Chapter 7 — Isla #2
"Probably." His hands are tight on the steering wheel. "But they didn't get the chance."
"Because you got there in time."
"Yeah."
I look at his profile in the passing streetlights. His jaw is set, his eyes on the road, but I can see the tension in his shoulders. "How'd you know to come back?"
"Cain got intel that Marrow was splitting up. Most went to the location we were watching but two broke off heading toward Bloomfield. I put it together." He glances at me briefly. "I broke every traffic law between the clubhouse and your place."
"Thank you."
"Don't thank me. This is my fault. I brought you to church, made you visible, made you a target. Should've kept you separate."
"Chuck—"
"We'll talk about it later. Right now I just need to get you somewhere safe."
The clubhouse appears out of the darkness and there are more bikes out front than I've seen before. Every light in the building is on. We park and Chuck comes around to help me out of the truck. My legs are shaking and he steadies me with a hand on my elbow.
Inside everyone stops and looks. I see Clint, Cain, Roan, Holt, Diesel, Knox. All the brothers from church this morning. And all their women too. Sydney, Natalie, Anna, Katherine, Carina, Sienna, Francis.
Katherine reaches me first. "Oh honey." She sees my face and her expression goes soft with concern. "Come here."
She puts an arm around my shoulders and guides me toward the bar area where the other women are gathering. Sydney's already pulling out a first aid kit. Natalie has ice wrapped in a towel.
"Let's get you cleaned up," Sydney says gently.
I sit on a stool and let them tend to me like I'm a child. Sydney cleans the blood off my face with soft hands. Natalie holds ice to my cheek where it's already swelling. Katherine sits next to me and doesn't say anything, just stays close.
Across the room the brothers are gathered around Clint in some kind of emergency meeting. I can hear pieces. "Two down." "Both Marrow." "They were there for her specifically."
Chuck is in the middle of it, gesturing, his voice too low for me to catch words. But I see his face and the tension in his whole body.
"He feels responsible," Anna says quietly. She's sitting on my other side, her dark eyes knowing. "But this isn't his fault. Marrow would've targeted someone eventually. You just happened to be visible."
"They knew where I lived. They knew my name."
"That's what they do. They watch, they wait, they strike when they think we're vulnerable." She pauses. "But they miscalculated. They didn't account for Chuck getting back in time."
Sydney finishes cleaning the cut on my lip and examines it. "You'll be fine. It's not deep. Just splits that bleed a lot. Keep ice on it tonight."
"Thank you."
"That's what we do." She squeezes my shoulder. "You're Vigil family now. We take care of our own."
Family. The word sits heavy.
The brothers' meeting breaks up and Chuck comes over immediately. He crouches in front of me so we're eye level and his hands rest on my knees.
"How you doing?" His voice is softer than I've heard it.
"I'm okay. Scared. But okay."
"Good. That's good." He looks at Sydney. "Thank you."
"Of course."
The women drift away to give us space and Chuck stays crouched in front of me, his eyes searching my face. "Clint wants to talk to you. If you're up for it."
"What about?"
"About what happened. About what comes next." He pauses. "You can say no if you're not ready."
I look across the room to where Clint is standing. He meets my eyes and nods once. Not demanding, just offering.
"Okay. I can talk."
Chuck helps me up and we walk over together. Clint gestures to his office and we follow him in. Inside it's just the three of us. Clint leans against his desk and looks at me steady.
"First, I'm glad you're okay," he says. "Second, I'm sorry this happened. Chuck brought you into this world and Marrow saw an opportunity to exploit that. That's on us for not anticipating it."
"Chuck said it's not his fault."
"It's not. But it's still our responsibility to protect family, and we failed at that tonight." He pauses. "Now I need to know what you want to do. You're supposed to leave for Millbrook tomorrow. You still planning on going?"
The question catches me off guard. "I... don't know."
"If you go, Marrow might follow. If you stay, you're still a target here. Either way there's risk." Clint's voice is matter-of-fact. "What I can promise is if you stay in Bloomfield, we'll protect you. Full club resources. But I need to know what you want."
I look at Chuck and he's watching me with an expression I can't read.
"Can I think about it?"
"Yeah. But not too long. Sun comes up in six hours and we're riding out at dawn." Clint looks at Chuck. "Crane's location is confirmed. We're ending this tonight. Taking everyone who can ride."
My stomach drops. "You're going after him."
"We don't have a choice. He came after our family. That's a line you don't cross." Clint's eyes are hard. "So you need to decide before dawn whether you're leaving or staying, because either way Chuck's riding out and you'll be on your own for a few hours."
"Unless I stay here at the clubhouse," I say.
"If you want. Women can stay here where it's secure. Or you can lock yourself in at Chuck's place. Either works."
I process that. Chuck leaving at dawn to hunt the man who sent people to hurt me. Going into danger. Maybe not coming back.
"Okay," I say. "I'll decide before dawn."
"Fair enough." Clint looks at Chuck. "Get her settled. Meeting in two hours to go over approach."
We leave the office and Chuck guides me to a back room with a bed and a door that locks. My suitcases are already there. He must have brought them in while the women were cleaning my face.
"You should try to sleep," he says.
"I won't be able to."
"Try anyway." He pulls me close and I wrap my arms around his waist, press my face against his chest, feel his heart beating steady. "I'm sorry, Isla. I'm so fucking sorry."
"You saved me."
"I almost didn't get there in time."
"But you did." I lift my head to look at him. "You got there and you stopped them. That's what matters."