Page 6 of Judge's Justice

That piece of shit is already gone. On his way back to the Viper clubhouse, one arm cradled against his ribs, blood still streaming from his broken nose. He'll tell Demon exactly what happened. That the Iron Phoenix VP caught him scouting Millhaven. That there was a woman. A witness.

And Demon will want to know everything about her.

I should've killed him.

The thought comes cold and clear, the way it always does when I'm thinking tactically instead of emotionally. Should've put him down permanently, made sure he couldn't report back. But there was a kid watching. A five-year-old girl who didn't need to see me put a blade through a man's throat, no matter how much he deserved it.

So, I let him run.

And now Nora and Grace might be targets.

They turn left onto Oak Street, and I follow at the same distance. The streetlights here are better: newer, brighter, the kind that actually illuminate instead of just pretending to. The houses are small but well-kept, the kind of neighborhood where people mow their lawns and don't ask too many questions.

The Airbnb is the third house on the right, just like Nora said. Single-story, pale blue siding, a small porch with a bench nobody ever sits on. The owner lives two towns over, uses the place as passive income, installed a code entry so she doesn't have to drive out every time someone books it.

Perfect for a woman who doesn't want to talk to anyone.

I wonder what she's running from. Wonder what put that look in her eyes, that mix of exhaustion and barely-contained rage that I recognize because I've seen it in the mirror often enough, but it’s none of my business.

Nora stops at the front door, shifting Grace to her hip so she can pull out her phone. The kid wraps her arms around her mother's neck, face pressed into her shoulder, and I see how small they both are. How breakable.

The door clicks open. Nora looks back at me one more time: her face pale in the glow from her phone screen, eyes wide and uncertain, and then she's inside. The door closes behind her. A lock clicks.

I sit on the bike for another thirty seconds, listening. Making sure. Then I pull out my phone and send a quick text to the club group chat.

**JUDGE:** *Situation. Caught a Viper on Main Street harassing civilians. Female and a kid. Put him down, sent him running. He'll report back. Expect retaliation.*

The responses come fast.

**PHOENIX:** *You good?*

**JUDGE:** *Fine. Viper's not.*

**BRICK:** *Civilians okay?*

**JUDGE:** *Shaken. Got them to safety. Staying on patrol.*

**PHOENIX:** *Location?*

**JUDGE:** *Oak Street. The rental.*

There's a pause. Then Phoenix's name lights up my screen, incoming call.

I answer. "Yeah."

"What the hell happened?" Phoenix's voice is rough, alert despite the late hour. He never sleeps well anyway. None of us do.

"Viper was at the bus station. Woman just got into town with her kid, five years old, deaf. He was hitting on her. Hard. Wouldn't take no for an answer." I keep my voice level, even though my jaw's still tight thinking about it. "I pulled up, he pulled a knife. I broke his arm and his nose. Sent him back to Demon with a message."

"What message?"

"That if I catch another Viper in Millhaven, they don't walk away."

Phoenix is quiet for a beat. "You think he was scouting?"

"Yeah. He was gathering intel."

"And now he knows there's a civilian witness who saw you put him down."