Chapter Nine

"Are you sure you have to go?" Cassie asked, sounding downright frightened.

Rage sat next to her on the bed and clasped her hands. He couldn't blame her, especially after everything she'd been through. Rage and Cassie were in his quarters in the clubhouse.

Rage wasn't taking any chances. She was safer here. Breaker and the other bikers were here as well.

"Cassie, I've got to finish this," he reminded her. "Hawk thinks he can get away with anything. The bastard needs to be taught a lesson."

"And you have to be the one to do it?" Cassie asked.

Rage pressed a tender and possessive kiss to her mouth. "I do. Hawk thought he could take you away from me but he'll soon learn what happens when he pisses off a member of the Death Seekers MC."

"Promise me you'll retreat when you realize you and your team are outnumbered?" Cassie asked.

"I will." It was a white lie and maybe Cassie knew it as well.

Rage had no intention of stopping now. This was the best opportunity to cripple their MC rival. If he managed to take Hawk out of the picture, it would be like cutting off the head of the snake. Without their prez, it would be utter chaos in the Devil's Kings MC.

"We won't take long," Rage assured her.

He felt awful leaving her but he had a job to do. Rage left the room and joined his waiting brothers in the parking lot. Rage only picked a small strike team and he trusted each biker at his back. He mounted his Harley.

"Let's ride," he told his MC brothers.

There were grumbles of agreement. Everyone was pissed off at what happened at the wedding. Everyone wanted to draw blood, including Rage.

An hour later, Rage could see the roadhouse where Gears agreed to meet Hawk. It sat at the edge of a dusty highway, its faded neon sign hard to miss. Thick tension filled the air as Rage signaled his men to form a tight formation.

He could see some members of the rival gang hanging about in the parking lot. Rage counted four men. Hawk was probably inside, enjoying a drink. They didn't bother keeping a low profile.

At the sound of their rumbling motorcycles, Hawk's men scrambled to action. It was a futile effort. Most of them seemed drunk or high already.

"Looks like they're celebrating early," Rage remarked. There was no room for negotiation. Hawk's men didn't show any mercy when they crashed Rage's wedding, so they would return these men the same favor.

Rage pulled out his shotgun and his men did the same. They rode in and it was a wholesale slaughter. Two rival bikers managed to get on their motorcycles and grab their guns. Three more bikers poured out of the roadhouse, all of them armed. It didn't matter how many came at them.

Rage dismounted from his Harley, shooting a biker who was stupid enough to attack him with a chain. He left the rest of the fighting to his men. Rage had one goal. He entered the roadhouse, unsurprised to find it empty. Hawk probably bought the place out for the evening for the exchange. Hawk rose unsteadily to his feet, revolver in one hand. His face twisted in anger when he spotted Rage striding up to him.

"I should've known Gears was a yellow-bellied coward," Hawk said. "He couldn't go through with betraying his club, could he?"

"Oh, he did, but we found him out. I doubt you would be hearing from him," Rage said.

"He's dead then." Hawk didn't seem surprised. "I would've gotten rid of a rat in my club, too."

"You know why I'm here, Hawk. You thought you could get away with stealing what's now mine," Rage said.

Hawk shot at him first. Rage flipped a table over and took cover behind it. Hawk made his way behind the bar. Rage took a shot at Hawk but he missed. Bullets whizzed past splintered wood and surfaces, the sound of gunfire deafening.

"This is only to end one way, Hawk!" Rage yelled.

Neither of them could hide forever, so Rage decided to make the first move. He dashed away from the table zigzagging between toppled chairs and table. Hawk fired at him, but Rage managed to duck and roll at the right movements.

Their bullets shattered windows and Hawk finally decided to crawl off his hiding space. Rage thought Hawk was going to confront him head-on.

He lost all respect for Hawk when the rival biker made a run for it instead. Hawk dashed toward the kitchen in the back, Rage following swiftly behind him. Hawk didn't look over his shoulder, and that was his mistake.

Rage managed to catch him in the back of his left knee. Hawk stumbled, trying to get away. Rage knew if Hawk managed to escape, it would be a long time before Rage could get this chance again.

Their eyes met and Rage could see nothing but anger and desperation in Hawk's gaze.

Hawk had almost reached the back door too, despite his injured leg, but the President of the Devil's Kings MC knew his end was near. The sound of gunshots and shouting outside had faded. Hawk's men didn't stand a chance and Hawk knew it. Hawk bit off more than he could chew and it was time for him to pay for his mistakes.

"Any last words, Hawk?" Rage asked.

Hawk spat at his boots. "Fuck you and your bitch, Rage. I'll see you both in hell soon."

Rage mutely fired his last bullet, hitting Hawk squarely between his eyes. Hawk toppled over, his blood staining the dirty kitchen tiles.

Rage let out a ragged breath just as Ripper, one of his guys, ran in the kitchen. Ripper took one look at Hawk's corpse, then at Rage. He slapped Rage on the shoulder.

"You actually did it," Ripper said, sounding awed.

"Anyone dead or injured?" Rage asked, all business.

"Scar got hit in the arm and Viper in the gut but they'll live," Ripper reported.

"Send them to the nearest hospital. We'll take care of the mess here. After that, we head back home," Rage said.

****

One Year Later

After finding a parking spot on the side of the road, Rage dismounted his Harley. He grinned when he spotted his old lady, sitting on the porch swing of their new home.

Plenty had happened in the last year since Rage killed Hawk. For one, the Devil's Kings MC had elected a new president, but the new prez didn't seem to know how to keep his men together. The group was no longer much of a threat to their own MC.

To make up for Hawk's men crashing their wedding, Rage took Cassie on a real honeymoon in the Caribbean. They also purchased their first home, which was directly opposite Breaker's hood and Cassie's childhood home.

Cassie had changed plenty since they married. She found a job at a small account firm in town and had started repairing her relationship with her father.

Rage walked up to his wife, a bouquet of roses in one hand.

"For me?" Cassie asked, a mischievous glint in her eyes.

"Happy one year anniversary, babe," Rage said, joining her on the porch swing. He set the roses down to give her a proper kiss on the mouth. Even a year later, he still was mad for his wife. Cassie clutched at the lapels of his jacket as Rage enjoyed the taste of her. They still couldn't get enough of each other and he suspected that feeling would last until they were old and grey.

"I have a surprise for you as well," Cassie said after the kiss.

Rage raised an eyebrow and only noticed Cassie holding a small little gift bag. She got him a present? Rage sure hoped it was sexy underwear.

He imagined kicking the front door open and spiriting her up to their bedroom where she could try her gift on for him. Hold on a second. Rage was probably getting ahead of himself.

"A gift for me?" Rage asked.

Cassie handed him over the tiny gift bag. A radiant smile lit her face. "Open it," she said. He noted the sense of urgency in her voice.

As Rage opened her gift, his eyes widened in surprise. Rage picked up a tiny, blue pair of baby booties. His heart was in his throat as he looked at her for confirmation. Rage's lungs constricted in his chest. His heart pounded in excitement.

"I'm pregnant," she said, reaching out to take his hands in hers. Emotion caught her voice. "You're going to be a dad, Rage."

Stunned, Rage took a few seconds to process her words. They'd been trying for over a year, and finally, it was really happening.

"We're going to be parents?" Rage whispered, as if he truly couldn't believe the words. He wrapped his arms around Cassie. "Cass, this is fucking unbelievable."

"I know," Cassie said, nestling into his embrace. "You're going to be an amazing father, Rage. I can already picture you teaching our little son all about motorcycles."

"A son," he murmured in amazement. "Have you told Breaker the news? That he's going to be a granddad?"

Cassie shook her head, amused. "Not yet. I wanted you to be the first to know."

"I love you so damn much, babe," Rage said. They started off as enemies. A year ago, Rage couldn't even entertain the thought of Cassie and him tying the knot. The idea of the two of them had been a reckless gamble and yet it paid off.

"Love you, Rage," Cassie murmured, leaning in for a soft kiss.

The End