“And just where the hell are you going?” Ryder asked.

He’d been pacing his kitchen floor for the last fifteen minutes while Dani sat beside me cleaning out the wound and stitching me up. She cut the thread and patted my shoulder. “You’re good to go.”

“Thanks, Dani,” I said as I got to my feet. Ryder was still glaring at me, waiting for my answer. “I told the girls from the alley that if they ever needed anything, they should call me. That was one of them. The Hand is at The Stokes Cigar Lounge where she works. Jason was with him, but she says he took off in a hurry.”

“Does she know which way he went?”

I shook my head. “You should go look for him. I’m going to the bar to deal with The Hand.”

“You shouldn’t go alone,” Dani said.

She was probably right. It was reckless and dangerous, but there was no way in hell I was going to ask any of my brothers to come with me. They had wives and children. They had people who depended on them. I had myself, and that had to be enough. I could take one for the team. “I’ll call them on the way,” I lied. “You just worry about finding Jason. He needs us right now.”

Ryder nodded. “Get the hell out of here. Call us when it’s done.”

I nodded and rushed to the door. Dani was following along behind me. “I don’t like this,” she said over and over. “Let me call it in.”

“Give me a fifteen-minute head start.”

“Ten,” she said flatly.

“Fine. Ten.” I wrenched open the front door.

Dani put her hand on my forearm. “Be careful, okay? Ryder can’t bear to lose anyone else. You’re important to us. To all of us. I know that sometimes you might think differently, but I want you to keep coming for pancake breakfasts.” She gave me a lopsided smile and let go of my arm.

I flashed her a grin. “If you weren’t already his, Dani, I’d—”

Dani burst out laughing and held her hand up. “Don’t even say it out loud, you dog. Go get that piece of shit. You’re cutting into your ten minutes.”

I hurried off to my truck, the pain in my arm a distant memory now, and got in. Dani stood in the doorway as I pulled out of the driveway. She looked scared. I couldn’t blame her.

I drove as fast as I could. There was hardly any traffic on the roads at this hour, and I knew I’d make good time. I just hoped it would be enough. When I was three minutes away, my phone rang, and Caleb’s name flashed across the display screen on my stereo. I jabbed the green phone button in the dash to answer the call.

“Hey,” Caleb’s voice filled the truck.

“What?”

“Dani just called me.”

Of course, she did. Sneaky woman. She knew all of us better than we knew ourselves. I often wondered where Ryder would be without her. She was as much our boss as he was these days. I didn’t know which one of them frightened me more. “What did she say?” I asked as I took a sharp left, cutting through traffic.

“That you’re planning on taking on The Hand alone.”

“I was gonna call you.”

“Then, why haven’t you? I’ve been waiting for said call.”

I clenched my teeth. No point in telling him the truth, that I wasn’t as valuable as them. “I can handle this on my own.”

“No, you can’t. How far away from the lounge are you?”

“Five minutes,” I said, which wasn’t true. I was two minutes away. Tops.

“Don’t go in until we get there. I’m en route now. So is Sabian and Jax. I haven’t gotten ahold of Axel yet, but I’m going to keep trying. We have to take this guy on together, man. There’s no point in throwing yourself to the wolves like this.”

“I have to go in there, Caleb. Evelyn is in there.”

“Evelyn?”

“One of the girls from the alley. She’s the one who called and gave me the tip. If he recognizes her, she’s going to be in over her head. I have to get her the hell out of there.”

“She’s tough. She can wait another ten minutes for the rest of us to get there.”

Ten minutes was too long. A lot of shit could go down in ten minutes. Sabian had almost died in ten minutes. Hyde probably had died in ten minutes. When The Hand was involved, I wasn’t going to work under assumptions. I was going to take action now to spare myself regret and guilt later. If he took a chunk out of me or worse, then so be it.

“I’ll see you when you get here,” I said.

“Don’t fucking go in there, Derek. I mean—”

I dropped the call as I pulled into the parking lot. Caleb called me back, but I let it keep ringing as I drove right up to the front doors and got out of my truck in a hurry. I left the door wide open with the phone still ringing inside and hurried up the front steps two at a time until I reached the front door.

I pushed inside and was engulfed by the calming sounds of jazz music, pleasant chitchat, and laughter. The place was a smoky haze, and women in black dresses and skirts flitted between tables with trays of drinks.

I went to the bar first.

The guy working it was young and had a name tag that read “Justin.” He was chatting with a blonde server, and I slapped my hand on the counter to get his attention. He gave me a sour look, but it was nothing compared to the dirty glare the server gave me.

“What’s your problem, man?” the bartender asked.

“There’s a guy in here that’s going to cause trouble, and I need you to spot him for me,” I said. I had my back to the room so I couldn’t be recognized if The Hand was still there.

The blonde server at the end of the bar turned to look around.

“Hey,” I hissed, and she snapped back to face me. “Don’t let on that you’re looking for anyone. Just keep looking at us like we’re having a nice conversation. Justin, I’m going to look down at a menu, and you’re going to casually look around for a big bald guy. Then, start making a drink and tell me where he is.”

Justin was a good boy. He did exactly as I said. “He’s in the middle of the bar. He’s alone. I think he already knows you’re here, man. He’s looking right at us.”

“Fuck,” I growled. Again, I had lost the element of surprise. “You need to round up the staff and get them the fuck out of here. You hear me? Shit is going to get messy real fast. Where’s Evelyn?”

“She’s in the back. Hasn’t been on the floor for ten minutes or so—”

“Don’t tell him anything, Justin,” the blonde server snapped. I liked her. She had a brain and was protecting Evelyn.

“Evelyn is my friend. She called me to come. Now, do as I say. Get the staff out of here and any customers you can.” I stared expectantly at Justin who just blinked back at me. Dumbass. “Do I need to repeat myself? Get your ass moving, kid!”

Justin snapped into action and so did the server. I turned slowly to put my back to the bar.

The Hand was where Justin said he was, right smack in the middle of the bar. He was on his feet and had a cigar hanging out one side of his mouth. He was smiling like he always seemed to do whenever danger was lurking overhead, and he was slowly rolling up the sleeves of his white button-up.

He chuckled and shook his head once his forearms were exposed. “Well, well, well. I must say. You Lost Breeds just keep making my job easier and easier. You fell right into my lap like a stray mutt.”

“Where’s Jason?”

The Hand shrugged. “The kid is a little bitch. He ran off with his tail between his legs. Looks like he failed to do the job I gave him.” The Hand glanced at my shoulder and clicked his tongue like a disapproving mother. “He’ll have to make up for that somehow.”

“He’s just a kid,” I growled.

“Sure he is and an important one at that. A Moretti. I’ll let him go when I’m done with him. If I feel like it. And in whatever state I choose.”

“Fuck you,” I spat.

The Hand laughed and took his cigar out of his mouth. He tossed it in the ashtray on the table and slipped his hands in his pockets. “You’re a bitter motherfucker, aren’t you?”

“Enough talking.”

“Suits me.” The Hand shrugged.

And that was it. The gloves were off. The people in the lounge had become aware of the tension in the room and had gotten up from their tables to leave. By the time the conversation ended, the entire lounge was empty save for Justin the fool, who was still standing behind the bar like a dope.

The Hand leaned over and plucked his whiskey from the table beside the ashtray. He polished it off in three mouthfuls and then smashed the glass on the edge of the table. He picked up the broken shards and slipped them between his fingers as he made a fist. Then he flashed me a smile and wiggled his glass knuckles beside his face. “Come on Lost Breed. Let’s dance.”

It was going to hurt. It was going to hurt a hell of a lot.

But I could fight dirty too.

I charged him. He stayed where he was, his feet planted, bracing for impact. All the while he smiled like a lunatic as he anticipated the brawl.

I remained focused. I couldn’t afford to fuck up. I had to play this smart if I stood a chance of beating him. He had a good fifty pounds on me, all of which was hard muscle, and I doubted he was the sort to slow down after getting hit hard a few times. If anything, it would probably only spur him on more.

He raised his fist.

Right before he swung, I ducked out of the way. His fist barreled by my face, and I lunged sideways. I picked up a discarded serving tray from one of the tables and spun back around with it. The Hand’s fist came at me again, but this time, it slammed into the tray. The glass shards broke apart with the impact. Blood erupted from between his fingers, and he let out a furious growl as I wound back and swung the tray viciously.

I struck him across the jaw, and he staggered back.

Then, he started laughing. It was wild, manic, uncontrollable laughter. His wild eyes swept up to me, and he dragged his bloody hand down his face, staining his skin red. “I like your style, Lost Breed. You’re going to be more fun than I thought.”