Chapter Thirty-Two
THE RIDE BACK blurred by the rain on the blacktop, the bars of the desert sliding past like a bad dream. My head throbbed with every mile, not from the run, from the thought of Bones. I had to find the son of a bitch and fast.
We rolled up into the yard, engines dying one by one. I killed mine and swung off, boots hitting gravel hard. I was halfway to the doors before Warden even cut his ignition.
Inside, something felt wrong the second I stepped in. The room was too calm, a few brothers low-talking at the bar, the TV sputtering light over an empty couch. No sign of her.
Throttle stood in the hall, arms crossed, jaw tight as wire. When he saw me, his face closed out like a slammed door.
“What happened?” I barked.
His glare hit me like a slap. “You should’ve told her.”
“What?” My voice went cold.
“You gonna play dumb?” He stepped in, chest to chest. “Roxy got to her. Told her she’s pregnant. Said you’re happy about it, said you were just playing hero until she gets better. Wren believes it.”
A fist of air punched the inside of my chest. Rage flared quick and hot. “That’s bullshit.”
“Maybe.” Throttle’s voice was flat, but it cut. “But she doesn’t know that. You should’ve shut that thing down before Roxy opened her mouth.”
I shoved a hand through my hair, cursing under my breath. The thought of Wren hearing that poison, swallowing it down — fuck. After everything last night, after finally giving me all of herself, and now this?
“Where is she?” I said, needing to see her, to wipe the poison from her face.
Throttle’s shoulders softened a bit. The anger was still there but worry sat under it. “Elara and Jewel got her to her room. She was soaked, ran straight out into the storm. I had to carry her back inside. She’s wrecked, Ashen. She needs rest.”
I pushed past him, heading for her room. I needed to see her. To tell her it was a lie, that she was mine, that nothing Roxy said meant a goddamn thing. I reached the door and paused.
Elara stood watch outside, arms folded, eyes like cut glass.
“She’s sleeping,” she said. No soft edge. “Leave her be.”
“I need to—”
“No.” Her voice snapped. Final. “She needs rest. Not noise. Not you barging in.”
My fists clenched so hard my knuckles ached. I could hear the storm still, the vision of her soaked from the rain, of her in Throttle’s arms, and now curled small underneath the blanket.
I wanted to kick Roxy’s teeth in. I wanted to drag her in here and make her say what she’d said while I hammered a truth into her skull. This was the first time in my life I wanted to hit a woman, but also knew I could never be that man, even if she was an evil bitch.
I stayed frozen in the doorway, chest tight, the room between us like a gulf.
For the first time in a long time, I didn’t know if what I had to give would be enough.
But the doubt didn’t stay soft. It hardened into something else, a plan, a cold promise.
I’d put it together quick and ugly, keep protecting Wren, find Roxy, make her answer for what she’d done, and then find Bones.
Whoever touched my woman or used words to hurt her would learn what happens when you cross me.
I stepped back into the hall, throat raw. “I’ll be in the common room.” My voice was quiet. “If she wakes, you tell her I’m there. I’m not leaving this clubhouse.”
Elara’s eyes flicked to me, wary and grateful all at once. “I will.”
I didn’t answer. I walked away and let the knot in my chest turn into fuel.
***
MY BOOTS WERE already carrying me toward the back rooms, rage boiling hard and hot. Roxy thought she could run her mouth, tear into Wren like that, and walk out clean? She had no idea how close she was to being a memory.
I was ready to hunt her down myself when the sound of yelling broke out from the common room. Chairs scraped, voices rose.
Then Jewel came storming through, one hand fisted in Roxy’s hair, dragging her like a rag doll. Roxy shrieked, heels skidding across the floor, nails clawing at Jewel’s arm.
“Get off me! You crazy bitch—”
Jewel yanked harder, hauling her straight into the middle of the room. “Shut your fucking mouth,” she snapped, voice like steel.
Every head in the clubhouse turned. Brothers leaned back in their chairs, eyes hard, watching.
Jewel shoved Roxy forward, making her stumble. “You think you can come into this house and poison a girl who’s already fighting to breathe?” Jewel’s eyes were fire, her chest heaving. “Not here. Not ever.”
Roxy’s lip curled, but her bravado cracked under the weight of every stare in the room.
“You tell them,” Jewel hissed, shoving her again. “Tell them you lied.”
Roxy’s eyes flicked around, desperate for someone to step in. No one moved. Not Warden, not Throttle, not a single brother. Not even the sweet butts. The room was silent but for the storm pounding on the roof and Roxy’s ragged breath.
“I…” She faltered, her chin dropping.
Jewel’s hand tightened in her hair until Roxy cried out. “Say it!”
“I lied!” The words tore out of her. “I’m not pregnant! It was— it was a lie!”
The weight of the confession hit like a hammer. My chest tightened, anger twisting into something darker. Wren had run into the night, soaked and broken, over this jealous bitch.
Jewel leaned over her, her voice filled with promise. “You ever go near Wren again, I’ll tear you apart myself.”
Roxy flinched, her bravado gone, nothing left but shame and fear.
The room stayed silent until Warden stepped forward. He didn’t raise his voice. He didn’t need to. “Get the fuck out.”
Roxy’s head snapped up, eyes wide. “What—?”
“You heard me.” Warden’s stare was cold steel, unblinking. “Pack your shit. You’re done here. You don’t come back. Ever.”
A ripple went through the room, the weight of the words landing hard. No one crossed Warden.
Roxy scrambled to her feet, hair hanging wild, eyes darting for help. She found none. Not a single brother looked her way.
“Go,” Warden said again, his tone final.
She staggered toward the door, shoulders hunched, the sound of her heels loud against the floor. The storm swallowed her up when she shoved outside, the door slamming shut behind her.
The room exhaled, low voices starting up again. But my gaze stayed down the hall, on the closed door where Wren lay, still believing the lie.
Jewel had torn the poison out, and Warden had burned the bridge. But none of it fixed the damage.
That was on me.