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Anchor

Church wasn’t supposed to feel like a pressure cooker. But as I sat at the head of the table, that’s exactly what it felt like, tight, hot, and ready to fucking blow.

Skull was on my left. Prime next to him. Post leaned back with his arms crossed over his chest. Push and Vin flanked the far end of the table. Piney lit a cigarette with a shaking hand while Cross, Pull, and Bob filled in the rest of the chairs. Wannabe was posted just outside the doors, keeping lookout, and Lost was still at Pearl’s cabin because if anything happened to her, I wouldn’t survive it. None of us would.

I ran a hand over my jaw and let my eyes roam the table. Every man here had my trust. Or at least, they had it yesterday.

But after what Skull found on the footage from the cliffs—someone in a Kings of Anarchy hoodie moving in one of the camera blind spots moments before the last body was found—I couldn’t afford to give blind trust anymore. That was a luxury I didn’t have.

Skull spoke first, keeping his voice level.

“We know the figure’s wearing one of our hoodies. Faded patch, probably old. But it’s our cut, our brand.”

Post’s chair creaked as he leaned forward.

“We’re sure it’s not Venom?”

“Could be,”

Prime said.

“But it could also be a fucking ghost. No one’s seen Venom in a year.”

“Hell,”

Bob muttered.

“He could be dead for all we know.”

“That’s optimistic,”

I grunted.

“It could be someone else,”

Wannabe said from the open door, half leaning in.

“I mean, those hoodies are around. Someone could’ve lifted one off a hanger or got it from a prospect who didn’t give a shit.”

Cross raised his eyebrows.

“You’re a prospect, Wannabe. Is that your hoodie? You think this is some wannabe serial killer using our brand to frame us?”

Wannabe shrugged.

“I’m just saying it could be a possibility.”

Voices overlapped. Vin was insistent it had to be Venom. Piney was pissed someone might be inside the club feeding info. Push was halfway out of his chair like he was ready to pace. Everyone had something to say, and none of it was worth a damn.

I slammed my fist down on the table. The noise cut through the room like a whipcrack.

Silence.

I stood. Slowly. Letting the weight of the room settle on my shoulders.

“If one of you knows more than what you’re saying, I swear to God, I’ll bury you with the rest of the bodies we’ve already found.”

I leaned forward, bracing my fists on the edge of the table.

“You all saw what was on that drive. You all know who the last photo was.”

No one spoke. Not a fucking word. But their eyes dropped, one by one.

Pearl.

Pearl standing on her cabin porch. That picture had been taken over a week ago. That meant the son of a bitch was watching her. Close enough to snap a shot. Close enough to touch her if he wanted to.

“There’s only one photo left,”

I said quietly.

“And it’s of her.”

Skull exhaled, but he didn’t say anything.

“You think this is just business? It’s not.”

I looked around the table, making sure each man met my eyes.

“This is personal now. They touched the club, and now they’re circling her. And if one fucking hair gets misplaced on Pearl’s head…”

I leaned forward, my voice low and deadly.

“I will burn this whole goddamn island to the ground.”

Post swallowed hard.

“I don’t care if it’s Venom. I don’t care if it’s some rat bastard who thinks he can put on our patch and fuck with us. And I don’t care if it’s someone in this goddamn room.”

Push started to speak, but I raised a hand. He shut his mouth.

“I’m watching all of you. And I’m watching every inch of this island. No one gets past me. No one gets close to her. And no one leaves until I say otherwise.”

The tension in the room hit a new level. It was as if the air had thickened.

Prime cleared his throat.

“Are we locking the island down?”

Vin rubbed a hand down his face.

“We’re not going to be able to keep the haunted house open long if this shit keeps happening.”

“We don’t have a choice,”

I said.

“We need to keep it open. People coming and going covers our tracks while we dig. The cops are looking for the first four bodies. If we start acting like shit ain’t right, we’re going to have the cops sniffing around.”

I took a deep breath.

“Whoever is doing this is going to fuck up. They had the upper hand with the others because we didn’t know them. We have Pearl, and no one can get to her.”

“We stay with Pearl, and it will put pressure on whoever this is. They’re going to get desperate waiting for his chance,”

Skull replied.

I nodded.

“We’re taking back the upper hand. We’re going to find out who this is and why they are doing it. It’s not about the people they have killed or even Pearl. They’re trying to get to us. The club.”

Piney muttered something about cameras. Cross made a note to sweep the footage again. Skull went back to the laptop and pulled up the blurred image.

“I want two men patrolling the cliffs. Around the clock,”

I said.

“One on the tower. One on the ridge. Push, you take the night shift. Bob, you take mornings.”

They nodded.

“Prime and Post, you start cross-referencing ticket names and video footage. Look for anything weird. Same names popping up. Ghost reservations. Locals hanging around too much. Anything.”

“Got it,”

Prime said.

“And Piney?”

I turned to him.

“You and Pull work with Skull to get those blind spots covered. Today. Not tomorrow. Not next week.”

Piney grunted. “On it.”

I stood again.

“Nobody leaves the island. Not unless I say so. And Pearl doesn’t go anywhere without me. I don’t care if she’s walking ten feet to pick a damn flower, I’m with her.”

They all nodded.

“And one more thing,”

I said, glancing at the still frame on the laptop.

“This bastard might be hiding in the shadows now. But when I find him?”

I smiled grimly.

“He’s not going to get a second to run.”