I saw recognition in his eyes the second I stepped over the threshold.
He knew exactly who I was. What this was. And why I was here.
“You fucking branded her,” I seethed, stepping closer. “Used her. Almost got her killed. You don’t walk away from that.”
“I didn’t know she was y-yours,” he stuttered, his voice pleading. As if he would get even an ounce of mercy from me.
“Doesn’t fucking matter who she belongs to, motherfucker. She didn’t give you permission, didn’t even fucking know that you had marked her like she was nothing more than your property.”
Marks was shaking, blood soaking through the white designer shirt he probably thought made him look harmless. I pressed the barrel of my Glock against his forehead, my hand steady. “You shouldn’t have fucking touched her.”
He opened his mouth, but I didn’t let him speak again. There was nothing he could say that would stop what was coming.
One shot. Between the eyes.
Shadow walked in a few seconds later and started unpacking his gear. Acid. Gloves. Floor cleaners. Devices that would fryanything electronic in the house. He didn’t blink as he wrapped the body and began prepping for disposal.
Ink handed me a fresh clip as I wiped my weapon down. “He scream like a bitch?”
I nodded once. “Fucker pissed himself before I even chambered the round.”
Kevlar chuckled as he helped Shadow move the body to the floor. “Cowards always dress nice. Real killers don’t need fancy collars.”
Shadow was quiet as he finished prepping the room like we’d never been there. We pitched in to make the process go faster. I needed to get the fuck back to my girl. With all this bullshit behind us, I wasn’t gonna wait any longer to tell her the truth. That I loved her, needed her more than my next breath. Then I was gonna put my patch on her, a ring on her finger, and fuck my kid into her if I hadn’t already.
By the time we rolled out, there was no trace of us. No blood, no prints, and no tech. Just an empty house about to get torched by its own wiring.
It was done.
But I didn’t breathe easy until we crossed the state line and pulled back into the compound, our bikes humming low.
The clubhouse loomed ahead, familiar and solid. Home.
I peeled off and killed the engine just outside the garage. Ink and the others parked alongside me, and we walked across the gravel together in silence.
Ink was the first to break it. “So, are you finally gonna stop pacing the roof at night?”
I shot him a look. Yeah, I hadn't been able to sleep much lately. I’d wear out my girl until she passed out before wandering up to the open roof area that spanned between the club bedrooms and King’s house, which had been built off the back.I’d been trying to burn off the excess energy from my fear for Elena and utter rage at Marks.
Kevlar grinned. “Motherfucker was up there last night at two in the morning. Looked like Batman without the cape.”
“Fuck off,” I muttered, but the weight in my chest had already started to ease.
Elena was safe. And the bastard who touched her was gone.
As I stepped inside, King’s voice rumbled from his office. “Onyx.”
I turned and walked in.
He sat behind the desk, a glass of whiskey, half-finished in front of him, and a file open that I didn’t bother looking at. He glanced up at me, eyes unreadable.
“It’s done,” I said simply.
He nodded once, leaning back in his chair. “Any trouble?”
“Nothing we didn’t expect.”
He didn’t press. Just pushed a folded vest across the desk toward me.
