Chapter 16 Reaper
Reaper
I’d seen Link tail Lucy out the clubhouse; casual, like he was just keeping her company.
But I knew better. I knew the way he looked at her, the way his smile lingered too long.
My jaw clenched as I pushed up from my chair.
I told myself I was only going to warn him off, remind him she wasn’t his to guard, but there was something deeper inside.
Something that caused anger to wind around my chest like a rope, pulling tighter with each breath.
Then I stepped outside, saw the Fangs peel out of the shadows, and everything inside me went red.
“Enough!” Riot’s voice cracked across the lot.
“You tell her yet? That you put her brother in the ground?” the Fang snarled at me.
I had him pinned against the fence, chain links groaning under his weight.
My fist itched for another swing, one more crack to shut him up, but Riot’s shout bled through the haze.
Not a command but a reminder. The brothers were watching.
The Fangs were watching. A President didn’t lose control in the yard like some prospect looking to prove his worth.
I shoved the bastard back and turned straight to her.
Before I could stop myself, my hand closed around Lucy’s arm.
I pulled her in, rough, needing proof she was real, needing the fire in her eyes to burn hotter than the fury still clawing through me.
For a second, all I could feel was the heat of her skin under my palm and the dangerous thought that maybe she was the only thing that could steady me.
It wasn’t protection, not really. It was possession. Instinct. Mine.
Her glare pierced the dark, and I held it until I felt Riot’s stare on my back. Not his order, just the weight of him, waiting to see what I’d do.
The Fangs backed off, muttering something about “Dead Knights hiding behind club pets.” Link bristled, but I kept a hand locked on Lucy’s wrist until they were gone. Only then did I let go.
She yanked herself back, storm-grey eyes blazing. “I didn’t need you to play hero.”
“You’re welcome anyway,” I growled.
Link stepped in, jaw tight. “She was with me. I had it handled.”
I turned that glare on him. “If you had it handled, the Fangs wouldn’t have gotten within ten feet.”
His nostrils flared, but he didn’t back down. Good. At least he had some spine.
“Stop. Just stop.” Her voice was quiet, tight. “I’ve heard enough. Gabby... she didn’t make any of it up, did she? You didn’t want Caleb back. You didn’t fight hard enough, did you? You voted no, and then you...you let me believe something else.”
She stepped closer. “I want the truth, Jay. All of it. Not the neat version you hope will make me feel better. The messy, ugly truth. Caleb’s vote. Your call. What really happened. Now.”
“Link, can you give us a moment?”
He looked between me and Lucy, waiting for her to nod before he moved. I growled, happy to see a falter in his step as he walked to her car and leaned against it. Fucker would pay for that later, but a part of me was proud that he was looking out for her.
Lucy stared at me, jaw tight, bracing like she was waiting for me to swing. I scrubbed a hand through my hair because whatever I said next wasn’t going to land soft.
“Look... about Caleb,” I started. “What Gabby told you... she’s right about the vote.”
Her eyes narrowed to slits. “You mean you stood there, looked him in the eye, and let them shut him out?”
I clenched my teeth. “I didn’t let shit happen. I called the vote. The brothers made their choice.”
Her arms crossed over her chest. “Don’t feed me that. Gabby said you voted against him. You. His best friend.”
That landed, and she knew it. My jaw locked so tight it hurt.
“I did what I had to do,” I ground out. “He wasn’t ready. Walking back in half-cocked? He’d have ended up dead quicker than he did.”
Lucy barked a harsh laugh. “Guess that worked out great, huh? He’s still dead, only he got to die knowing you turned your back on him.”
I stepped in, fury burning under my skin.
“Don’t you put that on me. You think I didn’t want him back?
You think I didn’t bleed to keep him alive when no one else gave a damn?
You weren’t here, Lucy. You walked. You don’t get to judge what it takes to keep this patch and live long enough to see another sunrise. ”
Her eyes flashed. “I don’t need to wear your patch to know betrayal when I see it. You let him down, Jay, and now you’re trying to dress it up as protection.”
I shoved a hand through my hair. “Christ, you think this is easy? You think I haven’t replayed that vote a thousand fucking times in my head? He was my brother, too. I buried him the same as you.” My throat closed up, and I shut my eyes against the tears that were threatening to fall.
Her voice dropped, sharp as glass. “Difference is, I never had a choice.”
I opened my eyes and swallowed hard, but the words came out rough anyway. “I made the call I thought would keep him alive. Doesn’t mean I don’t hate myself for it.”
She stared at me, lips pressed thin, fury shaking in her hands. Then she spun, her boots tearing up gravel as she stormed to her car and didn’t look back once.
I stayed rooted, chest burning, as I watched her drive off with a hole in my ribs ripping wider with every mile between us.
“Link, send a prospect to watch her, yeah?”
“Yes, Pres. I’ll send Finn,” he replied, but I could see the defiance in his eyes. He wanted to be the one to take her home.
I stood in the parking lot a little longer, taking deep breaths to try to steady my racing heart.
Needing to gather my thoughts and lower my temper, I gazed at the lot.
The brothers’ bikes were lined up, chrome glinting under the floodlights.
Each one carried its rider’s scars, dented fenders, and patched seats, but every gas tank bore the same skull-and-sickle emblem.
A Dead Knight’s bike wasn’t only metal, it was a warning.
By the time I stalked down the back hallway, I was still raging.
That’s when Gabby stepped out from one of the side rooms, blocking my path like she’d been waiting.
“You’ve been hard to pin down lately,” she said, folding her arms under her chest. “Not like before.”
I kept walking, forcing her to fall into step beside me. “Been busy.”
Her tone turned sweet, but the look in her eyes wasn’t. “Guess you’re too busy to come to bed when I ask. Never used to turn me down.”
I stopped long enough to meet her gaze. “Yeah. Things change.”
She tilted her head, smile sharp. “Must be because of Lucy.”
The way she said it—like Lucy’s name was something sour on her tongue—had my jaw tightening before I could stop it. I didn’t give Gabby the satisfaction of a reply. I kept walking, leaving her smile hanging in the empty hallway.
I paced back and forth in the dimly lit office of the clubhouse, the scent of spilled beer and engine oil thick in the air.
My mind was tangled with threads I couldn’t quite follow—Lucy’s arrival, the missing shipment, the money that should’ve been there.
.. and the fact that one of our own might be playing both sides.
Then there was the Fangs, sniffing around our gates tonight like wolves. Bold. Too bold. Either someone inside fed them the info that Lucy was there, or they were watching closer than I thought. Both possibilities stank.
But what clawed under my skin wasn’t just the Fangs—it was Lucy.
The image of her standing in the gravel lot with Link at her side wouldn’t shake loose. Link had squared up when the Fangs came at her. He hadn’t run, hadn’t folded. I’d almost respected him for it. Almost.
But when I saw her there, her eyes flashing, chin high, letting him hover too close, it burned in a way I couldn’t name. She wasn’t his. Hell, she wasn’t mine either. I didn’t even want her. Except my body still hadn’t got the message.
I raked a hand through my hair, trying to shake it off, but all I could see was the way she’d yanked her wrist out of my grip, eyes daring me to try to claim her again.
Christ, help me, I wanted to.
“Boxer, Riot,” I barked as the two men walked into the room, their faces grim. “We’ve got a problem.”
Boxer’s heavy boots hit the floor, his eyes scanning the space before settling on me. “You don’t have to tell me twice. The kid’s a mess. You want him patched up, or are we taking care of this now?”
I shook my head, frustration creeping in. “Take his patch and kick him. But something else first. The shipment’s gone... and the money. Don’t tell me it’s a coincidence that we’re getting visits from the Fangs, and now this.”
Riot crossed his arms, leaning against the wall, his brow furrowed. “You think someone’s ratting us out?”
My gaze locked onto Riot, the silent question hanging between us. Riot knew better than anyone that there was no room for mistakes in this game. A rat in the ranks was a death sentence.
“Could be,” I muttered, more to myself than anyone else. “But it’s not only about the shipment. It’s bigger than that. Someone knows something they shouldn’t, and we need to find out who before this turns into a goddamn war.”
Riot grunted, his fingers tightening around the handle of his gun. “I’ll make a list of who’s been acting weird. Maybe someone’s slipped up.”
I turned to Boxer, who was always the most level-headed of the group. “Box, I need you to set up a church meeting for tomorrow. We need the whole club here. All hands on deck.”
The big man nodded, his jaw tight. “I’ll get it ready.”
I nodded, watched them leave, then I leaned back against the table, hands pressed to my face. I could feel the weight of it all. Lucy’s presence complicated things more than I’d thought. She wasn’t only someone’s sister—she was Caleb’s sister. That meant something, to me at least.
Her running around with the club had me wound tighter than a spring. It wasn’t just the danger she was in that bothered me. It was the way she had looked at me earlier that day, the way she looked through me. She wanted answers, and I wasn’t sure I could give her any that would make sense.
Still, I couldn’t shake the feeling that keeping her close was the only way to protect her. She was already in it, and it was too late to pull her out.