Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10

" L ucky, got one coming at your nine," Cage heard Angel murmur through the radio piece in his ear. Seconds later, Lucky confirmed, "He's down." Cage wasn't sure if Lucky took out the Python or if Angel did with her M24 rifle. Cage did not know how Keys had outfitted them so well and, frankly, he did not want to know. Though a part of him wondered if he looked at the club's construction company's books closer, if he would find an invoice for det cord.

Star, a former Marine Raider, applied the yellow cord filled with pentaerythritol tetranitrateto the outside of the concrete wall. The det cord was an effective way to cut through just about anything. Done correctly, it could also be a fast way of making a big hole. As the Pythons now knew they were under attack, silence was no longer a priority.

At Steel's signal, Star blew the wall.

Bulldog's team was taking heavy fire at the front of the clubhouse but holding their own. Most of the Pythons were so drunk, per Bulldog, that their shots were going everywhere. Cage, Steel, and Starbucks would be coming up from behind to provide Bulldog's team relief.

Cage had never been part of an assault team of this magnitude before. He'd been trained in the Navy, yes, but the weapons on a submarine were far different than being handed an AR-15 and told to breach a facility. After Ohiopyle, Ghost and Ranger, with Bulldog's blessing, had been offering training sessions to any of the club who wanted refreshers or different training. Ghost, a former SEAL, and Ranger, a former Army Ranger, worked extremely well together. The two of them had a bro-mance between them that Cage and the others often made fun of.

As they climbed through the building's new entrance, Cage was grateful he was paired with Steel because, true to his namesake, the man was cool under pressure.

The adrenaline flowing through him and the hyperawareness was very familiar to Cage. The anger, however, was new. He'd known since his first day at boot camp that joining the military would mean that one day he might have to take a life. And he had. It might have been at a distance where he never had to look the person in the eye, but he knew the destruction their weapons were about to cause. He'd never hated the enemies of the United States as much as he hated the Black Pythons who had threatened his girls.

Ironic that the first people Cage actually wanted to kill were the same civilians he'd spent his military career protecting.

Steel's orders had been clear: none who wasn't a patched member of the Black Pythons was to be harmed and King was his.

Keys's voice came over their earpieces. "Steel, you have two heat signatures to your left. Looks like maybe a storage room."

Steel signaled Star to go check it out. As a Marine Raider, he was used to solo missions and watching his own back. Still, Cage wished they'd had one more member to their team so they could split off into pairs. His training, at its core, was the buddy system.

They had entered into a large room that housed a bunch of mattresses on the floor. From the array of sex toys, drug paraphernalia, and clothing strewn about, Cage had to wonder if they'd breached the Pythons' sex room—and then he had to quickly wipe that thought from his brain or risk being scarred for life. He did not want to know what these poor walls had been subjected to. Keys had reported a while back that a very meager amount of the Pythons' money came from making amateur porn videos. Nothing like what Crisco had been up to. The Pythons videoed themselves having sex with their patch whores and uploaded them to common porn sites like PornHub . Cage spotted a tripod in the corner and guessed that the Pythons used their phones to record the videos.

As Star went left, Steel and Cage went right down a long hallway. As Steel stood guard, Cage cleared an office room they came upon. He locked it on his way back out and then broke the exterior handle so no one could enter again, even if they had a key.

Steel and Cage moved on.

Gunfire and fireworks echoed all around them. While the fireworks were keeping the gunfire from being too obvious, Cage did find it distracting.

Angel's voice came over the earpiece, warning Grumpy of a rabbit at his six.

It might be misogynistic of him, but a part of Cage was grateful that Angel was outside the building, high up in whatever perch she'd chosen for herself, and not in the direct fight. Cage knew Angel was capable. He knew she was strong and could kick ass. He did not doubt that. And yet…there was a small part of himself that was glad she was a safe distance away.

He'd never felt that way before about any of his brothers. It had started to occur after he'd realized he loved her. Was it self-preservation on his part, knowing that the chances she could be harmed were minimal and therefore Cage didn't have to worry about the pain it would cause him if she was injured? Possibly.

Bree was also on his mind though. Hell, he knew some of his siblings and their spouses didn't even fly together so they didn't risk orphaning their children. Yet he and Angel were in the middle of a full out gun battle with a deranged group of outlaw bikers.

"Found Cheryl," came over the coms from Star. "She's definitely pregnant, Steel."

Steel paused. They were around the corner from where the main fight was occurring. Steel signaled for Cage to take up position on the opposite wall.

As Steel asked over the radio if Cheryl was alone, Cage peeked around the corner. He had an open shot at three Pythons whose backs were to them. Cage held up three fingers to Steel.

Using military hand signals that was different from traditional American sign language, Steel told Cage that he would take the one on the left. Cage, having a clearer line of sight, had the other two.

As they took aim, Star called back over that there was another woman in the room with Cheryl. Based on the needle in her arm, she was high on heroin.

Two shots later, Cage's targets were down. He was grateful for the recent time at the gun range with Angel. She'd never let him live it down if he'd missed those targets.

Cage and Steel held their position as Steel replied to Star to remain with the women.

"Star, check the room two down from where you are. There's a small heat signature. I can't tell if it's a person because it shares a wall with the kitchen. Possibly an animal?"

Star replied he was going to lock Cheryl and the other woman in the room and would go check it out.

Steel and Cage continued into the main room. Unlike the VDMC clubhouse, the Pythons was staged specifically for their parties and fun. The single pool table looked like it was a fuck away from breaking. There was a cart with booze and glasses. The place reeked of sex and smoke. Steel paused long enough to kick a used needle out of his way. Though his face didn't show it, Cage knew that Steel's distaste for how the Pythons ran their club was at the forefront of his president's mind.

When Cage had arrived in Mount Grove to prospect for the Via Daemonia , Steel had stared him down and told him that there was not and never would be drugs in his club. One chance, one shot. If a member was discovered doing, selling, or transporting drugs, not only would their colors be stripped but they would also have to deal with Steel's wrath. Lucky, who had lost his mother to drugs, seconded this sentiment so strongly that he'd probably join Steel in whatever punishment he saw fit for the disgraced member.

Cage was not one to turn down a drink—at least not until recently—but he'd never in his life touched drugs. The occasional joint in his teens being the exception. He had no issue with Steel's rules regarding drugs. In the early days of the club, people had tried to bring drugs to the VDMC parties but soon discovered that Steel had no issues making a citizen's arrest and calling Sheriff Longhill to the clubhouse or Demons on the Rocks to take the dealer or user in hand. After the second time, no one had dared to bring illegal substances anywhere near a Via Daemonia party.

The Pythons, on the other hand, transported drugs and distributed openly at their parties.

Using the support beams for cover, Cage and Steel came up on five Pythons who were exchanging gunfire with Bulldog's team. Two of them looked injured but were still firing. They were using overturned furniture for cover. In the middle of the floor were several unmoving bodies. At quick glance, Cage spotted four.

Who Cage did not see was King.

Neither did Steel. "Anyone have eyes on King?" he asked into his radio.

Lucky and Bulldog called back negatives. Anger surged inside Cage. He wanted King.

"No sign of Fang either," Bulldog added. "Keys, can you find them?"

Fang was King's SAA. If the two of them weren't here, Cage feared where they were. Bree came back to mind, but for an entirely different reason now.

Cage glanced at Steel. The man's face was eerily emotionless, but Cage knew the man's thoughts were on his family. Jenna and Ollie were at the sleepover, but Melanie was off at college. Cage knew that Melanie was smart. Steel had put all his children through self-defense classes and taught all of them how to use firearms. Hell, there was a rumor going around that Steel had once tied up his sons to show them how to get themselves free.

But no amount of training could stop a well-placed bullet. It had been Melanie that King had openly voiced a threat to when Steel, Bulldog, Ghost, and Jumper had come to the Pythons' clubhouse with an olive branch almost a month ago. Per Ghost's retelling, Steel had taken the opportunity to throw the strength of the women in his family back in King's face.

Was Steel now regretting not slitting King's throat then? If the man harmed Melanie…

Steel hugged the column and took aim at one of the Pythons. The man dropped, the bullet splattering brain matter and blood everywhere.

The other Pythons turned, stupidly rising to take aim at Cage and Steel behind them. Four shots later and Bulldog's team took them down.

Gunfire ceased. The fireworks outside give three more echoing crackles and then fell silent too.

"Bring the bodies. Clear the building. I want a headcount," Steel ordered over the radio.

In addition to Cheryl and the unknown woman, three other women were found. Cheryl seemed to be the only one sober which, for the sake of her baby, Cage was extremely grateful for.

Angel remained where she was to watch their six.

The VDMC injuries were minor. Ranger caught a ricochet bullet to the back of the thigh, but it had caught only muscle. Grumpy had taken a knife swipe to the chest. He'd already applied resin to the wound to stop the bleeding. Star had what looked to be claw marks down his face and Cage wondered if the woman with Cheryl had attacked him with her fingernails while under the influence.

Per Ollie, he was the only child that lived with the Pythons. The other "bastards", King's word for the kids their activities made, were kept elsewhere because King couldn't stand children. Like Sam, Ollie was brought to the clubhouse when he turned thirteen and given a prospect cut to help "serve" the club. With his father unknown, Ollie had received no protection against the Pythons' cruelty, which only became worse once his sexuality was known. Sam, though, knew that his dad was the VP, but Venom did not claim him. He was older and bigger than Ollie, so he'd been treated better.

After he made his first kill, Sam would have been patched over into the club.

The Pythons lined up in the main room, fourteen were accounted for. Two of the Pythons, the club discovered, were from the Atlantic City chapter. While Cage didn't mind that they had taken two more criminal scum from this world, he was grateful that the club had gone incognito on this siege. With the alibi Keys was working on—making fake posts on social media, a newspaper article from the Mount Grove Chronicle , and the party announcements—it was doubtful anyone would be able to point a finger at the VDMC and prove they had been anywhere other than at their property this night. However, the Pythons were not the sort to care about proof.

Which was also why they were planning on leaving just enough evidence behind to point the finger at the 3Ts. With any luck, the AC Pythons would go after the gang and they would wipe each other out.

Per Keys, all of the heat signatures were accounted for. Bulldog and Ghost went to collect ‘the evidence'. Cage started unpacking the C-4 with remote detonators. Based on the floor plan Keys had provided him, he'd already worked out which support beams to target that would take down the building.

As he neared the beam where Star was sitting with a napkin pressed to his face, Cage asked, "She got you good, huh?"

Star's eyes went to the women. "Oh, they didn't do this. Remember that other heat signature Keys sent me after?"

Cage nodded, pressing the block of clay onto the column.

Star pulled down the front of his shirt. A small furry head popped up and released a pitiful meow . Cage's jaw dropped. Star reached up to scratch its head. The black and white cat started purring with contentment.

"Couldn't leave the little guy to burn," Star said as if he didn't look equally contented with the cat's presence in his shirt. "Figured one of the kids would want him."

Star pocketed the bloody napkin to ensure he didn't leave his DNA behind. Cage shook his head at his friend's back. He would bet money that the club kids were never going to get the chance to claim that kitty and that Star would soon be purchasing cat supplies for his clubhouse apartment.

Angel did another sweep of the perimeter through her scope. Bear was driving Keys's van to pick up some of the members. With the women they had to take with them, there was not enough room in the club SUVs. They needed to get the women away before they could blow the building.

With King and Fang absent, Angel was keeping an extra close eye out. They could not risk being spotted by either member and identified. She saw Ghost and Bulldog carry in the bricks of heroin with the 3Ts signature blend. With it, they were going to stage a drug deal gone very bad between the two criminal groups.

Movement in the shadows of a surrounding building had Angel take a closer look. She was about to call it over when she recognized the face of the man.

Despite the distance, as if he sensed her eyes on him, Scar looked her way. Then he used his right hand to point to the left. Angel swung her scope on instinct to see what he was pointing at and found a wounded Python limping his way towards a metal link fence.

She pulled the trigger and the rabbit dropped.

Angel scanned the area again but did not see anyone else. She moved her crosshairs back to where she'd seen Scar. The man was no longer there.

"Motherfucker," Angel muttered to herself. Had Scar been there the whole time watching them? Had he been there as their backup or to witness? Either way, a part of her felt like he'd only stepped forward so she could catch a glimpse of him.

"Bulldog," she called over the radio. "You were right. He showed."

"Scar?" came back at her.

"Affirmative. He pointed me in the direction of another rabbit. I got the runner but now Scar's gone."

Bulldog cursed. "Slippery bastard. Which direction did he go?"

"East," she told him. "No sign of Ivy."

"Scar is free to come and go as he pleases," Steel reminded them. "Let's get this done and get out of here. Someone go get Angel's rabbit. Are the women loaded up?"

Angel moved her scope to see Pumpkin and Grumpy assist the last one into the SUV. They were taking them elsewhere to be assessed by Bear. All of them were going to need medical attention prior to a rehab program. The saddest part of watching them was the fact that they had been willing. Their consent did not make their treatment right in any regard, but it did make it less wrong in a way. Which still fell under ‘sick' in Angel's book. She hated to see women mistreated. She hated even more to see women mistreated who thought that was their only way to live.

Cheryl, however, would be coming with the VDMC back to their clubhouse.

Pumpkin answered that all of the women were accounted for and ready to go. Steel gave the order for Pumpkin and Grumpy to take the women away.

Pirate drove the other SUV into the lot as Bear pulled up with the van.

"Angel," Steel called. "Time to go."

Angel moved swiftly. She was packed up and out of her perch in seconds. Her rifle was broken down and in its case along her back. She climbed down the fire escape. Part of Keys's job was to also fake the surveillance videos from the surrounding street cams and businesses. Personal pictures were another issue, which was why the club was wearing their balaclavas outside of the Pythons' clubhouse building.

"Ready when you are, Steel," she heard Cage's voice over the radio.

"Blow it as soon as you're clear," was Steel's returning order as she hopped into the back of the van.

Her jaw dropped. Had she just stepped into a computer nerd's wet dream? What the fuck…? The wall on the driver's side of the van held three large monitors. A desk was bolted into the floor with a swivel chair on a sliding mount. No less than four keyboards were secured to the desk as well as three smaller screens. Keys was wearing a headset with an eyepiece over his left eye.

Bear turned around from the passenger seat. "Don't ask. He's in his own universe."

Angel closed the door behind her. She noticed that the right side of the van looked like half of an ambulance. There were three cabinets on the wall with medical supplies and a very thin cot. She put her rifle case under the cot and then climbed into the passenger seat. "Who else are we picking up?"

"Cage and Star," Bear said as he drove them around the side of the building.

Just as the big man braked, Angel saw two figures climb out of the hole in the rear of the building. She couldn't help the smile when she saw Cage was walking upright and unharmed.

Both Cage and Star took off their masks as soon as they were in the van. They took a seat on the cot. Bear pulled away.

Cage held the detonation switch. "We clear?" he double checked with Keys.

Keys slid down to the last monitors on the right. Angel looked over her shoulder to see a satellite view of their area. One was enlarged with heat signatures and the other was a broader image. "Clear," Keys confirmed.

Cage keyed his radio. "Detonation in five…four…three…two…" and then he clicked the red button on the switch.

The echoing explosion behind them did not cause Bear to drive faster. If anything, Bear was driving even more cautiously than usual. The three VDMC vehicles had different routes out of the city and would meet up casually on the highway back to Mount Grove. With no more fireworks as cover, the explosion would be heard and quickly discovered.

"Fire and police are on their way," Keys told them. He pushed himself towards the monitors in the middle. Angel saw what looked like radio waves on one monitor but couldn't hear anything. She wondered if he was tapped into the local police scanner. "I'm flagging a known 3T vehicle on a traffic cam now."

She recognized Cage's chuckle from behind her. "Remind me never to piss you off."

Keys paused whatever it was he was doing to smile wickedly over his shoulder at Cage.

As Bear slowed for a red light, Angel felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned as Cage leaned around the passenger seat. Their kiss was quick but reassuring.

"You good?" he asked her.

She nodded. "All good. You?"

"That was definitely something. I was a bit out of my element, but it was awesome to watch Steel in action. The man's a machine."

Bear chuckled. "The man's a career Marine. It'll take a lot more than what we just did to make that man crack." The light turned green and Bear drove them out of the city. "But don't feel bad, man. There's not many alive who could live up to that man's reputation."

Angel snorted as Cage said, "If we ever take on drug dealers in a submarine in the future, you watch out, man. I'll be like a ninja on that thing and Steel would probably get seasick."

Bear wasn't the only one who laughed at that. "I'll take that bet." Bear put his right hand up, which Cage took in acknowledgement. "Keys, find me a submarine full of drug dealers so I can take Cage's money!"

Keys scoffed.

They continued down the highway in silence, Cage's hand still on her shoulder. The other two vehicles called over the radio that they too were clear of the city.

"Ooh!" Bear suddenly let out, excited. "That's the motel where Maggie was conceived!" He pointed out the windshield to his left. "Quick, Angel, take a picture of me driving past. I want to show Tessa."

When they were about an hour outside of Mount Grove, they pulled off a backroad and parked. While standing on a tarp, everyone stripped to their underwear and wiped themselves down using wet wipes. Angel, who was wearing boy short panties and a sports bra, did not feel uncomfortable removing her clothing with the rest of them. She did notice that Cage stepped between her and the rest of the club, as if he was trying to block her body from their view.

She rolled her eyes. "How is what I am wearing any different than when I wear a bathing suit?" she asked him, though his back was to her.

"It's not," he confirmed. "I just can't look at you right now while in my undies or I'll make the guys jealous with the size of my dick."

Angel burst out laughing as the guys started ragging on Cage for his comment.

Once they were wiped down, they dressed in civilian clothing. Their fatigues, Kevlar, and boots were bagged up to be cleaned later. All weapons used were packed separately to be disposed of. Since they could not check their brass—other than Angel—they could not risk keeping possession of the weapons. Any weapons not used, which were mostly knives, were placed in other containers.

Bear approached Steel. "They're all high," he informed their president. "Based on the needle marks, all of them are users."

"Is Ollie's mom among them?" Steel asked.

It was Ghost who answered. "Yeah, she's there." His voice held a mixture of disgust and distaste.

"None of them are at risk of OD'ing?" Steel clarified with Bear.

The big man shook his head. "I checked their pockets. None of them are carrying. They are going to crash hard, though."

Ranger approached, a slight limp in his step. "I'll take them. I have a friend who runs a rehab facility in Alexandria for vets who become addicts. He's very discreet."

Steel nodded. "I don't want you going alone. Take two others and get them there safely." Steel looked to Keys. "Do you still have the Pythons' money or is it all gone?"

"I kept some reserves, not knowing if you wanted any of it for Ollie's education," Keys told him.

"I'll handle Ollie's education," Steel informed Keys. "Make sure Ranger's friend gets a healthy donation to take care of the women."

Keys nodded. "I'll see it done. By the way, I was able to trace a good portion of the 3Ts accounts from their money transfers with the Pythons. Want me to take that too?"

"Not everything," Steel told him. "But you can certainly point the feds in the right direction."

"I'm sure Ivy would appreciate that," Keys said before hopping back into the rear of the van.

Ranger drove off with the women along with Pirate, Ghost, and Grumpy.

Pumpkin was currently holding Star's new cat and cooing at it like it was a baby. Star was lacing up his boots. Cage and Angel were helping to pack up the tarp they'd undressed on to make sure they caught any evidence that might have fallen off of their bodies. Lucky and Bulldog were vacuuming out the SUV to catch any trace evidence there too.

Steel walked over to where Cheryl was sitting in the passenger seat of Keys's van. Bear was standing next to her taking her blood pressure with a stethoscope in his ears.

Bear pulled the stethoscope and looped it around his neck. "Pressure's low," he informed Steel, "but that's to be expected with a pregnancy."

"Do you know how far along she is?"

Bear shook his head. "No way of knowing that without an ultrasound."

It didn't pass Angel's notice that they were talking about Cheryl rather than to her, even though it was her pregnancy and baby.

"However," Bear added, "I can guesstimate that she's further than five months along."

Meaning that she'd been with the VDMC when she'd conceived her baby. Angel glanced around, wondering which of her brothers was about to become a father. Cage and the married men were the only ones she automatically withdrew from that list. None of the married men would dare cheat on their wives. Further, Angel knew that none of them had a desire to. They were loyal men to their cores, especially to their women. Cage swore that he hadn't slept with anyone but her since their hospital quickie a year ago and Angel believed him. Hell, even roofied he had somehow remained loyal to her.

Angel wasn't sure she could say the same thing—as she'd thought her baby's father a stranger until proven otherwise. Would she have fucked some stranger that drunk? She'd been so confused by her actions. Knowing it had been Cage she'd slept with made more sense now, but there was still that nagging question in the back of her head that made her wonder if she had been drunk enough that she would have slept with any guy that night.

"We'll order a paternity test," Steel told Bear. "The father will step up." He said those words like they were law and no one would dare otherwise. "Do we need to wait for the baby to be born?"

Bear shook his head. "A prenatal paternity test is noninvasive and safe for the baby. We need to take a cheek swab from each of the guys and blood from her. The hospital's lab can run it," Bear informed him. "Do you want the tests run now or tomorrow? We can borrow the vet clinic again and get the ultrasound done too."

Steel nodded. "Call Jumper. I don't want this done in daylight."

Bear removed the gloves off of his hands and stepped aside to make the phone call.

Without his large body to block her, Angel got her first good look at Cheryl. She remembered the former Honey being put together. Always wearing provocative outfits and too much makeup. There'd been a feminine air about her that always seemed to draw men to her.

Now? She was filthy. Her cheeks were gaunt, her hair disheveled, and she was wearing a pair of men's sweats and a large baggy shirt.

Angel felt no sympathy for the woman, only for her baby. It was her own pettiness that had put her in her current position. Bulldog would not have fired her if she hadn't made a scene in front of Abby in a public bakery.

Steel neared Cheryl, leaning up against the SUV's open door. "It's scary how much technology has become a part of our everyday lives. When I was your age, we had to use this invention called books and had to look up our questions in libraries to find answers." He pulled his phone out of his front pocket. "I don't need a library now. Hey Siri. Can a pregnant woman be placed in a medically induced coma? " he asked his phone.

"Here's what I found for ‘can a pregnant woman be placed in a medically induced coma' ," his phone's feminine mechanical voice answered.

Steel pulled a pair of reading glasses out to scan over his phone. "Well, it turns out that pregnant women can safely be put into a medically induced coma. In some cases, she's even delivered the baby vaginally while brain dead." Steel winced. "Wow. The female body is truly astounding." He took off his glasses and put both them and his phone away. "Here's the deal, Cheryl. You have two options. That baby is Via Daemonia . Furthermore, it's completely innocent of your crimes and I won't see it suffer for your stupidity.

"You're going to die. There's no way around that. You conspired to have one of my brothers kidnapped. In doing so, you drugged him which inadvertently caused pain and suffering to both him and his woman. You will die for that. But I can't kill you without killing your baby.

"You will be imprisoned in the clubhouse. You will be treated well and given all the medical assistance you require to bring your baby to term. You can do so conscious or unconscious, knowing that the moment that baby is separated from you, you will be killed. This is your one and only choice for the rest of your life. From this moment on, you are nothing more than a living incubator. You have until dawn to choose."

Steel stepped in closer, his voice turning menacing. "Know this, though, if you try to harm that baby in anyway, you will be put into a coma until you give birth and then you will be brought out of it to die the most excruciatingly painful death I can come up with. Do I make myself clear?"

Tears flowed freely down Cheryl's cheeks. She didn't say a word, but she did nod.

Steel made sure her feet were clear and then he slammed the door closed.

Cage and Angel exchanged a look. Steel was many things, but one of the reasons he had Angel's loyalty was his unyielding loyalty to them.

"Let's get going," Steel called out. "Bulldog, Cheryl's yours. Gag her if you have to."

Bulldog nodded once. He pointed to Pumpkin to accompany him. Bear also followed, telling Bulldog that Jumper and Tessa were on their way to the vet clinic as well.

Angel wondered if Bulldog and Bear were having a moment of déjà vu from the last time they'd had to commandeer the vet clinic.

Everyone else packed themselves into Keys's van. Steel rode in the passenger seat while Lucky drove. Cage and Angel were on the cot with Star and his new pet.

Keys was in his computer chair but was turned around to face them. He smiled at Star. "Good to see you finally found yourself some pussy."

Cage and Angel laughed as Star held up his middle finger with one hand and continued to pet his cat with the other.

Demo was waiting for them outside of the clubhouse as the van pulled into the lot. His arm was still in a sling to help control the tremors. His face looked a bit grave. Angel's heart leapt. They still had not found King or Fang. Had they come to VDMC property? Had someone gotten hurt?

As they all climbed out of the van, Angel could tell she wasn't the only parent worried by Demo's expression.

"What happened?" Steel demanded.

Demo, though, didn't look at Steel. His eyes landed on Cage. "You have a visitor. We caught him sneaking onto the back of the property. Sara almost shot him before she realized he wasn't a Python."

Everyone looked to Cage. His face scrunched in confusion. "Someone came here for me?" He exchanged a look with Angel, but she shook her head.

Despite the time of night, someone walked out of the clubhouse—and Angel knew her jaw wasn't the only one to drop.

The kid was maybe sixteen. He was six feet with curly dirty blonde hair and blue eyes. He had the muscular tone of an athlete.

She'd seen pictures of Cage as a teenager. His mom had been texting her regularly since their introduction and included some embarrassingly funny childhood and teenage pictures of "my Vinny". It was like looking into a time machine.

The teen cleared his throat nervously but looked Cage straight in the eyes as he said, "Hi, Dad."