Chapter 14
Chapter 14
Knox
As I lay next to Eliza in my room of the clubhouse, her breathin’ steady and soft in sleep, my own mind was racin’ a mile a damn minute. The arrest had rattled me deep—not just the cuffs and the questions, but how it all threatened every damn thing I cared about. I sure as hell hadn’t killed Mark, but there were pieces of my past that I was none too proud of, parts that I feared would drive Eliza away if she ever caught wind of ‘em.
Come mornin’, though, we were right back at it. Sittin’ across from each other with our notebooks and laptops sprawled out, we dug into the mess of information we’d gathered.
“So, we know Mark had enemies,” I started, tryin’ to steer us clear of the mess in my head and keep us on the solid ground of facts. “Business rivals who’d stand to gain from him bein’ out of the picture.”
Eliza nodded, her eyes glued to her screen. Then she twisted her laptop my way. The screen flashed a social media profile of some woman claimin’ to be Mark’s wife—another woman, not Eliza, with two kids grinnin’ up from a picnic photo, twins. They couldn’t be much more than Emma’s age. My gut clenched up, not just at the secret spillin’ out, but at the hurt it was gonna sling at Eliza.
“He had a second family in Gatlinburg?” Her voice was low, heavy with the sting of betrayal. “I knew he had an office there, but a whole family. The whole time? How deep did his secrets go?”
I watched her, feelin’ my own heart twist up with the echo of her pain. “I’m sorry, Eliza. Folks hide shit, thinkin’ it’s for the best. Don’t make it right.”
“Yeah,” she whispered, her eyes somewhere far off. “Lying, hiding things… It’s the worst. Just ends up hurting everyone.”
Her words jabbed at me, stirrin’ up that guilty ache about my own hidden chapters—my days with the club, the stuff I’d done that wouldn’t exactly get a nod of approval from the law, things I did to keep us floatin’ but not things I’m proud of. None of it was meant to hurt her, but the chance of it cuttin’ deep was there, hangin’ over us like a dark cloud.
Before I could even get my thoughts out, we were cut off by a loud crash from outside. We both shot up, racin’ to the window. A shadow was bookin’ it away from Eliza’s car, which now sported a smashed window and a spray-painted threat across the hood: “Stay away.”
Instinct kicked in hard and fast. I yanked Eliza back from the window. “Get down,” I rustled. Years of dealin’ with club turf wars had sharpened my reflexes. We ducked behind the wall as I scoped out the area for any sign of the troublemakers.
“Ain’t safe here,” I muttered, my eyes still on the lookout. “We need to head to my place—it’s locked down tighter.”
“But I thought this was your place.”
“No, I’m talkin’ about my other spot, my secret second place.”
Eliza shot daggers at me.
“Too soon, huh?”
She nodded, her eyes filled with wonder and a hint of fear. “Okay, let’s get the hell out of here.”
I hustled her out through the back door to my Harley, eyes peeled for any more trouble. As we dashed to my secret spot, the adrenaline rush died down and I felt so grateful for Eliza’s trust in me, despite everything going on. It nailed down something crucial between us—this tangled mess, this fight for the truth, was pulling us together tighter than I ever thought possible.
Back at my pad, once I was sure we were buttoned up safe, I faced her. “I’ve got you,” I told her, and it wasn’t just about keeping her safe from harm. It was a vow, deep and solid, to shield her from the ghosts of my past, from the secrets at present, from anything that dared to touch her.
Eliza reached out, her hand clamping down on mine. “Thank you, Knox. For everything.”
As we hunkered down, the day’s weight pressing heavy on our shoulders, I knew clear as day what my job was now. Protect Eliza, dig out the truth, and maybe, just maybe, find a way to let her into the most secretive parts of my history without scaring her off.
The night stretched on. The silence swelling between us, thick with all the words we ain’t yet said. Finally, I broke it, knowing damn well if I wanted to keep Eliza’s trust, I had to spill about the parts of me I’d kept under wraps.
“Eliza,” I started, my voice gravelly with the weight of what I was about to unload. “There are parts of my past, of who I was… who I had to be, that you might not get. Things that might not sit right with you. That might scare you off yet.”
She looked at me, steady but cautious, signaling me to go on.
“In my time as an outlaw biker, I’ve done things… things necessary to stand by my brothers, to keep our way of life secure. I’ve thrown punches, gone toe-to-toe with rival gangs… even played some dirty to keep us on top. It wasn’t always pretty, and damn sure it wasn’t always within the law.”
Her eyes stayed locked on mine, taking in every word, weighing them against the man she’d come to know.
“I had no choice, Eliza,” I continued, shaking my head. “It was all about survival, about keeping the people I love safe. Anything shady I do now, it’s for the club. They’re my family.” I took a deep breath, letting the truth of it settle. “But you and Emma, you’re becoming part of that circle I protect. You need to know all this.”
Eliza was quiet for a long stretch, her face a mask I couldn’t read. Then, softly, she asked, “Knox, is there more? More that could come back to bite you… or us?” She touched her shoulder. “And why the hell did you bite me last night?”
I hesitated, caught between wanting the relief of laying it all bare and the fear of telling too much.
“There’s always more to any story, Eliza. Stuff I can’t share. But I swear, nothing that’s a threat to what I feel for you, or what I’d do to keep you and Emma safe. As for marking you, biting you like I did…” I struggled to find the right words. “The club, we do it as a sign, to let everyone know to stay away from what’s ours. Believe me, I didn’t want to hurt you, especially after what you’ve been through, but I follow our code.”
She nodded slowly, processing my words, the depth of my loyalty to those I care about clear as day. Yet, as I watched her, I could see the war raging inside her, the battle between understanding and fear.
“Next time you’re at the club, you need to show off that mark. It means something in my world. And I don’t want you goin’ home tonight,” slipped out before I could think twice. The idea of her alone, maybe in the crosshairs ‘cause of her ties to me, clenching my gut tight.
“I gotta pick up Emma,” she shot back, all practical like, but I could catch the hesitation in her tone too.
“Then bring her here. Stay with me ‘til we catch this bastard. It’s safer for you both,” I pushed, my worry for their safety takin’ the driver’s seat.
Eliza gnawed on her lip, thinkin’ it over. “I’m scared, Knox. Not just of this killer, but what folks’ll say, you know? With all the mess around Mark…”
Reaching out, I wrapped her hands in mine, tryin’ to anchor her. “Let ‘em talk, Eliza. I don’t give a fuck. We know the real score between us. I’ll keep you both safe—you got my word on that. Right now, it’s ‘bout keepin’ you and Emma outta harm’s way. Fuck everything else.”
She eyed me, all kinds of worries playin’ across her face before settling into a kind of determined calm. “Okay, Knox. We’ll stay… for now.” Her voice held steady, but her eyes were heavy with unspoken fears, the weight of all we didn’t know yet.
Hearing her agree, a wave of relief hit hard. A need to protect her washed over me, stronger than ever before. Eliza and Emma, they were my main concern now. I’d do whatever it took to shield them, to keep the shadows of my past from ever dimming the light they brought into my life.