Trip replays it in slow motion.
“You see something?” Rio’s eyes drill into mine.
“That helmet.” I point at the screen, then look over at Bandit. “What was the name of that bike shop we stopped at in Chapparal?”
“Crazy Eddie’s.”
“The guy in that photo on the wall. He had one arm around his brother and with the other he was holding this helmet against his hip. I remember those devil horns stuck on the top.”
“The one with the scar you told me about?” Rio asks.
“Yeah. It’s him.” I stare at the screen. “I’m gonna kill the motherfucker.”
“Hold up. You’re not killing anyone unless I give you the okay, is that clear?”
“He could have killed Luisa.”
“Or you. But killing a Devil King is going to escalate this into an all-out war. Right now, they’ve just vandalized. And as much as I want to put a bullet in his head myself, I need to take some time and think this through. We do something, it’s going to be a foolproof plan. No one is going off halfcocked. Could be they’re trying to draw us out into a trap.”
“Prez is right,” Zig says. “We need to take our time and do this right.”
I don’t want to take my fucking time. I want to blow his brains out.
Rio studies me. “You hear from Sanchez’s daughter?”
I shake my head, not wanting to talk about it.
“Well, Sanchez hasn’t called me demanding your head on a platter, so you got lucky,” Prez says. “This time.” He slams the gavel down. “Meeting adjourned. Zig, my office.”
I don’t like it, but I know I have to live with it, so I shuffle out of the room and follow my brothers to the bar.
The prospects have beers waiting by the time we cross the room.
I check my phone. I had it silenced for the meeting. There’s a missed call from the landlord who owns the house I rented. He left a message, and I listen to it.
“The fire Marshall released the house after the investigation. I’ll be over there for the next hour if there are any personal items you want to salvage. They put it out quickly, so it’s mostly smoke and water damage except for the dining area off the front of the house.”
Mauler hears the message and meets my eyes. “Go on. I’ll cover for you.”
“Thanks, brother.” I head to my bike and roar across town, knowing I may have already missed him.
He’s just getting in his truck when I pull up, and he walks in with me.
I scan the damage while he waits just inside the doorway. “I’ll only be a minute.”
“Take your time.” He motions to the living room. “I left a box on the coffee table if you want to use it.”
“Thanks.”
I walk in and grab it, then turn and spot Luiza’s painting above the mantle. It’s untouched, thank God. I slip it in the box and move to the bedroom, grabbing the few items from the dresser and nightstand that I’d left here, then move to the bathroom to see if I left anything in there that I want.
I grab a watch off the counter, and my eyes land on the wastebasket. Two words in pink font on a box in the trash jump out at me.
Pregnancy Test.
Everything inside me stills.
I pick the box up. The test stick rattles around inside, and I pull it out.
