Page 44 of Serendipity
Judas finally smiled, his good eye crinkling at the corners. “I’m so proud to be your President,” he said softly. “Now, let’s get out there and clean up this place, so we can trash it again having the biggest fucking blow-out that Damnation MC has ever seen.” He slammed the gavel back down on the table. “Church closed.”
They all hooted and yelled, racing out of the door of the room. Judas came over, holding out his hand to help me up from the chair. I took it, smiling softly. “I haven’t said thank you yet,” I said in a low voice for his ears only. “I’m alive because of you.”
Judas shook his head. “No. You are alive because of Hope. We just provided a convenient battleground.”
“I saw Goliath. He definitely wasn’t standing back letting Hope have all the fun.”
Judas gave me a rare smile. Two in two minutes? Must have been a record. “Goliath enjoys a battle more than anything.”
I looked around the room, realizing everyone but Judas, Cain, Solomon and Goliath had left.
“Because he’s one of the Horsemen of the Apocalypse. You all are.” It wasn’t a question.
Goliath glared at Solomon, who held up his hands. “Don’t look at me. Trigger let it slip.”
Judas’ head whipped to the blond biker. “How the fuck does Trigger know?”
“Smoke told him. Apparently he figured it out before he retired out. Let Trig in on the secret.”
Goliath growled. “He’s known all this time?”
Cain shrugged. “Yeah. Apparently he’s been creating us contingency plans for when we need to disappear for awhile.”
Goliath swore, and Judas sighed. “I need a fucking drink.”
19
SOLOMON
“This was a terrible fucking idea.”
I looked over at Judas as we watched Cain try and teach Dippy to ride a bike in the parking lot of the Club. She’d sputtered and bunny-hopped her way around in a circle, as Cain stood in the center and tried to coach her through changing gears with a panicked look on his face.
Judas was right, this was a terrible fucking idea, but I didn’t have the heart to stop it. As she rode around in jerky circles, she was laughing and smiling and she looked so fucking happy. Miserable and scared Sera was gorgeous, but this creature? She fucking glowed.
It was almost painful to watch how beautiful she was. It was hard to work out how much was her half angel nature and how much was being pregnant. It had been nearly a week since they’d come for her, a week of walking on eggshells, waiting for the blowback. But there was nothing. Cain was even talking about reopening the tattoo parlor next week.
Goliath was beginning to pace the walls of his self-imposed cage, and I knew that one was about to explode in all our faces. We all knew that she didn’t need to stay now. The threat of Uriel was nullified, and there were only the vague warnings of some zealot organization named Tenebrae. But as the time went on, and nothing happened, it seemed like even that wasn’t much of a threat any longer.
Judas had said that Hope and her, uh, consorts were mopping up Tenebrae.
The bottom line was that Dippy could leave whenever she liked. She didn’t need us any more.
Even the thought of her leaving us behind made my chest ache.
The bike wobbled, and Cain lurched toward Dippy, catching the handlebars. Luckily, he was faster and stronger than any human or she would have ended up on her ass. Finally, it was too much for Judas.
“That’s enough for one day before she cracks her fucking skull!” he yelled, and Sera flipped him the bird but she was laughing as she did it. I watched his face soften and the fist around my heart eased a little. He wouldn’t let her go either, even if he wouldn't admit it to himself. He wanted her.
Cain and I wanted her. Goliathneededher.
That was it. She was staying.
“We should take her for a ride. Just the four of us,” I said softly. “Go to that little seafood shack out past the lake.”
“Why?” he rumbled, his voice low as Cain and Dippy walked toward us.
“So we can convince her to stay.”
