CHAPTER FIVE

Loki

As brothers, we make our way to the cartel compound. Smoke floods the air, and the smell of burning flesh and acrid rubber burns my senses. The intense heat from the powerful fire that has taken over the warehouse sends plumes of black smog into the atmosphere, with trickles of dancing embers lighting up the afternoon sky.

Cartel soldiers run through the debris and carnage, screaming for death to greet them, some smoldering, their skin ablaze with flames. Some with limbs missing, some with all their clothes burned clean off.

Alpha steps in front of all of us, and the screams are so deafening that it's almost hard to hear his commands. "No one survives. No one!" he reiterates, then places his left fist over his chest. "For Defiance!" he yells.

We slam our fists to our chests. "For Defiance!" we chant in unison.

Alpha gestures for us to move forward, and we take off as a group, guns drawn. I race through the entry, and a soldier rushes straight for me. Half his body is badly burned, the right side of his clothing incinerated as he lunges for me, screaming in agony. Raising my gun, I aim straight for his head and don't hesitate. I hate these assholes more than anything, and I want to see them suffer, but this is like some kind of scene from a post-apocalyptic war, and no man should have to suffer like this. After pulling the trigger, his already badly wounded body drops to the ember and ashen ground.

Rip flies up beside me, a bright smile on his face. "This shit is gnarly, dude. I've never seen anything so lit in my life," he quips, then takes off, gun high, shooting anything that moves.

Alpha, Montana, and Wes race in, flanking me as we move through to what would have been the truck Atlas drove in. Montana glances into what would be the back of the truck. It's a wreck, but I clearly see him smile as he pulls at what remains of a body. It falls to the ground, singed beyond recognition—what's left of it anyway.

Montana leans down toward what's left of the face, making absolutely sure. "It's Atlas," he states, lets out a small chuckle, and then stands. "You bullied me as a kid, then tried to fuck with my Old Lady… guess I get the last laugh now, huh?" Then he lays his boot into what's left of Atlas, and parts of his body flake off into ash, floating into the air like the scene from Marvel's End Game .

I grip his shoulder, simply tilting my head to the side, gesturing we still have work to do. He nods in understanding, and we take off. At the front of the wreckage, three bodies lie on the ground, nothing identifying left of them, and Alpha steps up to the one in the middle. Slight movement and groaning coming from his body as the other three of us slide in beside him.

Alpha glances down at the clearly disfigured Ricco Rojas, immobile, incapacitated, and utterly defenseless. What remains of his soldiers are being hunted and taken out by the rest of our brothers while we stand here watching the almighty Cartel King fade right in front of our very eyes.

Alpha lets out a small laugh, bending down to kneel beside his nemesis. "Ricco, you made me believe my daughter was burned alive… funny how justice comes to those who deserve it most."

Ricco's hand begins to move, edging up shakily and slowly toward Alpha's face. He snorts, slapping Ricco's singed hand away from him. "You think I am going to help you? After everything you did to me? To my daughter? You stole her from me for years. Put her into a training facility and turned her into a miniature assassin. She's a child. She shouldn't be the way she is, and that is on you, Ricco!"

Inhaling deeply, the anger and hurt in Alpha's voice is clear for all to hear. The frustration he has with his little girl being incredibly grown up at such a young age and willing to fight, even kill, is not lost on me.

Poppy is more than capable.

But she shouldn't be.

She's only seven.

She should be playing with dolls and having dance lessons, not concerning herself with what the best weapon to use in certain defensive situations is. Ricco changed Poppy.

Maybe it was for the better, considering she's a part of the club.

But he also robbed her of the chance to have a choice.

And that is what Alpha is furious over.

Plus, during all those years Ricco had her in training, Alpha believed she was dead.

Ricco gargles something unintelligible, his hand still reaching for Alpha, his fingers gripping Alpha's shirt, the skin on his fingers instantly peeling away with the force of his intense burns. "This… isn't… the… end," he murmurs, his body shaking like he's in the final stages of life.

But Alpha narrows his eyes on Ricco, rising from his position, and steps one leg over Ricco's torso so he is standing on either side of him. Ricco's eyes stare up at Alpha, a resignation crossing his face, like he knows death is near.

Wes steps up to Alpha's side, placing a long military bayonet combat knife into his hand. My eyes widen—this must be another part of the plan I missed out on while daydreaming about Bea.

Alpha kneels over the top of Ricco, his eyes blinking slowly as he begins to fade in and out, but still very much conscious. Alpha moves his hand forward, gripping Ricco's hair, and forces him to look into Alpha's eyes as he presses the knife to Ricco's throat. "I need you to know, Ricco, you made my life hell for years. You tore my baby girl from me. You broke my marriage apart. You came for my club, and you thought you could keep coming for me? You might have weakened me for a moment, Ricco. But I kept my cool, bided my time, and waited for the perfect opportunity to take you out. I didn't lose my head, but I've been dreaming of the day you would lose yours. This is for Poppy!" Alpha growls out the last part, and then, without giving Ricco a second to reply, he slowly begins to press the blade into Ricco's throat.

His eyes widen, and his body begins to thrash about while blood spurts with each pulse of his heartbeat. I jump down at the same time as Montana, holding Ricco into place.

To help Alpha carry out his vengeance.

He continues to cut deeper, forcing his way through the sinew and muscle. Ricco gargles, trying to scream, but with his vocal cords clearly cut, no noise can escape him. Slowly, Ricco's movements weaken, and his movements diminish, but Alpha's fury doesn't end. He continues to hack away at Ricco's neck. I glance up at Montana, and he shrugs as we watch Alpha completely decapitate Ricco's head from his body. The now detached body part rolls slightly away from his neck as Alpha lets out a long exhale, then slumps back on his ass on top of Ricco's chest. He wipes the sweat away from his brow, smearing a line of blood across his cheek as he glances at me. His eyes dark, glassy, a void in his soul.

He's clearly not here—his mind somewhere else.

His hands shake while he completely zones out.

I reach out to slowly take the blade from him. He jerks with the movement, keeping the knife tightly in his hand, but doesn't say anything.

I exhale. "Pres… you with us?" I ask, knowing that sometimes he's pulled back into the trauma from his Army days.

He blinks a few times, shaking his head, and then he glances at me, the shadows in his eyes seeming to lift instantly as he finally takes a deep breath. "I'm here. I'm good… Prospect!" he orders, moving to stand from Ricco's dead body.

Wes moves in beside Alpha, instantly taking the knife from him. "Pres?"

"I want that head. Bring it back to the clubhouse. Do not let it out of your sight. Do you understand me?"

Wes bends down, picking up Ricco's severed head by his hair. "Got it. I'll guard it with my life."

I have no fucking clue what the hell Alpha is up to now, but I do know that we have just managed to take down the fucking Rojas Cartel compound—something we have been trying to do for years.

I never thought this day would come.

Alpha turns to me with a genuine smile finally lighting his face. All signs of the ghosts haunting him have vanished. "Did we actually just pull this off?"

Chuckling, I grip his shoulder, glancing around to see our brothers unharmed and surrounding us.

The compound continues to smolder and burn, with soldier bodies scattered everywhere in various states of disarray.

This couldn't have gone any better.

A win like this is almost impossible.

"I don't know how, but the Trojan Horse idea may have actually been our greatest one yet. They practically killed themselves, which is the best part," I state.

A slow smile crosses Alpha's face. "When we get back, I need you in the Chapel with Haven and Livvy… but tonight, we're celebrating!"

I haven't had a second to truly let this sink in—until right now.

My chest thumps hard with the reality of this moment.

We have taken down the Rojas Cartel.

Our biggest adversaries.

Damn straight, we're going to be celebrating tonight!

"Then let's get the hell back to the clubhouse," I chime.

Alpha nods. "We will. First, we need to do our due diligence. Brothers, we have to sweep this facility from head to toe. Make sure no one is left behind. We have two vehicles. If there is anything left inside the remaining buildings that is of use to us, we take it. What was theirs now belongs to Defiance. If we can't get it in the vehicles now, we send men back for it later. Everyone understand?" he instructs. We all nod in agreement, smiles lining our faces. "Okay, Defiance, let's do this. Then, we move out!"

Adrenaline surges through me, and as a brotherhood, we unite. We have a job to do. A duty to carry out. We have to see this through and make sure we have crossed all the t's. Then, and only then, can we go home and take a much-needed breath and a well-deserved drink. But for now, I need to get moving and ensure everything is taken care of, especially as the tech guy and the VP. I'm going to double-check absolutely every damn nook and cranny of this place, wipe every hard drive myself and clean every fucking surface to guarantee there's no trace of us here.

It's my job to protect Alpha.

It's my duty to keep those under me safe.

And I'm going to damn well do that now I know Ricco and his men aren't going to come back swinging.

Defiance is on top in LA now.

We have absolutely nothing to lose and everything to gain.

And it's about fucking time!

***

We've been back at the clubhouse for a little while, gathering our thoughts after what the fuck just happened at the cartel compound. The brothers have already started drinking for the afternoon, but Haven, Alpha, and I are in the Chapel waiting for the arrival of Alpha's ex-wife, Livvy.

As I sit back, my eyes fixated on the black box sitting in the middle of the Chapel table, I can't help but wonder how this is all going to play out.

Haven continues to pace the floor while Alpha sits back in his chair, his arms folded across his chest. "Will you sit down, woman," Alpha grunts out.

Haven snorts out a laugh, shaking her head. "You went into Cartel territory, took out these assholes, and didn't fucking fill me in? I'm your Old Lady, Alpha. Not only that, I'm a fucking trained assassin. I could have helped!"

Alpha slumps into his seat, shifting his gaze to Haven. "I couldn't have concentrated if you were there. I would've been worried 'bout your safety—"

"Pfft, bullshit! You know I fight better than you can," she snaps, and I try real fucking hard to fight back my smile.

Because the truth is— she's right.

Alpha huffs, shaking his head. "That may be true, but baby… I needed to do this. And I don't want this to hurt you, and I don't mean it in any kind of way other than it is, but this, what I did to Ricco… it was as much for Livvy as it was for me."

I snap my head to Haven to see how she will react to hearing that, but she simply smiles, her shoulders dropping as she makes her way around the table toward Alpha. She leans down, shoving his chair back, with him in it. His eyes widen as she drops down into his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck. My smile doesn't falter this time when she presses her forehead to his.

"That could never hurt me, you dumb idiot. I know you and Livvy have an amazing history. It's what brought Poppy into the world, and you know I adore that little girl like she is my own…" She smiles, and I can tell she is thinking about Poppy. "Alpha, I'm never going to be the type of woman who stops you and Livvy from having a friendship and caring about each other. There's a history there that can't be tampered with. A history that has massive emotional wounds that can only be felt by the two of you, but… I'm here. Don't shut me out, okay?"

Alpha exhales, his hand sliding up into her hair. "I don't deserve you."

Haven snorts out a laugh. "You really don't. But I love you anyway."

Alpha grins, pulling her forward, and they kiss passionately.

Turning away, I let them have their moment, though it's impossible not to think about Bea.

What would she think about the carnage we just created?

How would she react if she knew I had just killed people? Even if those people were vengeful, blood thirsty gangsters.

Would she still look at me the way she does, with those beautiful big doe eyes, so full of life and excitement?

Would she still bounce around with so much life and energy that she makes it feel like there's not a care in the world?

Or would she think of me as the villain?

Would she see me as the guy her parents always warned her about?

The one her mother told me to make sure never came near her.

To keep those kinds of assholes away from her.

Now she's here, at the clubhouse, surrounded by the very kind of men I swore to her mother I would protect Bea from.

And I am the worst kind of them all because Bea trusts me, and I'm the guy who went off the rails.

I'm the guy her mother warned her about.

With the sounds of Alpha and Haven still getting it on across the other side of the room, I pull out my cell to occupy my time when the soft tapping of footsteps up the stairs grabs my attention. I spin to face the door where Livvy enters the room. She's still dressed in her scrubs from work. There are dark circles lining underneath her eyes, her skin pale, and her hair's a mess. She looks tired from a long shift, and this is probably the last thing she needs right now.

Weakly, I smile at her as the small, blonde-haired woman enters the room. She tips her head at me, then glances over to Alpha and Haven, who are still making out at the other side. She raises her brow, like she is amused by the show, but clears her throat to announce her arrival.

Haven pulls back from Alpha with a bright smile on her face and then jumps up from his lap. "Hey, Liv! It's good to see you again. How's work going?" Haven asks, walking over and wrapping her arm around Liv in a hug.

Livvy embraces her back genuinely. "Work's busy. It seems like everybody is getting sick at the moment. It's hard to keep up sometimes."

Haven grimaces, pulling back from her. "This fucking world we live in, hey?"

Livvy snorts out a laugh. "Tell me about it! So… ah… am I here to talk about Poppy's upcoming birthday? Seeing as Louis is also turning one, we should totally have a joint celebration with South and Ingrid, yeah? I was thinking we could do a themed event, maybe? Get everyone at the clubhouse to dress up as something? I don't know. I've just been playing around with ideas. I want to make it special… seeing as we've missed a few of Poppy's birthdays because of…" she trails off, her expression falling as she remembers what Ricco did to her daughter—to Alpha's daughter—the entire reason we just did what we did to the fucking cartel.

Alpha clears his throat, stands, and walks to Livvy's side. He exhales, taking a moment before speaking, "Liv, we will discuss Poppy's birthday, but there's something I need to talk to you about first."

Livvy groans, slumping her body and clenching her eyes tight. "Jesus Christ, Stone, what have you gone and done? Are you going to jail? What do I need to prepare myself for this time?"

Haven grins, running her hand up Livvy's back to help ease her nerves, and Alpha chuckles. "Not going to jail, Livvy. But the club has done something. You might want to take a seat for this one."

Livvy shakes her head. "Just fucking tell me what shit you're into. Now! "

Haven takes a step back, giving Alpha and Livvy their space while I keep to myself on the opposite side of the table. Alpha reaches for the black box, sliding it in front of Livvy. She glances at it, her muscles tensing as she stares at it. "What the fuck is this, Alpha?" Her voice stern, serious, and a little dubious.

He licks his lips, then reaches out, taking her hand in his. "When we lost Poppy, or at least we thought we did, our entire world imploded."

Livvy blinks rapidly, her eyes welling as the memory of that time obviously slams into her mind. "I know… I was there… but what does that have to do with anything? We have her back. That's all that matters, right?"

Alpha tightens his grip on her hand, his desperate eyes meeting hers. "It wasn't enough for me, Liv. Having Poppy back is the best thing that has ever happened to me, and the moment she walked through those clubhouse doors… fuck! I don't think I will ever forget it. But… it started something inside of me I couldn't control."

Livvy's chin drops to her chest, her bottom lip trembling. "You wanted revenge? Justice for Poppy?" she whispers.

Alpha's hand slides up, his fingers under Livvy's chin, forcing her to look at him. Her eyes watering as she glances at him hesitantly. "No, Livvy. I didn't want revenge. I craved it. I thirsted for it like it was a part of my soul. It took time and meticulous planning, but Ricco Rojas stole years of Poppy's life from us. He made us believe she was burned to death. He sent her to The Nest to be trained as an assassin. Liv, I know you and I would have ended up where we are today…" He looks at his Old Lady. "I'm supposed to be with Haven. But I love you. I always will. You're the mother of my child, and nothing can take that away from us. But Ricco… he took our family and tore it apart for his own personal gain."

Livvy sniffles back to try and stop her tears from falling. "I… I don't understand what you're trying to tell me, Alpha."

Alpha cranes his neck to the side, drawing the black box to the edge of the table. "I'm trying to tell you that I finally got my revenge. Our revenge , Livvy," he states, then slowly opens the lid to the box.

I tense as Livvy hesitates, holds her breath, and then cautiously peers inside the box at Ricco's severed head. Instantly, her skin turns pale white, and her hand shoots straight to her mouth to capture her gasp as she frantically backs up, hurrying for the wall, scurrying to get as far away from the decapitated body piece as she can.

She's freaking out.

Before Alpha or I can make the move to get to her, she begins to collapse to the floor.