering his hand to me. “His bark is worse than his bite.” I can feel Azrael’s intense stare on me like prickling thorns digging into my flesh up and down my spine.
The air around us pulses with tension as I step down on to the gravel parking lot, Fox’s hand threading through mine. I glance up at Azrael, who stands there like a sentinel, sharp-edged and unyielding. He doesn’t need to say it, but his presence speaks volumes, protect what’s his, no matter the cost.
“Get inside,” his low voice orders.
The gravel crunches underfoot as I step away from the truck, Fox’s grip firm around my hand.
"Are you ready for this?" Fox murmurs as we pause at the threshold, the noise spilling out like a tide threatening to sweep me away.
"Honestly? No," I admit, glancing back at him. His face is so close now, and the worry etched in his brow makes my heart twist.
The interior is vastly different from the cold exterior of the building. People fill the space, many of them in their Bastard Boilers cuts. It smells of leather and beer with a hint of cigarette smoke. Azrael cuts through the crowd in front of us, heading straight towards an open door to the right of the main space. I spot Keira sitting on the couch with the woman who helped me at the signing sitting next to her. Hallie, I think Fox said her name was. The other author. Once Az steps inside the room, the men in cuts stop and file inside behind him. Fox gives my hand a gentle squeeze before walking us towards the space.
As we step into the room, an intense conversation punctuates the air. I can see Azrael sitting at the head of a long wooden table, flanked by another man who looks similar to him, a sibling maybe, and a few other club members, each one as imposing as the last. Every set of eyes shifts to us, lingering on our intertwined hands, and I can’t shake the sensation that my mere presence is like throwing a stick of dynamite into a powder keg. The man who was at the gate shifts behind us and closes the meeting room door, shutting us all inside.
“You're safe,” he reassures quietly before we step further inside. Fox walks over to an empty chair on the left side of Azrael. He takes it, motioning for me to join him, as the man next to him gives up his seat for me. He opts to stand at the back of the room rather than pulling up another chair.
I take a breath and slide into the chair, my heart racing. The wooden table feels cool against my palms as I plant them down, grounding myself in this unfamiliar territory. Fox leans closer, his warmth spreading across our joined hands resting on the table.
Azrael clears his throat sharply like thunder rumbling before a storm settles over us all. "Let’s start now that the guests of honor have arrived," he commands.
One of the guys shifts impatiently at the far end. "Better be good for it being this late," he grumbles under his breath but loud enough for everyone in attendance, including me, to hear. “Who’s the girl and why is she here?”
Azrael angles a nod toward Fox, granting him permission to speak with an inclination of his chin.
“Most of you know that I was down in Texas, against my will for the record, to help out a friend of Hallie’s at the book signing.”
“Looks like you came back with more than books,” someone remarks from the other side of the table.
“Please tell me we aren’t here because Fox fucked this girl and now he’s in trouble.”
I feel my cheeks flush at the jab, and I shoot Fox a glance. His statement isn’t entirely wrong.
“Let him speak,” Azrael demands.
He turns to the guy who asked if he fucked the wrong girl and answers him directly. “We ran into some trouble after Az and Hallie headed back home. A Hoosier Hellion broke into her house and attempted to attack her roommate. I was able to subdue him before Brea took him down. He’s not our problem anymore.”
The air in the room changes. As I glance around, it becomes clear that the mention of a Hoosier Hellion has sparked more than just mild concern. Their faces twist into grim masks.
“This is the second time we had a run in with them in Texas. Do they have a chapter down there?”
“There’s no way of knowing. The first may have been a fluke. This time, it was premeditated.”
“No offense, Fox, but Az would have been the bigger target. Why come after you when they had him there?”
“This wasn’t about me or Az. I wasn’t the target. Well, not directly.”
Fox looks over to me, asking for permission, but I shake my head. It’s my story to tell.
“They came because I am the step-daughter of one of the mother chapter members. Tank Lambertson.”
The man to Azrael’s right that looks like him roars. His fists hitting the table in front of him. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me, Fox.”
“You fucked Hellion property. What the fuck is wrong with you?” someone else interjects.
“I am not their property,” I yell back at him. “Fox didn’t know. Not until they came for me.”
“So, she’s a fucking liar, too. What if she's a spy? You just walked her into our home like a goddamn Trojan horse”
The accusation stings. Before I can stop myself, I return fire back on him. “I’m not their fucking property!”
“Honey, whether you want to believe it or not, you are. No MC hunts down a woman because they don’t belong to them. Not all the way to Texas,” Van, the man from the gate, adds.
“It’s simple. Send her back.”
“Over my dead body.” I can feel Fox’s hand stiffening over mine. “She didn’t ask for this to happen to her.”
“Neither did Kennedy, but she’s cold in her fucking grave.”
“Enough!” Azrael’s voice cuts through the thick air like a machete through vines. His expression morphs into something fierce and protective, an alpha wolf defending his territory. “This isn’t about Fox's choices or Brea's past. It’s about the situation we’re in right now. We have the blood of the Hellions on our hands. Again.”
“The situation caused by Fox’s inability to keep his dick in his pants. They'll be gunning for us the second they figure out she’s with us.”
“That’s why we’re here. We need to vote on how we’re going to handle this.”
“Send her packing,” Asher snarls. “They killed Kennedy, and you denied me my retribution. But you’re willing to start a war for her?”
“You do that, and you kill her.”
“Not my fucking problem.” Asher's dark eyes narrow, the intensity of his glare shifting between Fox and me. I can almost hear the gears turning in his mind.
“Of all people, Asher, I would have thought you would have been understanding.”
“Enough, both of you!” Azrael yells.
His words hang heavy in the air. The rest of the room seems to hold its breath, caught in the crossfire of our exchange.
"Asher’s right," I say into the angry silence around us. "The last thing I want to do is be the catalyst to a war.” I feel everyone's gaze on me, their skepticism coating the air like heavy smoke. "I don’t want to draw blood on your doorstep.”
“Yet, here you are asking it of us.”
“Look, I may be the asshole for saying this, but we owe nothing to this woman. Just because Fox fucked her, it doesn’t mean she gets our protection,” another member interjects. “It’s their mess. Not the clubs. The Hellions may never find out about Fox’s involvement. If or when that happens, then, we handle it.”
Fox's voice drips with possessiveness as he speaks, "Brea is mine. She belongs to me and I will protect her, even if it means going against this entire club."
Orion's eyes narrow in disagreement, "We have rules for a reason. We can't just declare someone as property without a vote."
"Did we vote on Hallie?" I interject, my voice rising in anger. My fists clench at my sides as the tension in the room escalates. This could tear our club apart, but I won't back down when it comes to defending those I care about. My eyes go wide as murmurs break out between the men at the table.
I’d seen what being claimed did to my mom. While I hadn’t been present, thank God, I’d overheard Tank reliving the details with one of the other officers. Every fucking officer took his turn with her for all the club to see. Club protection be damned. I will never allow such a violation.
“You’re not claiming me,” I speak quietly, just to him.
Fox leans in close. “You’re refusing me? I’m trying to protect you. They can’t deny you protection or send you back if I claim you. Let me do this, firefly. Please.”
“Do you accept his claim?” Azrael calls out.
I look to Fox and then to the rest of the room. Asher’s dark eyes bore into my soul as if he were trying to will me to disappear.
“Fox—” I start, but he cuts me off.
“Say yes,” he urges softly, his tone imploring me to save myself by accepting his claim. Save myself, but at what cost? The two words grip my insides like steel vise, squeezing out any rational thoughts. I can feel everyone watching me. Saying yes has consequences for everyone. Saying no means the only person that will get hurt is me.
There’s only one choice. One impossible choice.
“I do not accept his claim.”
“Are you out of your mind?” Fox's voice trembles with disbelief, his fingers clenching mine tightly. I feel his confusion, anger, and even a hint of betrayal simmering beneath the surface.
"I'm not crazy," I retort. “I'm fighting to prevent a fate that I refuse to accept for us both. I’m giving you an out to protect yourself and your club.”
Asher's anger simmers beneath his composed exterior. "You think rejecting him will keep you safe? They'll still target you. Just by being here, you've made yourself a target."
"It's my decision!" I yell, emotions swirling as intensely as Fox's seething anger.
A deep snarl rumbles from Fox as he steps closer, bridging the gap between us. "No one should have to sacrifice freedom for safety, Brea," he says softly yet resolutely.
Azrael interjects with a controlled urgency in his tone. "It’s her choice, but I see the other side of the argument, too. If, and I mean if, Brea and her friend need to be protected they can stay here a few days until we can find someplace safe to set them up more permanently.”
“I can live with that.”
The only question is, can Fox accept my decision?