I shook my head, saying nothing more as I looked at the hall Jackson disappeared down.
“Hey,” Grace whispered, reaching across the bar to touch my hand. When I turned around, she smiled. “It’s going to be okay. King won’t hurt his little brother.”
Nav chuckled and then said, “I’m more worried about King,” as Eros and Indigo both nodded silently. “I mean, you don’t know Ravage like we do.”
Grace narrowed her eyes and then smiled brightly. “Good. I wish Ravage would knock some sense into that asshole’s thick, stubborn, infuriating head.”
“Uh.” Eros stiffened. “You may not want to wish for that.”
“Oh, I wish for that and a lot more.” Grace laughed as she placed beers in front of the men, then slid a pink drink toward me. Leaning against the bar, she winked. “It’s a strawberry daiquiri. It’s sweet, with very little rum in it. You will want to sip it as you’ve never had alcohol before. If you like that one, there are others. I can make them with any fruit you like.”
“Thank you,” I said as I eyed the glass, swirling the pink liquid with my straw, uncertain. Everyone’s attention was on me, expectant. Slowly, I brought it to my lips and took a careful sip. The sweetness exploded on my tongue, chased by a subtle warmth I guessed was the rum.
I grinned, feeling a flutter of bravado. “Not bad,” I admitted, setting the glass down. The group relaxed, laughter bubbling up as Grace offered to make a round for anyone who wanted to join me in trying something new. For a moment, the tension in the room faded, replaced by friendship and the possibility of fresh beginnings.
Chapter Fourteen
Ravage
King was jabbering on like a magpie about something I didn’t give two shits about as we walked out of his office. All I cared about was seeing Karlyn. I needed to make sure she was okay, and being in this clubhouse wouldn’t make that easy. Bad enough King had dropped the‘we’re brothers’bomb, but knowing how the women were in this club, I knew getting Karlyn away from them would be damn near impossible.
There was just something about the Silver Shadows’ old ladies that once they accepted you, I knew they would never let you go. Don’t get me wrong, I had mad respect for any old lady who had the balls to live this life and stand up for what they believed in, but Karlyn was different.
She wasn’t Silver Shadows.
She was Golden and, more importantly, she was mine.
Mine to love.
Mine to protect.
“Are you even listening to me?”
I blinked, realizing King had been talking the whole walk down the hallway. His words washed over me, but none of it landed. My mind spun with images of Karlyn—her small, stubborn chin, the way her fingers fidgeted when she was nervous, the softness in her eyes that she tried to hide behind a tough veneer. I could feel the pulse of worry under my skin, making my steps faster as I headed for the rec room where I’dlast seen her. If anyone laid a finger on her, I’d tear this place apart.
It didn’t matter that I was under King’s roof, or that his rules supposedly kept the peace—I’d burn every bridge and every patch if it meant keeping her safe.
Looking around the large room, I saw Nav motion for me. Frowning, I nodded quickly before turning to King and saying, “Fuck no. When you have something important to say, then I’ll listen.” Then I walked away, ignoring his curses as I followed Nav down another hallway. Entering another room, I spotted Eros and Indigo as the door closed behind me.
“Where’s Karlyn?”
“Brandy and Grace took her upstairs to shower and rest. Brandy said she’d stay with her until you got there,” Nav explained, walking around his desk and taking a seat.
“Why all the cloak-and-dagger shit? Did something happen?” I asked, looking around the room as Eros and Indigo both shrugged. When neither man uttered a word, I turned to Nav, who was typing on his computer before he turned the screen toward me.
“Do you recognize this man?”
Taking a good look at the old, weathered face staring back at me, I shook my head. “No. Should I?”
Nav sighed, leaning back in his chair. “His name is Zephyr. He’s the soon-to-be-dead fuck who killed my mother. He’s also the stupid motherfucker who outed Firestride to the Brotherhood and informed the underworld who you were but, more importantly, he was the fucker who spied on Morpheus and facilitated your extraction from your birth mother.”
Taking a seat, I groaned. “So King was right.”
“Yeah.” Nav nodded. “About everything.”
“Where is he?”
“We don’t know. When Morpheus learned Zephyr was responsible for everything, he locked him down in the icebox. From what Cerberus told me, the Brotherhood had been working him over good.”
