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“It means technically, you’re attached to him, so you’re part of them. There’s no divorcing out,” Kit explained, his features serious. “They’re gonna make him honor your marriage, and that means, you being by his side.”
“But we haven’t been together for years!” She exclaimed in shock.
“I’m assuming that since he’s stepped forward to take over, they aren’t letting it slide anymore.” Op said, turning his seat to her. “He wants to lead the Syndicate, he has to be an example for how they expect people to follow the rules. He’s king. You’re his queen. So that means, you have to be by his side.”
Hadley stared on in shock. “Th-there h-has to be another o-option,” she stuttered, her eyes finding mine, wide with fear.
“Yeah, the other option is that you’re dead,” I spat, disgusted with this man who was putting the life of a woman he was meant to care about at risk, simply so that he could be on top, ruling the land. “That’s what the packages are for. I’m guessing, they’ve given him a time frame to get you there—”
“Otherwise, he doesn’t get to be king,” Kit finished.
“But why the packages?” Camo asked, leaning into the table. “Why not just give no warning and snatch her off the street?”
“He likes to be extravagant,” Hadley answered quietly. “It’s part of the reason he went into undercover work… it was crazy and dangerous and exciting. He always wanted fast and big, and unfortunately Judge doesn’t run his operation like that. They don’t want people to notice them, they want to go under the radar. He was never satisfied.”
“So now he has the money and backing to go crazy.” Slider sighed.
Op nodded, tapping his hand on the table. “That’s exactly what scares me. How much money and backing does he have? How much damage can he do?”
“To you guys? None,” Hadley answered, pushing her shoulders back and inhaling deeply. “I’m withdrawing from my place in the club, and my request for your help.”
“Hadley…” I growled, but she didn’t look at me. The rest of the room was quiet, everyone shocked into silence.
Optimus raised his eyebrows at me, and I shook my head.
She wasn’t leaving.
No way in hell.
“Club girls are free to go whenever they feel like their time is done,” Optimus answered simply, turning his chair to face her. “An explanation would be nice even though you’re not obliged to give one.”
Hadley blinked furiously as if trying to swat away her tears. “I appreciate everything you’ve done for me. Letting me in, and watching out for me. But I can’t let this go on any longer. I can’t let anyone else gets hurt.”
I was fuming. My body was wound so tightly I couldn’t even speak.
“So this is about what happened yesterday,” Op offered.
Hadley nodded. “I hoped coming here would make Simon think twice about going after me. There was no huge threat of danger at that stage. We weren’t really sure what was going on. But it got very serious, very quickly.” A shudder ran through her, and her eyes flicked to me. Sadness in them, regret. “I never meant for Macy to get caught up in my problems.”
“You don’t fucking even know they were after you,” I snapped, slamming my palm down on to the wooden table.
“Leo,” Op warned.
I was angry.
We had no idea what her ex-husband planned to do. If he did catch her alive and drag her down there, what would he do to her? The Syndicate would never let her leave alive.
And if she ran, they would chase her. Simon’s link to the government gave him all the resources he needed to hunt her down. She may be good with a gun, but there was only one of her.
“Self-sacrifice isn’t always the best strategy,” I told her, pushing back from my chair and standing.
It had been a game before, her throwing herself off the top of the kid’s playground in order to make me let Macy go so she could run.
Now she was doing it again.
Throwing herself into danger in order to protect Macy, my brothers and me, their families. No regard for her own safety. More prepared to lose her own life than to watch others suffer.
I admired her for that. Her heart was huge, full of passion, strength. Willing to give herself before she let the people she cared about be hurt. The same thing that any of my brothers would do for each other. The same thing anyone here would do to protect the club and their families, whether related by blood or not.
