She was quiet. Too fucking quiet.
I held Macy against my chest, one arm locked around her back, the other cradling her head, and I waited for something, foranythingto come. I would take anger, screaming or even fucking tears. But nothing? That shit was terrifying. I understood why, of course I did. You didn’t go through the shit she just had, didn’t witness what she did and snap back instantly.
Even knowing all that, the silence fucked with my head. She’d been silent for the entire ride back to the clubhouse. When she’d climbed behind me on my bike, she’d been a shadow of her usual self. “Tell me you’re okay, Mace.”
She nodded. She didn’t say a word, but her gaze slammed into mine, those violet eyes so sharp yet glassy from tears she refused to let fall. She worried that lush bottom lip between her teeth and nodded again, as if that was supposed to convinceme.
It didn’t. I knew her too well to believe that, but I also knew there was something more to her silence right now. It wasn’tjustsilence, it was a blankness, an absence of emotion that I could not fucking handle. Not right now. “If you hate me,” I began in a quiet voice, “or if you’re scared of me, just tell me. I need you to tell me, Mace.” My heart was racing by the time I finished that sentence. I hated that I had to say it, hated that doubt even existed.
But it had to be said and now it sat like a fucking lead weight between us.
“Jesus, fuck, Drew!” She shook her head, finally breaking the silence.Fucking finally.“Of course I don’t hate you. And you’re probably the only person in the world I’mnotscared of.” Her brows pulled together. “How could you even think that?”
“Because you’re quiet,” I said. “Way quieter than usual. And I know something’s wrong.”
She nodded, acknowledging my worst fucking fear. “Yeah, I’m quiet Drew. I just watched a man get killed.” Her voice didn’t shake but her fingers tightened in my shirt. “He deserved it, there’s no fucking question about that. But it was right there,in my face.” Her eyes slammed closed and she let out a deep, shaky breath. “I’m covered in his blood and….” She motioned to the red stains, the bits of flesh that clung to her and shuddered. “That’s… it’s gonna take more than a minute to process.”
“Yeah,” I replied on a soft sigh. “Okay.” I didn’t like it, but I accepted it, pulling her in tighter before I pressed a kiss to the top of her head. I inhaled her scent until it was part of me, happy she was here and safe. Alive. “You take whatever time you need, babe.” I inhaled her scent again. “I’m right here. Whatever you need.”
She smiled up at me, and it was soft and stunning and so full of love, it nearly wrecked me. Despite everything she’d been through, this year and in her life, she smiled at me with pure fucking bravery. “I know,” she said in a sweet voice. Her hand came up to cup my cheek, gentle like I was something precious to her. “I’ve always known. And I’ve always loved you for it.”
“I’m always here, Mace,” I said. “Always.” I kissed her hair again. “Just tell me you’re okay.”
“Working on it.” The smile she hit me with was soft, but it was real. Macy wanted to be all right, and that mattered more than anything else.
“Good.” I kissed her again just because I could. “We’ll work on it together.” I glanced to the bathroom just behind her, and grinned. “How about we wash Ruiz’s brains off you?”
A snort laugh escaped as she nodded. “Hell yeah.”
She was already undressing before I made it to the bathroom. I cranked on the shower and smiled when steam filled the room. The sound of running water was loud in the small space and I braced my hands on the wall, the steam made it easy for my mind to get lost in thoughts of that asshole with his gun trained on my girl. My jaw clenched tight as the scene replayed, Macy trying so fucking hard to be brave even as pure terror filled her eyes.
It was a look I’d never forget.
Her hand landed on my shoulder, yanking me from my thoughts. “Hey,” she said softly. “Areyouokay?”
I nodded before turning to face her. “No,” I admitted. “But you’re here. You’re safe. And I’m working on it.”
She gifted me with another smile and wrapped her arms around me. “Thanks, Drew. For always having my back.”
She opened her mouth to say something else, but a loud knock cut her off.
“Vandal,” Maverick shouted from the other side of the door. “We’ve got a problem.”
I dropped my head forward and sighed. “Fuck.” I pressed a quick kiss to those irresistible lips and stepped back. “Stay here. Let me see what’s going on.”
I yanked the door open, scowling. “What the fuck is the problem?”
Maverick’s lips twitched but there was almost no humor in it as he nodded towards the door. “Come see for yourself.”
I nodded and followed him through the clubhouse and out to the parking lot. That’s when I saw half a dozen Mexican men armed with automatic weapons, standing tall and proud as if this was their turf instead of ours.
Diesel, Rocky, Gio, Rebel and half a dozen more Steel Demons had already gathered with guns visible but not raised. The air was tense, on the verge of chaos and violence. It was restrained, but barely.
The asshole at the center wasn’t familiar but it didn’t take a genius to figure out that it was Diego’s boss. The head of the Sombra Negra Cartel. Carlos Martinez-Vasquez stood over six feet tall with a commanding presence. Dressed in an expensive suit, confidence radiated off him despite the men with guns standing feet from him. He knew he was big shit and that hint of a smile told me he wanted us to know it too.
“Where is Ruiz?” The question came out in smooth English, his voice impressively calm.
I snorted, shrugging my shoulders. “Who?”
