EPILOGUE

PINK FLOYD’S “WISH You Were Here” is blasting on my stereo. I hear the low rumble of motorcycles, riding at a slow pace. Beneath my feet, the concrete shakes with the vibrations of pipes. Hundreds of bikes ride behind me in two straight lines. And in front of me, in a glass custom-built trailer, lays the body of my brother.

And my best friend.

I’ve tried to imagine I was honoring someone else by leading the pack in a final ride. My mind flashes with images of Dirk riding beside me. I can almost feel the hate radiating off him—his mind spinning in a hundred different ways on how to bring hell to those who just earned revenge by the hands of Sinner’s Creed’s finest. His presence is so powerful that I turn and look to my left, expecting to see him wearing that pissed-off look he perfected. But I see nothing.

The reality hits me again, and it hurts just as bad now as it did when I first found out.

One phone call.

Two words.

“Dirk’s dead.”

He’s gone.

Forever.

And all I have left are material things to remind me that he was real. His house. His money. What’s left of his bike. And Saylor’s diary—the most painful reminder of all.

He was her king.

She was his queen.

I hold the greatest love story of all time inside my cut—close to my heart. The story lives on, but their love will be buried today. Laid to rest with my brother, who’s freshly dug grave lays next to the woman who saved him.

I wish this tragedy had ended differently. It should have been me they found dead on that highway. It should be Dirk riding behind my casket today. I pulled the trigger that night. But Dirk took the fall. If he was here, he’d tell me to quit feeling sorry for myself. He’d tell me he only had two reasons to live—Saylor and Sinner’s Creed. One was already gone. The other he died for.

If he was here, he’d give me that look that made me feel stupid. Then he’d ask, “Do you really think I’d just lay down and die? I went out the way I wanted. They didn’t kill me, Shady. I was already dead.”

And he was.

He is.

Tears fill my eyes, but I force them back. Dirk doesn’t want my tears. He wants my wrath. My tribute will be paid by slaughtering those who did this. It’s more meaningful, and a fuck of a lot bloodier.

Inside, I’m screaming in agony. But no one can hear me. My eyes are filled with sorrow and loss. But no one can see it. My chest aches with a thousand flames from the fiery sea of hell. But no one can feel it. No one but me.

Shady.

The man who was born with nothing, lost everything, and has something he doesn’t deserve. Life.

Whatever controls me, whether it is my instincts or my subconscious, leads me to a deep hole surrounded by men and a handful of shovels. These men are said to be my brothers, but the truth is only one ever really earned that title. And I watch as they lower his body into the ground.

Every patch holder strives to make the club prosper. Many will die trying. Dirk did it by just existing. His life stood for what the patch really means. And his death proved that he was willing to give it all for Sinner’s Creed.

He will be remembered as the greatest Nomad that ever rode.

A man of power.

A leader.

A ruthless enforcer.

A fucking legend.

He’s the most loyal man I ever knew. I never understood respect until I gained his. He’s the greatest loss I’ve ever suffered. And in this moment, I struggle to find the strength to let him go.

I want to crawl into the six-foot hole and breathe life back into his body. I want the man who was too fucking mean to die to rise from this grave. But death was peace for Dirk. And now I have to be at peace too.

I grab a handful of dirt, letting it slowly sift through my fingers and fall reverently on my brother. The granules of sand drop silently, but I swear I can hear every particle land on the black box.

The other patch holders follow suit, taking turns to bury one of our own. The process is slow and torturous, but I beg for it to go on forever. I know that once the hole is filled, then it’s over. It will be the end. Just like the last page in Saylor’s diary.

This is the end. The end to a beautiful life for me, Saylor Samson.

Now it’s the end of Dirk’s life. The only beauty of it came from his time with Saylor. With her he found happiness. And when he found it, it was like I found it too. But just like Dirk, that happiness is now buried.

After everyone leaves, I kneel at his grave. My fingers dig into the soft dirt as I bow my head over the grave. Two tears escape me. It’s all I allow myself. A tear for Dirk, and a tear for me. A part of me did die out on that highway with him. And today, that Shady is laid to rest. As I stand, I leave what’s left of who I was.

I’m no longer the lost little boy who nobody wanted. I’m not a young man searching for his place in the world. I’m not the same man who ran his fingers over the threads of his new patch again and again.

My anger is fueled by all that’s been lost. Fury blazes in my eyes. Rage consumes me. Revenge is my only thought. Killing is my ultimate goal. Death is the only justice.

Death Mob killed Dirk. Now they’ll pay the price. Their blood will pour like rain from the sky. Their bodies will decompose in shallow graves. The smell of their fear will fill the air. Their days are limited. Their nights will be haunted. One by one, they’ll die. Every death will send a message: I’m coming for them.

All of them.

But I’m not coming alone. I’m bringing hell with me.