She leaned into me after a moment, breath hitching once before she caught it again.
We stayed like that.
No promises.
No plans.
Just breathing.
27
WRECKER
The bell rang once.
Sharp. Final.
MC church wasn’t a suggestion. It was a line in the sand.
I stepped into the main room with the rest of them, boots heavy against the concrete floor, the long table already filling up. The air felt thicker than usual, weighted with something old and dangerous. The kind of tension that didn’t snap fast. It settled. Waited. Dug in.
Scout’s chair was back where it belonged.
He took it slow, lowering himself into it with a tight jaw and a breath he tried not to show. Ranger hovered nearby like he was pretending not to hover. Brutus leaned against the wall, arms crossed, eyes tracking every movement like he was memorizing exits. Doc stood near the back, hands in his pockets, expression carved from stone.
Ghost sat to my left.
He hadn’t spoken since they brought Scout in.
Cap took the head of the table. He didn’t slam his hand down this time. Didn’t need to.
“We’re here because one of ours was taken,” Cap said. His voice carried without effort, calm in the way that meant violencewas being held on a leash. “And because one of ours was brought home.”
A murmur rippled through the room.
Scout lifted his chin, bruised face set. “Didn’t come back clean,” he said. “But I came back breathing.”
Cap nodded once. “That’s enough.”
Scout exhaled, shoulders dropping just a fraction.
“This isn’t a victory lap,” Cap continued. “The ring is still active. They’re still moving people. They’re still watching us.”
Ghost shifted beside me.
Cap turned his gaze on Scout. “You ready to talk?”
Scout’s jaw tightened. “Yeah.”
“Take your time.”
Scout rolled his shoulders carefully, winced, then steadied himself. “They moved me three times,” he said. “Didn’t stay in one place long. Warehouses. Empty houses. One spot with a basement that smelled like bleach and rust.”
My hands curled into fists under the table.
“They liked to talk,” Scout went on. “Thought it’d wear me down. Told me who else they’d grabbed. Told me who broke fast. Told me who didn’t.”
The room went dead quiet.
