"This is big, brother," Ghost cautions. "We're talking about going against a corrupt cop with connections and a businessman with suspected mafia ties."
"I don't give a fuck if we have to go to war with the entire police department and the goddamn mafia," I growl. "That girl in there?" I jerk my thumb toward the door. "She's mine. And I protect what's mine."
Saint nods, his dark eyes resolute. "We all do."
"You claimed her. She's one of us,” Blade agrees.
"Always," Cipher adds, looking up from his laptop for the first time.
A heavy silence falls over the room as Ghost considers my words. Finally, he nods once.
"Then we're all in." He looks around the table. "This club stands together."
Relief floods through me, though I never doubted their support. These men are more than brothers—they're the family I chose after losing my own.
"So what's the play?" Saint asks, leaning back in his chair. "We can't just go in guns blazing."
"I've got an idea," I say, dropping into my chair.
Chapter 12
Aria
My fingers are cold and trembling as I grip the phone to my sweaty palm, but I’m resolute. This has to be done. Two rings, then three, before the line connects.
“Russo.” Marco's voice, smooth and controlled, trickles through my veins like ice water.
I swallow hard, fighting the urge to hang up. "Marco, it's me."
Silence stretches for two heartbeats.
“Wifey,” he says in a sinister voice before his tone shifts, becoming razor-sharp. “Where the fuck are you?"
“I-I…it's not important." My free hand twists in the hem of the shirt I’m wearing, one of Hawk's, smelling of him, giving me courage.
"Where are you?!" he again demands. The barely contained rage in his voice makes me flinch.
I glance at the clock—10:17 PM on Halloween night. Outside in the common room, the club is raucous, with loud music, drinking, and dancing. I wish I were out there joining in the revelry, carefree and untroubled.
The MC has become my family in the short time I've known them. I refuse to allow Marco or Uncle Vincent to hurt them.
"I..." I close my eyes. "You win, Marco. Just don't hurt any of the Shadow Reapers."
A sickening chuckle comes through the line. "Well, well, wifey. So you’re at the Shadow Reapers compound after all.”
My heart hammers against my ribs. "No! I-I...I want you to meet me. I'll go with you. I'll do whatever you want if you promise not to hurt them.” I take a deep breath, mustering he courage to utter the next words, “I’ll marry you."
"Tomorrow." His voice drops an octave, thick with twisted satisfaction. "You'll marry me tomorrow, wifey."
I taste bile at the back of my throat. "Y-yes."
I look at the clock again, counting the minutes. This has to be timed perfectly. "Meet me at the old Reynolds place. The one they say is haunted. Tonight at 11 PM."
"You better be there." His breathing quickens, excitement evident. “You won’t get away with your disobedience. My wifey needs to be punished, and when I get hold of you, I'm going to teach you a lesson you won't forget."
The line goes dead. I drop the phone like it's a hot poker, and wipe my palm against my jeans, concentrating hard on regulating my breathing and slowing my heart rate.
You need to do this, Aria. For Hawk, for your new friends, for the club. And for yourself.
