Page 141 of Wicked Empire (Knight's Ridge Empire 3)

“Ready?” I ask Stella.

She doesn’t need to answer. I can see it shining in her eyes.

“So ready.” Her smile is pure violence, and it makes me hard as steel.

“Fuck, I love you, Hellion.”

“Come on, let’s go send this motherfucker to hell.”

She climbs out, smooths down her tight skirt and slams the door behind her.

By the time I’ve rearranged my dick and joined them, she’s standing with Theo and Daemon, all three of them with fierce determination written all over their faces.

Theo nods at me, spins on his heels, and marches toward the main entrance, pulling his gun from his waistband.

There are suspiciously few people out here, but the second we walk inside and come to a stop inside their clubhouse, we discover where everyone is.

Silence ripples for a beat before every member of their club pulls their guns on us.

I sense people step up behind us, but a quick glance tells me that it’s just Carl and Cass, our backup.

“Theo Cirillo, what a pleasant surprise,” Ram, Emmie’s grandfather, states. His lack of actual surprise shows on his face.

“We’re not here for trouble, Ram,” Theo states, his voice hard, inviting no argument. “We’re just here to right a few wrongs.”

Ram’s eyes narrow on Theo. A scuffle in the corner of the room catches my eye, making my finger twitch on the trigger of my gun, but I don’t see anything of concern when I scan the area.

The sound of heels clicking on the old wood floor drags my eyes back, and I watch as Stella stalks deeper into the room, her attention locked on a single person sitting at the bar.

Shifting my gaze to him, I instantly recognise him, although he looks a hell of a lot better now the injuries he picked up on fight night are almost healed.

She steps right up to him, not an ounce of fear in the way she holds herself. The same can’t be said for Joker, who swallows nervously and shifts on his seat. “Been expecting us?” she asks, her tone mocking.

“Joker?” Ram barks, his brows pulled tight in confusion.

“It’s n-nothing, Prez. Just a misunderstanding.”

“Perhaps you might want to start explaining then,” Cruz pipes up, appearing from one of the back rooms.

“I-I… umm…”

“He’s been trying to kill me,” Stella says, not a single crack in her voice. “Isn’t that right, Joker?” she sneers.

Ram just throws his head back and laughs, as if it’s the funniest thing he’s ever heard.

“Joker might not be the sharpest, but he’s not that fucking stupid.”

The dumb cunt glances at his prez and swallows once more, beads of sweat appearing on his brow before looking back at Stella.

“Aw fuck,” Ram groans, running his hand down his face and rubbing his beard. “You went after a Cirillo princess, you dumb fuck?”

“Ask him why,” I bark.

“Should we take this out the back, Prez?” Cruz asks, aware of the entire fucking club watching us.

“No,” Theo states. “I think this is a lesson that all your members need to learn.”

“Cirillo, they don’t—”