CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Brick
Iscramble acrossthe ground and reach Starlet just as she collapses. Hugging her tight, I know she belongs in my arms now, not Silver’s or anyone else’s. My brothers swarm around us. Shorty and Ace drag Checkers’ body away, and I gently reposition Starlet on my lap so she has to look at me. Tears streak her beautiful face and she’s shaking uncontrollably, but she’s aware of everything going on around her, though I think she’d rather not be.
“Listen to me,” I say, tucking loose strands of hair behind her ear. “None of this is your fault, sweetheart. None of it.”
She doesn’t respond, but narrows her eyes on Eagle who’s standing in front of us.
“Brick,” he says, the shock of the moment still written all over his face, too. “Do you know what this means?” He kneels and gives Starlet’s shoulder a squeeze. “Is she okay?”
“I don’t know yet.” Her hair and face is streaked with blood. So is the white sundress she’s wearing. “Starlet? Say something, baby.”
She closes her eyes and takes a labored breath. “You should have let me die, Brick. It would have been so much easier for you.”
I throw Eagle a concerned look and shake my head. Very carefully, I stand up with Starlet draped in my arms. She curls up, hiding her face on my chest.
Eagle moves aside and gestures toward the clubhouse. “Take her inside and let Angel and the old ladies clean her up and put her to bed. We have a retired doc on payroll, let’s get him over here to take a look at her.”
I head for my room, knowing there’s no doctor on the planet that could fix what’s wrong with Starlet or me. We’re both broken. Have both been destroyed by lies and violence as kids. Promised a certain thing and given shit instead. Children shouldn’t see what we’ve experienced. But somehow, through it all, we managed to hold it together enough to find each other.
That’s no coincidence, it’s fate. I didn’t see it until today, racing back from Texas, desolation and fear overwhelming me. If Silver had left with her… Jesus Christ. I kick my bedroom door open and place Starlet in the middle of my bed. She stays exactly where I put her—her unresponsiveness scaring the shit out of me.
She’s the patch for the gaping hole in my heart. My allegiance for the Iron Norsemen patch is unwavering—now I’ll split that loyalty between two. That much I know. And this place… I look over my shoulder at the door, wondering where Angel is. Home. Yeah, I said it. Home. Louisiana—the charter—everything about it. My skin prickles at the thought. It’s not going to be easy giving up old, bad habits, especially moving on.
But I have Starlet now. I reach out and caress her cheek. “If I didn’t get a chance to say it loud enough before, Starlet Vega, I claim you as my old lady. And the sooner you accept it, the quicker we can move on, together.” I kiss the top of her head and start for the door.
Angel and two other old ladies meet me in the hallway.
“How is she?” Angel asks.
“Don’t know,” I mutter. “I shot Checkers in the goddamned head two inches above her. That’s a lot to take in.”
Angel nods in understanding.
“She needs a shower and sleep.”
“We’ll take care of it. Church in five minutes,” she says, entering my bedroom.
Church. Time to pay for my sins. I disobeyed Eagle, took matters into my own hands, beat another MC president, and took out one of his officers. Men who were invited to our clubhouse under peaceful circumstances. How many bylaws did I break? I don’t care, I’d do it again if it meant saving Starlet. Let them strip me of the patch—I’ll survive—we’llsurvive.
When I arrive in the common room, my brothers are waiting for me. There’s a renewed sense of respect, I can feel it and see it in their eyes.
The doors to the conference room open, Eagle, Shorty, and Ace wave us all in.
My brothers wait for me to go first, and I cross the threshold, feeling more complete and sure of my actions than I ever have before. Bylaws are written in stone, but the one thing a man can rely on under dire circumstances such as these, are his brothers. If they believe in what I did, a vote can save me from punishment.
Once I take my seat beside Eagle, he opens the meeting.
“Is this some kind of rebellious stage?” Eagle glares at me. “Because from where I’m sitting, brother, it looks personal.”
I hold his gaze, knowing I’m in the right. If I weren’t, I’d admit it and accept whatever judgment came down. Expulsion. Death. It wouldn’t matter, because Starlet is safe. Even if I’m stripped of the patch, and she decides to stay in Louisiana, the club would have to take care of her, they’d treat her as a widow.
“I did what I had to do to protect my old lady.”
My words elicit some murmurs.
“She wasn’t your old lady this morning,” Eagle points out.
