Page 83 of The Fates We Tame

“Compromise? Geez, you have come a long fucking way,” Saint says.

Niro flips the bird at him.

“Makes me feel like the normal one in the group, marrying the first woman I ever fell in love with, knowing she was the only one for me without bringing threat of death or destruction to the club,” Bates says.

“Hey,” Halo says. “Speak for yourself.”

Bates raises an eye. “Did you forget you met her because your fucked-up brother tried to wipe out your family?”

Halo huffs good-humoredly. “You know what I mean. And Vi arrived here because some goons went looking for you.”

Vi shoulder checks Bates. “Don’t you be saying sweet things when I’m still mad at you.”

Niro turns to face me. “You got to unite us, Theo. It’s what you do best. When we’re at odds. You ever notice how we just keep talking at each other instead of closing shit out? That was your skill. You point out the fucking obvious and stop us rambling in circles.”

I realize everyone is looking at me. Brothers. Old ladies. Prospects.

I take a deep breath, trying to recall anything from the last ten years that might come to me. But nothing does. And maybe that’s the story.

“I don’t know why I ended up injured like this, but from what I’ve heard from all of you, it’s because I acted first and thought…well, never. It didn’t occur to me in that instant to consider how this would affect me. Only how it would affect Halo. And Ari. And Lola. And while I can’t remember everything about the lastten years, certain things are coming back to me. And every single one of them, we’re in it together, no matter what we were facing. Even if it was wrong.” I tuck Sophia beneath my arm, taking her weight as she leans against me. “All you have to do is decide what kind of person you want to be. And if it takes you longer than two seconds to decide, you aren’t the people I thought you were.” I look to the old ladies. “And you all are beyond my estimation.”

Niro grins. “This feels like when a minor league team beats the major league team.”

“Are we the minors?” Gwen asks.

Niro chuckles. “Given their behavior”—he tips his head in the direction of our brothers—“right now you’re the A-Team.”

Sophia leans a little heavier against me. She fidgets, which tells me the left side of her body aches.

“Thanks for all this,” I say, pointing to the decorations. “But you’ll understand why we don’t much feel like staying to celebrate.”

I start to lead us back to our room, my mind whirring with what we do next. My gut tells me it starts with moving closer to my parents. We can’t fly after a traumatic brain injury without doctors signing off, and I can barely drive. But I know if I tell my dad, he’ll set off with his truck and one of my brothers, and they’ll drive through the night to come get us.

We’ll go to my house, get supplies, and head off in my truck. Between Sophia and me, we can head towards them. My brother can take over driving. Ryan didn’t want to join the club, too law abiding, but that doesn’t mean he can’t throw down if he needs to.

“Wait,” King says. “I fucked up. Hard thing to admit in front of a clubhouse full of old ladies and prospects, but Sophia was right. Was standing outside wondering how we would’ve reacted if the Irish had come for Iris in full force once Spark had declared for her. Or if Saint had unleashed the power of the ATFor FBI on the club to get Rae back. Brotherhood first or we’re just fucking cowards. But it means one thing, Switch. You’re all in with the club. You had your out to leave, but I won’t honor it after this.”

A rebellion brews within me. A part of me wants to tell King where he can shove his offer. That we’ll be better off on our own. That the club doesn’t deserve the two of us. But I’ve had such a prolonged connection with the club that I have to believe I would want to stay. I doubt I was the kind of man who hung around when things did not align with what I wanted out of life.

Maybe that’s something I know for sure.

I believe in who I was…who I am…as a man enough to know that leaving would not be what I want either.

I squeeze Sophia’s hand. “Then it’s done.”

A smile grows on King’s face, and he steps towards me as an explosion rips through the front of the club. The wall of heat and sound smashes into me, taking Sophia and I to the ground.

My ears ring. I can barely hear voices through the high-pitched whirring screaming inside my eardrums.

I immediately roll so that Sophia is behind me. A weapon slides across the floor before stopping in front of me. Catalina winks and crawls beneath the height of the remaining wall, just as bullets begin to pepper into the clubhouse.

Niro joins her, and they begin to fire shots out onto the lot.

“Get the women out back,” King shouts to me, and I nod.

“Can you crawl?” I ask Sophia.

“If the other option is dying, yes.”