Page 77 of Secret Betrayals
And now? Now I know why.
I’m fucking glad.
“No… You didn’t.” Gabriella’s voice cuts through the static in my head. Cold. Unapologetic. Lethal. I follow the sound—and the direction of the barrel she’s pointing.
She’s holding a Kahr CW9. Steady hands. Dead aim, and the barrel’s aimed square at Tommy Boy. My jaw tightens. The room seems to tilt for a second.
“You havegotto be fucking shitting me,” I growl, turning to the man I’ve known my whole goddamn life.
This motherfucker served under my father. MyRoad Captain.A man I’ve bled beside. Fought beside. A man Itrusted.
“WAIT A GODDAMN MINUTE!” Tommy Boy explodes in his seat like a man on fire, eyes bulging, mouth running wild. Desperate. Cornered. “I’m no fucking snitch-ass traitor! That girl—she’strying to pit us against each other! She’s already pointing her finger at your ol’ lady! She planted that shit on her!”
He jabs a finger at Gabriella. “Thatbitchis a jealous, patheticcunt!”
Gabriella doesn’t flinch. Doesn’t blink. Her aim doesn’t move an inch––I cansee itnow. Tommy’s unraveling. He’s going to throw anything and everything at the wall to save his own neck. Classic Tommy. Slimy bastard’s always been a runner. Couldn’t hold on to a woman, couldn’t raise a kid right, and never once took real responsibility for his fuckups.
Why the fuck didn’t I see this coming?
“I swear, Prez, she’s playing you! Heather loves this club! She lovesyou!Thisbitchis here to stir shit up, not to save it!” His eyes are wild as he stares at me.
He looks at my father next—wrong move.Pop’s doesn’t even blink, his eyes are burning with a quiet fury I haven’t seen before. It’s the kind of rage and fury that isn’t loud. It issilent,simmering until it explodes. Tommy finally registers it. Thatnobody’scoming to save him. Not me. Not Pop. Not a single damn soul in this room. He backs away from the table, sweating bullets. His shirt’s soaked through. His hands are twitching like he’s itching to bolt. But there’s nowhere to go. The brothers are standing now. Every man in this room is someone hebetrayed.My father hasn’t moved, but the weight of his stare is crushing. And I feel it too—this tight, cold thing in my chest slowly turning to fire.
He didn’t just betray us.
Herisked my kids’ lives.
He cost us product, money, andblood.
And as much as I want to pull the trigger myself, we still need answers.
So I step forward, voice low and lethal. “Why the fuck did you do it, Tommy Boy? Why’d you turn on your family? Onme?On the fuckingclub?”
He hesitates. I can see him weighing lies, excuses. He’s reaching, scrambling. He won’t get far.
“You... wouldn’t understand,” he mutters. “I had no fucking choice. Nancy was sick. I needed money fast. It was only supposed to be temporary, just until I could get my shit together. Inever wanted this!”
His voice trails off like the weight of his cowardice finally hits him. But I see the truth in his eyes—he knows it’s over.Even a rat knows when it’s trapped.Then he throws out the cherry on top.
“I also had a girl... she got pregnant... I—”
I see red. Iroarand grab the chair behind me, hurling it across the room. It smashes against the wall with a deafening crack. He did all this—formoney? For a side piece?
“You could’ve come tous,you sorry fuck. We’re your family!”
“No, well… uh, I, uh…”
He’s stammering now. Panicked. Surrounded by wolves, and the sheep mask is off.
I take a step toward him. Each word a hammer. “You. Have. Got. To. Be.Fucking.Kidding. Me.”
My fists clench. It’s taking every ounce of control I have not to snap his neck right here. The air in the room is vibrating with tension. With fury. My brothers are ready. I canfeelit.
“You did this shit because of moneyandthe fucking bylaws?” I scoff, disgusted. “You riskedeverythingover some broad and a baby?”
Without breaking my glare, I call out, “Dallas.Get this motherfucker outta my sight. Put him in the hole.”
Tommy’s eyes widen. He tries to move, but his back hits the wall. There’s nowhere to run. No escape. Dallas steps forward and without a word, lays his ass out—one solid punch to the jaw that drops Tommy like a sack of shit. He scoops the traitor up and carries him out like trash, and for a moment, the room is still.
