Chapter Thirty-Three Deacon
After a quick clean up in the sink, I stole the shirt Archer was wearing under his coveralls. Once I didn’t look like I’d massacred my enemy in the bathroom, I reluctantly left Alex with Archer.
When I got to the end of the hall, I peered through the glass panes on the doors to see if the coast was clear. With no one around, I reached out for the fire alarm on the wall.
A piercing wail assaulted me along with flashing lights. It took mere seconds for people to start streaming into the main atrium of the building. Once there was a crowd, I slipped out of the hallway and in step with the panicked crowd. No one gave me a second glance as they hurried to safety.
As soon as I got outside, I headed to the woods where I’d left my bike and where I hoped to find Rev and Bishop. I was grateful to find them waiting.
Rev furrowed his brows as he rose off his bike. “Where’s Alexandra?” he demanded.
“She’s fine.”
“And Sigel?”
“Dead.”
“By your hands?” Bishop asked.
“Both of ours.”
Bishop and Rev exchanged a glance. “You let Alex help you?” Rev questioned.
“I did.”
Bishop slowly shook his head. “Fuck, man. I never thought I’d see the day.”
“Trust me. I didn’t either.” Glancing back at the school, I said, “Come on. We need to get out of here.”
“We’re leaving?” Rev asked.
Nodding, I replied, “Part of our alibi. We need to show back up after the cops.”
“Copy that,”Bishop replied before revving his bike to life.
He and Rev then fell in behind me as we went away from the school.
We needed to further our alibi. That entailed Alexandra calling me after Archer had killed Sigel.
She would tell the cops that he had come to the school to harass her previously and ask them to pull the tapes.
She would claim he wanted to hurt her because she was my girlfriend.
Anything about the cut would be omitted, which was currently in my saddle bag after I’d taken it out of the school with me.
After winding down Main Street and other areas where we would be remembered being seen, we made our way back to the school.
Leaving Rev and Bishop, I hopped off my bike and began weaving my way through the crowd of onlookers.
Beyond the yellow police tape, I saw the ambulance with its back doors open.
Moving around the taped off perimeter, I started sprinting across the parking lot.
With a blanket draped over her shoulders, Alex sat on the floor of the ambulance.
While she stared straight ahead, her body suddenly tensed, and her gaze jerked from staring down at the pavement to scanning the tree-lined woods.
I shouldn’t have been too surprised that she could sense me.
Her brows rose in surprise as if questioning my next move.
I couldn’t answer her because I didn't know what to do. Having the woman you love have a hand in one of your crimes was completely unchartered territory for me. Not to mention having to adhere to a batshit crazy plan you’d come up with in a blood-stained bathroom stall.
Finally, I dug my cigarettes and lighter out of my cut and lit up. When the EMT finished, Alex said something to him before rising to her feet. Slowly, she began walking toward me. My feet began to move of their own accord, and I met her halfway.
I winced when I got a good look at her in the light. Her struggle with Sigel had been more intense than she’d let on. Both sides of her neck were a bluish green, and her lip was busted and swollen.
“Jesus, Alex,” I murmured.
“It’s okay.”
“No, it fucking isn’t.” I jerked a hand painfully through my hair. “You were hurt because of me.”
She reached out to cup my cheek. “You’re too hard on yourself.”
“And you’re too fucking forgiving.”
Alex’s pink tongue slid out to wet her lips. “Maybe you’ll learn some forgiveness from me.”
Furrowing my brows, I asked, “You want me to forgive Archer?”
With a shake of her head, she replied, “For me and what I did.”
A ragged escaped my lips, billowing smoke between us. “Part of me feels like I can never trust you again.”
Pain filled her expression. “That’s understandable.”
Tossing my cigarette to the ground, I then stomped out the ember with my boot. “But then another part of me realizes why you did what you did.”
Alexandra’s brows show up. “You do?”
“You thought I was dead, and the man responsible revealed he’d killed your parents. That would fuck with anyone.” I brushed a strand of hair out of her face. “Even someone has strong and level-headed as you.”
Tears pooled in Alexandra’s eyes as a mirthless laugh tumbled from her lips. “I don’t feel strong.” She swiped at a tear that escaped down her cheek. “I feel like I’m falling apart.”
I leaned my forehead against hers. “Don’t worry. I’ll put you back together.”
“I love you,” she murmured, as her arms came around me.
After kissing a trail over to her ear, I whispered, “Marry me.”
Alexandra’s jerked back to stare at me with wide eyes. “Excuse me?”
“You heard me.”
“Well, considering what’s gone down between us tonight, I’d like you to repeat it.”
Scratching the back of my neck, I closed the gap between us. “I’m sorry. I’m so fucking sorry for the way I treated you earlier in that stall. It’s just…”
I ran a hand over the stubble on my face.
“You scared the hell out of me going after Sigel and leaving me where I couldn’t help you.
It isn’t in me to have women on the front lines, least of all my old lady—the woman I fucking love.
I didn’t know how to deal. You were right to call me a bastard and an asshole because I was…
I am. No matter how hard I try, I always seem to fuck things up when it comes to you. ”
Shaking my head, I said, “Jesus, I’m blabbering.”
“Keep going,” Alex urged.
“You’re also right to call me a selfish bastard. Before Willow, I thought only of myself, and then she came along and opened me up a little. Then you came barging in and forced me to put my own needs and desires behind those I cared about.”
Reaching out, I touched her cheek. “And I do care about you, Alexandra. When I thought that I might lose you to Sigel, I thought I would die.” A shudder rippled through me. “Truth is, I wanted to die. I don’t want to live without you. I love you too much.”
Tears shimmered in Alex’s dark eyes. “Oh Deacon.”
Dipping my head, I nipped her lips with my mine. “Now answer my question.”
With a teasing smile, Alex asked, “What question?”
I grunted. “The one about marrying me.”
“It’s a lot to ask to make an honest man out of you, Jesse James.”
With a chuckle, I replied, “You’re the only woman who ever could, White-Bred.”
“You know I’m going to want a poofy dress and a big reception.”
Inwardly, I groaned, but I gave Alex a smile. “I wouldn’t expect anything less.”
She cocked her brows in surprise. “Does that mean I’ll get you in a tux?”
“Not fucking likely,” I grumbled.
Alexandra leaned up on her tiptoes to brush her lips against mine. When she pulled back, she replied, “Don’t worry. I wouldn’t want you in a tux.”
“And why not?”
“It’s not who you are.”
Smiling down at her, I said, “You’re my angel—my dark haired angel.” The moment the words came out of my lips, I staggered back.
“Deacon, what’s wrong?” Alex asked with alarm.
But I was no longer with her. Instead, I was holding Preacher Man’s body. His words echoed through my mind. “Two dark haired angels are coming for you. They will be your salvation.”
Alex stared up at me in confusion. “What?”
I realized then that I had said the words aloud. “Preacher Man told me that right before he died. At the time, I couldn’t imagine what he meant. But now…”
I stared down at her beautiful face filled with love and concern for me. “Now, I understand. You and Willow—you’re the dark haired angels. You’re my salvation.” I pulled her closer to me, needing to feel her against me. “You’re my salvation,” I repeated.
“And you’re mine,” Alex answered.
I would take her home to my compound where once again I would look after her as she healed.
Tomorrow I would get to see my other angel, my daughter.
I knew that there were still threats looming over us, including ones the Knights, now floundering without their leader and Sergeant at Arms, would retaliate against us.
But like a phoenix fucking rising from the ashes, I’d be ready for them.