Gene Kettler hadn’t been murdered because of what he had done.He’d been murdered because of what he was finally willing to tell us.
Twister nodded once, and I started the bike.
The engine growled beneath us, and one by one, the Saints pulled away from the curb.
Behind us, sirens grew louder.
Ahead of us, The Ledger had just proven something we already feared.
They weren’t cleaning up old mistakes anymore.They were erasing anyone who could expose them.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Goldie
The ride back to the clubhouse felt longer than the ride to Gene Kettler’s house.
It wasn’t.I knew that.
The streets were the same.The traffic was the same.The distance hadn’t magically stretched because a man had been shot right in front of me.
Everything felt longer after watching Gene’s head snap back and blood spray across the wall behind him.
My arms were wrapped around Wheels so tight my fingers had started to ache.I knew I was probably squeezing the life out of him, but he never once reached back to loosen my hold.He just rode with me tucked against him, his shoulders stiff, his body a wall between me and the rest of the world, even though we were flying down the street on his bike.
The wind slapped against my face.The roar of the engine filled my ears.Cars passed.People walked along sidewalks.The city moved around us like nothing had happened.
That was the worst part.Somewhere behind us, Gene Kettler sat dead in his leather chair with coffee on the table beside him and blood on the wall.
And Madison kept moving.
I closed my eyes and pressed my cheek against Wheels’ back.I could still hear Gene’s voice.
Took you long enough.
He had known.He had known they were coming.
Maybe not that exact second.Maybe not that exact bullet.But he’d known the second he opened that door that he was a loose end and the Ledger didn’t leave those lying around.
They took him out.
One of their own.
By the time we pulled into the alley behind the clubhouse, my body felt like it was made of lead.Twister parked first, then Magnum, Swift, Hodge, and finally Wheels.Engines died one by one until the alley was too quiet.
I didn’t move.
Wheels twisted slightly and put his hand over mine where it was locked around his middle.“Babe.”
I blinked.
“You gotta let go so I can get off the bike.”
“Oh.”My voice sounded far away.“Right.”
My fingers didn’t want to work.I forced them loose and climbed off the bike on shaky legs.
Wheels was off immediately after me.His hands landed on my hips before I could pretend I was steady.I swayed into him, and he caught me like he had been expecting it.
