“Hey there, sleepyhead,” she smiled. “How ya feeling?”
“Pretty good considering,” I answered as I looked around the room for Wyatt.
“I sent the boys to put on their pajamas and brush their teeth. Hope that’s okay.”
“Thank you.” I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and asked, “What time is it?”
“It’s almost ten,” she answered, looking down nervously at her watch.
“I must have dozed off,” I told her. “Have the guys made it back yet?”
“No, and it’s starting to worry me a little. We haven’t heard anything from them since Two Bit brought you back, and that was hours ago.”
A surge of panic rushed over me when I thought about Griffin being at that warehouse in the middle of all that gunfire. I couldn’t stop myself from asking the same questions over and over in my head. Why didn’t he leave with me? Why would he put himself in danger like that? I knew the answer. It was simple, really. He couldn’t leave. Leaving would make him something he’s not… the kind of man who’d walk away, and after listening to everything that Doc had said about him and his life at the club, I was beginning to understand why. Griffin’s very existence was defined in being there for others, protecting his brothers and protecting those that couldn’t protect themselves, and he would never walk away from that. And if I was being truthful, it was the very thing that I loved most about him. He’d been there for us all along, ultimately protecting us both from Michael and his endless abuse, and I knew deep down that he’d always be there.
Chapter 24
Stitch
Getting Wren to safety had only taken a few minutes, but when I returned, a full-on battle had ensued. An adrenaline rush instantly kicked in as I listened to the bullets whip past me, tearing into the terrain around me. An electric energy filled the air, making me even more eager to get into the mix. A lust for revenge washed over me as the image of Wren’s blood covered face and hands flashed through my mind. I wanted to fight – I needed to fight. These men had put my brothers through hell over the past few months, and the fact that they had kidnapped or attempted to get Wren only fueled my desire to take them down even more.
The fact was wars like these, men fighting for their own perceived truth, were messy and chaotic, and they never went as planned, making them almost impossible to prepare for. That’s actually what I loved about them. I was all about the hunt and kill, seeking my revenge for the unpunished sins of my enemy. I moved forward into the darkness of the night searching for my brothers’ location, but it was difficult to see. There was a haze of fog drifting over the warehouse as the clouds billowed in off the water, looming forward as if they were searching for their next prey. It was as if they were urging me forward as I finally made it over to Cotton and my brothers.
Cotton gave me the once over, checking to make sure that I was free from any bullet wounds and asked, “You good?”
After I nodded, he said, “Rip and his crew have already secured the perimeter surrounding the east side of the building.”
“What do you need us to do?” I asked.
Cotton turned to Guardrail and ordered, “Take Boozer and a couple of prospects with you and see if you can get eyes on these motherfuckers. I want to know every move they make.”
With that, Guardrail led Styx and Smokey off to find a safe place to scan the area. Boozer followed close behind, covering them as they moved into their new location. Just as they were about to be in the clear, Smokey was pinned down by a round of gunfire, forcing him to drop to the ground. Boozer and I both shot off several rounds, giving him a small reprieve to crawl to safety. Once he was hidden behind one of the large cargo containers, he gave us a chin-lift, thanking us for helping him out.
“We gotta get closer. Can’t see a damn thing from here,” Maverick grumbled as gunfire continued to explode around us. When Cotton nodded in agreement, I pulled out my second gun, feeling the adrenaline pumping through me as it rushed through my veins like an intoxicating drug.
Leading the way, Cotton motioned for us to follow him behind the last row of cargo containers. After loading my clip for the third time, the Pythons’ causalities were building. We continued to push forward, dodging the bullets that snickered through the air. Realizing that we were gaining ground, several of the Pythons left their positions, trying to stop our advance. When a bullet struck the wall above Cotton’s head, my instincts kicked in, forcing me out of the protective shield of the cargo carrier. After I had only taken a few steps, someone lunged out at me as he tried to stab me in the gut. Without hesitation, I grabbed his wrist and quickly punched him with a killing blow to the throat. He gurgled and arched his back as he choked for air. After several seconds, his lifeless body fell backwards onto the rocks.
While I was standing there under the light of the main warehouse, I noticed Styx laying on the ground and rushed over to him, pulling him behind the large loading crane. I searched his body for wounds. He’d been shot in the chest, and he was struggling to breathe, and in a matter of seconds, my leather jacket was drenched in his blood. Styx was still clinging to his gun in desperation, unwilling to stop fighting for his brothers. He was still holding on to that damn gun as he let out his last breath. His body fell lifeless in my arms.
“Fuck,” I shouted as I eased him to the ground.
The deafening sounds of gunfire erupted around me, but my focus was still on my fallen brother. When a bullet pierced my flesh, a stabbing pain shot through my arm. I swallowed the burning sensation, letting my mind shut down the thoughts of how much it hurt as Iifted my gun. Firing off round after round, I stalked towards the shooter until his body dropped to the ground. Once I was sure that he was dead, I made my way back over to Cotton and Maverick. The Python’s numbers were depleting fast. Their casualties were building with every shot we fired, and a wave of satisfaction washed over me when I realized that Styx wasn’t alone in his death. By the time we made it over to the warehouse, the area was clear of Pythons.
Maverick turned to Cotton and asked, “You want us to check inside the warehouse?”
“Do a sweep just to be sure,” he answered.
We made our way inside, ensuring that no one had been left behind. By the time we returned, everyone had gathered in front of the warehouse, and Rip and Dive were talking to Cotton.
“It’s done. All clear,” Maverick told him.
“There’s a shitload of artillery they left behind in there,” I informed him. “At least twenty-five crates of guns and drugs.”
“Get the truck over here. We’re taking it with us,” Cotton ordered.
“We got ’em, Prez,” Boozer told him proudly. “We won the war.”
“Not sure about that,” Dive corrected him. “Think I saw something, but it was dark. I couldn’t be certain.”
“What do you think you saw?” Guardrail barked.
“Not sure. It was out of our line of vision. You might want to check the camera feed,” Dive told him.
Cotton quickly pulled up the security camera on his phone, searching through everything that had been captured over the past hour. We all watched the blood drained from his face as he stared at the face that crossed the screen.
He turned to us with a look of pure anguish and said, “Fuck! I can’t believe I didn’t see it. It was right there in black and white, and I just didn’t see it. This fight wasn’t just about taking over our territory or running drugs through our town. It was more – so much more. We didn’t win this fucking war. This battle has just begun.”
Chapter 25
Wren
When I got to the room, Dusty and Wyatt were dressed in their pajamas and sitting on the bed whispering to each other about something. Their eyes widened when I closed the door behind me and asked, “What are you two up to?”
“Can Wya-it sleep in my room tonight?” Dusty asked with a pleading look. “I’ve got bunk beds, and he can sleep on top.”
“Please, Momma. I don’t have school tomorrow, and I’ve always wanted to sleep on bunk beds.”
The entire scene caught me off guard. Wyatt had only stayed the night with my parents and had never really been interested in staying with a friend before. It surprised me that he wanted to spend the night with Dusty tonight, especially after everything that had happened with him today. His little eyes danced with excitement as he waited for my answer. A huge smile crossed his face when I said, “I don’t mind. You can go, but I want you to get some rest.”
“Awesome!” Dusty shouted happily.
“Don’t stay up too late,” I insisted. “And if you need me, just call or come back to the room. I’ll be here.”
“Okay,” Wyatt answered as he ran over to me, giving me a quick hug before he headed for the door. I smiled when I heard their laughter bouncing down the hall as they both raced to Dusty’s room. It did my heart good to see him so happy, and I truly hoped that Wyatt and Dusty would become good friends. But my smile slowly began to fade when I looked down at the rips and tears on my blood stained clothes. I was a mess and in a desperate need for a hot shower. I went over to the large dresser to hunt for some clean clothes and was surprised to see that everything that I’d packed from home was neatly tucked away inside. I checked each drawer looking for something comfortable to wear, but nothing really called out to me. When I finally opened the last drawer, Griffin’s jeans and shirts laid there staring back at me. I couldn’t resist. I liked the thought of wearing something of his, so I quickly grabbed one of the soft cotton t-shirts and headed to the bathroom.