“You and me.We see shit in black and white, Fury.There’s good and bad and sometimes the bad has to be dealt with.Nothing in between.”

“Devil, I really can’t handle any heart to heart right now,” I mumble.

“I think you get that when I met Torrent, she wasn’t ready for me.”

“Yeah.”

“And even when I knew she loved me, instead of giving in to what we both felt, she tried to play devil’s advocate and make sure no one was hurt.”

“Devil—”

“Which kind of blew up in our faces, but still her heart was in a good place and she was letting her heart lead her decisions, which ultimately is what a good woman does, Fury.They lead with their heart, because that’s where their goodness is.A good woman feeds your soul and she does that because of her heart.”

“Fuck, man.Are you the one drinking here instead of me?”

“Just listen to me for a minute asshole.You and Ellie had been trying how long to have kids?”

“A while,” I mumble, understating it.I knew that Ellie was beginning to give up hope.The doctor had been giving her fertility medicine and each month that went by, a little more of the light inside of her died.

“She got her hopes up and they were squashed.Then, she’s faced with a fellow woman?—”

“A conniving evil cunt,” I spew.

“But, still a woman.A woman who had this beautiful son that Ellie would have died to have and she turns her pain loose, telling the woman to get help before it’s too late.”

“I know what she did, Devil.She warned the bitch.If she hadn’t have done that, we could have gotten to her before she kidnapped Ryan and put him through hell,” I growl.

“And, before I would have met Rory,” Diesel says, coming up behind us.I turn to look at him.Telling him about Ellie’s betrayal was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do.It’s not exactly easy to look at him now.I think that’s the reason Ellie’s actions hurt the most.I owe Diesel everything.He brought me into this club and gave me a life.After getting back from overseas and seeing so much shit, suffering with PTSD, I felt like I was drowning.Being in the club gave me purpose again, and I began to heal from wounds that I wasn’t even aware I had.I owe Diesel for everything I am now.To know that the woman I loved sold him out…

“Diesel—”

“I’m not saying it doesn’t piss me off to know that the reason Vicki got away was more or less from my own club.”

“There was no more or less.If Ellie hadn’t told her to find a dry out and get her head together, we would have got her.The nightmare would have been over.Fuck man, Ellie’s actions created so much fucking fallout.You almost died.How do you think I would have lived with that if you’d died?”

“How do you think I would have lived without Rory in my life, Fury?”he asks and I pull my gaze up to look at him.

“Because of Rory, Ryan is happy.He doesn’t have nightmares.What he has is a life where he knows his mom would die for him and do it happily to protect him.My boy knows nothing but good now and that’s because of Rory.”

“Man—”

“And me?Fuck, Brother.I gave my club up.I walked away and went to Montana.”

“And you did that because I wasn’t able to shut Vicki down.”

“I did that because I was tired, Fury.I was tired of being the president of this club.I was tired of living.I was turning cold and into someone that I didn’t even recognize.I was someone who hurt a woman that I was growing to love.I was a fucking mess.”

“That at least, I can understand,” I tell him.“I’m definitely a mess,” I mumble.

“If having Rory in my life means telling Vicki I was hunting her down and to go into hiding?I would have done it myself.I’d have told her exactly where we were looking.I’d have sold my soul if it meant I could have Rory when it was all over.”

“That doesn’t excuse what she did,” I warn him.

“It doesn’t, but in truth, what did she tell them, Fury?She didn’t say anything to Vicki that I hadn’t said to the bitch a hundred times over.I screamed at her that I was going to send men to hunt her down if she kept trying to get Ryan.I told her she needed to get her ass in re-hab.She just didn’t listen.Chances are she didn’t listen to Ellie either.”

I look at my brothers and really try and consider what they’ve said.

“So, you want me to forgive her?You can deal with having her here in this club, knowing what she did?”I ask, shocked and confused as fuck.I also feel a little bit of hope beginning to grow.