Page 32 of Heat (The Royal HArlots MC, Quebec City-Canada #1)

Chapter Thirty-One

They rode the back roads, retracing their steps to get back to the rig.

Neither said much, keeping the interior of the sedan quiet.

It was almost as if they were afraid to jinx themselves by speaking aloud about the situation.

Soft, low classic rock filtered through the speakers, the steady hum of the tires on pavement the only other sound between them.

Diamond kept her eyes on the road, fingers tapping lightly on the armrest. The silence didn’t bother her; she was used to moving in quietness.

Though this kind of quiet felt like a held breath.

Like the calm before something cracked wide open.

She wasn’t ready to speak it into existence, whatever it was.

The sun was close to setting when they pulled up to the old barn. The last rays of evening sun cast shadows through the cracks in the wood and the open windows.

Diamond stepped out of the sedan, her boots crunching over gravel as she closed the door quietly behind her.

Sayer did the same, stretching out his legs with a grunt before falling into step beside her.

The barn smelled like diesel and dust, the faint scent of old hay clinging to the corners.

It felt like a place meant for silence, for secrets tucked into shadowed corners.

As they started toward the rig, movement flickered at the edge of Diamond’s vision—too fast, too close.

“Don’t move,” a voice snapped, low and sharp.

Two men stepped out from behind the stacked pallets near the back wall, both holding steel pipes like they knew how to use them. Diamond’s body went rigid. Recognition hit hard, swift as a punch.

The first man—broad-shouldered, greasy smile—was Carla’s ex. The same bastard who’d hassled her at casino night, throwing threats like they meant something. The second was the creep from the secure lot, the one who’d tried to snatch the girls.

Her jaw clenched. “You two just don’t know when to quit.”

Sayer shifted beside her, already angling his body between Diamond and the men.

Diamond didn’t flinch, didn’t reach for her weapon yet. No need to escalate if she didn’t have to—not until she knew if these two were stupid enough to swing first.

“You’re a long way from home,” she said coolly, eyes locked on Carla’s ex. “You really think this is going to go the way you want?”

The man grinned, a nasty sneer that didn’t reach his eyes. “It’s already going the way I want. We know the girls are here. You move aside, and we don’t have to make this messy.”

Sayer scoffed, stepping forward just enough to draw attention. “You really think this is your shot? Two against two, and you brought pipes to a gunfight?”

The second man shifted uneasily but didn’t back down. “You won’t risk shooting. You’ve got too much to lose.”

Diamond raised a brow. “You sure about that?”

She let the silence stretch, let them wonder just how far she was willing to go. Her hand hovered near her jacket, just close enough to hint at the weight beneath it.

“Last chance,” she said, voice low and steady. “Turn around, walk out of here, and pretend you never found this place. Or stay—and find out what happens when you push people who’ve got nothing left to lose.”

They hesitated.

Just long enough for Diamond to know they weren’t walking away.

Carla’s ex lunged first, swinging the pipe in a wide arc meant to intimidate—but Diamond wasn’t new to this game. She stepped in, not back, ducking low as the pipe whistled over her shoulder. Her fist connected with his ribs, sharp and fast, then again harder. He stumbled, choking on air.

Behind her, Sayer grunted, blocking a blow from the second man with his forearm before driving his knee into the guy’s gut.

The man came up with a large knife swinging wildly.

The tip sliced across Sayer’s abdomen. It didn’t stop him from tackling the guy to the ground.

His head hit something covered by old straw, blood ran into his eye, but he kept punching the attacker in the face until the metal pipe clattered to the ground.

Diamond didn’t wait. She drew her weapon—not to shoot, not yet—but to remind them exactly who they were dealing with. She aimed it squarely at Carla’s ex as he straightened, gasping.

“Try again,” she said, voice cold. “I dare you.”

His eyes flicked to the gun. He hesitated, wiped blood from his mouth, then spat on the ground.

“This isn’t over.”

“No,” Diamond said. “It really is.”

Sayer scrambled to his feet, kicked the second man’s pipe across the floor, out of reach. “What now?”

Diamond kept the gun raised, steady. “We make sure they don’t follow us again.”

Diamond didn’t lower the gun until both men had backed off, chests heaving, mouths full of curses they weren’t brave enough to say aloud.

She took a step back to breathe but froze when she glanced over her shoulder.

Blood.

Dark and spreading across Sayer’s side, soaking through his shirt.

“Sayer—” her voice caught, sharper than she meant it to be.

“I’m fine,” he said through gritted teeth, but the way he leaned against the wall said otherwise.

Her grip tightened on the gun.

They didn’t have time for this. They couldn’t risk these two getting loose or calling someone else in, and she couldn’t leave Sayer like that, bleeding and barely staying upright.

Diamond turned, pressing the gun into his hand. “You hold them,” she said, voice low but firm. “You don’t hesitate if they move. Not even an inch.”

Sayer took the weapon without question, his jaw clenched tight. He didn’t argue, didn’t posture. He just nodded once.

Diamond crouched and dragged one of the loose zip ties from the rig’s exterior bin, then another, working fast and rough as she restrained the first man’s wrists behind his back. The second was already trying to crawl for his pipe until Sayer cocked the gun, slow and deliberate.

“Don’t.”

The man froze.

Diamond moved to him next, heart pounding, every nerve on edge. The blood. The silence. The weight of all of it.

“You okay?” she asked Sayer without looking up.

“I will be,” he said. “Long as you finish this fast.”

Once both men were zip-tied and groaning on the floor, they grabbed them by the collars—one at a time—and dragged them toward the back of the barn. There was an old horse stall still intact, the door hanging slightly off its hinges, but it would hold long enough.

She shoved the first man inside, then the second, ignoring their threats and struggling. Slamming the gate shut, she yanked the rusted latch down and wedged a heavy feed bucket against the outside. It wouldn’t stop a determined escape, but it’d buy them time.

“Cops will find you soon enough,” she muttered. “You’ll be lucky if all they do is ask questions.”

By the time she got back to the rig, Sayer was gripping the edge of the trailer’s step, trying to hoist himself up despite the blood soaking deeper into his side.

“Stop,” she said, climbing up and bracing a hand on his back. “I’ve got you.”

He didn’t argue this time.

Diamond helped him into the sleeper, easing him down onto the bed as gently as she could. The mattress creaked beneath his weight, blood smearing onto the sheets, but he let out a shaky breath once he was horizontal.

“You’re gonna be okay,” she said, brushing sweat-damp hair back from his forehead. “Just stay put.”

As he nodded, eyes slipping shut for a second too long, she grabbed her burner phone and stepped to the front of the cab.

She punched in the number and waited.

“Yeah,” she said when the dispatcher answered. “I’ve got two men tied up in a horse stall on private land just outside of Bonner Creek. One’s a known domestic abuser. The other’s been caught trying to take children from a secure lot. You’ll want to bring cuffs. And backup.”

She gave the address, then ended the call before they could ask for her name.

Diamond fired up the truck, threw the rig into gear, and drove out of the barn with the weight of Sayer’s blood on her hands and a silent promise in her chest: