“Lose something, asshole?”
“Fuck you, Skinner. Where are they?” I growled, trying desperately to hide the tremor of fear.
“Tell me, King, didn’t Steele teach you anything?” Skinner’s voice rasped, dripping with malice. “Patience. How to play the long game. Or perhaps”—he chuckled, a dry, brittle sound—“he taught you the value of things you can’t possibly afford to lose.”
“I’m going to rip off your head and shit down your throat.” It wasn’t a threat, but a promise. He’d fucked with the wrong man. I knew the rumors, knew the Federation believed we’d gone soft. I wasn’t fucking soft, and when I got my hands on that fat bastard, he’d see exactly what I’d learned from Steele.
“Tell me something. How much is she worth to you?” Skinner’s voice lowered. “Because your precious Grace is about to become a very valuable commodity.”
My phone pinged, and I stiffened. I heard my brothers’ feet shuffling in their discomfort, but my eyes were focused on my phone. “King,” Cash whispered beside me. His hand lay on the table beside mine. He’d leaned in where only I could hear him. “Don’t fucking look at it.”
But I did look. I couldn’t not look. This was Grace. I needed to know what had happened. What they had done to her.
With shaky fingers, I opened the attachment and froze. Ravage stood next to me as I scanned the grainy image of Grace naked, beaten and bound, her eyes wide with a terror she should never have known.
My heart broke. The burn of tears made the image blurry. I took a deep breath. This wasn’t about the war anymore. This was fucking personal. This was a test. Skinner had laid down the gauntlet and there was only one way this would end.
“This one’s got spunk, doesn’t she?” another voice, slick and oily, slithered from the speaker as another text appeared. “Almost made me forget the mess her father made. Almost.”
Ravage stood beside me as we looked at a similar image of Karlyn. Tied down, beaten, most likely raped. I could feel the fury rolling off my brother. I turned to look at the men once more standing in front of the doors. Blocking my path to Grace.
But I had to be strong. I had to be in control. Heavy was the head that wore the crown or some bullshit. I was the king of this motherfucking castle. My word was law. If I ordered them to move, they would.
If they didn’t, they’d be dead. Big Ben knew. Ace knew. They’d both moved here from Arkansas with us. They knew what I was capable of. Jonah was fresh, barely nineteen. He was big; I’d give him that. He’d even spent time in the Death Dogs’ clubhouse, on my orders. But Skinner wasn’t stupid enough to take them there. And if I was right, the second voice I’d heard was the one actually calling the shots. Skinner was a fucking lackey.
I turned to look at Sypher. His head dropped and his fingers flew over the keyboard as he hacked into my phone and traced the call.
“You’ve got until dawn. Meet me at the falls in Wyoming. And bring the fucking bitch!”
“JACKSON!”
“KINGSTON!”
The sound of her scream broke something in me. I no longer cared about the club, and what my role was. My only concern was getting to her. Finding her, saving her. Bringing her back to me, so I could finally love her the way she was meant to be fucking loved.
I knew where I was going, and when I turned, Ben, Ace and Jonah moved without hesitation. Ravage and I tore out of church, running for our bikes. There was no time to plan an assault. Gone was the level-headed president, replaced by a man whose only purpose was the woman he loved. The woman he cherished.
The roar of the motorcycles behind us wasn’t a shock; it wasn’t a surprise of loyalty. It was a certainty. A bond bought and paid for in blood and oil. When one fell, the others were there to hold them up. To fight alongside them.
Brothers!
I looked over at Ravage—Jackson. My brother. A man I’d come to love simply because we shared a link through a woman neither of us had the chance to meet. Now we shared something else. A desperate journey to save our old ladies. A promise to protect them and fight side by side.
I’m coming, baby!
Wait for me!
The miles dragged on, the roar of the bikes behind us. I looked over my shoulder. Not just the Silver Shadows, but the Gods of Mayhem. Zeus and his men were at our backs. I didn’t know if I could trust the man, but right now, I’d give him the benefit of the doubt.
We were riding into a trap. I knew that. Ravage knew that. My men and Zeus’ men knew that. The Death Dogs were a large club; they outnumbered us three to one.
I looked over at my brother. His face mirrored my own. Determination. We’d only just found each other, and tonight we might die together. But I was proud to have him by my side. I could only hope that if we made it through this shit, we could stand side by side forever.
I loved Declan, and I called him brother, but it was different now. He wasn’t my brother; he was my uncle. Sal was his brother. They had a bond that neither wanted to acknowledge.
But I’d seen it.
I’d hated it.
