I can still see the crime scene photos in my mind. Still remember the call from the hospital.
"The guy shot him anyway. Point blank. Left him bleeding out on the floor." My voice drops. "A customer found him twenty minutes later. Called 911. But it was too late."
"Danny, I'm so sorry—"
"The cops barely investigated." The anger rises. "They took statements, filed a report, and basically said there wasn't much they could do. No witnesses who got a good look at the shooter. No camera footage that was useful. Just another dead kid in a robbery gone wrong."
Amanda's grip on my hand tightens.
"I begged them to keep looking. Offered to help. But they had other cases, other priorities. Nathan became a statistic. Just another unsolved murder gathering dust in some filing cabinet." I look at her, letting her see the rage that's lived in me for years. "That's when I realized the system is fucked. That badgesdon't mean justice. They mean bureaucracy and indifference and protecting their own asses."
"What did you do?" she asks quietly.
"I became obsessed. Spent every spare moment trying to find the shooter myself. Lost my job. Dropped out of school. My parents thought I was having a breakdown." I laugh without humor. "Maybe I was. But I couldn't let it go. Couldn't let Nathan's death mean nothing."
"How did you end up with the Savage Riders?"
"I was following a lead on the shooter. Got into a bar fight with some guys who knew him. King and Tank were there. They broke it up, asked what I was after." I remember that night clearly. "When I told them, King said he'd help me find the guy. But I had to work for the club first. Had to prove I was serious."
Amanda's eyes are wet with unshed tears. "Did you find him?"
"Yeah." The memory is dark, heavy. "Took a long time, but we tracked him down. King let me decide what to do with him." I meet her gaze. "I killed him. Put a bullet in his head just like he did to Nathan."
She doesn't pull away. Doesn't look horrified. Just keeps holding my hand.
"It was my first kill. I puked for an hour afterward. Had nightmares for weeks." I swallow hard. "But I don't regret it. Because the cops wouldn't have done it. They'd have arrested him, and he'd have gotten some plea deal, and Nathan would still be just a name on a report."
"I understand," Amanda says.
"Do you?" I pull my hand back. "Because you're one of them. You wear that badge. You're part of the system that failed my brother."
"I know." She doesn't flinch. "And I understand why you hate it. Why you hate us."
"Then why the fuck did you become a cop?" The question explodes out of me. "You clearly see the corruption. You know Hayes is a predator who'll get away with it. So why put on that uniform?"
She takes a deep breath, wrapping the sheet tighter around herself. "Because of what happened to my parents."
Now it's my turn to listen.
"Three years ago, my parents were mugged walking home from dinner. It was early evening, still light out, on a busy street." Her voice is steady but pained. "The guy beat them badly. Put my dad in the hospital with a broken jaw and cracked ribs. My mom had a concussion and a fractured arm."
"Fuck," I breathe.
"People walked by. Dozens of them. And no one helped. No one even called 911 until it was over and the guy was gone." Tears slide down her cheeks now. "When the cops finally showed up, they were... indifferent. Took statements, filed a report, said there wasn't much they could do without witnesses willing to come forward."
The parallel to my story isn't lost on me.
"I sat in that hospital room with my parents, and I promised myself I'd be different." She looks at me with fierce determination. "I'd be the cop who actually helps people. Who fights for justice instead of just filling out paperwork. Who gives a damn when everyone else looks away."
"And how's that working out?" I ask, not unkindly.
"Not great," she admits. "After the academy, I realized changing the system from the inside is harder than I thought. Some copsdon't care. Some are actively corrupt. And civilians don't trust us enough to accept help even when we offer it."
"So why stay?"
"Because someone has to try." Her voice is passionate now. "I know the system is broken. I know there are cops like Hayes who use their badges to hurt people. But that's exactly why I need to stay. To be the one who stands up. Who does the right thing even when it's hard."
I stare at her, this woman who walked into a biker clubhouse alone, who lost her virginity to a man who hates everything her badge represents, who's trying to fix a broken system from the inside despite knowing how impossible it is.
