40. Maddox
40
MADDOX
The first shot doesn’t come from Cypher’s gun. It blasts through the front window, spraying glass across the diner floor.
“Down!” I yell, diving for Mr. Peterson and yanking him from his booth as a second shot punches into the wall where his head had been.
Brick moves instantly, tackling Cypher as more gunfire erupts from outside. Ryder vaults the counter, the Glock already in his hand.
“Death’s Head,” Ryder growls, spotting the rival MC’s cuts through the shattered window.
Fucking perfect timing. The one MC that hates the Vipers as much as they hate us, choosing now to make their move.
I flip the nearest table, creating cover as bullets tear through the diner. “This way!” I wave the high school kids toward the kitchen. “Out the back, now!”
Cypher’s men scramble for weapons, returning fire toward the street. The diner transforms into a war zone in seconds—gunfire, shouting, breaking glass. The bald mountain grabs Emma, using her as a shield as he backs toward the door.
“Go help the civilians,” Brick orders, crouched behind the counter next to me. He chambers a round in the pistol he keeps stashed under the register. “Ryder and I will handle this.”
I nod, half crawling toward the kitchen where the construction workers are huddled with the high school kids. “Through the storeroom,” I direct them, pointing to the exit. “Cut through the alley, get to Teller’s garage.”
A familiar blue Honda screeches to a halt outside, and my heart stops. No. No fucking way.
But there she is—Rowan, ducking out of her car into the middle of a goddamn shootout. Her eyes are wild, determined, fixed on the diner entrance where Death’s Head and Vipers are exchanging fire on the sidewalk.
“Rowan!” I scream, but my voice is lost in the chaos.
She weaves through the gunfire with shocking skill, using parked cars as cover, timing her movements between bursts of shooting. She’s not just Cypher’s blood—she was trained by him.
I fight my way toward the side door, desperate to reach her before she walks into this bloodbath. But three Vipers block my path, guns raised. I duck behind a freezer as bullets punch into the metal.
“Maddox! Where’s Ryder?” Brick’s voice crackles through my earpiece—the comms we started wearing after Cerberus warned us about Cypher.
“Pinned down in the kitchen,” I respond, checking my clip. Five rounds left. “Three hostiles between me and the side door. Rowan’s here.”
“What?” Brick’s shock mirrors my own. “How?—”
“She just pulled up. Heading for the side entrance.”
“Keep her out of this!”
Easier said than done. I peer around the freezer, looking for an opening. The Vipers are advancing, moving between tables.
A crash from the side door draws their attention. Rowan bursts in, but she’s not alone. Two Death’s Head members tail her, grabbing for her. She spins, driving her elbow into one’s throat and her knee into the other’s groin.
The Vipers hesitate, clearly not expecting Cypher’s daughter in the middle of this mess. I use their confusion, popping up and taking down two with quick shots. The third turns, but not fast enough. Rowan’s already on him, a knife appearing in her hand from nowhere.
She’s fast. The blade flashes once, and the Viper drops, clutching his thigh where she’s severed his femoral artery.
“Maddox!” She rushes to me, blood spattered across her face. “Where’s my father?—”
“With Brick,” I pull her behind the freezer as more gunfire erupts from the dining area. “What the fuck are you doing here? You were supposed to stay home!”
“I couldn’t.” Her eyes are desperate. “He’ll kill you all. This is my fault.”
“We can handle ourselves.”
“You don’t understand?—”
Whatever she’s about to say vanishes in a scream as a hulking Viper grabs her from behind, yanking her backward. I lunge for her, but another Death’s Head member rushes me, swinging a bat at my head.
“Maddox!” Rowan’s scream tears through the chaos as the Viper drags her toward the front door. I try to aim but can’t get a clear shot with her struggling in his arms.
“Brick!” I shout into the comm. “They’ve got Rowan! Front door!”
I smash my pistol into the Death’s Head member’s face, feeling bone give way beneath the blow. By the time I reach the door, the Viper is loading Rowan into a black SUV, her struggles useless against his size.
“Maddox!” she screams again as the door slams.
The SUV peels out, two motorcycles flanking it. I sprint to my bike, kick-starting it without thinking twice. No way am I losing her.
“They’ve taken her,” I relay to Brick, gunning the engine. “Black SUV, heading east with two escorts. I’m in pursuit.”
“Copy.” Brick’s voice is deadly calm. “Teller’s on his way with backup. Death’s Head is retreating.”
“What about Cypher?”
“Gone. Took advantage of the chaos. Ryder’s tracking him.”
The SUV weaves through traffic, heading toward the old warehouse district. I follow at a distance, using side streets and alleys to keep them in sight without being spotted. The warehouse district is Cypher’s mistake—our home turf. Tank used those buildings for storage, for training, for planning. We know every access point, every blind spot.
They stop at the abandoned paper mill, the largest warehouse in the district. Perfect defensible position, with clear sightlines in all directions. They’re setting up for a siege. They don’t realize they’re already surrounded.
I park my bike behind a derelict office building, climbing to the roof for a better view. Six Vipers patrol the perimeter. Two more guard the main entrance where they took Rowan. I count at least ten bikes parked beside the SUV.
“Found them,” I report. “Old paper mill. I count at least fourteen hostiles.”
“Hold position,” Brick orders. “Teller’s bringing fifteen men. Ryder’s two minutes out with the equipment.”
“They have Rowan inside.”
“I know.” His voice softens slightly. “She’s Cypher’s daughter. He won’t hurt her.”
“Tell that to him,” I retort, watching a Viper drag a struggling Rowan from the SUV. “She’s fighting them every step.”
Brick is silent for a moment. “Why would she come to the diner? She must have known it was a trap.”
“To warn us,” I realize. “She must have heard from her sister.”
“She knew we were walking into an ambush and came anyway.” The admiration in Brick’s voice matches what I’m feeling. “That woman…”
“Is ours,” I finish for him. “And no one takes what’s ours.”
Twenty minutes later, the dirt road leading to the warehouse fills with bikes—Teller and the Black Wolves, arriving like silent death. Ryder appears beside me on the roof, a duffel bag slung over his shoulder.
“Charges?” I ask as he unzips the bag, revealing blocks of C4.
“East and west walls. Emergency exits. They’ll funnel toward the main floor.”
“And Rowan?”
“Central office. Second floor.” He points to a window with bars across it. “Two guards inside with her.”
“How do you know?”
His lip curls in what might almost be a smile. “Thermal imaging. Cerberus sent toys.”
Brick joins us, Teller at his side. His expression when he looks at the warehouse reminds me of our Cerberus days—calculating, merciless, the face of a man who’s decided exactly how this will end.
“Perimeter’s covered,” Teller confirms. “My boys know the plan. No one gets out without going through us.”
Brick nods, his eyes never leaving the warehouse. “Cypher’s inside?”
“North entrance. Just arrived with three others.”
“So the family reunion’s complete,” I mutter.
“Not quite.” Brick checks his weapon. “We haven’t introduced ourselves properly yet.”
The plan is simple. Teller’s men will create a diversion at the north entrance. Ryder’s charges on the east and west will funnel the Vipers toward the main floor.
Brick will lead the direct assault through the loading bay, while I slip in through a maintenance tunnel Tank showed us years ago.
“I’ll get to Rowan,” I insist. “You guys handle the rest.”
Brick clasps my shoulder. “Bring her home.”
As the sun dips toward the horizon, we move into position. The first stars appear in the darkening sky, witnesses to what’s about to unfold.
I think about Rowan, captured by her own father’s men. About her sister, terrified in the diner. About the way Rowan screamed my name as they took her.
I check my watch. Three minutes until Ryder triggers the charges. Three minutes until the Vipers learn why Tank chose us as his successors.