Chapter Ten
ELIZABETH
Two Weeks Later
Sin has been distant since our ride a couple of weeks ago, only talking to me when I need to ask him questions. I’m not sure if it’s an avoidance technique for his benefit or mine. Either way, we’re in a weird place.
Maybe that’s for the best.
I need to stay focused, no distractions. My priority is gathering information on the club, my brother, and whatever illegal operations they’re running.
I know they’re up to something.
I just haven’t figured out what.
Yet.
It’s a few days away from New Year’s Eve, and the club is in full-on planning mode.
With their annual toy drive coming up and the club girls throwing a party to bring in the new year, I’ve even been helping with some of the preparations while I’m not focusing on digging around.
Sometimes, you have to delve deeper into other aspects of the club.
The entertaining things to find hidden truths, though, to be honest, I am not really finding anything newsworthy when I search those avenues either.
All I am seeing is a club that genuinely supports and loves each other—people who are here through thick and thin.
The problem is it doesn’t ring true to me, especially after Sin’s little charade in the desert, on the bike, under the stars.
With the way his fingers worked me up, and the way his mouth ravished me.
God, it felt so…
Dammit, girl! Get a hold of yourself!
Sitting in the main clubroom at a table with the club girls and Millie, we pack the final toys and gifts into the bags for the children.
I’m still shocked the club does this for sick and disadvantaged children at the end of the year.
Again, it’s another thing I have learned about the club.
Their giving and nurturing spirit, which, as outsiders, we honestly have no idea is there.
For some reason, Las Vegas Defiance keeps this philanthropic side of itself out of the spotlight, and I have yet to discover exactly why.
Music plays through the speakers while the brothers mingle sporadically, casually drinking, playing pool or darts. It’s a typical afternoon before the dinner rush.
“So… what’s this crazy tension between you and Sin, Lizzie?” Ro asks, sending a chuckle through the girls.
Widening my eyes, I place the tube of glitter I’m decorating a card with on the table. “Tension? What tension?” I snap, probably a little too damn defensively.
They all giggle as Jessa bumps her shoulder into mine. “Did he start something and then ditch you?”
Swallowing hard, I furrow my brows, picking my glitter back up to continue working on the card. “No,” I reply sharply, but it comes out like a pouty teenager would answer.
The girls chuckle again as Ro leans forward, yanking my card away from me and causing the glitter to fall all over the table. “Hey!” I snap.
“Oh, you’ll get over it. Listen, I have known Sin for a really long time. I have seen women come and go, and the only time I have ever seen him push a girl away was this one time. One time, Elizabeth.”
Furrowing my brows, I sigh, curiosity getting the better of me. “Okay… I’m listening.”
“So, he got close to this one girl back before he was the president. He did the same thing, got close, then started pushing her away. She was so confused, but then the FBI raided a couple of days later. The president at the time was taken into custody. He’s still in prison, and that’s when Sin took over as the pres,” Ro states.
Widening my eyes, I shake my head. “I don’t think I follow.”
“We had an idea something was coming, but we had no idea who from the club was going to be taken in. Sin thought he might be getting locked up, so he pushed her away for her own protection. Then when he took on the presidency, he figured the danger for her was far worse, so he let her get on with her life…” She sighs.
“He’s a really good-fucking-guy, Elizabeth.
Always puts everyone else before himself, even if he has to hurt their feelings to do exactly that. ”
My heart pounds harder as I glance over my shoulder at Sin.
Did he push me away because he thinks something is coming for him?
Did he call in a reporter to change the narrative on the club because he’s trying to get the police off the scent of whatever the club is really up to?
A wave of nausea rolls over me as I turn back to face the girls, my face obviously turning pale.
“Oh gosh, Lizzie, are you okay?” Ro asks.
Suddenly, an alarm starts blaring through the clubhouse, making my already pounding heart feel like it’s about to burst out of my damn chest. I snap my head around as the brothers rush to the front of the clubhouse.
“Ghost, talk to me!” Sin yells while reaching for a long gun from under the nearest table that I didn’t even know was there.
Ghost moves to the security feed by the bar, checking the cameras, and lets out a low growl. “Fuck! It’s the Alliance. They’re approaching, and by the look of it, they aren’t coming for beer and a goddamn chat.”
The rumble of V8 car engines grows louder and louder, sending a chill through the afternoon air.
Defiance territory is supposed to be secure.
That’s the promise—Sin’s promise.
But promises are fragile things in this world, and as I stand, rushing over to the dusty window of the clubhouse and peer through, I watch the Alliance approaching, their black-and-silver insignias shimmering in the sunlight on their Mercedes-Benz.
The Hidden Hand Alliance has come for retribution.
And I stand frozen.
The tension in the room is electric, like a wire pulled too tight and ready to snap. The Defiance members spring into action—a chaotic orchestra of yelling and commands.
But Sin moves differently.
He’s not just fast, he’s deliberate. His eyes narrow as he cocks his gun and barks orders, his deep voice cutting through the panic.
“Nitro, make sure the weapons are hot. Will, take Millie to the bunker…” I snap my head around, widening my eyes.
They have a bunker? “Koa, get the blockades ready. Mace, get everyone into formation. Ro, you know what to do!”
Everyone follows his orders without hesitation, and as I watch him, transfixed by his calm amidst the storm, his movements are like a wolf scenting the first signs of danger.
The Sin I know is relaxed, a little broody though sarcastic, the kind of guy who teases me with a smirk when things are quiet.
This Sin—the one I see now—is something else entirely.
Suddenly, Ro is behind me, reaching for me. “Lizzie, we gotta go. It’s not safe for you out here.” She starts pulling at me as I turn back to Sin. He marches with the rest of the guys toward the front of the clubhouse. My heart leaps into my throat at the thought of him getting hurt.
“Wait, no. I need to stay. I need to see this,” I blurt out, not understanding why I want to be a part of this danger, this fight that is ahead.
Ro shakes her head. “Don’t be stupid, Elizabeth. We need to go. Now!” She yanks on my arm just as Sin turns to face me. The look in his eyes startles me. It’s not anger, it’s not desperation—it’s fear.
“For fuck’s sake, Elizabeth, do what you’re fucking told for once in your damn life… please!” The anxiety in his tone has me moving instantly into Ro’s arms as she begins to drag me away.
Sin’s shoulders slump as if he’s relaxing at seeing me leave—as if you can be relaxed in this kind of situation.
He turns back to the front door with his brothers when suddenly, the first gunshot echoes, and I duck instinctively, my breath hitching as bullets fly straight through the clubhouse window.
The glass shattering into shards right where I was standing moments before.
“Shit!” I blurt out.
Ro and I don’t have time to make it to wherever we were going, so we slide under a table.
“Tell me where they are, Ghost. I don’t want to be sitting fucking ducks in here,” Sin calls out.
Ghost checks the cameras, and he nods. “They’re about to breach the gates, Pres.”
Sin glances at Nitro and tilts his head. “You thinking what I’m thinking?”
Nitro chuckles, pulling out another gun from his waistband. “Fuck, yeah, let’s take this party outside.”
Sin chuckles, shooting me a quick glance under the table before shoving the clubhouse doors wide open.
The Defiance members spill into the parking lot, taking cover behind parked cars as they draw their weapons.
Anxiety ripples through me, but I can’t sit back and not know what’s happening, so I slide out from beneath the table and take off.
“Fuck, Lizzie. Stop! Jesus Christ,” Ro yells, rushing up behind me as we pull up just behind the doors, peeking out, watching as the Alliance breaks through the clubhouse gates, moving in with brutal precision, their intent clear, they want to send a message, and that message is painted in violence and revenge.
No words are spoken.
Both sides know what this is about.
Defiance came into the casino, into the Alliance’s turf, without prior warning, and got nothing in return.
I know how the underworld works.
You don’t get anything for nothing.
Lorenzo, flanked by Dante and more of his men, barge through the parking lot like a pack of wolves unleashing hell.
Their boots pound against the asphalt in a deadly rhythm, guns raised high and glinting in the harsh Nevada sun.
The Defiance brothers scramble for shelter behind carefully placed barricades, concrete barriers, reinforced steel drums, and armored bike covers that I never realized were strategically positioned throughout the lot for moments exactly like this.
Now, witnessing it firsthand as bullets start flying, it all makes terrifying sense.
Gunshots crack like thunder, shattering the desert silence.
Then all hell breaks loose.
The chaos of bullets begins to rip through the air with a sound like angry hornets on steroids.