“She says no,” I offer, but I’m not entirely convinced. He may not have done the damage himself, but he’s the reason she ended up black and blue, and that really didn’t sit right with me.
“There’s more,” Trojan offered, flicking to a set of photos on the screen. My heart stopped for a moment when I realised what I was looking at.
“Take it down.”
“Prez?”
“Take. it. Down.”
Trojan did just that, leaving the screen blank, while my heart started to work again.
“Explain.”
“Rowan turned up in emergency after calling an ambulance for herself. These were the photos taken. Didn’t press charges. But I do have her emergency call ready if you want to hear it.”
I nodded my head, because I knew words would fail me. The image of her beaten face was seared into my retinas. I knew she’d been hurt bad, but not…that.
“Fire, Police or Ambulance?” the operator asked. The breathy groans of pain had my chest tight.
“Ambulance. Hurry.”
“Okay, ma’am, please tell me your address.”
Rowan recited it through groans that didn’t sound good.
“Okay, ma’am, what is the problem so we can assess while on the way to you?” the operator asked in a cool monotone.
“I need help. Fast. I’ve been attacked by the Ironborne. They left me for dead. Please.”
The line went dead moments later, probably from her passing out or not wanting to answer anymore questions. My fingers dug into the wood of my chair.
Ironborne.
“Why’s she messed up with them?” Chaos asked once Trojan turned off the call.
“She’s not,” Maverick offered. “Obviously Trey is, and they came for her instead.”
No one spoke.
Out of respect for me and my son, but I was furious. How could he fucking leave her to take his beating?
“Shadow.” He looked up at me, his dark eyes never giving much away, but I could tell he was pissed. We all were. “Go to Perth, bring him home.”
He nodded once before he stood up, and left the room.
“We give him a chance to explain himself,” I said. “As we would with anyone else, but if he left her to take that beating…he’s no son of mine.”
I dismissed them and left the chapel, bypassing the bar, noticing she wasn’t behind it and moved outside. The clear air did nothing to quell the anger building inside of me. There had to be a reason. He wouldn’t do this…would he? Had I failed that much as a parent that he could let this happen?
Moving down to my bike, I jumped on and took off. The only thing that could quell my aching chest was a ride into the mountains, away from everyone. They’d pay for this. Whether she was my son’s girl, or not, she would be avenged. The image of her mangled face, one eye almost shut, pained me even now.
I would kill the man who thought they could squash her like a bug. I would do more to the Ironborne for it. I’d wage a war for a woman I couldn’t have, and I knew it.
Rowan was dangerous, and yet, I wanted every bit of debris that came with her.
Rowan
The roar of a motorcycle pulled me from my daze. The call with Trey hadn’t gone how I thought it would. He was remorseful, sure, but he didn’t give me the answers I wanted. He wanted to assure me that he would explain when he got back, and he was already on his way.
