Page 55 of War

That’s the hardest part about this.I know how it works.I know what needs to be done.The Kings can’t show weakness, even if the Devils aren’t a significant threat.Other clubs, gangs, the mafia—they keep tabs on what the others are doing.Like in the wild, they’ll fight you for dominance and territory if they see weakness.When it comes down to it, we’re all animals.

Walking to the mirror, I apply cream to my face.The sun left her mark today.

“I want you to text Tyler.”

My eyes dart to Callan’s through the mirror.A lump forms in my throat.

Pushing off the doorframe, he comes to stand behind me, his large palms covering my bare shoulders.The contact of his skin on mine seeps into me, and my eyes close.“Damn, Rogue.You’re freezing,” he hisses.

“Please don’t make me do this,” I beg, the words barely making it past my lips.My head falls forward, weighing a thousand pounds.

“He’ll answer you.Get him to meet you.”

“Callan,” I choke out.“You can’t ask me this.It’s not fair.”

“It’s better for him if we don’t have to hunt him down.”

Blood whooshes in my ears.A hurricane, turbulent and destructive, destroys me from the inside out.“Do you even care when you take a life?”I ask, sincerely curious.

Static fills the silence before he cuts through it.“A wolf doesn’t apologize for being an alpha.I’ll do what I must to survive, to stay on top, to keep my brothers and my club safe.If I can do that without spilling blood, good, but I won’t hesitate to take a life to keep my kingdom intact.”

I turn, placing my hands on his chest.“If I do this…” I shudder, raising my eyes to his.“Promise me you’ll make it quick.”

A snake slithers up my spine and wraps around my neck, squeezing.

Callan’s hands encase my cheeks.“I promise.”He leans down, placing a kiss on my head.

When he moves away, I feel it pull on the threads of my soul.I just agreed to help kill Tyler.

* * *

Me: I need to see you.

“You haven’t touched your drink.”Kitty nudges the bottle along the bar until it touches the side of my hand.Staring at the text I sent Tyler, I nibble at my lip, my leg bouncing.

“I’m not really in the mood.”

“That’s the beauty of alcohol—it gets you in the mood.”

Looking up from my phone, I notice it’s just us sitting at the bar, there’s no heavy music or club sluts sauntering around the place.The atmosphere is unsettled, I hate it.Callan went into his office two hours ago with Grease and still hasn’t come out.Brothers sit around tables, talking in hushed grunts.A buzz sizzles in the air, waiting to catch fire.No one is ready to light the match.

“Who are you waiting to get a text from?”Kitty asks when I recheck my phone, refreshing the screen.

“No one.”I turn my phone over and take the bottle, the bitter liquid sloshing into my empty stomach as I drink.

“Cutter sent Tim on a pizza run.”

My stomach growls.“I knew I liked Tim for a reason.”I manage a smile, but it feels forced.It’s such an odd sensation, being part of a murder and then sitting here waiting for pizza to arrive.

“Cutter doesn’t,” Kitty muses, peeling the label off her bottle.

“Why is that?”I raise a brow, giving her a pointed look.

“I’m not the one who’s married.”She cuts her gaze across the room.

“He won’t leave her, Kit,” I say out loud, my eyes following hers to the man who holds her heart in his hand.Life is too damn short to beat around the bush.Her knuckles turn snow white against the beer bottle.I hate hurting her, but Cutter uses her like a club slut.He’s not just disrespecting her and holding her heart hostage; he’s disrespecting Callan and Jericho in the same breath.When this comes out, it’s going to cause a riot.They should both know better.

After a silent pause that seems to go on forever, she scrunches her nose and flicks her green hair over her shoulder.

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