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Emotion colors Starla’s cheeks.
“I won’t let anything happen to her. Ever,” Dallas assures Winter adamantly.
I don’t know why, but the urgency in his tone makes me wonder if he’s saying that out of concern for my wife and lessening her anxiety or if something more is at play. However, when Starla glances back at him, I can see the surprise and embarrassment written clearly on her face. I’m probably reading too much into it. Dallas just doesn’t want Winter to worry about her friend when Winter’s only just woken up and is still in a hospital bed.
Then Winter’s penetrating gaze meets mine. “Take me home?” she asks.
I chuckle. “I think that will be up to the doctor.” Rising, I press a kiss to her forehead. “I’ll go find him so he can check you out, see if it’s okay if you’re released.”
“Good.” Winter settles back against her pillow. “Take Dallas with you, please. I need a moment alone with Starla.”
I cock my eyebrow in question but don’t argue as Dallas rises to join me. We both head into the hall in search of the doctor or a nurse who might know where he is.
“Did you tell her how close things were?” Dallas asks as we walk down the hall.
I shake my head. “It’s over, and she’s got enough stress as it is. The doctor’s worried about her hypertension. I don’t need to do anything to escalate it.”
Dallas nods. Then, in an uncharacteristic display of affection, he grips my good shoulder and gives it a squeeze. “I’m glad you’re all okay, man. We’d be lost without you.”
“Nah,” I disagree. “You’d make a fine president.”
Dallas shakes his head with a smile. “That’s not what I mean.”
The unspoken sentiment makes my heart swell with emotion. I fucking love my boys.
26
Gabriel
The doctor insistshe would like to keep Winter for one more night to ensure she’s stable and not in too much pain now that she’s awake. Though she’s not particularly happy about it, it’s probably a good thing she stays because, now that she is awake, I have unfinished business to attend to. Starla agrees to keep her company while I’m gone, and then Dally and I head back to the clubhouse, where Rico and Knuckles have been in charge during my absence.
I can see it on my men’s faces, the concern over what happened, their unspoken questions about what will happen to the men in the shed out back. Last they heard, I might be chopping those men up into fine little pieces to punish them for killing my wife. And while I’m sure Dallas has relayed the message that Winter hadn’t died, until this morning, we weren’t sure whether she would wake.
“Well?” Rico asks as we dismount our bikes and approach the open garage doors of the clubhouse.
His uncharacteristic concern tells me he really wasn’t sure Winter would make it.
I nod. “She’s awake. She seems like she’ll pull through.” I chuckle, thinking about her insistence on going home. “She thinks she’s right as rain, ready to head out the hospital doors even though she woke up just a few hours ago.”
Rico smiles. “Sounds about right.”
Glancing around the open space of the clubhouse, I realize it’s been put back in order, not a wedding linen or misplaced chair in sight. I can still see splatters of copper blood staining the dirt outside, but those will be washed away by the rain within a few weeks.
Calling a meeting, I gather all my men for an impromptu church. They gather around, their faces filled with solemn respect, and I feel a sense of pride at having put together such a strong club in such a short amount of time. Thankfully, according to Dallas, none of my men were lost in the gun fight, though a few did get shot and had to go to the hospital for minor wounds.
“I’m calling you all together today to thank you. In a dark time, you banded together and protected your president like seasoned pros. You risked your lives to save those of your brothers, and you ran down the men responsible for all the violence and bloodshed over these past few months. I’m honored to be your leader, and after the strength and resolve you’ve shown, I wouldn’t want to have any other men guarding my six.” I project to the room, meeting every man’s eye to ensure they know I’m proud of each and every one of them.
Sporadic hoots and cheers show me their support, and I smile, spreading my arms wide. “I have the good news that my wife is awake. She and my unborn child are finally out of the woods, and while I can’t yet bring her home, she is going to be okay.”
Boisterous cheers follow that, and I wait for them to calm down before I continue. While these men have only started to get to know Winter, they regard her with the same kind of respect one might give a queen. I love it. It’s everything she deserves. She might not be the queen of Blackmoor. But she’s the queen of the Devil’s Sons, which somehow suits her so much better.
“As for the men we caught,” I say, calling them back to attention, and the mood sombers once again. “They were resentful men, bitter over the execution of a brother who put his desires above the needs of his brothers. They rejected President Mark’s ruling, sentencing him to death. Rather than challenge Mark or honorably handle the dispute, they chose sneaky vengeance, coming after me, my wife, and our unborn child to take their pound of flesh.”
The room is deathly silent now. This is the moment where I show my men what happens if they do choose to betray the club. It’s a lesson I’m grateful they will learn without having to lose one of their own from the ranks. They can see how deadly serious I am about loyalty before they follow in Wyatt’s footsteps and make the same mistake. Not that I would think any of them capable of disobeying me after their heroic display at the wedding. To a man, they stood by me. No one questioned orders, faltered, or showed an inch of fear.
“They will die a coward’s death, and I want you all to witness.” With a nod, I step forward into the crowd, Dally at my side, and the ranks step aside, parting like the Red Sea to let me pass.
I can feel them following me, though they’re as silent as the grave, not a whisper passed between them as we make our way out to the shed, Dally beside me, and Rico and Knuckles just beyond.
