Page 61 of Quadruplets for the Vipers

“No. Not all. But enough. I think he did it deliberately. He was close to Fastman when it happened, too close. Then all of a sudden, he braked hard, the others almost crashed into him. He knows better than that.”

“What are you saying?”

“I thought it was strange that Wolf didn’t leave when you took over—or even object. He was one of the biggest, most outspoken supporters of us operating more like the Hellhounds and allying with them. Then, all of a sudden, he’s your biggestfan? Why did he volunteer to help tonight and not at the clubhouse?”

“He didn’t. I asked him to come. I wanted to keep him close. I didn’t trust him over there.”

“We shouldn’t have trusted him here either,” I mutter, eyes narrowed as we continue to approach him, hands on our guns.

“Is he okay?” Axel asks Wolf.

Wolf shakes his head, standing before turning to us. “He’s dead. Some gnarly crash… did you see what happened? He was right behind me.”

He’s gauging to see if anyone saw what he did.

In just moments, our numbers have gone from eight to six and we’re now stationary targets on a deserted stretch of highway. We’re sitting ducks.

This is an ambush.

Chapter 31

Leah

The safehouse is an unassuming farmhouse, miles away from any neighbors. It’s quaint if not a little rundown. Ashley produces a key from under the doormat and lets us in.

“Huh, the guys should be here already.” Noticing my panicked expression she reassures me. “Don’t worry, I’m sure it’s just the rain slowing them down, hardly suitable riding conditions. Come on in and get dry.”

This does nothing to calm my fears that something has happened to them. What if one of them crashes? Ashley’s right, this isn’t the sort of weather they should be out on their bikes in.

I follow her into the dark house, the floorboards creaking underfoot. It has that musty, unlived-in smell. Switching on the light, Ashley gets to work lighting the fire that sits in the corner by the large, floral couch and armchairs. Based on her familiarity I wonder if she’s been here before and ask her such.

“Yes, the guys and I met up here to discuss plans. I’ve actually been staying here,” she admits.

A sharp pang of jealousy runs through me imagining her here playing house with my men.

Though they aren’t mine anymore.

Are they?

Oblivious to my spiraling thoughts she continues, “Once we decided on the plan I didn’t feel like I could pretend with Lucifer, I was terrified I’d give something away and spoileverything. The guys told me I was welcome to stay here. I told Lucifer I had to go visit a sick aunt. He’s been so busy building his empire with Tony and focusing on taking down the Steel Vipers that he hardly noticed me leave or cared.”

She says this bitterly and part of me worries that she’s still under his spell, that if he were to call her up now and show her even the slightest hint of affection, she’d give me up in a heartbeat if it meant winning a scrap of his approval.

The guys’ absence feels even more worrying with this revelation. If Ashley is lying to me, if this is a trap, I’ve walked right into it and I’m now alone in the middle of nowhere with this woman I hardly know. But what would her end goal be? Tony already had me. There’d be no need to trick me into coming here.

Jittery and on edge I begin to pace around the house, trying to get a feel for my surroundings, and more importantly, where the exits are should things go south. I don’t like my chances if I am right about Ashley. I’m soaking wet, pregnant, and tired. But at least thinking about ways to get me and my babies to safety makes me feel like I have some control in the situation.

“When will the guys be here? Have you heard from them?”

“Like I said, they should be here by now, I haven’t heard from them since they left, but I wasn’t expecting to. It isn’t safe for us to communicate too often,” she says as she stokes the fire, the amber glow casting a long sinister shadow behind her. Satisfied that the fire doesn’t need further stoking, she stands up and turns to me. “Why don’t you go take a shower and puton some dry clothes? There’s a bag with some of your things upstairs for you.”

While that sounds amazing, I’m still wary. I’d be even more vulnerable in the shower. Perhaps it’s the flashes of lightning sharply bathing the room in harsh light, or the ominous sounds of thunder and torrential rain, but I can’t shake the feeling that I’m in some sort of horror movie. The remote location and missing friends do nothing to assuage that fear. Every horror movie has the heroine being attacked in the bathroom.

“I’m okay, I think I’ll just sit by the fire and wait for the guys to arrive. You go on up first.”

Ashley raises an eyebrow and puts a hand on her hip. “Leah, your men are nothing if not protective, and when they come and find you in those old clothes, soaking wet, and filthy, I’ll be the one getting blamed. I promise, by the time you come back down, they’ll be here.”

When I still don’t move, tense like a fawn in a hunter’s sights, understanding crosses her face. She softens, her face crumpling with sadness as she realizes that she’s the villain in this narrative I’ve created.

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