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Chapter Eleven

Globe

M y girl’s eyes are blazing hot, smoldering with an unabashed need to defend her men.

Fuck. Does this mean she’s claiming us equally?

“There’s not much of a plan right now,” I’m cut off by my phone ringing in my pocket. I try to ignore it by silencing it, but when it ends only to start again, I pull it out.

Jones.

“What’s up?” I ask him, keeping the phone to my ear.

Irene sends a glare my way, not liking that I’m not allowing her to overhear it.

I want to know what he says before I let her hear anything.

I may not agree with some of the archaic beliefs in our world, but I believe that hearing what Jones says before I can prepare her isn’t ideal.

“You gonna just let me remain in the dark like a sexist prick, or am I going to be part of this team?” She spits, her glare burning a hole in my head. I refuse to make eye contact with her, but do as she asks because, let’s be honest, I don’t want to figure out how bad her wrath would be.

Jones is laughing his ass off on the other end of the line. “Did she grab you by the balls or just give you blue ones?” Irene snorts and shakes her head.

I roll my eyes and turn to Irene. “Give me a second, woman. You were shot three days ago. Taking this call without you will be something you can survive from, I’m sure of it,” I tell her with a no-nonsense tone.

She huffs, her arms crossing over her chest. It causes her breasts to press together, even in the scratchy hospital gown.

She’s a fucking sight. Ripping my eyes away from her, I address Jones.

“One day you will understand. Right now, I need you to tell me what you found.” I can’t help but snap at the phone, my irritation rising as Irene smirks at the device in my hand.

It’s like she knows what the asshat said.

“Mountain Range Circuit is back in business from what Shark could see. I was able to match into some of the systems close by. At around twenty-two hundred hours, the black SUV blocked the three of you riding. I can’t speculate on how they knew you would ride that way or if they were just hoping, but they saw y’all.

Viper and Mav confirmed that it was Kastiloff behind the wheel through basic facial recognition software and photo manipulation. ”

My vision blurs and my ears ring as terror sweeps through me.

That’s the same motherfucker that almost took Mav from us not even a few months ago.

He must be trying to get a casualty where he can get one.

Unfortunately for him, he will have to catch all of us blind or dead before we will let him and his army get away with this.

“Was there anyone else?” Irene asks, and I meet her gaze. My phone isn’t even on speaker. I swear she has superhuman hearing. Her focus is sharply on me, searching my expression and matching one of her own.

“There appeared to be a few others in the vehicle with him. Mav and Viper were surprised that he was driving. He isn’t one to do his own hands-on work.

He moved up the ranks for a reason-” voices in the background cut Jones off.

They are too soft to be heard from this side, but that doesn’t stop Irene and me from straining to try, anyway.

“It’s Keres,” the gruff male on the other end announces.

“We are calling roundup right now. Haze is working through the details and putting funds into portals for us to hit the road. We got info from the Black Vipers MC that the same SUV was clocked heading east of their territory. Think you two can come to the main part of the house? Get her situated in a room and then meet for church?”

I break Irene’s gaze and turn it toward the wall, not wanting to witness her disappointment firsthand.

She and every other female on this premise know that women aren’t allowed to be part of the MC.

They can be part of the agencies and such, but the patriarchy from when the great-greats held rank stands.

Plus, we value the minds of our women far too much to put them in harm's way.

That isn’t to say that I don’t think they could do it. Christ, Leather from Black Vipers is a literal killer, yet you would never guess that from just looking at her now.

Jones talks more semantics while I nod along. None of that really pertains to my portion, but that’s not to say it isn’t important.

“We are ready to discharge, finally,” the nurse announces while practically skipping into the room. Her bright smile dims a bit when she turns toward Irene.

I don’t even want to know.

Irene clears her throat, though I still refuse to look at her. Call me a fucking coward, but she can be scary.

“Thank you for the hospitality, McKenna. Honestly, I think you have been more useful than he has.” I drop my jaw, shock emanating from me.

“He has kept me in the dark, talked about me behind my back, and has decided that I am unfit because I have a pit between my legs!” She cheers with false enthusiasm.

“Whoa, hold on a second,” I start, but she doesn’t let me finish.

“No,” she barks, holding up a hand and her face going beet red.

“I’m so tired of men telling me that I need to be put away before they can do shit.

I get that the patriarchy doesn’t allow that.

But come the fuck on. It’s twenty-twenty-five.

I can ride a fucking motorcycle and shoot better than half the men in that building, yet because I’m a woman, I’m more valuable to birth babies.

My arm is perfectly fine, my blood is moving the way it should be, and I honestly am tired of being put on the back end of things. ”

“That’s not at all what I’m saying,” I scoff, doing my best to be understanding. She literally woke up not even a few hours ago from being in a self-induced coma for three days. There’s no doubt that her entire system is all out of whack, I know mine would be too.

“Not only that but fucking Nero is dead,” a sob breaks free from her throat.

“I didn’t even get a chance to fucking tell him how I felt!

The last thing I said to him was probably fucking stupid because I thought I had more time.

” She drops her face into the palms of her hands and weeps.

Her shoulders shake and tears leak between her fingers, it’s devastating.

“Irene-”

“I want fucking revenge, and the one thing I can’t do is avenge the death of him because you fucking idiots like my uterus more than my skills.”

McKenna and I stare at one another in disbelief, not really sure what to do. The only females I have been around and mastered are female plugs. Other than that, this is an entirely new ball game for me. Fuck, I don’t even know what to say right now other than…

“He isn’t dead,” I start, shooting a worried look over my shoulder. McKenna doesn’t say anything as we wait for Irene to register what I said.

Everything about these last hours has been an emotional rollercoaster, that’s for damn sure.

First, she wakes up only to learn three days have passed, and then I somehow manage to get her in my arms and her lips on mine.

Which I do not regret one bit, but I do wish it were under better circumstances. And now, she thinks that Nero is dead.

What a fucking nightmare. All I can do is hope that my next move doesn’t put me in the doghouse with the club.