Own the Wind (Chaos #1)(104)

Thus, with no further words, the meeting ended. Jorge and Delgado moved to the Camaro, Lucas and Lawson angled into the unmarked cop car.

The three brothers watched them leave, and when they lost sight, they moved to huddle.

“Rush is not gonna be happy about this shit,” Hop noted, and Tack sighed.

“Already isn’t. We had words,” Tack told them. “He thinks we should lay it on Lucas and Lawson and back off. I told him that’s not gonna happen. He knows this is gonna get messy. Says it proves his point.”

“He’s wrong,” Shy remarked, and Tack looked at him, nodding once.

“He is,” Tack muttered then, “He’ll see.” He lifted a hand, curled it around the back of his neck, looked into the distance and finished, “We’ll all see.”

They would. That message was made clear last night.

Take Natalie, declare war.

They took Natalie.

They had war.

Now it was only deciding who would strike first.

“Need to get back to Tab,” Shy murmured, Tack dropped his hand and looked at Shy.

“Right,” he replied then Shy watched him draw in another breath before he stated, “She’s mine, but I get she’s yours in a way I don’t have anymore. Respect, but I’m askin’ you to carry the burden and let her breathe easy.”

“She’s yours, Tack, which means she’s not dumb. That bitch called her direct.” Shy lifted a hand to indicate the bandage on his neck. “Last night was not lost on her. She knows we bought trouble.”

“I get that, brother. I’m not sayin’ that. I’m sayin’, you carry the burden and let her breathe easy. Are you getting me?”

Shy held his gaze before he nodded.

Tack drew in another breath, this one he didn’t hide that, when he let it out, it was relieved.

“Lanie,” Hop muttered, bringing the matter back to hand that they needed to get back to their women.

Tack turned and nodded to Hop.

“Right,” he repeated. “Later, brothers. Have a mind, it’s early, he won’t move this quick, but watch your backs.”

Shy nodded. Hop did too.

They swung on their bikes and roared off to get to their women.

* * *

Tack

Tack Allen watched his brothers go.

He didn’t move as he did. He didn’t move for long minutes after they disappeared.

He stood there knowing.

Tyra, Tabby, Lanie, Sheila, the entire family.

Benito Valenzuela was hardcore cracked. Void. Empty. No emotion. No loyalty. No nothing.

Empty of everything but greed.

A man who felt nothing but greed, he gave you only one option for leverage.

But he had many.

“Fuck,” Tack whispered, closed his eyes, felt the pit weigh heavy in his gut and opened his eyes.

It wasn’t over.

It was never f**king over.

“Fuck,” he repeated, moved to his bike, swung his leg over and roared off to get to his woman.

* * *

Shy

Shy opened the door to his room in the Compound, stepped through, and stopped dead at what he saw.

Tabby was sitting cross-legged in his bed wearing his T-shirt. Her head was bowed and she was staring at her phone, her profile a mask of disbelief.

He closed the door behind him, calling, “Tabby?”

Slowly, her head turned his way, the disbelief in her face cleared, her beautiful blue eyes started shining just as her perfect rosy lips started curling up.

Then her body started shaking.

That was when he heard her giggles.

Shy froze at the sight.

There she was, his girl, after a night like last night, sitting in his bed in his room… laughing.

Oh yeah.

That was his girl.

On this thought, through her laughter, she forced out, “Shy, darlin’, I just got off the phone with Ty-Ty…” She trailed off shaking her head, giggling some more but before he could prompt her, she continued, “She just gave me the latest scoop on Lanie and Hop and, honey, you… would not… believe.”

She then told him what he wouldn’t believe and, in telling, proved she didn’t know Hop all that well.

Because Shy believed it.

Every word.

Epilogue

Start Now

Two weeks later…

I swung off Shy’s bike, my eyes to the view.

Denver was lit up, sprawling left to right but beyond, nothing but darkness.

All of it beautiful.

I moved to the edge of the mountain road, my cheeks stinging from the cold that whipped them as I rode up to elevation with Shy, me where I belonged.

On the back of my man’s bike.

I felt him move in behind me. He wrapped his arms around my chest, then I felt his lips against the top of my hair.

“What’s on my girl’s mind?” he asked quietly.

He so knew me.

“Natalie,” I replied, lifting my hands and curling my fingers around his forearms.

My friend had fallen off the wagon, not that she ever really got on.

It didn’t take long.

It also broke my heart.

After that, I broke ties. It killed, but I couldn’t save her so I had to save my peace of mind. The problem with that was, it wasn’t working.