Page 81 of Lucky's Trouble

My phone lights up with an incoming call from Riot. I send it straight to voicemail. The only thing I need to deal with right now is finding my woman and figuring out what’s really going on. Neal must’ve gotten to her. That’s the only explanation.

“Did she text you?” Tigger asks.

“Yeah.” I hand him the phone so he can read it, but before he can, another call from Riot comes in. “What do you want? I got shit going on.”

“And you’re about to have more. Your girl looked extra fuckin’ shady this morning, so I decided to keep an eye on her. She took the keys to a van and drove out to University Way, where she ditched the van and got in a cab. I followed her, and now I’m sitting across the street from the Thirst Trap. She just walked in.”

“I fuckin’ knew it.” I jog out of the Garage and over to the parking lot at the compound where my bike’s parked.

“Whatever you’re thinkin’ of doing right now, don’t. This isn’t something you can walk into half-cocked.”

“I’m thinking I need to get over there, kill the motherfucker, and bring Tinleigh home.”

“For all you know, she’s here because she wants to be.”

I shake my head, even though he can’t see it. “You’re wrong.”

“Am I?”

I pace around my bike, wondering if he’s right. Then I recall her almost telling me she loved me this morning. She wasn’t ready for the words to come out, so I played it off, but I knew she meant it.

“Yeah, you fuckin’ are,” I say.

He blows out a breath. “Okay. Wait there and let me see what I find out.”

“You can’t go in there alone.”

“Not gonna. Just calm your fuckin’ horses and give me a minute.”

“Fine. Call me back.” I end the call and head back to the Garage to talk to Cy. If there’s one thing Riot is right about, it’s that I need a plan, and I need my brothers to back me up. I just hope Tinleigh can hold on that long.

* * *

“I couldn’t get close enough to see if she was okay,” Riot says, drumming his fingers on the table. He was able to slip through their back door and get a visual but had to bounce when Neal’s lackeys almost caught him.

It’s been an hour since all hell broke loose and Cy called Church. My brothers are gathered around the table, seated, but not me. I can’t stop fucking moving. My body’s itching to do something, but until we come up with a plan, all I can do is pace.

“But you saw her walk in?” I ask.

“Yeah. A few minutes after that, a blacked-out Cadillac Escalade pulled in. Neal came out to meet him. Didn’t recognize him, but he looked important.” He smirks. “You must’ve done some damage because Neal’s face was still a mess.”

Later, when he’s dead and gone and Tinleigh is back with me, that’ll bring me some satisfaction, but right now, little else matters besides getting to that moment.

“Before you fuck him up even more, we need to think this through,” Cy says.

Satyr clears his throat. “Yeah, I hate to be the one to say it, but this doesn’t change the fact that Neal’s in bed with some powerful people who could shut everything we’re working toward down with one phone call.”

My initial inclination is to dive over the table and deck him for thinking anything matters more than Tinleigh’s life, but he’s right. I can’t ask my brothers to give up their livelihoods because I went and fell for the wrong girl.

“What if no one knew it was us who took him out?” Golden asks.

Cy shakes his head. “It’s too risky. Someone will see something.”

“What about Myla?” Rigger asks out of the blue.

“Shit. She was supposed to be here at ten. Did anyone see her?” I scan the room, only seeing blank expressions. “I’m sending Tig to her apartment to see if she’s there.”

“It changes things if he took her. She has the club’s protection,” Rigger says.

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