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“You’ve fucked with me one last time, Fond,” I declared, my voice firm. “You don’t get to walk away from this.”
Fond’s eyes, wide with fear, darted around, looking for an escape that wasn’t there. He knew it was over. “Kingpin, we can make a deal,” he stammered, desperation coloring his tone. But as he begged, I saw what he hid. He still had his gun.
It was too late for deals, too late for mercy. “No more deals, Fond. You had every intention of killing my ol’ lady. You made your choice.”
And with that, I pulled the trigger.
It wasn’t how I’d envisioned it. I didn’t mean to be the one to take his life, shoot him between the eyes. I’d planned to let that task go to Hallow, someone who was already in hiding, sheltered from the consequences that might someday surface. But in that moment, it was the only way to ensure he wouldn’t kill Eve in the very next instant. As Fond crumpled to the ground, a weight lifted, the end of a chapter marked by violence and fear.
The mob, now firmly on our side, moved in to secure the rest of Fond’s men, their actions speaking louder than any assurances of allegiance. Eve and Sky were safe, their ordeal over, and as I wrapped my arms around Eve, her injuries were a sick reminder of the cost of this victory.
Fond was gone, and with him, the immediate threat to our family, our club. The Road Monsters MC had proven their utility, reinforcing my faith in my secret venture. The mob had been temporarily forced into loyalty. And as we stood among friends and former foes alike, I thought it was all over.
I thought that was the end, the final act in a saga that could’ve cost us so much. But as we began to take stock of the aftermath, a shot rang out, shattering the brief respite. Alexander Getty lay dead, and to my utter shock, it was Sky who had fired the weapon.
As I looked around at the faces of my brothers, at Hallow’s stunned expression, I knew everyone was as stunned as I was. A million reasons why cascaded through my mind, each more resolute than the last. Sky had every reason to hate the mob. We chalked it up to her mental health and wanting revenge on them taking her child. But they’d also been in cahoots with Junebug who hurt Sky before.
Feeling all kinds of ways, guilty and sorry, I let her and Hallow go about their way. Said I’d deal with whatever shit was about to rain down from her rash actions. I owed her that much. Hallow had come through and I owed it to him, too. Reunited, they seemed very much in love. But then, when the dust settled the next day, the truth emerged in a twist I hadn’t seen coming. Immediately after I let them go, Sky left Hallow again, aligning herself with Ralph Getty, who, in the wake of his uncle’s death, suddenly found himself at the head of the snake.
Vino, Alexander’s son and the presumed heir, could not be located, his claim removed by the very chaos we’d all been embroiled in. Sky’s actions, her betrayal, was a seemingly calculated move for survival in a world where power shifts were as common as the rising sun. Hallow was heartbroken but back on the road, as Maverick of the Road Monsters MC. Nevertheless, I had no faith that he wouldn’t just disappear. Run from all the trouble and heartache. I couldn’t say that I blamed him.
The realization that our battle had paved the way for a new mob regime, with Ralph and Sky and their child, who I once thought was mine, at its heart, was a bitter pill to swallow. In trying to protect our own, to save Eve and even Sky, we’d inadvertently reshaped the criminal landscape of Nashville. The cost of our victory was steep, leaving us to navigate a future fraught with new alliances and old betrayals.
At least I didn’t owe Ralph Getty shit.
Having Eve back in my arms, seeing my kids safe and sound, was a moment of pure happiness. The relief that washed over me when the doctor gave us the news was immense. Eve looked like she’d gone a few rounds with a freight train, but the prognosis was good. Broken ribs, sure, but nothing that wouldn’t heal with time. She was tough, my Eve, tougher than anyone I’d ever known.
But when she brought up the wedding, insisting that we go through with it despite everything that had happened, I thought she’d lost her damn mind.
“You’re crazy,” I told her, half in admiration, half in disbelief. “You’re here, all battered and bruised, and you’re thinking about the wedding?”
Eve’s determination shone through, undimmed by her ordeal. “Everyone’s already here, and Sweet Tea told me the cake was saved, put in the walk-in and everything. We’re already married, I know, but we planned this… and I’ll be damn if Fond or this,” she gestured to her bandages, “is going to stop me.”
I couldn’t stop myself from laughing, the sound bubbling up from a place of deep joy and relief. Her spirit, her refusal to let the darkness of the past days dictate our future. It was one of the many reasons I loved her.
“Alright,” I conceded, shaking my head in wonder. “If you’re sure. But we’re waiting on that honeymoon until you’re one hundred percent.”
Eve smiled, that grin that could light up the darkest room, and I knew we’d made the right choice. This wedding wasn’t just about the two of us. It was a declaration, a way of reclaiming our lives from the chaos that had sought to engulf us. It was about standing in front of our family, the Royal Bastards MC, our friends, our brothers, and sisters in arms, and celebrating not just our love, but our survival, our resilience.
As we began to make the quick arrangements, I couldn’t shake the feeling of surrealness that accompanied the whole endeavor. Here we were, fresh from a battle that had nearly cost us everything, about to throw the biggest wedding Royal Road had ever seen. It was madness, beautiful madness, and I wouldn’t have had it any other way.
Chapter 23
Eve
We went through with the wedding, to hell with the circumstances. There I was, broken ribs and all, in my wedding gown. Leo worked miracles, somehow managing to cover the worst of my bruises and cuts, so I wouldn’t look entirely like roast beef. She made me feel like a bride despite the aches that reminded me of the ordeal I’d just endured. My heart swelled with gratitude and love for these women, who’d become my family in more ways than one.
Come to find out, Kingpin had planned to surprise me by arranging for my dad to walk me down the aisle. Given everything, it was a gesture that meant more to me than words could express. And the fact my dad had stayed close by and even helped the Road Monsters MC kidnap Alexander Getty warmed my heart. My mobility was limited, the result of being beaten, but my dad, the old biker once from a rival club, pushed me in a wheelchair.
As we waited for our cue, Dimple, who I’d told to play anything he wanted, began playing Meatloaf’s “Anything for Love.” Rolling my eyes, I regretted being so easy going this time ‘round.
My little boy, Prince, took his role as ring bearer to heart. Though his execution was more playful than planned. He zoomed toward the altar, imagination in full throttle, pretending to be a dog, complete with enthusiastic barks. The pillow with the rings barely survived his exuberance, but the laughter from our leather clad guests flooded the hall.
Following Prince, Johnny, Kingpin’s other son, took on the role of beer boy, making his way through the crowd with a seriousness that belied his years, handing out beers to the bikers with a grin that was all Kingpin. It was a touch that, while unconventional, felt right for us, blending the traditions of a wedding with the spirit of our club.
This wasn’t the wedding I had meticulously planned months ago. It was something else entirely, a biker wedding through and through, catering more to the club and its members, a family forged not just by blood but by battles fought side by side. And yet, it felt perfect, a celebration not just of love, but of survival, of the bonds that had been tested and proven unbreakable.
The sight of Kingpin waiting for me at the altar, looking every bit the warrior with his own bruises and cuts, filled me with an emotion so profound it was almost overwhelming. We matched, not just in our physical scars, but in our determination, our resilience, and our love.
