Chapter Nine
That day, Mara was at the repair shop, finalizing the payroll sheets, double-checking numbers against invoices. The desk she sat at was pushed into a corner of the shop’s small office. The moment she heard the sound of boots, Mara paused.
“Afternoon, Mara.”
She turned, heart kicking against her ribs. King stood in the doorway, broad-shouldered, tattoos peeking from beneath his cut. His presence always filled a room.
“Oh, uh, hey, King.” Mara tried to smile, but her throat went dry. “You need something? I’ve just about finished the payroll for this month.”
He didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he leaned against the doorframe, crossing his arms. His expression wasn’t angry, but it wasn’t casual either.
“That so?” he said. “Payroll can wait.”
Her stomach sank. King stepped closer, and Mara instinctively touched the handle of the desk drawer. It was where she’d kept the small pistol Viper had given her just in case. She wasn’t stupid enough to reach for it, but the motion grounded her.
“Relax,” King said, noticing. “If I wanted you in trouble, Viper would’ve handled it already.”
She managed a nervous laugh. “That’s comforting.”
He studied her for a long moment before saying, “You’ve been avoiding me.”
Mara’s pulse quickened. “Avoiding? No, I’ve just been—”
“Working. Busy. I know.” King softened his tone, but his eyes were sharp. “Thing is, I’m not an idiot. I know you heard me and Viper talking the other night.”
Mara went still. The spreadsheet on her screen blurred.
King sighed, rubbing a hand over his jaw. “You’ve got guts, I’ll give you that. But if we’re gonna figure out what happens next, I need to know something straight from you.”
She forced herself to meet his gaze. “What do you want to know?”
King didn’t waste time. “What does Viper mean to you?”
The words hit harder than she expected.
She tried to speak, but her throat closed up. The steady rhythm of the shop beyond the glass wall of the office faded beneath the rush of blood in her ears.
“What does he mean to me?” she repeated, mostly to buy herself time.
King nodded once. “Yeah. That.”
Mara swallowed hard. She’d known this conversation would come eventually, but she wasn’t ready for it. “He means...” She hesitated. “He means everything.”
King furrowed his brow slightly, but he didn’t interrupt.
“I didn’t plan for it,” she went on, voice trembling now.
Tears gathered before she could stop them.
She brushed at them quickly, frustrated.
“I thought he was just doing the honorable thing, you know? Saving the girl who can’t save herself, but he’s not like that.
He doesn’t pretend to be some hero. He just is.
He made me feel safe for the first time in years. Maybe the first time ever.”
Mara continued, “I figured that if I left, it would save him the trouble. Keep your club safe. But he found me packing my bag. He told me he meant what he said to you, that I’m his now, and he protects what’s his.”
King stayed silent, watching her with that steady, unreadable gaze.
For a long moment, the only sound was the faint hum of the shop outside.
Finally, King nodded. “You’re not wrong about him. He’s rough as hell, but loyal down to the bone. When he decides something’s his, he doesn’t back down. Ever,” King said.
He pushed away from the desk, straightening to his full height. “Truth is, I wasn’t sure what to make of you, Mara. Viper’s a good man, but he’s been burned bad before. I had to know if this thing between you two was real.”
Mara blinked through her tears. “And now?”
“Now I know,” King said.
Relief flooded her chest, but she barely had time to process it before King continued, “You’ve got steel in you. I can see that. If you’re staying, we’ll deal with the Serpents and Vultures. Together. I’ll talk to Viper about next steps.”
“Thank you,” Mara said, the words barely audible.
He nodded once. “Don’t thank me yet. Just don’t make me regret it.”
With that, he turned and walked out, leaving Mara standing behind the desk, dazed and a little breathless.
It took her a few minutes to gather herself before she finally stepped out into the main floor of the shop. The mechanics were working on a couple of cars, the smell of burnt rubber and oil thick in the air.
“Hey, boys,” she called, forcing a lighter tone. “I’m taking my break. Anyone want anything from the sandwich place?”
A few of them looked up. The oldest, Benny, wiped his hands on a rag. “Get me the usual. Turkey club, extra pickles.”
“Got it,” Mara said, smiling faintly.
She grabbed her phone, slung her crossbody bag over her shoulder, and headed toward the door. The sun was out for once, warm against her skin when she stepped outside. After the heavy talk with King, she needed fresh air. As she crossed the lot, her phone buzzed.
Viper: Got a surprise for you tonight.
Mara smiled before she could stop it. She texted him back quickly.
Mara: A surprise, huh? Should I be worried?
Viper: Maybe. Depends if you like surprises.
Mara: Guess I’ll find out then. I’m holding you to it.
She tucked her phone away, the faint blush on her cheeks impossible to hide. She still wasn’t used to feeling this light.
The sidewalk leading toward the sandwich shop stretched ahead, framed by pines and highway. It was a good day, the kind she hadn’t let herself enjoy in years. For the first time, she let herself hum softly under her breath.
She didn’t see the black van until it rolled to a slow stop beside her. The hairs on the back of her neck prickled. Mara quickened her pace, the lightness in her chest dissolving into unease. She glanced over and her blood went cold.
Two men stepped out. Both wore leather cuts and on them was a familiar insignia. Blood Vultures. She didn’t know these men. Maybe her father hired new blood.
“Afternoon, sweetheart,” one of them drawled. “Been looking for you.”
Mara spun and bolted. Her boots hit the pavement hard, heart slamming against her ribs. She didn’t even think, she just ran. Mara didn’t make it far.
Someone snatched her arm, yanking her back hard enough to make her gasp. The other man stepped in front of her, grinning.
“Your old man’s been real eager to get you home,” he sneered. “Guess you should’ve known better than to hide in Devil’s Crown territory.”
“Let me go!” Mara twisted, nails digging into his arm, but he only laughed.
“Aw, she bites.”
A rag came down over her mouth. The scent of something chemical and sharp filled her nose. She struggled, eyes wide with terror. “No, don’t!”
The scent burned her lungs. Her vision blurred, the sunlight fracturing into spinning shards.
She tried to scream, but the sound caught in her throat. The last thing she saw was the Vultures’ smirking faces, and the sky above, slipping out of reach.
Then everything went black.
****
Viper’s phone rang once, twice, then a third time. He frowned, pulling it from his cut pocket, expecting Mara’s name to flash on the screen. Instead, it was Benny from the shop.
“Yeah?” Viper answered. He’d been tuning a bike in the garage next to the clubhouse. Music thumped from a nearby portable radio.
“Viper, you gotta get here now!” Benny said, sounding panicked.
“Slow down. What’s going on?” Viper demanded.
“It’s Mara,” Benny choked out. “I was just running after her to tell her to cancel my sandwich order when a black van pulled up. Two guys, with the Vultures’ patch—”
Viper’s wrench hit the floor with a sharp clang.
“Say that again,” Viper said.
“They grabbed her, man!” Benny answered. “They took her right off the damn street! I tried to get to her, but they were gone before I hit the corner!”
For a heartbeat, Viper couldn’t breathe. The noise of the garage around him fell away, every sound fading until there was only the pulse hammering in his ears. Mara taken by them. His vision tunneled.
“Benny,” he said finally. Viper kept his voice steady despite the blood roaring in his head. “Where?”
“Corner of Dyer and Main,” Benny said, nearly crying. “She was walking to the sandwich shop.”
“Stay put,” Viper ordered. “You see anything else, you call me. Don’t move from that damn spot.”
He hung up before Benny could respond. His hand clenched around the phone until the screen cracked. Then he was already moving.
He stormed out of the garage and entered the clubhouse. The other brothers looked up, startled by the violence in his movement.
“King!” Viper barked.
The president emerged from the office, a question already forming on his lips.
“What happened?” King asked him instead.
“They got her.” Viper’s voice came out like gravel. “The Vultures. Black van. Benny saw it happen.”
For a second, King just stared at him, eyes narrowing. “You sure?”
“Benny wouldn’t call unless he was,” Viper said impatiently.
The room went dead silent.
“Where?” King demanded.
“Dyer and Main.”
King’s jaw tightened. “That’s close to their line. Fuckers are getting bold.”
Viper clenched his fists. “They took Mara, King.” His voice cracked with fury, his composure shredding. “They took my woman.”
“I know,” King answered.
“No, you don’t!” He slammed a fist against a nearby table. “She was just walking to get lunch! They fucking waited for her. This was planned.”
King didn’t flinch at the outburst. Instead, he stepped closer, placing a steady hand on Viper’s shoulder. “Then we plan better.”
Viper’s chest heaved, but he forced himself to breathe, to focus. King’s calm cut through the storm enough for his mind to start working again.
“Vultures’ HQ,” he said after a beat, his voice low and lethal. “They’ll take her there, to her old man.”
King nodded grimly. “Then that’s where we go.”
He turned to the others. “Rook, Diesel, Hammer, you’re with me. Get your gear. We’re not going in blind,” Viper ordered.
The brothers moved instantly. Viper headed to his room. He grabbed his cut from the chair, shrugging into it. Then he grabbed his favorite knives, his sawed-off shotgun. The world had gone sharp around the edges. Everything narrowed to one goal. Find her and get her back.
King’s voice cut through the noise. “You think the Serpents are in on this?”
“Wouldn’t put it past them,” Viper growled the words out.
King’s look was grim. “You’ve been a target since you brought her in. You know that.”
Viper’s gut twisted. He knew. He’d felt it coming for weeks. He should’ve protected her. A sick, searing guilt burned through him as he shoved extra ammo into his vest.
“Viper,” King said quietly. “Listen to me.”
He turned, jaw tight.
“When we get there, you don’t go off half-cocked. You wait for my signal. We do this clean.”
“If they’ve hurt her—” Viper began.
“Then you’ll get your chance.” King’s eyes were flint. “But not until we’ve got her out alive. You hear me?”
Viper nodded once. “Yeah. I hear you.”
The garage filled with the roar of engines as bikes were wheeled out. Rook tossed Viper his helmet.
“Let’s ride,” Viper said, voice flat with purpose.
They tore down the road in formation. Cars pulled over as they passed, the Devil’s Crown colors unmistakable.
The wind hit his face like knives, but he didn’t feel it. His mind was back on Mara. The way she smiled shyly when he teased her, the soft sound of her laugh when she thought no one heard. The text she’d sent just hours ago.
He’d promised her a surprise tonight. Instead, she’d been taken. He twisted the throttle harder.
When they hit the outskirts of town, King raised a hand, signaling the group to slow. The road here turned to dirt, flanked by chain-link fencing and old warehouses. Vulture territory.
Viper could already see movement ahead. Bikes were parked in a haphazard line, a few men smoking outside a cinderblock building with a rusted-out sign.
Their nest. King pulled over behind an old storage yard, out of sight. The brothers cut their engines, the sudden silence heavy.
“All right,” King said, crouching beside the bikes. “We don’t know how many are inside, but we’ll assume a full crew. Rook and Diesel, you circle to the back. Hammer, you’re with me on entry. Viper—”
“I’m going in front,” Viper interrupted.
King’s glare was sharp. “You’ll wait for the signal,” King said.
Viper didn’t argue this time, but the promise in his eyes was clear. If he saw her, nothing would stop him.