Chapter Eighteen #2
He rolls his eyes then heads outside. I sprint after him, grabbing my helmet on the way.
We both climb onto his bike, and I hold him tightly when he speeds away.
In less than five minutes, we’re at the Iron Cage, where the lot is fuller than I’ve ever seen it, with more than just the Saints’ bikes.
The shouting from inside is clear when Theo turns off the engine.
We leave our helmets with the bike and run inside to find a dozen strangers facing off against most of the Saints.
James is in front of the Saints, fresh blood dripping from his nose and a cut on his arm.
In between the two groups is Nico on his knees, face beaten so badly that one eye is swollen shut and the other is halfway there.
Theo wastes no time stepping between the two groups and standing right in front of Nico.
He gives the boy a quick glare in warning that promises punishment for whatever he did to cause this standoff, then turns to the strangers.
I realize they’re all wearing the same jackets and catch the name on the back of one.
The South Five. The same gang that Amber supposedly owed money to and betrayed the Saints for.
“Bowie,” Theo says, greeting the man in front of the other group. “You seem to have forgotten that you’re in Saints territory.”
Bowie, who is nearly as tall as Theo and has a large burn scar on his neck, sneers. “It wasn’t one of my guys who crossed the line first. It was yours.” He juts his chin out to Nico, who has scrambled to his feet and backed away, fear filling his disfigured face.
“Simply entering another’s territory isn’t grounds to attack at my bar,” Theo says. He’s not growling or yelling, but his voice still sounds deadlier than I’ve ever heard it.
Bowie gives a fake laugh. “Oh, that’s not all the little shit did.”
I can tell Theo doesn’t know what Nico did, but he doesn’t give that away. He says, “Careful what you start in my territory.”
Bowie looks over Theo’s shoulder at Nico, saying, “Care to share your transgression with your fearless leader?”
Nico whimpers, and I suspect he’s only on his feet because of James’s hold on his arms. Behind them are several other Saints, Benny, Raphael, and Luna included, all poised for a fight. None of them spare me a look, instead keeping their attention on the intruders.
To Theo, Bowie says, “Your trust fund pet has been fucking my baby cousin. Found their messages on her phone earlier today.”
Theo doesn’t give away his surprise, but I can tell it’s there in the way his fingers press into his palms harder. “Your baby cousin is twenty; perfectly capable of giving consent.”
“She’s been defiled by your dirty mutt!”
“And that’s no reason to attack him outside of my fucking bar.”
“You clearly need to keep your men on a tighter leash.”
Theo rumbles, “I don’t need you telling me how to lead my club.”
“And what a club you lead. Letting a little pussy nearly tear it apart not once, not twice, but three times.”
At the word ‘three’ Bowie points at Nico. I briefly wonder what all three instances he’s referring to are. Amber must be one, but who was the other?
His words do their job, though. All the veins in Theo’s body are on display, and his face turns red. “Watch it.”
Bowie steps closer. “Why? Can’t handle a little reminder of your failures?
Don’t want to remember the snake you welcomed into your bed?
” He’s offensively close to Theo now, and I know before he says them that his next words will push Theo over the edge.
“Or are you too weak to hear someone remind you that it was your fuck ups that killed your beloved Scottie?”
In a blink, the entire bar is lost in a bloody battle between the Saints and the South Five.
Theo punches Bowie so hard that I almost think his neck snaps.
But he stays on his feet, blood streaming liberally from his nose, and wastes no time returning the attack.
Theo blocks his punch and catches him in the middle, slamming him to the floor.
The rest of the Saints are fighting too. James has two opponents who appear to be twins. Luna is punching a skinny boy over and over. Raphael is pinned by a giant muscle of a man.
I run forward and tackle the man on Raphael. He huffs while we roll. When we come to a stop, his eyes widen when he sees a girl straddling him. Before he can push me off, I slam the palm of my hand into his nose, feeling a satisfying break.
I nod at Raphael, who mutters, “Thanks,” and takes over the fight. I look around, but most Saints are faring well in their personal fights, so I head to aid James. He’s exhausted and bleeding, probably having already been in a fight before Theo and I arrived.
I jump and catch one of the twins around the waist with my legs.
My momentum takes us both to the ground, and I carefully spin so the guy takes the impact.
I attempt to pin him, but he’s faster than the other guy and throws me off.
I hit the floor with a huff and don’t get in a breath before the guy is on me, throwing punch after punch.
He catches me twice in the face before I manage to get my arms up to block him.
“June!” James yells. He has the other twin cornered at the bar. He doesn’t pause in his fighting, just tosses me a glass from off the bar. I catch it and bring it down on the back of the guy’s head with as much strength as I can. He gives a sharp cry and falls off me.
Leaping to my feet, I kick him a few times, then am grabbed roughly from behind.
A large, sweaty arm is around my throat, and a fist lands in my side, knocking the breath from my lungs.
The arm tightens, so I can’t replace the air.
Stars spark in my vision. I try stomping on his feet or elbowing him in the groin, but the guy dodges every move.
Just as I’m about to lose consciousness, he lets go. I lean forward, sucking in a quick breath before spinning around. There’s Luna, smiling wide at me. “Hey, killer!” she says, sounding gleeful at the bloodbath.
“Thanks,” I rasp.
“No problem.”
Movement behind her snags my attention. My already-spiked adrenaline goes through the roof.
A man is raising a gun. I follow the direction he’s aiming and see Theo still pummeling Bowie.
“THEO!” I scream. Nearly everyone in the room freezes. Theo launches away from Bowie, whipping around. Panic fills his eyes as he searches for me.
But I’m already moving, running for the shooter with my knife pulled free.
The rest of the room doesn’t exist in this moment.
There are no eyes on me. There’s no other danger in the vicinity but the man and his deadly weapon pointed straight at Theo.
Logic is dormant in my mind, fully taken over by years of instinct.
I reach the man and manage to shove his arm up half a second before he pulls the trigger.
The bullet soars over everyone’s heads. There’s not a moment’s pause or hesitation before I impale the knife in his throat.
He screams, arms wildly flying up to attempt stopping me.
But my body is moving faster than even my mind can keep up with.
I drag the knife with me, pulling it through his throat.
I feel it catch on bone and adjust my hold accordingly so the knife has no obstruction from one side to the other.
One second. That’s how long it takes for me to turn from an innocent girl Theo introduced to his confused club into a vicious killer grinning at the intoxicating feeling of hot blood spurting all over my face. The liquid finally smothers the fire in my chest, and I feel alive again.
The man hits the floor. I stop moving, chest heaving with a deep, cleansing breath. There’s gurgling as blood spills from his mouth. Then he goes still and silent.
And reality sets in.
I haven’t killed in front of anyone in twelve years.
I don’t do witnesses.
And now I have over two dozen.
I look to the rest of the room, unable to focus on the many shocked faces, wide eyes, and slack jaws facing me. All I see is Theo.
He looks pissed. His lips are pressed together, and he stares me down with hard eyes.
Then he turns to Bowie and orders, “Get the fuck out of my bar if you don’t want to be next.”
The man scrambles to his feet, spitting blood on the floor. “This isn’t over, Zervas.”
“Out.”
The Five leave, each one bruised and bloody in some way. Then it’s only me and the Saints, all of whom are still looking at me with shock.
“You too. All of you.” He finds Nico in the crowd and says, “I’ll deal with you later.” The boy drops his eyes, then Theo addresses the rest of the Saints. “Whoever isn’t out of this bar in the next five seconds will have a bullet in their forehead.”
I feel nailed to the floor, unable to look away from a very on edge Theo as everyone moves, racing for the door. Luna brushes past me, whispering, “Happy humping, killer.”
The door shuts behind her, and I straighten, preparing for a verbal lashing.
Instead, Theo says in a reverent tone, “You are the most stunning reaper I have ever seen.” He closes the space between us and slams his mouth to mine. I gasp into his mouth, arms circling his neck. The bloody knife clatters to the floor.
Theo kisses me hard. He pauses to suck in a breath and say, “I’m going to fuck you so hard that you’ll see the hell you send your victims to.”