Page 10 of Wrath's Redemption

"You really don't want to do that. Not today."

"Like hell I don't," Sarah spits, pulling out her phone. "You show up in the middle of the night, covered in blood—"

"Sarah, stop," Lucy steps between us. "He's here because... because of Anna's surgery. He's going to help."

Sarah's finger hovers over her phone. "Help? Look at him, Lucy! He's dangerous!"

"Damn right I am." My voice comes out as a low growl. "Dangerous to anyone who'd try to keep me from my daughter."

Anna stirs in her crib, making that wheezing sound again. The noise cuts through the tension like a knife, reminding us all why we're here.

"Your daughter?" Sarah laughs, but there's no humor in it. "Where were you for the past two months? Where were you during the endless doctor visits? The sleepless nights? The hospital stays?"

"I didn't know." The words taste like ash in my mouth. "But I know now. And I'm not going anywhere."

"We're moving in with him," Lucy says softly. "Tonight."

"Are you insane?" Sarah's voice rises, making Anna whimper. "Lucy, think about what you're doing. This man, this... this biker, he's—"

"The only one who can get her the surgery she needs," I cut in. "The only one who can protect her. You think your nurse's salary and my club's resources are even in the same league?"

"Oh, so you're buying them?" Sarah sneers. "Is that how this works in your world? Throw around some blood money and—"

"Enough." Lucy's voice is firm, surprising us both. "Sarah, I love you. You've been amazing with Anna, with everything. But this is my decision. She needs this surgery, and she needs her father."

"Even if her father is a criminal?"

"Even then." Lucy turns to look at me, something fierce in her green eyes. "Because he's right. Anna needs more than I can give her alone."

I meet Sarah's glare steadily. "You don't have to like me. Just know that everything I am, everything I do, is for my family. And that includes Anna now."

"And if your 'business' follows you home?" Sarah demands. "If your enemies—"

"Then they die." The simple truth of it silences her. "Nobody touches what's mine. Nobody."

Anna starts to cry, the sound wheezy and strained. Before anyone can move, I'm at the crib, lifting her into my arms. She settles almost immediately, tiny fingers gripping my cut.

"Keep packing," I tell Lucy, not taking my eyes off our daughter. "We're leaving in ten minutes."

"Lucy, please," Sarah tries one last time. "Think about this."

"I have." Lucy picks up the bag she's packed. "I've thought about nothing else since the doctors told me how much the surgery would cost. This is happening, Sarah."

I shift Anna gently, reaching into my cut with my free hand. I pull out a thick envelope and toss it to Sarah. She catches it.

"What's this?"

"Ten grand," I say. "For everything you've done for them. For taking care of my daughter when I couldn't."

Sarah stares at the envelope, then at Lucy.

"You're really doing this?" she asks Lucy. "Moving in with him?"

Lucy looks at Anna in my arms, then at me. "Yes. We are."

Chapter 4 - Lucy

Sarah's face crumples, and guilt twists my stomach. She's been my rock through everything – the pregnancy, the diagnosis, the sleepless nights.

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