Page 31 of Her Savior Biker
“And if keeping them costs us the Torrino deal?” Viper asks. “Costs us our freedom?”
The question hangs in the air. We all know what this could cost.
“Then it costs us.” I straighten, meeting Tank’s eyes. “But I won’t give them up. I can’t.”
“Why?” The question comes from Hawk, but I see it in all their faces.
“Because for the first time in my life, I know what it feels like to be chosen.” The admission is quiet, but it carries to every corner of the room. “Shannon looks at me and sees something worth fighting for. Worth loving.” I pause, gathering the words that will either save me or destroy me. “I spent thirty-four years believing I wasn’t worth choosing. That love was for other people. Then she showed up in that freight yard with her broken kid and her broken life, and somehow she saw something in me worth saving.”
Silence stretches, broken by the soft click of Tank’s coin.
“You love her,” Tank says. It’s not a question.
“Yeah. I love her. And I love that kid like my own blood.” I look around the table at the men who’ve been my family for eight years. “But I love all of you, too. You’re my brothers. The first real family I ever had.”
“Then stay,” Diesel says. “Let Rector take her to Michigan. Keep your family.”
The suggestion is a sucker punch. “You think I haven’t thought of that? Spent the last three days trying to figure out how to have both?”
“And?” Grizz asks.
“And there’s no way. Holt won’t stop. The only way to keep her safe is to disappear with her. And that means leaving all of you.”
The words taste like ash. Choosing Shannon means walking away from the only brotherhood I’ve ever known.
“Fuck that.” Viper’s voice cuts through the room. “You’re not going anywhere, brother.”
“Viper—”
“No, listen.” He pushes off the wall, moving to stand behind my chair. “This club doesn’t abandon family. And you’re family, Savior. You and Shannon and that kid.”
“Federal heat—”
“We’ve handled federal heat before,” Hawk interrupts. “Remember the ATF raids in ‘21?”
“This is different,” Tank says, but there’s a flicker of hope in his voice.
“Is it?” Grizz leans forward. “Because from where I sit, it looks like some piece of shit in a uniform is threatening our brother’s family. And we don’t let that slide.”
One by one, I see it happen. See these hard men—criminals, outlaws—rally around something bigger than profit.
“Torrino deal’s important,” Diesel admits. “But not more important than this.”
“Blood matters more than money,” Hawk adds.
“Always has,” Viper finishes.
Tank stops flipping his coin. When he looks up, his expression has shifted. The look he gets before we go to war.
“Alright then.” He pockets the coin. “Rector gets here immediately. We extract Shannon and the kid before Holt comes back.”
Relief floods through me so fast it’s painful. “Tank—”
“But Savior?” His voice cuts through my gratitude. “This doesn’t end with running. Holt threatened our family. That means he threatened the club. And nobody threatens the Savage Kings and walks away clean.”
The promise in those words sends ice through my veins. I know what Tank is capable of when someone crosses that line. “What are you saying?”
Tank’s smile is all predator. “I’m saying Captain Holt is about to learn that some wars you can’t win with a fancy uniform.” He pulls out his phone. “Rector. Yeah, it’s Tank. We need that favor. Now.”
