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Livvy turns to me, a sense of understanding washing over her. She knows I was there with Poppy, so she relaxes her stance. “She’s like the Energizer Bunny. And the things she says, the things she does.” She shakes her head like she is reliving something. “I-I just can’t fathom how a seven-year-old can talk and act like that. What kind of kid knows how long it takes for someone to bleed out, or the best plants to put over a buried body so authorities won’t dig in that spot, or the kinds of drugs that don’t show up on a tox screen?” Livvy huffs, letting out a horrified laugh.
“Honestly, she shouldn’t know this stuff. Ever!But she just rattles it off like it’s a checklist. Like it’s everyday knowledge, and it’s too much, Stone. I left this life behind because I thought it destroyed our daughter. Now, it seems to give her the strength she needs.”
Alpha sighs, reaching out for Livvy’s hand to comfort her. “Poppy’s been through a lot in these last two years. She’s been trained by some seriously persistent and robust assholes. She will be a very strong, tough woman when she grows up, Liv.”
Livvy sniffles, tears forming in her eyes. “I know. I can tell. That’s why I can’t keep her from you. I thought sheltering her from this place was what is needed to keep her safe, but I cansee being here, she is only going to thrive. She is her father’s daughter.”
My heart squeezes seeing the fire light in Alpha’s eyes as he realizes what Livvy is saying, but he needs confirmation. “Are you saying that Poppy is staying here, at the club, with us?”
Livvy wipes the tears from under her eyes and subtly nods. “I want visitation, but I think it’s best if her primary home is here, with you and Haven.”
Alpha surges forward, taking Livvy into a tight embrace. She weakly smiles, embracing him back. I can’t wipe the smile from my face while I rest my hand on Livvy’s arm in a gesture of thanks. She smiles at me as Alpha continues to squeeze her.
“Thank you, Livvy. I know this must be hard for you, but we can come up with a plan. You can see Poppy whenever you want. We’ve always had such a good relationship, Liv. We can make this custody work for all of us.”
Livvy pulls back from Alpha, looking into his eyes. “I’m so sorry I took her from you, Stone. It was a gut reaction and a bitch of a thing to do. I can’t believe I did that. I was just so fucking scared of losing Poppy again, but I can see she can probably protect herself better than I can.”
Alpha sighs. “I get it. It hurt like hell, but we’re gonna make this work. Wehaveto.”
Livvy looks at me, her eyes flooding with tears. “Thank you for taking care of our daughter. She hasn’t stopped talking about you. She adores you, Haven.”
“I adore her too. I know I have come in, and it looks like I’m taking your position in all this, Livvy, but I only want to be here for Alpha, Poppy, and you too, if you’ll let me. I’d like it if we could be friends.”
Livvy surges forward, pulling me into a tight embrace. I feel the warmth flowing from her when I embrace her back. “I would love nothing more.”
My eyes shift to Alpha, a slow smile crossing his face before Livvy pulls back, the three of us turning to watch Poppy racing about the clubhouse while Rip chases her playfully.
Everything is as it should be.
And for now, the club is calm.
We’re wading our way through the storm that was to build ourselves stronger to prepare for the war that’s about to come.
Rico Rojas and his cartel have to pay for what they did to Poppy.
We just have to figure out a way to make that happen.
And wewill.
Make no mistake!
But first, we need time to build the club to full strength. It’s been hit from the inside. Losing Swift has taken its toll on everyone, and that’s the first call of duty the club must deal with.
But after the healing has begun.
Now, we need to spend time with each other as a family, as a brotherhood, because, as I am finding out, Defiance means more than a motorcycle club name. It’s the way we live, the code we live by, and now I am the First Lady of LA Defiance, and I wear that badge with honor.
Because I am Defiance.
EPILOGUE
Haven
Five Months Later
Everyone has settled into the new club routine, and it is working well. The club unanimously voted Loki as Alpha’s new VP, and even though he feels personally responsible for missing not only my background information but also Swift’s, my giving him accessibility to the cartel’s hidden access area has shown him where he was going wrong.
It’s opened up a whole new world of hacking, and Loki’s like a kid at Christmas.
