Page 33 of King's Reckoning
"Since when do prospects take orders from a sergeantthey lied to?"
The new voice made Rowan spin, weapon raised. Darkness emerged from a side tunnel, his expression unreadable in the dim emergency lighting. His cut bore fresh dust marks, but his hands were steady on his shotgun.
"The club voted," he said quietly. "Emergency meeting while you were playing decoy. They want answers."
Rowan's heart clenched. This was what she'd feared—the moment when her carefully constructed infiltration fell apart. When the trust she'd built with these men shattered under the weight of her lies.
"Smart prospects show up when the club calls," Darkness added. "Especially ones with sergeant's blood."
His tone held something Rowan couldn't quite read—not quite accusation, but not acceptance either. She studied his face, remembering how he'd watched her in the garage that first day. How he'd recognized Elena's techniques in the way she handled tools.
"You knew," she realized suddenly. "You knew who I was from the start."
A ghost of a smile touched his lips. "Worked with your mother back in the day. Kind of hard to miss the resemblance. The way you move, the way you think... Pure Elena. But that determination?" He snorted softly. "That's all King."
More heavy footsteps approached their position. Rowan raised her weapon, but Darkness waved her down.
"Friendlies," he said. "What's left of our perimeter teams falling back to secondary positions. Blackwood's team lost a few men in that first push. They'll regroup before trying again."
"Giving us time to handle club business," another voice added. Ace emerged from the shadows, his usually immaculate appearance marred by dust and sweat. Barbara followed, clutching her laptop case protectively.
"I've backed up everything," she said before Rowan could ask. "Flash's journal, Elena's research, all the data from the artifacts. Even if they catch us, they won't be able to access it immediately."
"They won't catch us," Darkness said firmly. "But the club needs to understand what we're really dealing with here. What Elena was protecting. What you're asking us to stand against."
Rowan felt the weight of their expectations settle onto her shoulders. This was the moment her mother had prepared her for. Not just the fighting and subterfuge, but the leadership. The ability to make hard choices.
"Then let's do this properly," she said, straightening her spine. "Full disclosure. Everything I know about the historical evidence, about the archaeological discoveries, about whyMom ran." She met Darkness's eyes. "About why I came back."
He studied her for a long moment, then nodded. "Chapel's compromised. We're meeting at the old bootlegger's house. Brothers are gathering now."
Rowan's phone buzzed with a text from Reed.Secured the artifacts. King's waiting. Whatever you decide, I've got your back.
The message steadied her, gave her strength. Whatever came next, she wasn't alone.
"Lead the way," she told Darkness.
The bootlegger's house was really more of a compound—a sprawling property dating back to Prohibition, when the club's ancestors had run illegal liquor through the territory. Underground rooms that had once housed distilling operations now served as emergency meeting spaces. Brothers filled the largest chamber, their cuts bearing fresh battle damage but their expressions alert.
King stood at the head of the long table, the wooden boxes arranged before him. Reed flanked him on one side, his dark eyes finding Rowan's as she entered. The warmth in his gaze made her breath catch despite everything else happening.
"Brothers." King's voice filled the space. "We face an unprecedented situation. Our territory is under attack. Our secrets exposed. And the truth about my daughter can no longer be denied."
Murmurs rippled through the assembled men. Rowan felt their eyes on her—judging, evaluating, remembering every interaction since she'd arrived.
"But there's more," King continued. "Elena didn't just hide our daughter away. She didn't just train her to fight, to survive. She prepared her for this moment. For the protection of historical evidence that has been buried beneath our feet for generations."
He gestured to the artifacts, their craftsmanship evident even in the dim light. "These boxes contain proof of something older than our club. Older than this territory. Something that powerful interests have been searching for decades."
"Something tied to your family," someone called out. "To hers."
"Yes." King's voice held no apology. "Elena saw it coming. Saw what would happen when others discovered what was hidden here. She gave her life protecting these artifacts, protecting our daughter until she was ready."
"Ready for what?" another brother demanded.
"For this." Rowan stepped forward, opening one of the wooden boxes to reveal ancient maps and documents. "Elena wasn't just protecting club secrets. She was protecting historical evidence that could rewrite what we know about this region's past. Evidence that powerful interests—governments, corporations—would rather keep buried."
"The founding families," Darkness added. "The ones Flash was researching before he died."
