Page 77 of Taken By the Biker Daddies

The nurse still wouldn’t let my shirt go.

I frowned. “I said get the fucking form.”

Finally, she let go. She was about to leave the room when Jake appeared in the doorway.

“Actually, don’t get that form,” he told her. “But just leave us alone for a bit, will you?”

The nurse nodded, looking relieved, then left.

Jake closed the door. “I see getting shot has turned you back into an ass. And here I thought you’d gotten nicer, especially to women.”

“You know I hate hospitals,” I told him through gritted teeth.

Heroes died on the battlefield. The ones that woke up in the hospital? They turned into ghosts. Or monsters.

“I know.” Jake grabbed the chair and sat on it. “That’s why I came to cheer you up.”

“Bullshit,” I scoffed. “You’re here for info.”

“That, too,” he admitted. “Dr. Mathers only told me you got shot, not how.”

So it was Dr. Mathers who called in the cavalry.

I let out a deep breath as I sat on the edge of the bed. Fine. I might as well give Jake an explanation, but there was something I wanted to know first.

“Is Lauren okay?”

“Yes,” Jake answered. “You’ll be happy to know I took your advice and talked to her. We’ve put the past behind us now.”

I could hear the relief in Jake’s voice as he spoke. I could only imagine Lauren had gained some peace of mind, too, which gave me some in turn.

“Good.”

“Now, tell me what happened,” Jake said.

I told him about how I went to the cabin in the woods that Lauren mentioned escaping from. It was in the dossier my friend had prepared, and it wasn’t hard to find. I was hoping I could get some evidence to use to take down Clyde, but I didn’t expect the place to be guarded like a fortress. I managed to take down three of the guys but the fourth shot me. I was lucky to escape with my life.

Jake touched his forehead and sighed. “I thought I told you not to do anything reckless.”

“I had a plan and things were going well,” I told him. “Until I got shot.”

Looking back, I should have expected this. I should have known that mercs work in pairs, just like soldiers and cops do during patrols.

“Yeah.” Jake nodded, then gave another sigh. “Well, at least you’re fine. So far, we’ve been able to avert every crisis.”

My eyebrows creased. “We?”

What other crises was he talking about?

I listened as Jake told me about Max’s race, then about the clip of his fight with the Devils that was now circulating on the internet. He also told me about the Black Storm members who got injured but who were doing fine.

“Those damned Devils,” I muttered when Jake was done talking. “They’re just as bad as Clyde Roarke. No wonder they get along.”

“I disagree,” Jake said. “I’ve known the Devils for a long time, crossed swords with them more times than I can count. While they can be hot-tempered and arrogant, they’re not evil. They care about each other at least, just like we do at Black Storm. I’ll talk to Harry, try to make him see that Clyde’s only using him and his gang.”

“You think he’ll listen?”

Jake shrugged. “It’s worth a try. I’m also going to hold a meeting with Black Storm. I’m going to tell them about Clyde.”

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