27. Ghost

27

Ghost

In the three minutes it takes me to walk from the conference room to my bike, I pull footage from inside the clubhouse and find Luna.

She was coming out of my office when the ATF raided. And even though Venom tried to stop them, an agent grabbed her and slammed her head into the doorframe. Her eyes swam with hazy surprise as she found her footing. Eyes as clear as a blue sky, and he made them dim.

He’s a dead man walking. And so is Zane, who I’m certain is behind this.

He’s making a statement that he doesn’t need the Iron Sinners to fuck with us. And right now, I hate that he’s right.

Zane is lucky he’s gone by the time I step out of the club, or nothing would have stopped me from putting a bullet in his head .

I shove my phone in my pocket and climb on my bike. Havoc, Chaos, and I fall into formation behind Steel, weaving in and out of traffic.

If I’d thought I had snapped when Zane was talking about Luna, it’s nothing compared to the rage coursing through me now. I’m a live wire. And clearly, Steel feels the same.

In a situation where the ATF raids the clubhouse, Steel should stay as far away as possible so they can’t tie him to anything they find. He’s lucky he wasn’t there in the first place. But with Tempe and Austin both on the property, nothing is keeping him away from his family—even the threat of prison.

The final stretch of road leading to the clubhouse feels endless. The desert has never been as dry, hot, and infinite.

Before I met Luna, I felt like I was wandering in that desert. I roamed empty land with no hope of finding an oasis. I sipped just enough water to keep me from wishing for things I couldn’t have.

Luna crossed my scorched path and offered me hope. She made me believe I can be a better man.

Zane is going to burn for her.

The Iron Sinners will beg.

The ATF will wish they never fucked with us.

I vowed to protect her with my life when I brought her here, and I meant it.

When the clubhouse is within view, the first thing I see is the lights. Feds surround the front of the compound, and they line a path all the way to the front door of the clubhouse. At a distance, there are a few cars in the section of land where the neighborhood sits.

An agent tries to wave us down as we approach, but Steel blows past them. One is reaching for his gun when Havoc rolls to a stop to talk him down. I follow Steel while Chaos pulls over to help Havoc.

The front porch is filled with staff and patch bunnies. One girl is vomiting over the railing, and a few others are coughing. They must have used a smoke bomb when they first came in.

Anyone wearing a cut is lined up in the dirt, on their knees, with zip ties securing their hands behind their backs. Our attorney, Tanner Monroe, beat us here, and he’s arguing with the agent who appears to be in charge.

I search the scene for purple hair, but I don’t see her.

Rolling past an ambulance, I spot Tempe and Austin inside. They’re both awake and talking, but Austin has an oxygen mask over his nose and mouth. Gripping my handlebars tighter, I watch Steel storm up to them and wrap them both in his arms.

I cut the engine and climb off as Steel kisses Tempe on the top of her head and says something before peeling away.

I’ve seen Steel work an enemy with a pair of pliers and a crowbar in the Shack. I’ve watched him choke a man to death with his bare hands. I’ve seen him do things that would keep most people up at night. But when he sets his sights on the agents crawling the property, I know I’ve never seen this particular look in his eyes.

“Prez. ”

He starts to rush past me, but I hold out my arm, stopping him.

“I will shoot you where you fucking stand if you try to stop me, Ghost.”

“Not before they do.” I move in front of him. “Your family needs you right now, Steel. We all need you. And if you walk over there and do what I think you’re going to, this isn’t going to go how you think it is. You’ll get one at most before they turn fire on you. There are too many of them, and that’s exactly what Zane wanted when he sent them here. Don’t take the bait. Be pissed later. Wait out the battle so we can win this fucking war.”

Steel tips his head back, dragging his hands into his hair.

“We’ll make him pay,” I promise. “And the first step is getting these pigs off our fucking land.”

Steel’s jaw ticks, and he grabs onto my shoulder. “You’re right. Thanks, brother.”

This time, when he starts walking toward Monroe, I don’t try to stop him, even if I still see the tension in every step. He’ll reign it in for his family because he knows, like I do, that taking anyone down right now will either send him to prison or land him six feet under. And then, we may never get the chance to make Zane and the Iron Sinners pay for fucking with us.

Soul meets Steel at Monroe, talking through whatever deal is being made. Agents start cutting the zip ties off the wrists of our brothers, setting them free. And once again, I start searching for Luna, finally spotting a flash of purple hair through the kicked-up desert dust .

Luna is sitting on the porch with her hand on her head, and Patch is kneeling in front of her, dabbing at a cut on her forehead. I’m tempted to take back everything I just said to Steel because the sight of her hurt turns the world around me to white noise. But when her blue gaze connects with mine, fear and hope swim together.

The only time I’ve seen Luna cry was when she was taking my cock so deep in her throat she couldn’t breathe. Except right now, she blinks, and something inside her cracks as she looks at me.

After Paulina died, I believed I’d never let anyone close again. All I bring is pain, and all the club brings is trouble.

I broke that vow, and now I need to clean up the pieces. Luna is the only light left in my world, and I refuse to let them put that out.

My feet finally unfreeze, and I head toward Luna.

She jumps up and runs into my arms. “Marcus.”

I hug her so hard I lift her off the ground. One arm holds her at the waist and the other wraps around the back of her head. I kiss the side of her face, and she’s so fucking fragile I can’t stand it.

“I’ve got you, beautiful. I should have been here.” Setting her down on her feet, I tip her chin up to me.

My thumb brushes over the apple of her cheek up to the angry bruise that’s already forming.

“I missed you.” She grips my cut.

“I missed you too.” Leaning down, I give her a kiss, but it might as well be my heart.

I’ve missed kissing her. Holding her. Touching her .

I want to tell her I’ll never be gone that long again, but it’s a lie. One time, I was gone for three weeks when the club took a trip to Maryland. Wearing this patch will always put a space between what I want and who I am, and she’ll have to accept that.

“I should have been here for you,” I mumble against her mouth, kissing her again.

“Don’t do that.” She shakes her head. “This isn’t your fault. I don’t hold it against you.”

Maybe she should. Us going to New Mexico to investigate Zane and the Iron Sinners might be what started this in the first place.

“Don’t do that,” she says again, gripping my cut as she buries her forehead against my chest. “Don’t start pulling away because you feel guilty about this. It’s not your fault. I’m okay. I promise.”

She’s scared.

And not because of what’s going on around us. She’s worried I’ll see this as a reason to shut myself off from her—that we’ll go back to how things were for the past year.

Tipping her chin up, I force her to look me in the eyes. “I’m not pulling away, Luna. And I’m not letting you go, remember? You’re all that matters to me. I’ll keep you safe. Always.”

“I believe you.” The words are nearly a whisper, but there’s something behind them that I can’t quite pinpoint as she looks up into my eyes .

As quickly as it flashes, it fades. And I hope she sees that I’m telling her the truth. I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure she doesn’t hurt again.

She trusted me with her body and her heart, and they’re my most prized possessions.

Cupping her cheeks in my hands, I lean down to kiss her. I take whatever scraps of good the universe thinks I’m owed, and I worship at the altar. Luna’s fingers dig into my shirt, and I absorb all she has to give.

She breathes life into these cold, empty bones. And when she breaks the kiss, resting back on her heels, we’re both breathing like we’re running out of air.

“I missed you so much.” A tear rolls down her cheek.

I wipe it away with my thumb. “I missed you more. All I want right now is a shower, a burger, and to crawl into bed with you and show you just how much I’ve missed you these past three days. But I need to help deal with this shit. And it pisses me off that I’m finally home, and there are still things coming between us.”

“Me too.” She frowns. “But I understand.”

Patch walks up beside us, and I look over at him.

“Does she need to go to the hospital?”

He shakes his head. “Her head’s gonna hurt like hell for at least a day, but she doesn’t have a concussion. I’ll report it to Monroe so he can make sure it’s added to the list of grievances.”

“Good.” I glance up as Wren starts throwing up over the railing. “Go deal with that. I’ve got Luna.”

He nods, starting up the steps of the porch as Luna curls against me. Across the yard, Legacy is handing Bea to Margaret while he yells something at an ATF agent. Margaret pats his arm, saying something that calms him down, but the tension doesn’t release from his shoulders as he watches Margaret get his daughter into the car.

With Bea gone, Legacy heads in my direction.

“Try not to get locked up, brother,” I tell him when he stops in front of me. “If for no other reason than that little girl.”

“They stormed her fucking room.”

“And we’ll make them pay for that.”

Luna looks up at me. I’m sure she knows the bad shit I do for the club, but hopefully, she understands.

Legacy nods, and her gaze moves between us.

“I’ll give you a minute,” Luna says. “I’m going to check on the girls. Find me when you’re done.”

Lifting on her toes, she kisses me and walks away. I watch her go, appreciating that she’s understanding when none of this can be easy on her.

“How’d they even get in?” I turn back to Legacy. “They can’t just storm this place without a warrant.”

“Said they were operating on a tip.”

I laugh, but there’s no amusement in it. “Yeah, and I know where it came from. Just got out of the fucking meeting.”

Legacy dips his hands in his pockets, nodding his understanding. “Please tell me you’ve got some good news from your trip.”

I pull my phone out of my back pocket and shoot a text off to Legacy. “Better than good. We found the account we’ve been looking for. Drain it. ”

“Steel’s sure? It’s gonna start a war.”

I look around at the agents still crawling around the property and at Tempe carrying Austin toward Steel with that little boy wrapped around her. “We’re already in one, brother.”

And right now, war sounds good.