“What can we do?” Charlie asked Rider, and he shook his head, his lips pursed. “There must be something we can do. Her life’s on the line.” She nodded toward me. “His too, as soon as Hardy finds out.”
“Don’t worry ’bout me. I can handle my shit,” I said darkly.
The rumble of a bike engine out front had us all falling silent. The sound cut out and seconds later there was a knock at the front door. Charlie was a hard bitch, and not a lot fazed her, but right then she looked freaked the fuck out. She looked to Rider.
“I’ve got it.” He pushed past her and headed toward the front door. “Stay there,” he said to both me and Charlie, but neither of us listened as we followed him down the hallway and through the house to the front door.
A dark shadow could be seen through the frosted glass of the front door, and Charlie clung to my arm tightly.
“If he gets hurt, I’ll kill you,” she mumbled.
“Fair enough,” I replied.
The knocking came again, harder that time, and Rider reached up and opened the A/C unit by the door and pulled out his gun. He reached for the handle, cocking the weapon and holding it behind his back.
My heart was in my chest. Not at getting shot, or dying. Death didn’t scare me. Hardy didn’t. But Rider and Charlie were good people, and they didn’t deserve that shit.
Neither does Penny, my subconscious piped in.
The sound of their kid crying came from further in the house, but Charlie made no move to go to her.
“Do it,” she said to Rider, and he pulled the door open wide.
“Fucking hell,” I breathed, my heart slamming against my ribcage as I looked out past Rider.
“Battle?” Charlie said, and ran forward to hug him. “Thank God!”
Battle hugged her back and she stepped back to allow him into the house. “Brothers, I’m back.” He grinned widely. His gaze was on Rider and he smirked. “You know your cock his hanging out, right?” He laughed and then his gaze moved to me as Charlie ran down the hallway to her kid. His smile fell when he saw my expression, his eyes growing serious. “How bad is the bullshit I just walked into?” he said seriously.
“Bad,” Rider said.
Battle pulled Quinn in with him, and she offered me a smile which I didn’t have in me to return. Her eyes fell to Rider’s cock and she quickly averted her gaze.
“You wanna put some pants on and stop flaunting your junk to my woman,” Battle said, coming inside and closing the door behind him. He turned back to me. “And you better get to explaining what the fuck’s been going on around here.”
I dragged a hand down my face, unsure of where to start. So much had happened since he’d been forced to leave. The Vipers, Penny, Hardy’s shady business, the Reverend, and all the business with the Burning Eights. It seemed like everyone was out to get us at the moment. Everyone wanted a piece of us.
Blood.
Money.
War.
Everyone wanted something.
Even Penny.
But all she had wanted was my protection, and I couldn’t even give her that.
“I’ve fucked up, brother,” I replied honestly, “I’ve fucked up real bad.”
Battle put a hand on my shoulder. “So what’s new there, motherfucker?” He grinned.
I tried to smile back, but it wouldn’t come.
“You’re serious?” he asked.
I nodded. “Not sure what I can do to make it right.”
