39. Rick
39
RICK
The gallery erupts into chaos. Gunfire tears through the air. Glass shatters. People scream. But all I see is her.
Elena. Not Evie. Elena Delgado. Wife to a mafia boss. A woman who has been running from a past she never told us about. A woman I love anyway.
It’s a hard pill to swallow. But there’s no time for that now. Right now, survival is all that matters.
Through The Den’s back door, I hear Teller mobilizing the Black Wolves. “Hold the line! They don’t get through to her!”
Luca’s men are swarming in, Death’s Head riding backup, sealing off the exits. This was a setup. They never intended to negotiate. They were always going to take her back by force.
I duck behind the counter as bullets rip through the walls. Zane and Chase are already firing back and covering the exits. Rose is shouting into her radio, relaying tactical movements. But my focus is on Elena—Evie—who’s already moving.
She’s running for her bike.
“Evie!” I call out, but she doesn’t stop. She knows what she has to do.
Get to the girls before Luca does.
I fire rounds, covering her as she jumps onto her bike, her body low and hands steady on the grips. Chase and Zane flank her, providing cover fire.
She moves like she was born for this.
Just how much of her life has been spent running?
She revs the engine. Her eyes lock onto mine for just a second.
Then she’s gone. Speeding toward the school. Toward our daughters.
“Rick, we need to move!” Chase yells, snapping me back to reality.
Death’s Head is pushing forward. Too many of them. More bikes block the road. The Black Wolves are holding them back, but we’re running out of time.
Through the chaos, Rose is still shouting.
“This doesn’t end here!” she yells, taking cover behind an overturned table. “I have proof! I have twenty years’ worth of evidence against you, Luca! Money laundering, drug trafficking, arms deals, human trafficking—you name it, I have it!”
Luca’s men hesitate for half a second. It’s not much, but it’s enough.
“You think that scares me, Agent?” Luca’s voice carries over the gunfire. “You think I built an empire without preparing for rats like you? You have nothing!”
“I have everything.” Rose doesn’t blink. “And if I die tonight, it all gets released.”
That hits. Even Luca’s men pause. Because now, this isn’t just about him reclaiming what he thinks belongs to him. This is about his survival.
But Luca? He doesn’t give a shit.
“Kill her,” he orders flatly, already turning away. “Burn this place down.”
More bullets. More chaos.
I grab Rose and pull her toward the back exit. “Move!”
Chase and Zane clear a path. I don’t think. I don’t feel. I just do what I have to do to keep my family alive.
We fight our way out.
By the time we hit the street, the Black Wolves have pushed Death’s Head back far enough for us to escape. I don’t stop moving.
We get to the bikes. We ride.
We head straight for the school. When we arrive, Evie is already waiting for us with the girls.
“We need to go,” I tell her, not stopping. Not slowing. “Now.”
“Where?” she asks, still holding the girls tight.
“Safe house outside town,” Teller’s voice crackles through my radio. “Black Wolves have secured it. You’ll be protected there.”
Evie looks up at me. She’s waiting for my reaction. Waiting to see if I still see her as Evie or just as Elena Delgado, the woman who lied to us.
I take Violet from her arms, shifting her against my hip. “We protect what’s ours. The name doesn’t change that.”
For the first time since Luca walked back into her life, her expression softens.
She nods. “Let’s go.”
We ride hard out of Wolf Pike.
The town shrinks behind us, swallowed by the night. We don’t stop.
It’s only when we reach the safe house—a secluded cabin deep in the woods—that we finally come to a halt.
The weight of the last twenty-four hours settles in.
Chase and Zane check the perimeter. Teller and the others arrive minutes later, ensuring the roads are clear. Rose secures the place, ensuring we have weapons, communication, and everything we need.
Evie gets the girls inside. Tucks them into a bed that isn’t home but is safe.
Then she turns to Teller. “I’ll fix this,” she says, voice cracking. “I’ll pay for everything—every bit of damage the Black Wolves suffered. Whatever it takes.”
Teller’s face twists in fury. “You think this is about money?” His voice booms through the cabin, shaking the walls. “You should have told us! You don’t get to spring this shit on us when it’s too late to stop it! You put every single one of us in danger!”
Evie flinches like he’s struck her. Her hands tremble. “I—I didn’t know how?—”
“Bullshit!” Teller roars. “You didn’t trust us! And now we’re paying for it!”
Evie breaks. Her legs buckle, and she stumbles against the wall, shaking so violently she can’t speak. Her breath comes in gasps, eyes wild with panic.
“Teller.” I step between them, voice low. “Enough.”
His nostrils flare, but he backs down, dragging a hand through his hair. “We could have died out there! Look at us running like cowards!”
I turn to Evie, wrapping my arms around her trembling form. She’s sobbing, gripping my shirt like it’s the only thing holding her together.
“We’ll fix this,” I murmur against her hair. “Together.”
She shudders, pressing her face into my chest. But for the first time, I feel it—Evie isn’t running anymore. She’s staying. No matter the cost.
But Luca is still out there.
And now? Now it’s war.