Nineteen #3
Her eyes lock on mine—hard, cold, but beautiful in a way that hits somewhere deep. Too deep. For a second, I’m back in a memory—those same eyes looking at me like I was everything. Back when I thought we had time. When I thought I could figure my shit out without losing her.
I shake it off.
“Recently,” she says, “we discovered our children were added to the hit.”
Silence hits the room like a sledgehammer.
“That happened after we came here. After you were shot. Which means someone in or around this club is feeding them information.”
She’s staring at me now like she’s trying to tell me something without saying it out loud. Her voice has a new edge. Not fear— fury .
My brothers lose it again, chairs scraping, voices overlapping. I let them vent for a second before slamming the gavel down hard.
“Enough. Let her finish.”
They shut up—grudgingly—but they listen.
Gabriella takes a breath and shifts her focus back to the group.
“Satan’s Keepers failed in their task. The club being prepared for almost anything made it worse for them. And with the club on lockdown and you in the hospital, they couldn’t get to any of you or the children.”
She pauses, glancing at my Pop. He nods, giving her the floor.
“The Salvatores knew the window was closing. So they decided to get their hands dirty themselves,” she says, her voice low but deadly.
And for a moment, just one, I see her—t he woman who once loved me, the woman who bore my sons, the woman who would burn the world to keep them safe.
And I realize—this isn’t just business for her anymore.
This is war.
“My team and I set a few breadcrumbs to lure Sergio and Gianni here. One thing about men in power is that they are all about their egos, and when they are bruised, they tend to be stupid, irrational, and lash out.” Gabriella says, voice steady, eyes slide from me to Axel and then back to me.
I don’t try to decipher whatever the hell that was.
I nod for her to continue, ignoring how Axel is mugging her.
“We knew Sergio—being the obsessive control freak that he is—wouldn't stay away once he thought vengeance was within reach. It didn’t take much to draw them out. Our goal was simple. Eliminate the threat to your mother and your club. It was time.”
She pauses, her tone hardening. “If I’m being honest, I was tired of watching your backs from the shadows.
Fortunately, given their past betrayals and the disrespect they have shown for our ways, there won’t be any backlash.
My brother has installed someone to take over their outfit.
And with the backing of other Dons, there won’t be blowback for your club—or mine. ”
Then she shifts gears. “As for Demon and the Satan’s Keepers…”
She turns to look at Pop. He gives her a quiet nod before rising from his seat and walking toward me.
What the hell is going on?
“Pop?” My voice is sharp. “What about the Keepers and Demon? What don’t I know about that slimy son of a bitch?”
He doesn’t answer. Instead, he nods to Axel and Nitro. They get up too, flanking me like I’m about to lose it—and they know it. The realization hits fast and hot. I knew my brothers had been hiding something. And now it’s clear—they fucking were.
Pop puts a heavy hand on my shoulder. “Listen to what she has to say, son. Don’t fly off the handle.
” His voice is low but firm. “She’s about to tell you something that’s gonna piss you off.
But it’s the truth. Hound’s verified everything.
He and your brothers dug into it while you were down.
I forbade them from saying anything until you were home and strong enough to handle it. ”
I glare at Hound. He nods once. No shame. Just confirmation.
I let out a long breath and leaned deeper into my chair. The tension’s coiling tighter around my spine. “Alright. Say it. Let’s hear whatever bullshit is supposed to make me lose my shit.”
But it’s Gabriella who answers.
“Demon’s real name is Dustin McCormick,” she says. Her tone is quiet. Steady. Like she knows that moment is a live wire ready to snap. “He was married to Donna McCormick. They had two children—David and Heather McCormick-Masterson.”
She doesn’t blink. Doesn’t look away, and for a beat, I don’t move. It doesn’t register—until it does . No. No fucking way. My whole body goes rigid. Heat floods my chest. My heart’s thundering in my ears. There’s no way. Absolutely the fuck not.
Heather?
She wouldn’t do that. She couldn’t. We might not have a love story, but I’ve been good to her. I take care of her. I take care of our daughter. Why the fuck would she betray me? I feel myself shaking. Rage tightening around every nerve.
“No. No fucking—no. There’s no way. I would’ve known.” I push up from my chair, but Axel and Nitro shove me back down. I growl, eyes locked on Gabriella.
“We vetted her. We did a full fucking background check! Hound fucking tell her. You’re the one that fucking did it.” My voice booms as I stare over to him, his eyes are steady on mine, and I see the truth I refuse to accept. No! My attention turns back to her .
“You’re a goddamn lying bitch.”
The room is dead silent. Tension razor-sharp.
I laugh. It’s hollow. Disbelieving.
“This is your play?” I sneer. “You spin this shit to get back in my family’s good graces?
And what—I’m supposed to fall at your feet?
Be grateful?” I glare at her, fury pulsing in every word.
“You manipulate my Pop, my club, and think we’ll just let it happen?
You’re pathetic. You’re just pissed I chose her over you. ”
And then—her silence. Her calm.
It only makes it worse.
“What the actual fuck is this?” I growl.
Pop sighs, running a hand over his face. His voice is low and full of disappointment.
“Christ, kid. Sometimes I fucking wonder.”