Page 121 of Princes of Carnage

“You know what I mean. Being the leader of a biker gang. You know how I fell into leading Enigma, but what put you in charge?”

Nico lets out a sigh and shrugs, running his fingers through his dark hair. “It sort of just happened for me too. I wasn’t looking for it, but Killian, Atlas, and I have been tight since we were teenagers. We have a sort of… unbreakable core. People gathered around that. There’s a certain security in it.”

“And that’s how Carnage got started?”

“Pretty much. None of us have family.” He grimaces, glancing down at the desk as his lips twist. “Or at least, no family that counts. We were just trying to have each other’s backs, to make sure no one was going to fuck with us, and before we knew it, it had turned into something bigger.”

“There’s something to be said for that,” I tell him. “Having people’s loyalty. Knowing you have their backs and they have yours.”

“I know,” he agrees. “The two of them are like my brothers. That bond between us really is the core of everything, but the rest of our gang is solid too. It’s why I take this shit so seriously.”

We’re both quiet for a moment after that, and then I ask something else that’s been on my mind.

“Were you always a biker? Is that what brought the three of you together, or…?”

“No.” He pushes away from the wall, stepping a little closer to the desk. “Atlas used to be in a different motorcycle gang with his dad, and he’s the one who got us all into bikes.”

I blink, surprised. I assumed the three of them had been in the same gang the whole time, as joined at the hip as they are. “His dad? Which gang was he in?”

Nico’s lips twist in a little smile, and he shakes his head. “Sorry, mia cara. If you want to hear all about Atlas’s past, you’ll have to ask him.”

I let out a breath, grimacing. “That’s fair, I guess.”

The annoying part is that I do want to ask him. I want to know the story and what came before it.

I want to ask Nico a lot of other things too. The most burning question is why he shared me with Atlas last night. He killed a man today for putting his hands on me, but was so eager to watch Atlas fuck me over the couch last night.

And I know there’s a difference between Atlas and a random member of the Young Killers, but I didn’t think Nico was the type to want to share with anyone. And Atlas had been holding himself back too, because I’m married to Nico.

It’s on the tip of my tongue to just come out with it, but I swallow it back and don’t ask. I’m supposed to be doing research in here, working to get to the bottom of things with our mystery attacker so that I can keep my gang safe.

So that this little alliance can finally come to its end.

Sharing stories with my onetime enemy isn’t going to help that happen any faster.

“Anyway,” I say after a while, forcing myself to focus. “I’m going to see what I can dig up about this Silas guy, if anything. We need to make a move before he can take out more of our people.”

If Nico is surprised by the abrupt change in topic, he doesn’t say so, and I don’t look at him to see what expression is on his face.

“Sure,” he says easily. “Let me know if you find anything useful.”

Before I can respond, he raps his knuckles on the desk once and then strides out of the room, leaving me in peace to get back to work.

I work until late into the evening, not stopping until the throbbing in my head and the ache in my back and shoulders remind me that I haven’t moved for several hours. I was so determined not to stop until I found something useable, but that was definitely easier said than done.

When I stand up, I have to stretch out the soreness, and it hits me how tired I am. It’s been a long day, and I drag myself up to bed and crawl under the covers, ready to pass out.

But unfortunately, even being as tired as I am doesn’t stop my brain from conjuring up a nightmare while I try to sleep.

I’m on that same street corner again, with the flashing stop light. I try to run away from the five men that loom up out of the shadows, but there’s too many of them. They cut me off at every turn, grabbing at me with strong grips that I can’t break.

Every time I manage to get away from one of them, two more show up, backing me into a corner, keeping me surrounded. I fight like hell, kicking and clawing, struggling and bucking against their hold on me, but it’s not enough. Nothing I do is enough.

They drag me into that alley and push me down to the ground, and all I can see is the flashing red light, blinking on and off incessantly as they take what they want.

My eyes snap open, and I wake up drenched in sweat. I surge up into a seated position on the bed, a strangled cry dying in my throat and my entire body tense and ready to fight.

“Fuck,” I pant hoarsely as I start to come more fully awake.

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