Page 67 of Outlaws' Dirty Secret

“Nah, why would he care about us?”

It's Skyhigh who puts it together. “Motherfucker. Motherfucker! We gotta get back. NOW.”

“What are you thinking?” I catch his shoulder before he gets away from me.

“Who the fuck would stop Willow at the gate? Everyone knows her. She’s fucking harmless.”

My mouth goes bone dry, every muscle in my body twitches. I can't even wrap my head around what he’s suggesting, and I can imagine some pretty brutal shit.

“Happened when I was deployed. A guy who’d worked for us as a translator came into camp, and fuck, he'd been our guy for months. We trusted him. He’d looked terrified but I was dumbenough to dismiss it. We fucking knew him. Didn’t matter that he didn’t want to do it. Someone used him for their own agenda. Found out later they had his whole family. Fuck. Shit was ugly. He got all the way into the fucking cafeteria, and then his jacket fell open, exposing the explosives. He took seven soldiers with him, and I woulda been one of them if I hadn’t been in the right spot.” The pain is plain as fucking day on Skyhigh's face. He tightens his jaw, shakes his head, trying to clear a memory that I hope I never, ever fucking have the likes of.

Willow.

“Jesus Christ.” Blackout's jaw is wide open. “That’s messed up.”

“She can walk right in and if he has a remote detonator, he doesn't even have to be nearby. Just in the fucking area. Radio signals travel far.” Skyhigh shakes his head. He pulls out his phone and dials quickly while he runs. “Poe? Get Hellfire, and get your little project.”

If Skyhigh's right about Tanner's plan, there's no fucking level of hell deep enough for him to hide from me.

I will fucking destroy him.

36

WILLOW

It's notthe first time I've made the walk down the street to the front gates of the Outlaw Sons MC clubhouse.

It's the first time I've done it with enough explosives wired to me to blow up the whole block, though.

My steps are small. Slow. Careful. I have no idea how sensitive these things are. Tanner said nothing would happen until he triggered them, but he’s unhinged. I can’t trust him.

Oh my God.

Oh my God.

OH MY GOD!

I'm a walking bomb.

I can't hold back the tears. They stream down my cheeks as I walk. If a miracle doesn't happen, my last walk.

Maybe I should’ve been braver? Told him no and let him kill me. At least then it would’ve just been me. Like this, many peopledie, and I'm still one of them. I can't even claim I'm being selfish by getting out of it. No matter what, I die.

I stop, my gut heaving and tears blurring my vision. How did it ever come to this?

“Keep walking, Willow.” Tanner's voice is like poison in my ear.

My limbs are free and there's no tape over my mouth, but I've never been more trapped. I can’t take the bomb vest off, because according to Tanner, if any of those wires are pulled out, the rest of the bombs will go off. The ear piece he's made me wear isn't trapped the same way, but if he notices me not following his directions, he's going to trigger the bombs from his detonator. And the receiver on my belt is rigged like the bombs. Tug out a wire, and the rest goes.

I'm walking like a robot, terrified I'm going to accidentally catch on one of the wires and tug it loose by accident.

Up ahead, the gate to the Outlaw Sons' clubhouse is open. I can name the guards who are watching me approach, looking curious. Riot and Lash. God, Riot is one of Jessica's men. If it's my fault that she loses someone she loves after the talk we had… I want to puke.

Oh Jesus.

And Lash, the man with the magic tongue. Ocean's going to be so disappointed.

That I can even think about that right now just shows how scrambled my brain is.

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