Page 61 of Saint's Sinner

Whoa.

Now that was something Sinn hadn’t known. A brief flash of remorse flooded him, along with a small measure of pity. Even if Teddy had brought all of this on himself, the thought of the man sleeping beneath a bridge, or offering to sell his body so he could eat, didn’t sit right with him.

Teddy ducked his head, then looked back up at Mark. “Should I change or…”

“You can fight in that.”

“What about…you know…a…a…the person who goes with you and throws in the towel if you can’t,” Teddy stammered.

“A second? Yeah, you can have one.”

“Will you….”

“No.”

“Then who am I supposed ta…”

“That’s your problem too. You’ve got ten minutes, that should be long enough for you to get there, with or without anyone to stand in your corner. Don’t make us wait.”

“Us?”

“The rest of the club. You didn’t think this would be handled privately, did you?” Mark asked, his voice having taken on a teasingly sarcastic tone.

Beyond cruel. It was a different side of the man, and one that showed Sinn just how much this betrayal was affecting him.

“I-I’ll go ask Scout,” Teddy muttered, rushing from the room.

Mark ran a hand over his head and let out a heavy sigh. “I’m sorry. I should have pressed him harder for the truth.”

“You don’t owe me an apology,” Sinn said. “The only one responsible for Teddy’s actions is Teddy. As for apologies, I plan to beat one outta him, after I go find Night to second me.”

“Why not Saint?” Mark asked, clearly thrown by the choice.

Sinn smiled a little. “Because Teddy was almost as much his family as he was yours.”

Leaving it at that, Sinn turned and headed for the clubhouse, finding Night where the man always was these days. In the kitchen. The pungent smell of onion hit his nose the minute Sinn opened the door, the strength of the odor telling him it was a red one and not a sweet yellow.

“Hey,” Night said, putting his knife down and washing his hands before hugging Sinn and nuzzling his neck. “You just missed Gracie, she was in here raving about the adjustments you made to her bike. She said those forward controls were a game changer.”

“I thought she’d like them,” Sinn replied. “With that knee of hers she’ll be a lot more comfortable now.”

“She said you installed a cane mount too,” Night said. “I’ve never even heard of those.”

“Neither had she, but my grandfather swears by them,” Sinn said. “I’ll be looking into a few other mobility adaptions too, for those who aren’t willing to give up two wheels yet. I kinda need you to take a break though, shouldn’t be for long. I just need you to second me while I kick Teddy’s ass in the challenge circle.”

“No shit?” Night said, already untying the black apron he wore over his clothes. “What popped off now?”

“The truth. Finally,” Sinn said. “I baited him into admitting he’d seen the van and the license plate too. Kat and the Prez were in the kitchen with us when it happened so there was no way he could lie and say I was making it up. Mark let me add a stipulation too, which means Teddy will be tied to me for theduration of the fight. They’ll be no way for him to avoid what he’s got coming to him.”

“Damn. I almost feel bad for his dumbass.”

“Save your pity for Kat and the Prez, they officially cut him loose and relegated him to hang-around status, which is gonna be a rough adjustment for him after all the freedom and respect he’s grown used to.”

“Rough for all of them, I’m sure,” Night said as they headed for the door. “Now let’s roll, this is one beatdown I’ve been dying to see.”

“Not half as bad as I’ve been itching to dole it out.”

“No shit.”

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