Page 2 of Outlaws' Dirty Secret

Blackout snorts. “Fuck no.”

Right. Of course not.

His arm isn’t exactly stopping me from moving away, but it’s clear he’s staying close and I’m not sure if he’s trying to be comforting, or to keep me from bolting.

“What do you see?” he calls over to his friends.

The one wearing the baseball cap takes it off and wipes an arm over his forehead. That has to be Skyhigh, right? It would be silly if the guy with the dragon tattoowasn’tDragon. He sits back on the heels of his black leather boots with something in his hand that I try to ignore in case it’s another bone or something equally gross. “Not sure. Definitely not one of mine. It’s too intact,” he says with a laugh.

“What?” I squeak, actively trying to pull away, but the arm around me just gets tighter.

“Shut the fuck up, smartass! You’re scaring the girl,” Blackout snaps. “Don’t listen to him, honey. He’s joking.”

Hilarious.

The one I’m assuming is Dragon ignores them, focused on working the blade of a frighteningly long knife into the dirt to get something free. I wonder if he got his nickname because of the tattoo or the other way around. But more than that, I wonder what kind of life he lives to be carrying that knife around all the time, and if I’ll live to find out what he found.

He doesn’t make us wait long. “Unless werewolves are real, I think we're good.” His quiet laugh is as dry as the bones I found. He holds up a discolored length of bone. It’s part of a long jaw, still filled with teeth that are very clearly not human.

“A dog?” I ask, a little embarrassed if that’s all it is, but relieved.

“Big fucker,” Skyhigh comments, nodding. “That’s not your standard mutt. This was your family’s place, right? You don’t remember any pets that could fit the bill?”

“N—no,” I stammer, thrown off by the question. “How do you know this was my family's house?”

He stands and walks our way, slipping his hand into his pocket and cocking his head at me. “Don’t play dumb, sweetheart. You know who we are.”

It’s a statement, not a question, and I nod.

“Then you know you’re living in our territory. We already own the rest of the street. Tried to put in an offer on this place when we heard the old lady died but the lawyer shut us down.”

I step out from under Blackout’s arm to get some distance, and this time he lets me. “She was my grandmother.”

He sighs. “Sorry for your loss. Can’t say I knew her, but she seemed decent.”

My face flushes and I can feel heat building behind my eyes. She lived a good, long life and it was her time, but I still miss her. “Thanks. She was the best.”

Dragon stands and joins his buddies. I don’t think they are trying to be intimidating, but they don’t have to. With the three of them towering over me, it’s impossible to feel anything but small and defenseless in comparison. Seeing bikers around the neighborhood is one thing, but having three of them right next to me is totally different. I’ve been sort of pretending they don’t know I’m here, but it’s clear that isn’t the case.

I take a couple more steps back and squeeze the handle of the shovel until my knuckles ache and I can feel the rough wood bite into my palm. “Well, thank you for the help. I’m sorry you came over here for something so stupid. You can go back to whatever you were doing.”

Dragon shakes his head. “Stupid would be ignoring the possibility it was something more serious.”

“Yeah. Don’t worry, honey. You’re a pretty, young woman on your own down here. We’ll make sure to keep a close eye on the place,” Blackout says with a smile.

My gut tells me he means that in a friendly way, but I’m not sure I feel safer knowing that the seriously hot, but clearly dangerous, career criminals are watching out for me. “Um, thanks?”

Skyhigh nods. His gorgeous blue eyes scan over the yard. “No problem. If you change your mind about selling, the offer’s open.”

Like I could afford to move even if I wanted to. “Sorry. No plans to move. I have a lot of memories here, you know? You can’t put a price on that.”

His eyes drop to my feet before dragging their way up to my body before settling on my face. “Then I guess we’ll be seeing you around, baby.”

2

SKYHIGH

I rapmy knuckles against the door to what used to be where the priests did their priest shit, but is now Hellfire’s office.

---