Page 23 of Revenge Saints (BloodHawks Duet #2)

I hear the whistle before the door creaks open. Max. I know it anywhere.

Kaily tenses beside me, her breath catching like she’s about to run.

“Don’t,” I say. “It’s them.”

Her eyes flick to the door, then to me. I step in closer. She doesn’t relax, but she doesn’t move either.

A minute later, the door opens and Josh walks in. Max and Knox follow, weapons still on them, not a single mark. Just dried blood. No chaos trailing behind them.

“So?” I ask, looking at the guys.

Knox pulls a bag forward and grins. “Merry fucking Christmas.”

I can’t help the smile that curls at my mouth. Nice.

This is exactly what we need to raid Roman. Get our fucking home back!

Josh and Kaily hug. “I’m fine.” He whispers into her neck.

“You can’t stay here,” Max says, looking straight at Josh and Kaily. “You need to move further into town.”

They nod. No argument. They start packing what little they have left.

We move fast, sticking to the shadows. Knox leads, scanning every alley. Then he stops, raises his rifle toward the ground.

The sewer.

Kaily gives him a look like she might slap him. “Are you serious?”

“No one’s looking down here,” Knox says, already crouching to lift the rusted lid. “And nothing’s used these tunnels in a decade.”

“He’s right,” I add, when she still looks ready to throw hands.

Eventually, she nods. We help them down, one by one, the stink of rot and mildew wrapping around us like a second skin.

Knox hands them a loaded weapon. Full charge.

“Leave when you need food. Let Pauly get fresh air. But stay close. We need to know where you are.”

I can feel it, Kaily’s hesitation, Josh’s guilt. They want to ask us to take them, but they know the answer. If Roman catches us with them, Josh is dead. Kaily and the kid? We don’t say it out loud. No one wants to paint that picture .

“Four days,” Knox says, pressing the last of our food into Josh’s hands. “If we’re not back by then, move.”

Josh nods. “Thank you.”

Kaily steps forward, soft, tears in her eyes. She kisses each of us on the cheek.

“Stay safe,” she whispers.

We don’t answer. Just move.

Night’s falling by the time we hit the edge of town again. Max glances at the sky. “Hope Ryker gives us a little more time.”

“He won’t leave Aspen,” Knox says, eyes forward, feet steady. “He’ll wait.”

But I hear the shift in his voice. Not just worry. Something darker.

“You’re pissed at her,” I say, knowing damn well I’m right.

He shakes his head, but Max shoots me a look. We both know what that means.

“What happened?”

We’ve got miles ahead of us; we might as well get ready for whatever the hell I’m walking into.

“She lied,” Knox mutters.

My pulse picks up. Aspen lied, and it got under his skin. That’s not easy to do. He’s been locked up tight for years. Barely let anyone in.

But he let her in.

“To save Dante,” Max mutters. Then he glances at me. “She was afraid to lose you. She did it with good int—”

“Fuck that.” Knox’s voice cuts through the air like a blade. “She looked me in the eyes. She grabbed my fucking hand and swore she’d wait for my plan.”

His jaw clenches, neck tight, the vein running beneath his skin pulsing hard. His eyes burn. Not just anger, betrayal.

“I just needed a few hours,” he growls. “She didn’t trust me.”

And there it is. The core of it. It’s not just that she disobeyed him. It’s that he thinks she didn’t believe in him. Didn’t trust him to bring me home.

“Knox, you know she trusts you,” I try to break through the fire starting in his chest. But he doesn’t even blink.

“No, she doesn’t,” he snaps. “She thought I couldn’t, even when I promised. Even when I told her I wouldn’t rest until you were home.”

He surges ahead, his pace doubling. Max and I fall in behind him.

His grip on the gun tightens until his knuckles pale, like he wants to snap the damn thing in half. I know he won’t hurt her. He couldn’t. That’s the fucking problem. He loves her. And she broke him without even knowing she did.

“What are you gonna do when we get to the farm?” Max asks, matching his stride. His gaze flicks over to me; we both already know the answer.

“I’ll tie her to the fucking bed,” Knox mutters. “She’s not leaving the damn house again.”

Yeah. Called it. And the fucked-up part? He means it.

“You need to calm the hell down, brother,” I say firmly. I stop walking. Knox takes two more steps before turning to face me .

“I can’t trust her.” His eyes lock onto mine, and this time, I see it, the sadness under the fire.

“Yes, you can,” I say. “Aspen’s used to doing everything alone. Just like you’re used to giving the orders. But she’s not a fucking soldier, Knox. She’s a civilian. She’s a woman . A fighter. She did what she thought she had to do to save me.”

His jaw twitches. I step closer.

“Fuck, Knox,” Max chimes in, dragging a hand down his face. “We’ve done worse. We’ve done so much fucked-up shit.”

He hesitates, color rising to his cheeks. “Aspen, we all fucked her. All of us. And instead of running, she stayed. She helped us be better. She made us feel shit we thought was dead.”

Knox shakes his head and turns to walk again.

But I’m done letting him run from it.

I grab his arm. He turns, not hostile, just… caught off guard.

“She loves you,” I say. “She loves us. If it had been you with Roman, she would’ve done the exact same thing.”

Knox’s stare narrows.

“And you think that makes it right? If it was me? No, fuck that! I would’ve been pissed either way. She’s ours. We protect her. We love her. Not the other way around. She doesn’t get to throw herself into the fire to save one of us.”

We stop.

Love.

He said it. Out loud.

Knox blinks, like the word just slipped out before he could catch it. And from him? That word means more than a thousand promises.

“Fuck,” he mutters, dragging a hand down his face as he starts walking again.

I don’t push. Not now. He needs space to feel it, to figure out what the hell he’s going to do with all that emotion twisting inside him.

But I know one thing, and so does Max: she cracked Knox open, and he has no fucking clue what to do now.

We’ve been quiet most of the walk. The kind of quiet that settles heavy in your bones. We’re close now. Should reach the farm by sunrise.

My shoulder’s better, but I’m dead on my feet. Every breath stings, and the adrenaline’s long gone.

Knox suddenly stops and looks at me. “Let’s take a break. We need to rest.”

I huff a quiet laugh. Bullshit. I need to rest, and he knows it.

We sit down, backs against trees, water passed between us. I close my eyes for a second. Just one. Then Max breaks the silence.

“So… are we really doing this? With Aspen?”

I crack one eye open and look at Knox. He glances my way, then nods.

“We talked to her,” he says, steady. “She was okay with it.”

“She doesn’t mind having four fucked-up boyfriends?” I ask, brow raised.

Max grins and shakes his head. “Apparently not.”

“Fine by me,” I shrug.

I love her. I know I do. And I’ll make sure she knows it too. She needs to know this isn’t just some kinky shit we’re playing. This is real.

“You?” I ask, turning to Knox.

He doesn’t even hesitate. “Told her. Told the guys. I’m good with it. But if anyone else even looks at her,”

He leans back against the tree, eyes on his gun. “I’ll kill them.”

“Same,” I mutter.

Max chuckles, rubbing a hand over his jaw.

Then the mood shifts again.

“And the base?” I ask, exhaling. “Are we really going to try and take it back?”

Knox looks at me. I see it; he’s doubting it too.

“I don’t care about the base,” he says finally. “But losing it to Roman? And Bryn?”

I nod. My blood heats at the thought of either of them walking through those halls. Sleeping in our rooms. Aspen’s room.

“We can’t let that slide,” Max grits out. And he’s right.

“There’s someone still there,” I add. “Doctor Sean. We keep him alive.”

Knox’s eyes cut to me. Max frowns.

“The one treating whatever the hell Roman’s dealing with?” Max asks.

“Yeah. He saved me. Day one. I would’ve bled out if it weren’t for him.”

My stomach twists at the memory, the way he dug the bullet out, hands steady while mine shook. No anesthetic. Just pain and grit.

I pause, blinking back the weight of it .

“You made it, brother.” Knox’s voice pulls me back. I glance down, realizing my hands are fisted.

Max reaches over and grabs my good shoulder, squeezing once. “And you’re back. With us.”

I smirk.

I need Aspen; I need to taste her, feel her skin against mine. I need my sunshine in this dark, fucked-up world.

Raising to my feet with a new adrenaline now pumping. “Let’s move; I need to get to that damn farm.” The guys chuckle, and I follow their eyes down to my zipper.

Fucking hell.

“Yeah, we better move because I don’t like you that much, and Max is taken.” Knox laughs out, and I punch him on the shoulder.

Shit, the thought of her made me hard instantly. At least after everything I went through, my dick still works.

I see the roof in the distance, and my chest tightens so fast it feels like my heart’s choking me. My mouth goes dry. Palms slick with sweat.

All because of her.

Knox whistles once. A second later, we hear it, one whistle back.

Before I can even process it, Aspen bursts out of the house, running toward us like a shot. I barely have time to brace before she crashes into me, and I catch her, arms wide, chest already aching from the weight of her.

Her scent hits me first, like safety, like home, and I breathe her in like I’ve been suffocating.

“Dante,” she sobs against my chest.

“Aspen,” I whisper into her hair, my arms locking around her as tight as I can without hurting her. I don’t even feel my shoulder hurting. She wraps her legs around my waist, trembling as the tears finally come.

I glance up and spot Ryker moving toward Max, grabbing him into a hug, then kissing him like he’s just come back from the dead.

Finally.

But then I see him. Knox.

He doesn’t slow down. Just walks right past us and straight into the house.

My stomach drops.

Fuck.