30. Reed #2
The parking lot seems to freeze at the shared knowledge of Theo and Dom’s feelings. Everyone here seems to understand that, except Bailey herself. Yet the way Theo looks at her now makes it impossible to miss—like she’s something precious and worth protecting.
Liam notices too, and his face twists into a cruel sneer. “Oh, now I get it.”
Theo’s expression hardens. “Don’t.”
“This is about them, isn’t it?” Liam points aggressively at the duo. “You’ve got two attack dogs following you around, telling you how amazing you are every second of the day.”
Dom flicks his cigarette onto the pavement. “Careful.”
Liam ignores him as he continues on his rant. “You know what’s funny?” he says to Bailey. “The second you got power, suddenly these guys couldn’t stay away from you.”
Bailey flinches hard, and everyone notices the tight coil in her shoulders. Thalia’s hands tighten into fists as her jaw grinds with fury. And whatever restraint either man had been clinging to starts evaporating.
“That’s enough,” Dom barks.
“No, let him finish,” Theo replies coldly.
Liam smirks. “You think they love you because you’re special?”
Bailey’s face pales as she mutters quietly. “What?”
“They love the title.” Liam finishes with a smug expression.
Theo moves so fast nobody sees it. One second he’s standing beside Dom and the next his fist is buried in Liam’s shirt. “Say that again,” he hisses.
Liam’s eyes widen as his hand shoots to Theo’s wrist.
The blonde assassin’s voice is deadly quiet. “Say one more thing about her.”
The entire parking lot falls silent at the intense scene. No one makes a move out of fear of setting Theo off, but his hands are shaking with fury as they tighten on the civilian before him.
Liam laughs nervously. “Are you proving my point right now?”
“No,” Theo steps closer. “I’m proving that I watched her carry everyone else’s weight. I watched her save people who never thanked her. I watched her nearly die.” His voice cracks on the last word as if it’s painful for him to force out. “And I watched her crawl back to her feet every single time.”
Bailey stops breathing as Theo’s eyes find hers for half a second. The look in them is devastating.
“So don’t stand there pretending you know her,” Theo whispers.
Liam’s confidence begins to crumble as his hands fall to his sides. Dom steps beside his friend in silent, strong agreement. They’re united on the blonde’s stance, and it’s terrifying in its intensity.
“You want to know what pisses me off?” Dom asks.
Liam stays silent.
Dom points at Bailey. “She became the head of the South Branch because nobody else could do it.”
Bailey shakes her head as her lips wobble with unshed tears.“Dom—”
“No,” his gaze never leaves Liam as he continues. “She took over when everyone else was too scared; she rebuilt entire operations; she kept hundreds of people alive, and instead of being proud of her, you spend every day trying to make her feel guilty.”
Liam looks between them, then at Bailey as if she’s going to help him. “You seriously believe this?”
She doesn’t answer because the tears gathering in her eyes say enough.
Theo notices them first, and his entire expression changes. He softens for her. “Bailey.”
She immediately looks away, overwhelmed by what’s happening.
Theo’s voice drifts toward her. “You don’t deserve this.”
Liam scoffs. “Oh, spare me.”
Theo whirls. “No. You don’t get to talk anymore.”
“Oh, I have plenty to say,” Liam sneers as he shoves the blonde away. “Bailey, when you’re done living this stupid fantasy, you know where to find me. In our home. That we built together.”
The South branch leader sniffs. “I’m so tired.”
“Then be tired with me,” her fiancé exclaims as he places a hand over his chest. “Come home.”
She shakes her head with a scoff. “You still don’t get it. You would be waking up beside a corpse, Liam.”
He throws his hands up in defeat as he turns toward the parking lot. “Whatever. Keep playing these games.”
Bailey stares down at the gravel, a single tear rolling down her cheek. “I was always truthful with you. You knew from the very beginning this was my life.”
“Yeah,” Liam grumbles as he stomps towards his car. “I was okay with it because I never thought you would actually choose it.”
Silence blankets us thickly as he gets in his vehicle and leaves. As his red taillights disappear off the compound grounds, Bailey sucks in a ragged breath, wiping the tears away from her eyes.
“Bailey—” Thalia calls softly, the suspicious woman from earlier long forgotten as our chests ache for the South branch leader.
The blonde woman holds up a hand as she tucks her head. “I-I need a moment.”
Dom reaches for her, but she steps away, creating distance. Thalia’s face falls at the tears streaming down Bailey’s cheeks.
“Come to my house,” Thalia offers. “We can get drunk with the girls and talk.”
Bailey sucks in a ragged breath, turning to look at us. “I think I would like that right now…”
I place a hand on the small of Thalia’s back as I smile fondly at her. “Good idea.”
“Will you be okay hanging back with the guys?” She asks sheepishly.
“Of course,” I snort. “Atlas and I are practically best friends.”
That brings some of the joy back to her expression as she dips into the bar to retrieve the others. Meanwhile, I glance around to see if I can find the person I came looking for, but I’m more than certain they’re long gone.
It probably wasn’t even important to begin with.
A rough hand slaps my back, jolting me forward and knocking the wind from my lungs as Atlas wraps an arm around my shoulders and shakes me. “We have plans tonight!”
“We do?” I ask as I glance at Connor and Rowan. They shrug.
Oh, fuck me.