Torque took her hand from his chest and gently squeezed it into his own. “This is going to get ugly.”
Rowan didn’t flinch. “Then we survive it—together,” she insisted. Torque pulled back from her, releasing her hand, eyes hard again, the Prez back in place. He grabbed his helmet and turned toward the doors, effectively ignoring her again. Rowan watched him walk away from her, her chest tight, and her heart breaking. He wasn’t going to let her back into his life, and that was going to be a problem for her because she wasn’t going to stick around the Iron Vipers without him. She didn’t need him to make her pretty promises, but completely shutting her out wasn’t going to work for her.
The Saints weren’t just coming for the Iron Vipers. They were coming for everything Torque loved. She just hoped like hell that meant they were coming for her, too. It might be the only way to get his attention again—for better or worse.
Rowan felt it—thatprickle at the back of her neck that told her that something was about to go sideways. The sensation of being watched didn’t fade, no matter how many steady breaths she took. She slowed her steps, the grocery bag cutting into her fingers as she crossed the small parking lotbehind the local market—still inside Viper territory, which was still supposed to be safe. Supposed to be.
Her truck sat where she’d left it, sun glinting off the windshield. Nothing looked wrong or out of the ordinary, and that was the problem. Rowan paused with her keys dangling from her fingers and glanced at the darkened windows of the building across the street. There were too many reflections and too many places for someone to hide.
Don’t panic, she told herself. Panic was what usually got women killed. She took a deep breath and unlocked the truck to slide inside, locking the doors immediately. Her pulse was loud in her ears as she started the engine. The moment she pulled out of the lot, headlights flared to life behind her. First, one vehicle, and then another.
Rowan’s grip tightened on the steering wheel. Coincidence, she tried to tell herself. She took a sharp right turn—one she didn’t need to make, and the headlights followed. Her breath hitched as she checked her mirrors. Her heart felt as though it was slamming against her ribcage. The vehicles stayed back, not aggressive, not rushing her, just there. It was as though they were watching or tracking her.
Rowan reached for her phone with one hand and hit Torque’s number. It rang once, twice, and then she heard his voice. “Rowan?” His voice came through as a rough growl.
“I think I’m being followed,” she said, keeping her tone calm even as fear crawled up her spine. “Two cars followed me out of the grocery store’s parking lot. But I’m still in Vipers’ territory. I know that I shouldn’t have gone out alone, but I just needed a few things.”
“We can discuss all of that later,” he said. “Where are you now?” he asked.
She rattled off the street names as they passed by, her eyes flicking between mirrors. “They haven’t made a move yet. Theyseem to be hanging back, but every turn I’ve made, they’ve followed.”
“They’re probably just trying to scare you,” Torque said grimly. “Stay on the main roads. Don’t stop for anyone or anything. I’ve got some of the guys rolling your way now. If it’s the Saints, they’ll see the Vipers and want to get the hell out of our territory before all hell breaks loose.”
The call cut off suddenly. “No—” Rowan stared at her phone. No signal. Her chest tightened as she tossed her phone onto the seat next to her. She was on her own, and that thought scared the hell out of her. She just had to keep going until the Vipers showed up—just like Torque had ordered, and then, she’d be fine. She had to be.
The lead car surged forward without warning, swerving into her lane and slamming on its brakes. Rowan screamed as she jerked the wheel, tires screeching as she fishtailed into an alley she hadn’t meant to take. Trash cans exploded out of the way as she slammed her foot on the gas pedal.
The second vehicle blocked the exit as men poured out of the vehicle—three of them, if she had counted correctly. Rowan didn’t think; she just moved. She shoved the truck into reverse, slamming into something solid behind her. Metal crunched as the impact jolted her teeth together, pain flashing through her shoulder.
The world around her felt fuzzy, and she knew that if she didn’t do something fast, she wasn’t going to get out of that alley alive. Hands grabbed the door handle as someone shattered the passenger window. Rowan kicked the door open on the driver’s side and bolted, sprinting down the alley, as her boots pounded concrete. Her lungs burned as she ran, fear fueling her legs. A hand caught her ponytail, yanking her back hard enough to steal her breath, but she still fought.
Rowan kicked, screamed, and elbowed the man behind her, catching him in the ribs. “Feisty bitch,” a man snarled as his arms locked around her. A cloth came down over her mouth, and she tried not to breathe. Rowan thrashed, rage surging through the fear. She bit down hard on his hand, earning a curse and a sharp blow to her ribs that knocked the air from her lungs.
She wanted to scream and fight, but whatever they had poured on the cloth the man was holding was starting to make her sleepy. No, she couldn’t give up, not now. She just hoped like hell that the Vipers would somehow find her before the Saints were able to finish the job—or worse, drag her away. She knew that they were human traffickers, but she’d die before she’d let them or anyone else use her body. She had been saving herself for Torque, and there was no way that she’d let anyone else have her.
She was losing hope when she heard gunshots ring out through the night. They were close and loud. The man’s grip on her loosened as chaos erupted around them. Men were shouting and scrambling as more shots rang out, echoing down the alley.
Rowan dropped to her knees, coughing, her vision blurring as a familiar roar cut through the noise. “ROWAN!” It was Torque. She barely had time to look up before he was there—blood on his knuckles, eyes wild, with a gun in his hand. Brothers fanned out behind him, Iron Vipers swarming the alley like hell unleashed.
Torque dropped to his knees in front of her, hands on her face, checking her over frantically. “Talk to me. Are you hit?”
“I’m—” She sucked in a breath, willing herself to talk. “I’m okay.” His forehead pressed to hers; his breath ragged with fury barely contained.
One of the brothers approached. “Prez, they left something.” Torque looked up slowly. The man held out a small object wrapped in cloth. It was a Saint’s patch, stained with blood.
Torque stood, pulling Rowan with him and tucking her against his chest, one arm wrapped around her protectively. His voice was low and deadly. “They just signed their death warrants.” Rowan clung to him, shaking now that the adrenaline was fading. She looked past his shoulder at the patch, at the proof that this was no longer a warning. It was a promise, and the Saints had just declared open season on her and the Iron Vipers.
Til Death Do Us Part (Iron Vipers Book 2) (14 Days of Love and Lust Bikers and Mobsters) Universal Link-> Coming soon!
What’s coming next from K.L. Ramsey? Ruby (Royal Harlots Huntsville Chapter Book 9) is coming in February 2026! This one is going to be a Valentine’s Novella!!
RUBY
The stethoscopearound her neck weighed less than the secrets inside her chest. At least that was what she’d secretly tell herself every time she had another student loan due that seemed as though it was going to be impossible to pay. That thought always made her laugh to herself. Her mother liked to say that she came out of the womb as a melodramatic diva—not that she felt like much of a diva these days. These days, she felt like her purpose in life wasn’t being fulfilled, and that had everything to do with her side job that paid her medical bills.
Dr. Ruby Monroe—that was who she was now. That was the name stitched onto her white lab coat, and the one printed on the shiny new badge she clipped to her scrubs during her rounds. It was official—her residency was complete, and she was now a board-certified doctor. But the label of doctor was just that, and until she could pay off her student loans, she’d never fully consider herself to be a full-fledged doctor, no matter what her badge said. Until she paid off the loans, she felt like a fraud, and that was the truth of the matter. For Ruby, the truth ran deeper than any of the lies that she told to her friends and family about her part-time gig that paid the bills. They were also the lies that she told herself to feel better about her situation.Her truth was coated in glitter and dollar bills. It was bathed in bright stage lights and slimy men touching themselves while they watched her dance on stage. Lying was the only way to feel better about any of that.
Her boots clicked across the parking lot of the Huntsville Community Hospital. They were scuffed leather, worn-in, and super comfortable, which was good because she was going to end up on her feet for the next twelve to fourteen hours for her shift. They were one of the first things that she bought for herself when she got to Huntsville and joined the Royal Harlots. All the other women wore the same type of boots around the club, and when she found hers in a second-hand shop downtown, she felt as though the stars were finally in her favor. It was silly, she knew it, but she felt as though she belonged to something for the first time in her life. The Royal Harlots were her club—and joining them was something that she did for herself and nobody else.
