Page 23 of Heat (The Royal HArlots MC, Quebec City-Canada #1)

Chapter Twenty-Two

They stepped out of the truck’s apartment into the sharp eyes of several Royal Harlots scattered around the lot. Conversations quieted; glances exchanged—but no one said a word.

Diamond didn’t break stride. “Fifi, did you find something on who’s digging into what we do?”

Fifi stood near the side entrance of the warehouse-style building, arms crossed, her face unreadable.“No. It’s amateurish. Sloppy. I think it’s just a false attempt to make us second guess ourselves.”

“Okay. We leave tonight. Make sure everything’s ready when we bring the family later.”

“We’ll have it locked in.”Fifi turned to head back inside, then paused and called over her shoulder.“Nova’s at the house waiting on you two.”

Diamond glanced back.“She didn’t sound happy?”

Fifi gave a tight shake of her head.“She never does when something’s a miss.”

Diamond sighed, turning toward her car.

Sayer walked beside her in silence until she slowed, fingers brushing the keys in her pocket, her gaze dropping for a beat.

“Listen, ” she said. Her voice a little quieter now.

“I know you want to make this run with me. But you need to know, we could be on the road for more than a week. Might not be clean, and it damn sure won’t be easy. So if you have responsibilities…”

Sayer didn’t hesitate.“Nothing I can’t set aside.”

She looked at him, searching for something in his face. Whatever she saw made her nod. “Okay.”

No promises. No reassurances. Just that single word and everything hanging inside it.

The house was quiet in that specific way which meant someone inside was pissed. The lights were on, but there was no music, no chatter, no clinking of bottles in the kitchen. Just silence and tension so thick it hit Diamond the second she opened the door.

Nova was seated at the table in the kitchen, a half-burned cigarette resting in the ashtray beside her, untouched. That alone told Diamond everything she needed to know.

“You’re late,”Nova said, without looking up. Her voice was calm, clipped, lethal in its restraint.

Diamond shut the door behind her.“Didn’t realize there was a schedule.”

Sayer hung back in the doorway, watching the exchange with sharp eyes, reading the room like a man used to walking into volatile spaces.

Nova finally lifted her gaze, pinning Diamond with it.

“There wasn’t. But now there is.”She stood slowly, pressing both palms to the table like she was holding herself steady.

“We’ve got movement in the south—real movement.

Not fake accounts or scare tactics. Someone’s testing us, and they’re not being quiet about it anymore. ”

Diamond crossed her arms, jaw tight.“Why didn’t I hear this from Fifi?”

“Because I wanted to be the one to tell you. Because I want to look you in the eye when I say it. We’ve got a problem, and I think it’s someone inside.”

That landed heavily.

Sayer stepped forward now, tone measured.“You have names?”

Nova’s eyes flicked to him, then back to Diamond.

“Not yet. But I’ve narrowed it to three.

And one of them is too damn close to our supply chain for my comfort.

” She stepped around the table, grabbing a thin folder and tossing it down.

“We need to move quietly. No panic. No heat. But you need to know what we’re walking into tonight may not be as simple as a delivery run. ”

“Okay,”she said again, this time not to Sayer but to Nova, to the weight in the room, to the storm gathering just over the horizon.“Then we do what we always do.”

“We make sure no one walks away from this, thinking they can fuck with us.”

Nova nodded. “Exactly.”

Diamond flipped open the folder, scanning the first page. It wasn’t a name that caught her attention. It was a photo. Grainy surveillance stills. One of their transport vans parked behind a gas station two towns over.

“Where the hell did this come from?”she asked, voice low.

“An anonymous tip,”Nova said, jaw tight.“Dropped in our encrypted inbox early this morning. Along with it came a burner email containing partial license plates, timestamps, even coordinates for a safe house we shut down last year. Nothing current… but too close.”

Diamond’s stomach turned.“Someone’s watching our old routes.”

Nova nodded.“And either they’ve been inside before, or they got access to records we thought were buried.” She paused. “That’s why I said it might be someone on the inside.”

Sayer stepped closer, eyes narrowing at the file.“Could be someone you helped. Someone trying to hurt you with what they learned.”

“Could be.”Nova crossed her arms.“But the file was clean. No vengeful tone. No demands. Just quiet exposure. Like they wanted us toknowwe were being watched.”

Diamond closed the folder, her voice steel,“They’re testing our defenses.”

“And if we ignore it,”Nova said,“they’ll push harder next time. With real victims on the line.”

The silence that followed was thick.

Then Diamond nodded, spine straightening.

“Tonight’s run goes forward. We don’t rattle. We don’t stall. But from here on out, we assume someone’s watching.”

Nova’s eyes softened just a fraction.“I already sent a heads-up to Whisper and Ghost. They’ll tail you from a distance. Eyes only.”

Diamond gave her a curt nod.“Good. Let’s see who’s really watching.”

They led Carla and her two young daughters into the Freightliner’s extended cab.

Diamond showed them how everything worked—the hidden compartments, the air vents, the emergency plan.

She crouched low to explain gently that, when they were a few miles from the border, they’d need to hide away until it was safe to come back out.

Carla’s hands shook as she settled her daughters in, whispering soft reassurances. Diamond gave them space, stepping out with Sayer to do one last walk around the truck.

Sayer crouched low to check the undercarriage, his fingers brushing the frame, eyes scanning every detail.“Looks good,” he muttered, standing and brushing dust from his hands.“Nothing out of place.”

Diamond turned back to the group. She thanked the Harlots who’d helped set up the route, pulling each into a quick, tight embrace. When she reached Nova, she hugged her longer.

Then she handed over a thin envelope.

It was unmarked.

Nova looked down at it, then up at Diamond.“Just in case?”

Diamond nodded.“You know me. I don’t like open endings.”

Without another word, they climbed back into the cab. The engine roared to life, shaking dust loose from the pavement. The night air felt heavier now, like it knew what was at stake.

Fifi and the others worked swiftly in the background, reinforcing security, tightening the lines. No one said it out loud, but they all knew this run was different.

As they merged onto the open road, the dash lights flickered to life, casting a pale glow across the cab.

Sayer gripped the wheel.“Diamond,”he said quietly,“we’re not just fighting the clock. There are people out there whowantthis to fail.”

Diamond didn’t look at him. Her eyes stayed fixed ahead, scanning headlights and shadows.“Then we outsmart them. Every damn turn.”

The truck surged forward, a mobile lifeline carrying hope, fear, and the fragile promise of a new start.

It rumbled along the endless stretch of highway like a steel leviathan, tires chewing up asphalt in steady rhythm. A thin layer of dust clung to its red paint, souvenirs from the roads it had already conquered. The chrome grille caught the glow of passing lights, gleaming like a war medal.

At the border crossing, it idled in line.

Heat rose in shimmering waves from the hood as customs officers moved between lanes—scanning, questioning, verifying. The trailer, sealed tight, carried its manifest: goods stamped with international labels, paperwork filed to perfection.

Hands exchanged documents. Eyes flicked over licenses. And then, after a long pause and a sharp nod, it was waved through.

On the other side, the road stretched wide and waiting.

The truck surged forward once more. Headlights carved through the dark, and the weight of what it carried—lives hidden behind steel—pressed heavy against the axles.

But it moved with purpose. A giant with a singular mission.