Epilogue 1

Two Weeks Later.

A thunderous cacophony engulfed me.

Roars, yells, clapping and sharp whistles.

And unlike the first time I'd stepped foot into this underground fighting circuit, there was no disbelief, amusement, or resistance.

Things had come a long way since then.

In many aspects.

Now it was respect and reverence.

They were cheering for me.

Caleb had done the rounds when we'd arrived twenty minutes ago and ninety-percent of the spectators had put money on me, rather than my opponent.

Even though he was a big, scary-looking bastard.

Even though he was the top enforcer of the Iron Crows Motorcycle Club.

I took him in as he fiddled with his orange and black satin shorts that matched the crest of his club, all that mammoth muscle and black ink covering most of his skin, blond hair brushing his shoulders that matched his long beard.

That usual excitement at the prospect of a fight wasn't there for me this time.

At first when I hadn't felt it running up to the night, or when we'd been heading down here, or when I'd stepped into the ring five minutes ago, I'd thought it had just been because I had to throw this fight and take a dive.

It was going to shatter the reputation I'd spent so long building.

But that wasn't all.

My heart just wasn't in it anymore.

Everything with Jett, the war, my men… it had tarnished it for me.

There wasn't that pain there driving me anymore. That rage I'd had take the wheel when I'd had Jett after me, when everything had been so fucked-up, when I'd lost so much.

Things were different now.

While The Jackals mission still appealed to me, that was different because we were out there helping people, helping the city.

This, though? The thrill was gone.

It was unfortunate that my last bout in the underground fighting circuit would be me taking a dive. And one hell of a beating.

As we waited for the ref to come in to start the fight, I looked out at the chain-link fence closest to me, catching sight of Damien who was standing there with his arm draped over Ashley. She was wearing all pink leather—pants and a cropped jacket with a white sequined flowy top beneath, her blonde hair flowing loosely, which Damien was stroking. He'd lost his usual hoodie for a tailored leather jacket and matching pants with a silver metallic tee beneath. His shaggy hair was far less wild than usual and actually styled—definitely Ashley's work. I knew that from Bastian showing me her Instagram which was filled up with photos of the couple.

Since the lockdown had been lifted by Caspian now the war was won, Damien had been with her pretty much non-stop, Ashley even coming into Haywire every night while he was working. Apparently their first time together had been over his desk—at her insistence. She was certainly something and she was able to complement him so well and balance out his harsher side with her softer one, while also meeting in the middle with other things. Plus, with her being a celebrity, Damien also got to enjoy that aspect that he'd wanted but had never had because Bastian had been the one with that mantle. While Bastian hated it, and he and I were still getting used to the paparazzi attention whenever we went out and about, Damien loved it.

I smiled and tracked my men.

Caleb was there grinning back at me when he caught my eye, giving me an encouraging thumbs-up in that upbeat way of his. Bastian was staring down at his fisted hands shaking his head and definitely not pleased about any of this. At least it was a much more muted reaction to the one he'd had when I'd had to tell him and the guys about the deal I'd made and now had to pay back in order to get a solid lead on the first location Caleb and Bastian had been kidnapped to.

Fortunately, despite his reaction, he respected my abilities and the fact that I was no damsel in distress. Also, Caspian had backed me up, understanding the meaning of honoring a deal.

As for Caspian, he wasn't with them anymore.

The three of them had been standing there together.

When Caspian had first walked in here, it had been an utter madhouse and it had taken a good ten minutes to get everyone to settle at having him present.

Especially after the intense show he'd put on last time.

Wow, things had altered so much since then.

We were all in very different places now.

And we'd actually managed to grow together, to grow closer together through the individual changes we'd each experienced.

Movement drew my attention at the entrance to the ring.

Expecting it to be the ref, I was more than a little surprised when Caspian strode on in with Scott "Raze" Timmins at his side.

Raze went straight to his enforcer and spoke quietly to him.

And Caspian came to me.

"What's going on?" I asked when he reached me.

"Plans have changed."

"What? How?"

"I made Scott an offer."

"An offer?"

"Business."

"Your arms dealing?"

"A stake, yes. Something that will prove very lucrative for him."

"Isn't that Dante's purview now?"

"I still have a stake and authority, but it did hold up my ability to make the offer quicker, hence this deal been down to the wire like this."

"So, the fight's off?"

"Not exactly. There were two parts to the deal."

"Caspian, what did you do?"

He smiled at me and stroked my hair. "I made it fair. Nobody is taking a dive. It's talent and skill that will be the deciding factors for the victor here tonight."

"All right, then I'll give it my all."

"The fight is no longer yours, love."

"What?"

Before he could explain, Scott came over, grinning at me. "I owe you one for setting this deal up for me," he told me.

Caspian winked at me.

He eyed Caspian. "Ready to do this thing, King?"

Caspian gave a nod and as Scott returned it with a chin lift, Caspian started stripping off his long sleeve tee. He tossed it in the corner, then pulled a hair tie out of the back pocket of his pants and secured his hair in a ponytail. My gaze flitted to Scott and he was doing the same, while sending his enforcer out of the ring.

"You can't be serious?"

He leaned in and whispered, "He'll be down in five minutes, then we can get on with our night."

"Caspian—"

"Go, love. I'll be right out."

I took a moment, but then nodded.

He'd already set everything up, there wasn't much else I could do, not without ruining his deal with Scott that he'd clearly gone to great lengths to arrange.

As I walked out of the ring, Caleb and Bastian were there wrapping their arms around me.

"You had no idea either, did you?" I asked, remembering their reactions.

"No clue," Bastian said. "But I'm loving it."

"Damn, Cas is always full of surprises," Caleb said.

The ref finally arrived and we all pushed closer to observe the fight.

Damien and Ashley came to join us.

"This is gonna be brutal," Damien posited.

"Like the time he beat you down?" Caleb teased.

"Hey, I was holding back."

"Sure you were, big bro."

Damien reached out and ruffled Bastian's hair.

"That was another life to where we're all at now," I said.

He laid his hand on my shoulder. "Thanks for seeing it that way."

I smiled out at him and Ashley gave me a sweet look as she nuzzled against Damien's side.

He beamed down at her and tightened his hold around her.

Roars and cheers cut through everything as the fight got started.

Holy shit.

Caspian had been playing it down when he'd said he'd been done in five minutes.

With a hella smooth move, he used Scott's momentum against him and swept his hand at his face and shoved him down in one shot.

And that was just the beginning.

Holy hell.

I stared at the text that had come in shortly after we'd arrived home from the fight club.

Unknown Number: Congratulations, pumpkin. Show that school what you're made of. Right where you belong. So proud of you. I know your mom would be too.

"Dad," I breathed.

He'd gotten the message I'd sent him yesterday about me getting into the design school here in Rossun, the top one I'd originally applied to before things had gone to shit.

And he'd replied already.

He'd kept his promise to me and continued to keep in contact since he'd left.

He was happy and healing out there with Riley.

He was finally finding peace.

Skylar: Thank you. Love you, Dad.

"Hey."

I turned just as Bastian walked into my bedroom and wrapped his arms around me.

"Aww, that's really nice," he said, seeing my texts.

"Yeah, it is."

I put my phone down and turned into him and he held me by my hips. "I can't wait until tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? What's happening then?" he asked, playing dumb.

I slapped his chest. "Your graduation, Bastian!"

He chuckled. "Oh, that. Yeah. Apparently, it's kind of a big deal."

"The biggest! You did it!"

He smiled. "I did, yeah. Finally." He shifted his weight, then told me, "I actually got a text from my mom congratulating me too."

I cocked an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Yeah, she's back in the city now the threat is gone. Her and Damien are patching things up and I guess she figured she'd try to go that route with me too."

"That's really something. You might actually be able to rebuild your relationship."

"A tall order for sure. We'll just take it one step at a time."

I reached out and cupped his face. "I'm so happy for you. Already with a job lined up too at Serenity Group!"

"And you're going back to design school. Caleb's facilities are doing really well. Cas has restructured King to take some of the intense pressure off. It's all looking up."

I sank into him, breathing it all in.

When we pulled apart, he told me, "Caleb is finished treating the minor cuts Cas sustained earlier. They're in the den settling in to watch something for a bit and just chill after that show at the fight club."

"That sounds nice."

I slid my hand into his and we made our way downstairs.

"You're going back to group tomorrow, right?" I asked.

"Yep. Damien's going to be hounding it with Ashley there too."

"I'll come by and pick you up."

"Yeah?"

I grinned. "If you want."

He squeezed my hand. "I'd like that."

"Then it's a date."

"Perfect."

As we continued walking through the manor, he suddenly veered off away from the den.

"What's going on?"

"You'll see," he said, leading me into the room that had the entrance to The Jackals Lair.

I was frowning up at him with him grinning back at me and not giving anything away as we slipped inside with me noting the door was already open.

As we made our way down the stairs, I caught sight of Caleb and Caspian standing in the middle of the space and holding out a shimmering silver rectangular box, the two of them smiling out at me.

"What's… is that for me?" I asked, taken aback by the whole thing.

"Sure is," Caleb said brimming with barely contained excitement.

Caspian held it out to me as Bastian joined them, standing beside Caleb and looking on as I took it.

I peered at them curiously, then sucked in a breath and opened the box.

"Oh my God," I gasped as I took in what was nestled inside.

An intricate gold and black masquerade mask.

Just like their Jackals masks.

"You like?" Caleb asked as I took it out reverentially and studied it.

"I love it. So much." I smiled out at them. "And I love the three of you."

"So hard," they all chimed in unison, making me grin.

"So hard," I confirmed.

"You really are one of us, beautiful. In every way."

Caspian told me, "This will come in handy after our much-needed vacation when we head back out into the city as The Jackals." He gestured at the mannequins in the far corner and I noticed that there were four now.

Not just that.

I walked over there in somewhat of a trance and saw a hooded leather coat in my size with the Kevlar vest beneath. I peered at the back and saw the striking embroidered red silhouette of a jackal, teeth gnashing. The uniform of The Jackals.

"Wow. I can't believe it."

"Believe it, darling."

I gasped at the sound of Caleb's voice now right behind me and as I spun around I got more of a surprise as all three of them were there now wearing their masks.

Devilish grins spread over their lips, their eyes darkening, looking all the more eerie and intense with the masks. Mmm.

I got the message and put mine on.

The moment I settled it into place, the three of them surrounded me.

And then they descended on me.