Chapter Twenty-Three
Vandal
Now we had him.
Halloran was alone with men who didn’t give two shits about that stupid fucking badge hidden beneath his jacket.
Dagger stood beside me while Tank and Hollywood stood on either side of Halloran, making sure he felt the pressure as it closed in all around him.
Half a dozen brothers had arrived after Rina had alerted them that something was up.
She’d proven her loyalty and smarts with two smooth acts and when this was all over, I wouldn’t forget it.
“I’m taking Macy home,” I said, not taking my eyes off that slimy fucking bastard. “I’ll be back.”
Rocky stepped up beside me, his grip firm on my shoulder. “We’ll get a little information out of the good detective, brother. You know exactly where we’ll be.”
I gave a short nod. Yeah. I knew exactly where Halloran was going.
“Leave a few strips of skin for me,” I muttered.
Hollywood’s mouth twisted into a wry grin. “We’ll try our best.”
I gave one crisp nod and led Macy out of the tattoo shop. The air felt sharper but thick with tension, as if the universe knew what this night had in store for all of us.
She stopped beside my bike and turned to face me, those big violet eyes swimming with worry. “You don’t have to watch over me,” she insisted in a quiet voice. “I can grab a rideshare that will take me straight to the clubhouse so you can stay here and… do your thing.”
I grabbed her arms harder than I needed to, but I needed her to hear me.
I leaned down until we were eye to eye. “I’m not doing this shit because I have to,” I said, keeping my voice low and steady.
“I’m doing it because I want to, because I wouldn’t be able to fucking function if something happened to you. ”
Her lips parted into the barest smile and her breath caught.
I flashed a proud smile that I’d been able to make her speechless and turned back to the bike. “I’ll get you settled at the clubhouse,” I continued, gentler now. “Then I’ll come back and deal with Halloran. But first, we’ll need info out of him.”
She swallowed, her brows pinched together. “Will you… torture him?”
I shrugged casually at her question, not because it was casual but because I needed her to know the truth.
“If that’s what it takes to get answers.
” I wasn’t going to lie to her. Not now.
Not about this. I cupped her face and sighed.
“I’m gonna find out every fucking thing I need to get this Diego asshole.
That’s not a problem, is it?” I held my breath because even if it was a problem, I would do what was necessary to keep her safe.
“No,” she answered immediately, shaking her head. “It’s not that, I just don’t want you facing a lengthy prison sentence because of me.”
I tipped her chin up with my finger. “Aww. You’re worried about me.”
She rolled her eyes. “Shut up.”
I handed her the helmet, and she took it without comment. The ride back to the clubhouse was quiet, my mind fixed on Halloran and all the things I wanted to do to him. All the ways I wanted to make him scream out his pain, his anguish. His pleas to end his pain.
I gripped the handlebars tighter until my knuckles burned. I didn’t get a chance to think about what I would do to Halloran for too long before we were back at the clubhouse.
Before we even made it inside, Macy was holding herself. Her arms were wrapped tight around her middle, and her shoulders were so stiff and tense, it was clear she was worried about me.
“Mace,” I said. “It’ll be fine. You worry too much.”
She huffed out a humorless laugh. “Some days I don’t think I worry enough.” Her delivery was dry but the way she hugged herself tighter betrayed her easy words, so I wrapped my arms around her instead, pulling her close. So fucking close.
“I’ll get the answers we need,” I assured her, talking into her hair. “I’ll do my thing and I’ll be back before you know it.”
She didn’t believe me, but she dug deep and found a smile just for me. “Yep. I know it.”
It was complete fucking bullshit, but I let it slide. “Look at me,” I demanded, waiting until her eyes locked with mine.
Macy waited, her eyes swimming with fear and hope, and a little bit of guilt.
“It’s gonna be fine,” I said. “I’ll be back. I promise.”
She folded her arms angrily, eyes narrowing to slits. “You can’t promise that,” she whispered.
“Strange,” I said, smirking. “Because I just did.”
She rolled her eyes weakly, her lips tried for a smile but didn’t quite make it.
“You good?”
She nodded, then shook her head. “I’m working on it.” She pulled me close, burying her face in my chest. “Just be careful, Drew, okay? Be so fucking careful.”
“I will,” I said with a soft smile. “Gotta come back to you, don’t I?”
She gripped my shirt in her fist and nodded. When she spoke, her voice was fierce and laced with steel. “You better.”
“That’s my girl,” I told her, tilting her chin up before I kissed her.
It was soft and gentle, not an intense claiming, just enough to let her know I had a better reason to come back than ever before.
Her lips were so fucking soft and even sweeter than that, and I didn’t want to let her go but somehow, I summoned all the fucking willpower I had to take a step back.
And then another. And one more before I changed my mind. “See you soon, Mace.”
She grinned, fingertips pressed to her lips. “I’ll hold you to it. Good luck.”
“Stay inside,” I told her, pointing at her as I put more distance between us.
“I promise.”
I looked at her one last time and then left the clubhouse. I took one look at my bike and walked right past it. I knew where the brothers had taken Halloran.
The Cellar.
We kept it close and hidden. It was a place where questions got answered and secrets stayed buried.
I crossed the parking lot slowly, breathing deep.
In. Out. In. Out. I slipped into the skin of the club’s enforcer, the guy who did whatever the fuck it took to get answers for his MC.
The guy who wasn’t afraid to get his hands dirty.
I shared the role with Sledge. He did the psychological shit, my specialty was more physical.
I reached the steel door, noticing how cold it was under my palm before I tugged it open and stepped inside. Down the narrow staircase, the air changed instantly. It was damp and metallic, with a distinct smell of concrete. The door shut behind me with a solid, almost final clang.
Inside, the low hum of voices told me the guys had already started. My hands flexed with the promise of pain to come and something else, something darker.
Vengeance.