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But Hayden clearly didn’t know what was good for him. “You got a woman, right? Bethany-Melissa? Caleb loved to run his mouth about how she was such a whore she fell into bed with you and some other guys.”
I snorted. “Is that how he told the story? Cowardly piece of shit.” I pressed the gun against his head harder. “Also, if you ever say the word whore and my girl’s name in the same sentence again, I’ll pull this.”
Hayden raised his hands in surrender. “Got it, got it. I’m not trying to piss you off. My point is, we’re the fucking same. Caleb threatened my brother, Liam, and his partner, Mae. They have a baby, just like you do.”
I blinked at the familiar names. Liam and Mae were friends of Vincent’s. We’d gone to their older kid’s birthday party not that long ago. I hadn’t even made the connection between Liam and Hayden. Their last names were different, so why would I?
I mashed my lips into a tight line. Well, that fucking complicated shit, didn’t it? I couldn’t shoot him in the head, knowing I’d be hurting people we cared about.
Son of a bitch.
I put the gun down. “He threatened them if you didn’t do what he wanted?”
Hayden nodded. “You would have done the same thing and you know it.”
I wasn’t sure I would have. I probably would have just shot Caleb on sight. But then I understood why Hayden hadn’t. An oddly small number of problems were solved by shooting someone. There was always someone further up the chain who took their place. Or some other new problem that arose.
It had taken me years to realize that.
Maybe Hayden had gotten there sooner than I had.
I put the gun back under my pillow and painfully sat back on my bed. The room was spinning in lazy circles, but I wasn’t going to let Hayden know that.
Silence fell over us. I wouldn’t have said it was a respectful one exactly, but there wasn’t quite as much animosity between us either. I understood the need to protect your family above anything else.
“I wanted to join your club when I was younger, you know.” Hayden coughed and winced.
I’d bet he had a couple broken ribs that were giving him hell right now. “You like bikes?”
He nodded. “Always have. Couldn’t ever afford one, though. Not even a shit one. That’s partly why I fell in with the Sinners. The old leader, Nitro, he promised me things.”
“And didn’t deliver on any of it, I’m sure.” I remembered him. A few years older than my dad. He’d disappeared a while back and never been heard of since. Mean old asshole. I was sure someone had taken him out into the woods and put a bullet through his head. I hoped they’d made it painful. No good had ever come from anything he’d been involved with.
It seemed to me that Hayden had followed in his footsteps.
“Promised me money. Somewhere to live. Respect.” He scoffed. “I was only supposed to stay long enough to get a bike so I could join the Slayers.”
“But then you stayed so long you became the Sinners’ leader.”
He shrugged. “It’s not like we took a vote after Nitro fucked off. Just none of them were smart enough to organize their way out of a brown paper bag. Someone had to find us something to do so we could eat. By that point, I doubt you would have taken me anyway.”
I stroked a hand over my beard. “Probably not.”
He nodded, then gave me a half-smile. “That still kinda hurts to hear, even now.”
Ah fuck. I almost felt bad.
Bliss probably would have had tears running down her face, listening to his story. She was still sweet and soft like that.
Apparently, it was rubbing off on me.
“I know you don’t owe me shit, but can you please tell me if Kara’s baby is okay? I know you think I don’t care, and I know we aren’t friends, just because I told you my little wannabe biker sob story, but I really need to know if that kid is okay. I delivered her.”
I peered at him. “Hayley Jade? You delivered her?”
He blinked. “That’s her name? Hayley?”
I suddenly made the connection between Hayley and Hayden. I didn’t fucking like it. Had Rebel’s sister seriously seen so much good in this prick she’d named her damn baby after him?
