Cario “Crow” Domingo
The familiar scent of oil, gasoline, and hot metal hit me the second I unlocked the bay door.
Taking a deep breath, I admired all my hard work.
The polished concrete floors, organized toolboxes, and motorcycles waiting beneath the bright shop lights reminded me of how far I’d come.
I built this place from the ground up with my own two hands, and I was proud of that.
This shop was my sanctuary. My peace. The one place where nothing else mattered except the work in front of me.
I quickly slipped into my work uniform and went to work on the three motorcycles that sat in a row beneath the bright shop lights, each one stripped down to its frame in different places.
They belonged to Kash, Rebel, and Dice. Their last heist was coming, and if we were gonna pull it off, these bikes had to be perfect.
I tossed my keys onto the workbench, grabbed my impact gun, and got to work.
Kash’s bike came first. The impact gun rattled as I removed the stock exhaust and tossed it onto the concrete floor.
I grabbed the custom low-profile system I’d fabricated a few days ago and bolted it into place.
Once it was secure, I plugged my laptop into the ECU and uploaded a fresh tune before swapping out the rear sprocket for quicker acceleration.
I fired the engine. It purred low and smooth.
“That’ll get your ass movin’,” I muttered before killing the ignition.
Next was Dice’s. She pushed her bike to the limit every chance she got, so I reinforced the front suspension, upgraded the brakes, and mounted a fresh set of performance tires that could grip damn near anything.
I spun the wheel with my hand and watched it glide effortlessly.
“Perfect.”
Then I walked over to Rebel’s bike.
I rested a hand on the tank for a second before shaking my head.
“Can’t have your hardheaded ass getting hurt.”
I removed the fairings and exposed the wiring underneath before hiding a compact GPS jammer beneath the electronics.
After securing everything back into place, I replaced her brake lines with braided steel, adjusted the suspension to fit her smaller frame, and fine-tuned the throttle response until the slightest twist brought the engine to life.
I climbed on and gave it a quick rev. The engine answered with a deep, aggressive growl. A grin spread across my face.
“That’s my girl.”
I paused, then laughed to myself.
“Nah... I’m talkin’ ‘bout the bike.”
By the time I stepped back, all three bikes looked mean enough to scare the devil himself.
“Y’all ready?”
Now all we had to do was survive the last ride.
Just as I was finishing up, Rebel strolled in wearing a black dress with a pair of Timbs.
She looked so damn good it nearly stole the words from my mouth.
She walked straight over to me. For a second, I thought she was about to get shy, but instead, she wrapped her arms around my neck and kissed me.
I kissed her back without hesitation. My hands slid down her back until they settled on her ass, pulling her closer as our tongues tangled together.
When we finally pulled apart, we were both breathing a little heavier.
I rested my forehead against hers and smiled.
“Damn... I could get used to that.”
She laughed softly. “Good.”
I stole one more quick kiss before my expression turned serious As much as I’d love to keep kissing on you all day... there’s something I need to talk to you about.”
Her smile slowly faded. “What is it?”
I took a deep breath. “About us.”
Her eyebrows knitted together.” About us?”
She searched my face for a long moment before quietly asking,
“Do you... want us to go back to being friends?”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “Hell no.”
She let out the breath she’d been holding and smacked me in the chest. “Crow!”
I caught her hand and pulled her back against me. “I’m serious about us, Rain. And to prove just how serious I decided to do something for you. Come here.”
She frowned but followed me across the shop. “Crow... what are you doing?”
I stopped in front of one of the supply closets and reached for the doorknob.
“You said Sarah stole your future.”
I looked back at Rebel. “Well... it’s time she answered for it.”
I swung the door open. Sitting in the middle of the cramped storage room was Sarah, tied tightly to a chair with mascara streaked down her face from hours of crying.
The moment her terrified eyes met ours, she froze, her chest rising and falling with panicked breaths.
Without saying a word, I grabbed the back of the chair and rolled her out of the storage room and into the middle of the shop, forcing everyone to face the woman who had betrayed us.
“Crow...”
Her eyes grew so wide I thought they might pop out of her head.
I looked Sarah dead in the eyes before turning back to Rebel.
“I told you nobody was ever gonna play with you again.”
I walked over and stood beside her. “She stole your future. She stole your dream. Now we’re gonna make damn sure she never gets the chance to do this to anybody else.”
Rebel looked from me to Sarah, then back at me as a slow smile spread across her face.
“Oh, baby...”
She pursed her lips as she admired my work.
“What do you have in mind?” she asked.
I couldn’t help but grin.
“I figured we’d let the woman who ruined your life finally tell us where every last dollar went.”
I pulled out the saw and approached her ass.
She was gonna regret ever messing with my lady.
All Rebel did was stand back as I conducted my own interrogation, but when Sarah refused to tell me anything, I pulled out my gun.
Then I slowly cocked the hammer back and pressed the barrel against her forehead. Sarah’s entire body started shaking.
Her tears didn’t mean a damn thing to me.
She’d convinced herself that stealing Rebel’s money was a good idea, and now she wanted sympathy because she got caught.
Nah. I wasn’t about to feel sorry for someone who had brought every bit of this on herself.
Actions came with consequences, and today she was finally going to pay for hers.
“P-please...” she cried.
I never took my eyes off Rebel. “Just give me the word. And she is dead.”
Sarah’s sobs grew louder as I tightened my grip on the gun.
Rebel didn’t hesitate. She leaned over, pressed a gentle kiss against my lips, then calmly slipped the pistol from my hand.
The moment Sarah saw the weapon resting in Rebel’s grip, her eyes grew impossibly wide.
Whatever hope she’d been holding onto disappeared, replaced by pure, unfiltered terror.
“Rebel... please—”
She didn’t hesitate. Two shots rang out, and Sarah’s body went limp, the chair rocking backward as silence swallowed the room.
The sharp scent of gunpowder lingered in the air while Rebel stood frozen, the pistol hanging loosely in her hand.
She stared at Sarah’s lifeless body, her chest rising and falling with each shaky breath as the reality of what she’d just done slowly settled over everyone in the room.