“I still say we need to go in together. We can let the gunfire rain down on them. We’re stronger together,” Wolf mutters.

We’re parked on top of a hill, off the main road. Through the brush and the trees, I can see the outline of the old marina. Our club’s not from here. This is not our territory but we made a temporary spot in this region the minute I lost contact with Torrent. I researched the area fairly good and I know the only real club presence is that damn Savage crew—which is really just made up of a bunch of nomads and under the protection of two clubs, whose strongholds are in Kentucky. They fly the Savage banner, but I don’t think they have the full charter’s protection. Dragon, the club president for the Savage crew in Kentucky, backs them though, and I know that fucker’s firepower is impressive. I didn’t seek them out for help and that might have been a mistake.

I can’t trust my club now. Crash might have been identified, but does he have people within my club? Are there others I need to worry about? When you can’t trust your own men, the last thing you want to do is trust others. So I purposely didn’t announce our presence here. I left everyone in the dark. Now, I’m wondering if that was smart. If I had met with them, maybe I would have been able to trust them. It would have been good to have more firepower at my back. I get Crash was my weak spot and he went against me. It hurts that any man under my command would do that, but it feels better knowing who it was—instead of being left wondering. I can’t even truly pinpoint when this shit started. I suspect it has something to do with the contract I turned down funneling women into Mexico. My men didn’t like it. It meant a fuck of a lot of money for all of us. I’m a bastard and my hands are about as dirty as they come. I had to draw the line at that though. The women these men were paying for are my daughter’s age. Turns out that even after all these years, I have a conscience.

“We can’t go in shooting. I only have one goal here, Wolf. I want my girl safe.”

“Damn it, Dodger. Are you listening to yourself? We don’t even know if Torrent is in there.”

“That’s why Skeeter and Red are up ahead scouting it out. Hopefully they don’t fuck up and get caught.”

“They won’t. They’re the best, you know that. We both trained them.”

“I can’t fucking be sure of anything anymore.”

“Crash might have been a motherfucking traitor, but it doesn’t mean all of your men are, Dodger.”

“Not my problem anymore. That will fall to you.”

“Will you fucking quit talking like that? Are you really so damn eager to die?”

“Fuck no. But I’ve told you before—”

“Yeah, I’ve heard that shit. You’ll excuse me if I try to keep your sorry ass alive.”

“As long as Torrent is your number one priority.” I shrug.

“She always has been,” Wolf says and I don’t respond.

I have a lot of shit on my mind, but I do know Wolf will take care of my little girl. I’m not worried about that. I just wish I could be here for her too. My skin feels like it’s burning. I look down at my watch. The time I was told to be here is close. I’m going to have to get moving. They’ll be looking for my guns and weapons. I’m going to be brought to them like a lamb to the slaughter. I have a couple of surprises though, and maybe if luck is on my side it will be enough to survive this—or at least for my baby girl to survive.

“She’s in there, Dodger,” Skeeter says and I look up to see him and Red coming my way. “They have her in a fucking crate in the back of the building.”

“She’s alive?” I ask, the thing that matters the most causing my heart to turn over in my chest.

“She is. We couldn’t see her that good, but she’s moving, Dodger.”

I close my eyes as relief sweeps through me.

“Then I guess it’s show time. You guys get in position.”

“Dodger—”

“Save it, Red. Wolf already tried to talk me out of it and it’s not happening. I’m going in front and I’ll be the distraction. You guys have only one job and that’s to go in the back and save my girl.”

“Damn it—”

“Enough!” I growl, my frustrations boiling over. “I’m done discussing this shit. You know your job. Do it and I’ll do mine.”

I take off walking, leaving my club behind me. They don’t matter anymore—nothing does.

Nothing but Torrent.