Page 33 of Diesel
“For four years, you’ve sat at our table, worn the patch and never said a fucking word about having a wife. Do you see how that looks?” Riot says.
The nausea that has been rolling through me since this nightmare started sits in the back of my throat, burning. Don’t puke, Makenna. Not right now. Not when you need to be here to protect the only person who has ever loved you.
“I don’t give a shit how it looks,” Zane says in that tone he uses when he wants to tell the world he’s unbothered, but I know him. He’s internally unraveling.
“You should. Men who are disloyal disappear and if you ain’t on the right side of this I will put you down without blinking.”
I flinch, burying my face against his spine. No. I’m not losing my husband to this club.
Zane reaches behind him, his big hand wrapping around my hip. It makes my eyes burn that he’s offering comfort even though he’s the one staring down death.
“You want to talk about loyalty, Riot? I’ve bled for this club. I’ve done things that made me question everything and I still nearly lost the only thing that’s ever—” He breaks off, sucking a breath in through his nose. I squeeze his side.I’m still here. You haven’t lost me.
He relaxes under my touch, just enough to continue.“How do I know you’re loyal? You show up here alone, pointing a gun at me after telling me our VP lost his mind and had to be killed? And I’m supposed to just trust you?”
“Whether you think I’m loyal or not really depends on whose side you’re on.”
“And whose side do you think I’m on?”
“I don’t know. Dash says you’re one of us, but he had a concussion not that long ago so I’m not sure he’s thinking straight. Does he know you’ve got a secret life?”
“You think I kept her secret because I’m part of some grand plan to—what? Destabilise the club using my wife?” Zane laughs. The noise goes through me. It’s harsh, like metal scraping over stone.
“I think it shows a pattern,brother.” The way he says that last word, like he’s chewing on glass shards, hits me like a punch. “If you didn’t trust the club with her maybe you shouldn’t be in the club.”
“You’re telling me you wouldn’t hide Ivy and Seren if you thought they were in danger?”
That seems to hit a nerve. I don’t know who they are, but Riot flinches, the gun lowering a fraction. “Ain’t the same thing.”
“Let me ask you this, Riot. When was the last time you took your old lady and your kid to the clubhouse? I’ve never seen Mace sitting at the bar with Maylie or Toby. I don’t assume Dash’ll be bringing Dayna around themoment their kid is born.” There’s no answer “Exactly. I won’t excuse how I protected the most important fucking person in my life.”
I shouldn’t get involved. I’ve already caused problems, but I’m not going to stand here while this ass lays into my husband—not when our marriage was the thing that suffered in this.
I close my eyes for a moment, find my steel, and then I speak. “You think he’s disloyal? You have no idea what he’s sacrificed.”
Riot slides his eyes to me before they re-centre on Zane. “I’m only going to ask this once, and if I find out you’re lying, if you betray us in any way, I swear I’ll burn your club tattoos off your skin myself.” He licks his bottom lip, his finger twitching over the trigger. “Who’re you loyal to, Diesel?”
“You think asking if I’m loyal makes it true? People lie. I could tell you all day long I’m loyal while working behind your back.”
I pinch his hip. Is he fucking crazy?
“I think it takes a special kind prick to stand in front of someone they call ‘brother’ and lie to their face about their intentions.”
“You mean like you, Mace, Nicky and now I guess Dash have been doing for months? Pretending to be loyal while plotting to bring down Crank—the elected head of our chapter?”
It’s silent after those words drop. “Plotting to fix the club,” Riot corrects.
“Crank’s president. You see how that looks?”
I hold my breath. This is a political landmine and we’re all standing on a trigger plate trying not to explode.
“And how do you see it?”
Zane takes a beat, and I know he’s working out how to say it without his words getting lost in translation.
Finally, he speaks. “I want a safe place to bring my wife. I want brothers who have my back, so I get to go home to her every night. I want a clubhouse where I can take her and not worry that someone’s going to put their filthy hands on her. I want what I was promised when I took this fucking patch.” He slams his fist against his chest, the blow vibrating against my cheek still pressed against his spine. “I want the club, Riot. That’s why I’m still here. I want it. Just… not like this.”
Riot lowers the gun, and I breathe for the first time in what feels like hours. “That’s all we’re trying to do.” He tucks the weapon into the holster under his kutte. “This version of the club ain’t what it’s meant to be.” Riot lets his gaze drift over the hills. “You’re gonna have to pick a side, Diesel.”
