Page 125 of The Deals We Make

I knock the rest of the glass out of the window with the handle of my gun and climb in.

Following Niro and Cat as they scope out and clear the room, I look for signs of Calista. Finally, we hit the main barn building, and both Niro and Cat come to a halt.

Marlie Callihan, Daryll West’s foster sister, has a gun to Calista’s head. And she’s using Calista as a shield, hiding behind her body.

The sight sucks the fight right out of me.

Life is fragile. We walk around in this thin skin that holds everything vital for survival. Heart. Lungs. Brain. And I don’t think I’ve ever been more aware of how utterly mortal we all are.

A nine-millimeter bullet weighs about eight grams. Eight fucking grams. And it has the ability to decimate everything I hold dear.

I hear King shouting orders behind me, telling men to hold the door, to spread out wide, to scope the room.

But all I can do is look at my girl.

“Don’t come any closer,” Marlie says.

Calista stands incredibly calmly, but her eyes…fuck, those expressive eyes of hers shine with tears as they focus on me.

The sound of gunfire and shouts and cries fades into nothing.

Just me and my woman.

My ride or die.

And I refuse to give up on our eternity.

“Don’t,” Calista says. Her mouth moves, but she doesn’t make a sound.

“Let her go,” I say. “And I’ll do what you want.”

Marlie jostles Calista, dragging her slowly toward to door. “Like I’d trust a biker. One of you fuckers killed Darryl.”

I put my hands up in the universal sign of surrender. “Let me make it right.”

“How?” Marlie shouts. “You can’t bring him back. But you can get me the money.” She tips her chin towards the bank of laptops. “The account details are on the screen. Put the eleven million into that account, and I’ll return her to you.”

She’s almost at the door, but her eyes search furtively around the room. Not sure whether she’s looking for back up or watching the slow progress of my brothers and Catalina. I see Halo begin to creep out to my right. Saint moves to my left. I know they’re looking for the shot. They have way better aim than I do.

And this time, I know the best part I can play is the one that gives them time to find the kill shot.

I take one last look at Calista. “I love you.”

She swallows hard and nods.

I bend down to the laptop and begin to make a pretense of doing what Marlie said.

I turn around, with the world to my back.

If you’d asked me how I thought I’d die, it wasn’t with my back to my assailant.

If you’d also asked me what I would do to save the woman I loved, I would have thought I’d be a more active participant.

But in this instance, I need to put my faith in the brothers I didn’t originally get a say in joining but can’t live without.

I need to turn my back on Calista and trust that the men care for me as much as they say they do.

I need to trust myself to be the distraction, not the hero of this story. This time, my sacrifice is not solving it by myself. It’s knowing there are good men in this world who will stand for me, for who I am.