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“See you in a bit.”

She nods and watches me as I climb on my bike. The roar of engines fills the air as half of my brothers form two lines in front of the van while the other half, including me, do the same behind the van. Joe slides the gate open and we all file out of the compound and onto the road, a protective barrier around Raya and Joey. I check my rearview mirror, my grip tightening on the handlebars as I think about the last time I was on my bike on this damn road.

Fuck.

Get your shit together.

Pushing the memory from my mind, I turn my focus back to the van and the road in front of us. No one is fucking chasing me today and as soon as we get Raya headed to her new home, I will deal with the threat against my girl. The ride to the gas station passes in a blur, my mind consumed with my plans for the day as I check my rearview mirror every couple minutes. And by the time we get close to the gas station, tension is thrumming under my skin like a fucking current.

Just get through the next fifteen minutes.

As we pull into the gas station parking lot, I spot the van in the back of the lot just like we planned. The couple is still sitting inside but they perk up as we line our bikes up along the side of the lot. I kill the engine on my bike and climb off as my brothers begin congregating in front of the van just like we planned. They are laughing and talking like they don’t have a care in the fucking world but the same tension running through me fills the air.

I head towards the van, just as the side door slides open and Raya looks up at me with tears in her eyes.

“Ready?”

She sucks in a breath. “As I’ll ever be.”

The two of them climb out of the van and my brothers fan out a little more blocking the view from the road. Hawk and Ink begin grabbing their bags and running them over to the other van. Jumper and Gear join us, one on each side, as we walk across the lot and into the gas station. Izzy and Hudson are already inside, in the exact same clothes Raya and Joey are wearing, and besides the cashier, we’re the only people in here. I release a breath.

Good.

Less witnesses.

“Mom,” Joey yells, dropping Raya’s hand and running over to one of the shelves near the door. He snatches up a package of cookies. “Can I get these?”

“Joey…” Raya sighs, shaking her head.

“I’ll get ‘em for you, little man,” I tell him and he jumps up, pumping his little fist into the air in victory. Raya sucks in a breath, her bottom lip trembling as she meets my eyes.

“Y’all have already done so much for us.”

“It’s my last chance to spoil the kid,” I say to her, arching a brow. “You gonna take that away from me?”

She lets out a laugh as a tear slips down her cheek. “No. I suppose not.”

I lay my hand on her shoulder before grabbing the pack of cookies from Joey and heading toward the register. After I pay for them, I hand them back over to him.

“You gotta wait until you’re back in the car to eat those, okay?”

He frowns for a moment before nodding. “Yeah, okay.”

“And be good for your mom, ya hear?” I ask him and he looks up at me with more wisdom that a fucking four-year-old should have.

“I will.”

I turn to Raya. “Reach out if you need anything, okay?”

“Yeah,” she whispers with a nod, another tear trailing down her cheek. “I’ll never be able to repay you guys for everything you’ve done. I… I wasn’t sure I’d live to see this little guy grow up and now… now we have an entire life in front of us. Thank you.”

I shake my head. “You don’t have to thank us, Raya. I hope you find a good, peaceful life.”

“Me too,” she answers with a laugh as she takes Joey’s hand in hers and gives it a squeeze. He looks up at his mom, a little line forming between his brows as he studies her.

“We’re going on our adventure, right, mama?” he asks and she nods.

“Yeah, buddy. We are.”