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Houston and NOLA Defiance. Brothers, old ladies, and family, all looking on to witness this momentous occasion.
Hurricane turns to face us, a calm expression crossing his face. “Constance Squires, the Baroness, thought she ruled the South. But in the end, all she did was manipulate, wrought the system, and pin allies against allies for her own personal gain. She was a poison to the South. One we had to find the antidote for. It took us havin’ to fake losin’ one of our own to finally put an end to her. She doesn’t deserve a send-off. She doesn’t deserve accolades on how she almost outwitted every underworld empire in the South. The only thing she deserves is the cold, hard reality that when you fight real fuckin’ dirty, you end up in the belly of a gator.”
Everyone nods in agreement as he glances at Bayou, giving him the signal.
Bayou bangs his foot hard on the dock surface, trying to gain the attention of La Fin.
We all take a steadying breath.
My eyes search the murky depths for any signs of movement when the telltale ripples in the water begin to appear. My heartrate spikes as the ripples grow larger, and the spine of La Fin’s prehistoric back emerges from the muddy abyss, snaking his way to the edge of the dock like a predator on the hunt.
Fuck. Hurricane and Bayou almost fed me to this beast.
I hold onto Ingrid a little tighter, a thank you for saving me that day. If she hadn’t come out, literally all guns-a-blazing, who knows if I would have made it.
We’ve come a long way since then.
We’ve done a lot as a family and even more as a club.
Resting my chin on Ingrid’s shoulder, I watch as La Fin circles around the front of the dock, waiting, his tail snapping to and fro in the water like he’s impatient for his feed.
Bayou is the first to step forward, picking up a bucket and handing it to Zero. “Would you like to be the first?”
A slow grin slides up Zero’s face, and he nods. “With absolute pleasure.” He steps forward, pulling out a hand. He shakes his head, curling up his lip. “I shook this hand multiple times, doing countless deals with you, Connie. You played me like a fool. Well, who gets the last laugh?” He tosses it up into the air, and as if on cue, La Fin leaps out into the air, his thunderous jaws snapping open to grab the Baroness’ hand in his mouth, then his heavy body falls back into the water with a booming splash. Water flies up onto the dock at their feet as La Fin descends under the water for a moment to eat the start of his meal.
“Jesus Christ! I don’t know whether to be horrified or turned on by this?” Texas mumbles, making the rest of us on the landing chuckle.
“I think a little of both,” Izzy replies. We all glance at her, especially City, who looks at his Old Lady like he’s surprised to hear her say that. “What? It’s true,” she defends, and City holds onto her a little tighter.
“You continue to surprise me every day,” he says as Hurricane throws in a foot, La Fin chomping away on the tasty treat.
Then Novah and Bayou step up, and Novah stands at the edge of the dock. Bayou holding on to her as she stares down at La Fin. “You led Anton and his assholes straight to us. You told him to shoot you so you wouldn’t look guilty. They took our daughter from us, and that is solelyon you, Baroness. You destroyed a piece of our hearts that day. Today, I watch your heart be destroyed too.” Novah reaches into the bucket, pulling out the Baroness’ cold, dead heart. Blood runs down Novah’s fingers, but she doesn’t seem to care as Bayou taps his foot on the dock again.
“C’mon, come to Daddy,” Bayou calls out as La Fin swims closer to the dock.
“I hope you rot in hell, Connie.” Novah growls, then throws the heart toward La Fin.
His head pops out of the water, snapping at the heart. The squelching sound is clear as the heart bursts with the pure force of his jaws as he bites.
Bayou wraps his arms around Novah, his hands falling to her stomach to protect the one baby she still carries, and he pulls her back from the edge.
I hear Ingrid sniffle like she’s holding back tears. Seeing her daughter do that must have been hard—or maybe it was freeing, I’m not sure. Either way, I know everyone is still hurting from the pain the Baroness caused.
Finally, Six steps up with the last bucket. He scrubs at the back of his head, letting out a heavy exhale. “I honestly thought you were an ally to the club. Yes, I know we didn’t always see eye to eye, but I never thought that meant you were plotting my damn assassination, especially at the hands of my own club. You betrayed me, and I didn’t see it coming. We had a good thing, you and me, Connie. But you had to go and ruin it with your innate need for more power and control. Well, trust me when I say this… you lost your head, but I’m going to remember this moment and make sure to keep mine and use it properly in every situation in the future. This taught me to always think twenty steps ahead. You’ve made me a better president. So, in a way, I thank you, Baroness. But there’sno wayI’m going to miss you.”
He pulls her decapitated head out of the bucket by her hair and looks her in her eyes for the last time. “Rest in pieces.” A bright smile lights his face, like all the demons he’s been harboring lift from his soul. He tosses her head into the sky, and La Fin jumps higher than I’ve ever seen him do before, his entire body leaping out of the water, his tail swooshing around, almost hitting them on the dock. They have to take a step back as he latches onto Connie’s head, then he lands upside down in the water and starts a death roll. Water flies in the air as he flops his body around and around in the water, making sure to kill his prey.
We all let out a cheer seeing La Fin put on a show. That animal really is a marvel, and I can understand why Bayou is so enamored with the huge beast.
As we look around at each other, all of us cheering for the demise of the Baroness, a sense of ease washes over the bayou. The air floods with a natural calming effect, one that can only be brought on by unity, by bonds so tight that nothing can shake us. And by the knowledge that we have defeated not only the Bratva but the Baroness as well.
When Defiance bonds together, we are a force unstoppable, unbeatable, unbreakable.
As we stand together, I believe we all feel that to our very souls.
La Fin may not be able to consume all of the Baroness right now, but the intention of the moment is clear.
We all need to let her go.
