The silence that follows has weight. This is the nuclear option. The thing you don't come back from.
"On what grounds?" Tommy asks, though we all know.
"On the grounds that he's compromised. Absent. Choosing personal life over club responsibilities." Ghost counts off on his fingers like he's been rehearsing this. "He's been at the hospital for two days while club business stacks up. He's in a relationship with Miguel Cruz's sister—the sister of a high-ranking Coyote Fangs lieutenant. Our enemy. He has a child with her. That child is a direct blood connection to our rivals. And he's putting all of us at risk for it."
"You done?" I ask, keeping my voice level.
"For now."
I stand. Every eye in the room tracks me. This is it—the moment that determines everything.
"Let me address these concerns," I begin, voice deadly calm. "Yes, I've been at the hospital. Because my son was born two days ago. My son. Any of you with kids want to tell me you didn't take time when they were born?"
Blade speaks up immediately. "I took three days."
"I took a week," Colt adds.
Rope nods. "I missed two club meetings when my daughter came. No one challenged my loyalty."
"That's different," Ghost insists. "Their baby mamas weren't enemy territory."
"True." I let that sit for a beat. "But their baby mamas also weren't treating our members for free. Rope, when your kid split his head skating, who patched him up no questions asked?"
"Lena did," Rope admits.
"And charged you what?"
"Nothing. Wouldn't even take gas money."
I turn to Knuckles. "When you got stabbed by those Viper assholes, who pulled the blade and stitched you up in her van?"
"She did."
"For free?"
"For free."
I let my gaze sweep the room, making eye contact with each member. "So let's be clear about who Lena Cruz is. She's a healer. She treats everyone—Iron Talons, Coyote Fangs, Vipers, civilians. She doesn't take sides. That's not a liability. That's neutral ground we can use."
"Or it's a way for Coyote Fangs to gather intel on us," Ghost counters. "How do you know she's not reporting everything back to Miguel?"
"Because she's not like that. And because Miguel disowned her for being with me. Told her she was dead to him. She chose me over her only family. You think that's someone who's spying for Coyote Fangs?"
Ghost leans forward, and I can see he's been preparing for this argument. "Miguel disowned her five months ago. He showed up at the hospital yesterday. Suddenly they're family again. How convenient. How strategically timed."
Shit.He has a point and everyone knows it.
"You think Miguel's playing a long game?" I ask. "Using his nephew to get close to us?"
"I think Miguel is smart. I think having a nephew who's half Iron Talons President gives him leverage. I think this whole situation is a vulnerability we can't afford."
Joker frowns. "Ghost has a point. Miguel being back in the picture changes things."
"It does," I agree. "But not the way you think. Miguel came back because he couldn't stay away from his only family. Because that baby is his blood. And yeah, maybe he's playing an angle. But right now, we have something we've never had with Coyote Fangs—a reason for them not to shoot at us. That baby is a living truce."
Tommy speaks up. "The war with Coyote Fangs has cost us three members in the last two years. Territory battles, retaliation, constant tension. Since Lena got pregnant? Quiet. No incidents. No shots fired. That's not coincidence."
"That's temporary," Ghost argues. "The second it's convenient, Miguel will use that baby against us."
