Thirteen #2
Gabriella says something else to him—quieter this time—and he finally slides the second piece back into its holster.
No safety click this time. Smart. He’s ready to draw again if he needs to.
I clock that and tuck it away. I ain’t gonna pop off—not here, not now—but this kid’s name just went on the list.
He steps up to Heather like he doesn’t give a fuck whose woman she is.
Looks down at her like she’s nothing but garbage under his boot and growls, “ Puttana .” He chuckles lowly.
“Family, my father, none of it matters—I’ll put a bullet in you and sleep like a baby.
You’re a fucking whore. You know it. We know it.
You might fool them, but you’ll never fool us.
” His voice doesn’t rise. It gets colder, meaner, and deadlier.
“Speak to my mamma like that again, and we’ll see how pretty your brains look on the wall.” He smirks, the kind that dares her to test him. “She didn’t fuck you up seventeen years ago. Don’t think she won’t now. Watch your fuckin’ mouth.”
He steps back, still mugging her, eyes full of disgust, as he takes his place behind Gabriella.
Still watching. Still dangerous. And for the first time, Heather looks shook.
Wide-eyed, gaping, quiet. It hits her. Gabriella didn’t just keep Talon’s kids from him.
She has sons. Two of them. Something Heather’s wanted since forever.
Something she’s never had. And now, the woman she’s apparently “took” Talon from just one-upped her without even trying.
Heather pulls herself together, puts that cold mask back on. But her eyes—those are wild with jealousy and rage. She’s glaring at Gabriella like she wants to rip her apart with her bare hands.
Heather might be a lot of things—a pain in my ass included—but she’s not soft. She’s prideful, spiteful, and territorial as hell. And this? Finding out Talon’s ex not only had his kids but sons ? That kind of thing can break a woman like her in ways a bullet never could.
And if I know Heather, she ain’t going to break quietly.
As she moves to step around me, I block her path. I smirk at her boldness, ready to go toe-to-toe with Gabriella and her gun-wielding son. But I can't let her spiral. I pull her into me and lower my eyes to hers, sending her a silent message. I got this.
Gabriella’s voice pulls my attention back.
“I apologize for my son, Sebastian. He is very protective of me and does not take disrespect lightly. Especially when it comes from someone connected to your club.” Her gaze cuts to Heather, though she never actually looks at her.
“Particularly the woman who is the reason he didn’t grow up with his father. ”
She looks at her son. Then to me. Calm. Unbothered. Unshaken.
The room is tense, thick with unspoken questions.
Officers, elite members, my parents, Nitro, Luna, and Heather all stand silent, still processing the scene.
Only my mother and Luna seem truly shocked.
My ma's eyes meet mine, and I see the disappointment.
Her expression tightens, and I know she caught what I said earlier about Gabriella and her boy not being family.
My mother believes in blood. In loyalty. In protecting your own. And I spit in the face of all of that. Yeah, I’ll be hearing about that later.
Gabriella continues, her voice sharp and dry. “We came here even though we’re not considered family. After I was physically assaulted —” she pauses, her hand lightly brushing her neck, her glare trained on me “—because my skull was apparently a good substitute for a sledgehammer.”
The room stills. She rolls her eyes like the dramatics bore her.
“My family insisted I stay overnight. But I felt it more important to figure out what really happened to Talon. My resources are vast. My network moves faster than your club. Armand is out gathering intel now. Because this…” She looks around the room. “…this is what I do. ”
She finishes, eyes slicing through the space. Controlled. Poised. Calculated.
Then Heather snaps.
“What intel?” she barks. “You, me, and everyone here know it was you . Bitter bitch. You did this to Talon. My husband. Because he didn’t want you.”
Gabriella doesn’t flinch. Doesn’t look her way. Just lifts her eyes to me, then to my father.
“Brick,” she says, calm as ever, “you’re free to believe whatever version of the truth helps you sleep.
But you have bigger problems than a woman nursing a broken heart.
I hold no grudge against Talon. I don’t like him, but I buried my hurt so my kids would know their father.
” Her words are flat, her eyes hollow. My father studies her, his jaw ticking.
I can tell he’s processing. And maybe— maybe —he’s starting to believe her.
“If it's alright,” Gabriella says, her voice lowering, “I’d like to show you something. But it would be best if fewer eyes were present. Things are about to get complicated.”
Her eyes, for the first time, land on Heather. Linger. Then flick back to my father. Then to my mother. Then back to my father again.
I don’t like that shit.
“Whatever you got to say, you can say in front of my family,” I snap. “If you think you’re running this show, bitch, you got another thing coming.”
Gabriella stares at me for a long beat. Silent. Calm.
Then she shrugs. “Very well. You have more than one rat.”
She barely gets the words out before my father bellows, “EVERYBODY OUT! Immediate family stays!”
His voice echoes off the walls. I know this move. It ain’t just about secrecy—it’s about protection. We haven’t had time to identify the traitor, if there is one, and he’s not taking chances. If keeping my ma, Luna, and even Heather close means they’re safe, so be it. He’s never led us wrong.
“Sebastian ,” Gabriella says something to him in Italian and its pissing me off.
Sebastian pulls a device from his back and starts waving it around the room like we’re in a spy movie.
“They’re not armed,” I mutter, annoyed.
The other kid—the quiet one behind the laptop—speaks without looking up. “That’s not what he’s checking. Chill, bro.”
I snap my head toward him. “I ain’t your bro , boy. You better watch how the fuck you speak to me.”
He stiffens. Gabriella says something in Italian, and he returns to typing.
Still tense, like he’s ready to lunge at the first wrong move.
Once the room’s cleared, Sebastian finishes his sweep.
He checks my parents, brother, and niece…
then walks over to me. I hold his stare. He ignores it and waves the device.
Then he steps up to Heather.
The scanner lights up and emits a faint sound. Heather stiffens.
He turns to Gabriella. They share another silent conversation.
It’s starting to grate on me—this telepathic shit they keep doing.
Gabriella shakes her head. Sebastian’s jaw ticks, but he backs off.
Puts the device away, pulls the gun from his waistband, and keeps it at his side.
He throws a glare at Heather. Then at me.
Nephew or not, I’ll knock his little disrespectful ass flat if he keeps testing me.
Gabriella walks toward us. Nitro moves in, just a fraction, eyes locked on Sebastian.
“My son was scanning for transmissions,” she says, voice crisp. “Everyone was cleared—except one.” She looks at Heather. So do I.
My father stiffens beside me.
But I’m not ready to take this woman’s word as gospel.
For all I know, she and that boy rigged the whole damn thing.
Make it look like Heather’s the mole. Create doubt.
Stir chaos. It's too convenient. Gabriella shows up, talking about nearly a million in product missing, Talon gets hospitalized, and now Heather ’s the problem.
Fuck no. I don’t trust it.
“So as I was saying,” Gabriella continues smoothly, “you have more than one rat. Some knowingly... others maybe not.”
I glare. “And what the fuck does that have to do with—spit it out. We’re sitting in a goddamn hospital waiting room while my brother, our Prez, is in surgery. I’m about done with the riddles, with them —” I point to the boys “—and with you. ”
She just stares at me again.
Another damn staring contest.