Jag
I watched from my spot behind a maintenance shed while Knight held the door for Ada as she climbed in the SUV.My bike waited a hundred yards away.Knight thought Ada would be safe if he stayed with her while outside the compound.Knight was wrong.I could feel that itch between my shoulders telling me this was a bad idea.I’d had that same feeling since I spotted that shadow in the trees the day I found Ada with her flat tire.Now, with Rat Man confirmed to be in Nashville, my instincts screamed even louder.I gave them a three-minute head start before I fired up my bike and slipped out the back entrance.
When I caught up to them, I tried to keep three cars between us at all times.Different lanes when possible.I knew Knight would lose his shit if he realized I was trailing them, but I didn’t care.The thought of Ada being in danger made my chest ache in a way I couldn’t explain.
That kiss had messed me up more than I wanted to admit.I couldn’t stop thinking about how she felt pressed against me, how she’d responded instead of pushing me away.I had no right to her, no claim.I certainly had no right to touch her like I had.And still I found myself circling her like a guard dog that wouldn’t heel.
Knight turned into downtown Nashville, weaving through the increasing morning traffic.I knew their destination.Lana Thompson’s law office occupied the fifteenth floor of a glass high-rise that had gone up while I’d been away.The place screamedmoneyandlegitimacy, two things the old Kiss of Death never enjoyed or cared about.
I parked my bike across the street in a parking garage with a clear view of the entrance, tucking it between two concrete pillars.My helmet stayed on as I leaned against a support column, arms crossed.From here, I could watch the whole area and potentially find anyone else watching.
Two hours later, I still hadn’t moved.I sat, straddling my bike, ready and watchful.I’d learned patience the hard way.I could wait as long as I needed.Nothing looked off the whole time until I spotted a man in a battered leather jacket limping slightly as he crossed to an alley entrance opposite the building.
My blood ran cold.I’d know that walk anywhere, even with the added limp.Rat Man moved differently with age, but it was him.He positioned himself perfectly hidden from casual glance but with a clear view of the building entrance.I’d only been a kid when I knew this bastard, but he’d always been careless.Nothing had changed.If anything, he’d gotten worse.I felt an ugly smile twist my lips.
I stayed frozen, watching him watch the building.If I approached now, he’d bolt, and we’d lose our chance to end this.I wished now I’d taken more time to learn how to text or even use the fucking phone Knight had given me.I could operate it easily enough, but I had to take my focus from Rat Man to do it and I couldn’t risk missing something.
A boiling rage built inside my gut at the thought of Rat Man even looking at Ada.I wanted to strangle the life out of the motherfucker.This wasn’t just about protection.This was about possession.And that scared me more than anything Rat Man could do.I’d seen a look on Gremlin’s face nearly four decades ago and I never wanted to see it on my own.I was just sane enough to recognize I had no desire to hurt Ada like Gremlin had the women he fixated on.Not in any way.I wanted her protected and locked away where no one could get to her but me.That way I would never risk anyone taking her from me.
Yeah.I wasn’t feeling quite sane at the moment.
Movement at the building entrance pulled me back.Knight emerged first, scanning the street before motioning Ada forward.She looked tired but stepped out confidently, her hand tucked into the crook of Knight’s arm.They walked to the SUV parked in the reserved section.
Across the street, Rat Man shifted.I watched him pull out his phone, apparently taking photos.His other hand disappeared into his jacket.I tensed, ready to sprint across traffic, but he only pulled out what looked like a pack of cigarettes.
They climbed into Knight’s vehicle, and I counted to thirty before starting my bike.As they pulled out, I noticed Rat Man hurrying to a motorcycle parked farther down the alley.A beat-up Harley, nothing special.Easily forgotten even though it was a bike in the middle of downtown.
I eased into traffic, letting two cars come between me and Rat Man, who trailed Knight’s SUV at a cautious distance.Downtown Nashville gave way to suburbs, then to the highway leading out toward the compound.Traffic thinned as we got farther from the city.Buildings became more scattered, replaced by stretches of trees and open fields.
My knuckles turned white on the handlebars, jaw clenched so tight my teeth ached.Every time Rat Man changed lanes, I tensed.Every time he accelerated slightly, I prepared to gun it.The distance between all three vehicles gradually shortened as traffic dispersed.
The highway stretched ahead, a perfect ribbon of asphalt cutting through nowhere.Just the kind of place I’d choose for an ambush.Just the kind of place where help wouldn’t arrive in time.
Rat Man was making his move soon.I could feel it in the way he sat straighter on his bike, the way he checked his side mirrors less frequently.He thought he was the hunter, following his prey out to isolated territory.He hadn’t realized he was being hunted too.
Traffic disappeared completely as we hit the two-lane stretch toward the river.Just Knight’s SUV, Rat Man’s bike, and me strung out like targets on a firing range.Rat Man hung back for another mile, keeping steady.How the hell he didn’t notice me behind him I had no idea.If I had to guess, I’d say he was so focused he forgot to keep watch for anyone who might have Knight’s back.Or thought that he’d see any threat before it was too late.Then he twisted his throttle.The shift in engine pitch told me everything I needed to know.He was making his move.
I tensed as I watched him accelerate, cutting the distance between himself and Knight’s vehicle.This wasn’t impulse.This was planned.When he pulled a gun from the small of his back, I knew he wasn’t planning to have a friendly chat when he pulled alongside them.
I gave my bike more gas, closing the gap between us.Rat Man was focused on Knight’s SUV, still hadn’t noticed me.
I twisted the throttle all the way, the engine screaming beneath me as my bike surged forward.Rat Man jerked at the sound, finally spotting me in his mirror.Too late.I was already on him, closing fast.He whipped his head around, trying to find me.His eyes widened behind the clear visor.Recognition hit him like a physical blow.He knew exactly who I was.
Good.
He swerved, trying to put distance between us while keeping pace with Knight’s SUV, panic making him clumsy.The front of his bike wobbled as he tried to keep an eye on me and reach for his weapon at the same time.
I feinted left, making him drift right, away from Knight.Then I cut hard across his path.His front wheel clipped the backside of mine.
The impact jolted through my bike.I wrestled it back under control as Rat Man’s front wheel twisted violently.Physics took over.His handlebars whipped sideways, throwing him forward as the bike bucked beneath him.Man and machine separated in a tumble of limbs and metal.
I braked hard, controlling my skid as Rat Man hit the asphalt and rolled, his momentum carrying him toward the ditch.His bike scraped along the road in a shower of sparks before sliding off the shoulder.Rat Man’s body bounced twice before coming to rest half in the ditch.
I started to circle back but Knight blew his horn and motioned me on to follow him.Right.We needed to get Ada to safety.Because she needed me there, not out here finishing off that pig.I’d trust Knuckles to help me end this in a way that didn’t put any of the women or the rest of the club at risk.I had to be rational and control emotions I’d never had difficulty reining in before.
I hurried on, glancing back only briefly to see if the other man moved.The compound wasn’t far.With no immediate threat, my attention went back to Ada.All I could think about was getting back to her.And what terrified me most wasn’t what I’d just done.It was how much further I’d go if anyone threatened her again.
I roared through the compound gates at twice the speed I should have, the guard barely getting them open in time.My tires skidded on the gravel as I braked hard, heart still hammering from what had gone down on the highway.The adrenaline hadn’t faded.If anything, it pumped harder through my veins now that I was back, now that I knew Ada was somewhere inside these walls.Knight’s SUV sat empty near the clubhouse entrance.They’d beaten me to their home territory while I’d hung back to make sure no one else followed us.I killed the engine but couldn’t bring myself to dismount yet.My hands trembled slightly as I pulled off my helmet, the residual violence churning inside me with nowhere to go.
