The map on my desk shows every entry point to the compound, weak spots and vulnerability.
Mona knows all of them.
She lived here for three years. Watched us come and go, learned our patterns, our routines, our defenses. And now she’s gone, carrying the paternity test results and God knows what other information she plans to sell to Marcus Stone.
It’s been four days since she disappeared, and we’ve been waiting for the other shoe to drop.
I trace the compound’s perimeter on the map with my finger. Three main entrances. Two emergency exits and multiple buildings that would be impossible to defend if we’re attacked from multiple angles at once.
And Bonnie is here. Right in the center of the target.
She has to go.
The decision solidifies in my mind. It has been forming for days, but now it’s concrete.
I pick up my phone and text Ghost and Titan:I need a short meeting with you two in my office. Now.
They arrive within five minutes. Ghost closes the door behind them. Titan drops into the chair across from my desk.
“What’s up?” Titan asks.
I don’t waste time with pleasantries. “Bonnie needs to leave the compound. Tonight.”
Silence.
Then Titan says, “No.”
“It’s not a question.”
“Like hell it’s not.” He leans forward. “She stays here. With us. Where we can protect her.”
“We can’t protect her here. Not if Savage Legion attacks.” I tap the map. “Mona knows everything. Our layout, our defenses, our numbers. She’s been gone four days. That’s four days to give Marcus every piece of intel he needs to take us down.”
“We should fortify,” Titan argues. “Double the patrols. Lock down the perimeter. We’ve defended this compound before.”
“Not with a pregnant woman inside who’s worth fifty thousand dollars to our enemies.”
“Then we keep her in the safest room.”
“It won’t be enough.” I stand and brace my hands on the desk. “When they attack—and they will attack—this place becomes a war zone. Bullets flying, brothers dying, everything on fire. I’m not having Bonnie caught in the middle of that.”
“Where else is she going to be safe?” Titan’s voice rises. “Out there alone? Away from the club? Away from us?”
“The safe house.”
“The safe house is fifty miles away. If something happens?—”
“Nothing will happen. Nobody knows about it except us.”
“Mona could know about it.”
“She doesn’t. We acquired it after she left Iron’s inner circle. It’s off the books and untraceable.” I look between them. “It’s the only place Marcus won’t think to look.”
Ghost has been quiet this whole time, arms crossed, watching us argue. Now he speaks. “How long?”
“Until the threat is neutralized. Until Marcus is dead and his club is ashes.”
“That could take weeks. Months.”
