Sometime after midnight, I’m woken up by a text from Thorn telling me to call him. I ease out of bed, not wanting to wake Alix, who’s snoring softly beside me. Pulling on my jeans, I go downstairs into the main part of the clubhouse.

Evidence of last night’s partying is still strewn around the place, from half-drunk bottles of beer and whiskey to a few overturned chairs and other shit lying on the floor. Sarge is asleep on one of the low leather couches. He’s got the head of one of the club girls in his lap, who looks like she fell asleep after giving him a blow job. I snort in amusement, and decide to go outside to have a smoke and make the call.

When Thorn answers, it’s clear from the highway noises he’s on the road. “Mornin’, brother,” he greets me, as cheerful as ever.

“Fuck morning. It’s still the middle of the night,” I shoot back. “You got any news for me from that Tony fucker?”

“Yeah.” Even through the phone, I can hear the grin on his face. “He talked. Kind of a disappointment, actually. It didn’t take very much to break him. Turns out he’s kind of a pussy.”

I can’t help but laugh. “Why am I not surprised?”

“And you were right about the hairpiece. We disposed of that abomination properly, by the way.”

“Thank the lord,” I say, lighting my smoke. “So, what’s the word?”

“We’ve got the location of where Gonzalo and his crew hang out. We’re keepin’ Tony on ice for the moment, so he doesn’t get any bright ideas about warning Gonzalo that we might be paying him a little visit.”

“You have any idea whether Alix’s sister is still with him?”

“I think she is.” He pauses, for long enough that I start to get pissed.

“Well? Keep going.”

“It’s pretty bad, brother,” Thorn admits. “Turns out, Gonzalo’s crew gets their kicks drugging women and usin’ them for their own pleasure. Not to mention selling them to their buddies, for cash or in exchange for favors.”

“Fucking hell. Sex trafficking?”

“Yeh.” Thorn blows out a deep breath. “Pretty small operation at the moment, but that’s not exactly going to be a consolation to your girl or her sister, is it? When we finally got Tony to start talking, he told us Gonzalo brought the sister to his strip club to get Tony to hire her. But the girl was so drugged up, Tony assumed she was a junkie, so he refused.”

Jesus.

“So, you got the location of where Gonzalo’s crew is?”

“We got an address. Think we know where they are. I had Bullet drive by it last night to check things out. We didn’t want to make a move until we had enough men to blow the place open, in case they got nervous and ran.”

“Good plan.” I run a hand roughly through my hair. We need to move on this, fast. “Okay, look. The four of you, stay in the area. I’m gonna talk to Rock about this first thing in the morning. I’ll want to bring some more men before we go in to get Eden. I’ll call you back as soon as I have a plan.”

“Understood.”

“Thanks, brother.”

“No thanks necessary, Gun.” He pauses. “Unless you’re interested in giving me the secret to beating Beast at arm-wrestling.”

In spite of the tension I’m feeling, I burst out laughing. “Not a chance.”

“Ah, well. It was worth a try.” Thorn hangs up, the sound of his chuckle the last thing I hear before the click.

I’m not about to fall back to sleep at this point. I’m way too keyed up, and I need to think through a strategy for going in and getting Eden from Gonzalo and his crew. So, I go back upstairs and pull on the rest of my clothes in the dark, then head back outside into the cool night.

It’s time for a ride.

The noise of my engine cuts through the silence as I ride through the mostly-sleeping town and out onto the highway. It’s been a long time since I’ve ridden at night like this. It’s one of my favorite things to do. The moon is full, or close to it, and the sky is cloudless. I could practically ride without headlights, the road is so illuminated by the moonlight.

Riding through the night like this feels timeless, in a way that riding in the day never does. I don’t come across a single car for almost an hour. I keep going, barely paying attention to where I’m turning right or left. I avoid the towns, preferring to be alone with my thoughts. Thoughts of Alix. And her sister. And what it will mean when the club has found her and brought her back.

I think about Alix going back to Lynchburg, to her old life.

A life she’s told me is practically nonexistent. Everything she had there is mostly gone now. Even her job, she says.

Right now, Alix is at the clubhouse, in my apartment. Sleeping in my bed. The sheets are warm from her body. Her pillow smells like her hair. In spite of myself, I get hard just thinking about her there, and the ache almost convinces me to turn back around, to wake her up in the night and take her. I know the sounds she’ll make. I know how fucking good it will feel when I come inside her.

I don’t want to lose that.

Fuck. I’m not going to lose that.

Alix is going to stay here in Tanner Springs. With me. We’ll get her sister back here, and then we’ll take it from there.

I don’t turn the bike around. I keep riding.

And I plan.

* * *

When I get back to the clubhouse, it’s after eight in the morning. Sarge has disappeared from the couch where he was sleeping. Some of the club girls are cleaning up the mess from last night. From the kitchen, I can smell the aroma of bacon.

The chapel door is closed, and I can see from the shadow underneath that the light’s on. I take a chance that the prez is in there and knock.

“Yeah?” Rock’s voice barks from the other side. Steeling myself, I turn the knob and push the door open.

Inside, Rock and Angel are seated at the large table, mugs of coffee in front of them. They look up at the sound of my footsteps. Angel lifts his chin at me.

“Morning, Gun,” he murmurs.

“Morning,” I say, stepping inside and closing the door behind me. “You mind an interruption? I need to talk to you.”

“We’re goin’ over the details for the next run with the Death Devils,” Rock tells me, and motions for me to sit. “Oz needs a few of us to run the gun shipment to his buyers today.”

“How many men you need for that?” I ask.

“Shouldn’t need more than four or five,” Rock answers. “I’m goin’ on this one. Figured I’ll take Ghost and you, maybe Striker and Brick.”

I hesitate. “About that. I got a favor to ask you. To ask the club.”

Rock frowns. I know he expected me to agree automatically. Which I should have.

“Yeah?” he scowls. “What’s your fuckin’ favor?”

I glance over at Angel, hoping he’ll back me up. “I need some men to come with me on a run of my own. Today. It’s important. And it’s kind of urgent.”

Rock’s look is sharp, angry. “Why the fuck didn’t you come to me about this sooner?”

“I didn’t know about it myself until a few hours ago.”

Leaning back in my chair, I tell Rock and Angel everything I know, starting from Alix’s unexpected appearance at the Smiling Skull, to Thorn’s phone call a few hours ago. As I talk, Rock’s expression doesn’t change. They both ask questions, and I wait for Rock’s anger that I’ve already used the club’s resources and men to go after Gonzalo.

When I’ve finished, I say, “So now that we know where they are, and what’s probably happening to Eden, I don’t think we should wait any longer before we go in. We’re holding Tony so he can’t contact Gonzalo, but it’s still possible Gonzalo could find out some other way if we don’t act now.”

“So, this is the sister of the bitch you brought into the clubhouse yesterday?” Rock rumbles.

I know for him it’s just a word. But if it was anyone other than my club president calling Alix a bitch, I would leap over this fucking table and beat him so bad it would be the last word he ever said.

“Don’t call her that,” I rasp the warning, half-rising in my chair. The fury in my tone is just beneath the surface, and I can tell they both hear it. I hope Rock heeds my fucking words. Because prez or not, if he does it again I’m not going to be responsible for what comes next.

“Gun’s family,” Angel breaks in, his voice loud and firm. “We got your back, brother.” Turning to Rock, he continues. “We don’t need all the brothers to go on the Death Devils run, like you said. The Lords can spare a few men to go find Gunner’s old lady’s sister.”

“Old lady?” Rock scowls, a little tension easing in his jaw. He looks to me for confirmation. “That true?”

I take a deep breath. “Yeah.”

It is true. Or as good as true, anyway. Even though Alix and I haven’t gotten anywhere near a conversation like that, I know it’s coming. She’s mine. I think I knew it somewhere down deep even that first night at the Smiling Skull.

“Goddamnit,” Rock mutters. “Don’t pull shit like this again, Gun. You don’t decide what this club does. I do.”

“I know.” I nod briefly. “It wasn’t something I planned.”

“How many men you need for this?”

“Thorn, Bullet, Hawk, and Beast are already out there,” I say, ignoring the flash of anger in his eyes. “I need three more.”

“I’ll go,” Angel breaks in. “Maybe Tank and Lug Nut?”

Rock frowns darkly at the table, then barks, “Okay.” He rises from his chair and walks toward the door. “You keep me in the loop on this,” he warns.

“I will.”

Then Rock is gone, the door slamming behind him. The echo of his boots retreats into the distance. I stand up myself, and blow out a breath.

“I could use a cup of coffee,” I say to Angel nodding toward his mug.

“I’ll come with you. I need a refresher.”

The two of us head toward the kitchen. “Thanks for helping me out back there, Angel,” I mutter.

“What can I say? I’m a fuckin’ boy scout.”

“Rock doesn’t seem too happy about this.”

“Yeah, well,” he snorts. “Rock and I have had plenty of disagreements. It won’t be the first time we’ve clashed on what the club should be doing.”

In the kitchen, Melanie is washing up some breakfast dishes. “Just made some more coffee,” she says when she sees us. “Help yourself.”

I grab a mug and wait for Angel to refresh his, then fill mine to the brim. We’re heading back down the hallway to the main room when I almost bump into Alix as she rounds the corner.

I start to make a joke about how bad she needs coffee to be running like that, but one look at her tells me coffee isn’t what she’s after.

Alix’s face is white as a sheet.

“Gunner,” she says in a strangled voice. “It’s Eden!”