Chapter7
858 Words
The clubhouse lights glowed harsh and yellow against the dusk when Rae pulled into the lot, her bike rumbling to a stop. Gravel crunched under her tires, and every head in the yard turned toward her.
She didn’t slow.
She didn’t hesitate.
She didn’t hide the blood on her knuckles.
The Reapers’ attack had been sloppy.
The Serpents’ reaction wouldn’t be.
Rae swung off her bike, boots hitting the ground with a controlled, deliberate thud. She walked toward the clubhouse door, the ledger tucked under her arm, her posture straight and unshaken.
Tank stepped out before she reached the steps.
He froze when he saw her.
“You’re bleeding,” he said.
Rae looked down at her knuckles. “Not my blood.”
A ripple of unease moved through the men behind him.
Tank’s eyes narrowed. “What happened?”
“Reapers,” Rae said. “Three of them.”
Jax pushed through the crowd, eyes scanning her quickly — checking for injuries, checking for damage, checking for anything she wasn’t saying.
“You’re hurt,” he said.
Rae shook her head. “I’m fine.”
“You’re bleeding.”
“It’s superficial.”
Jax stared at her, jaw tight. “You took on three Reapers alone.”
Rae met his gaze. “I didn’t take them on. They took me on.”
Tank stepped closer, voice low. “And you walked away.”
Rae didn’t blink. “They didn’t.”
The yard went silent.
Brick, still nursing the bruises from earlier, muttered under his breath, “She’s gonna get us all killed.”
Rae turned her head slightly. “If you’re scared, Brick, you can go home.”
Brick’s face reddened. “You—”
Jax cut him off. “Enough.”
Tank looked between Rae and Jax, then jerked his head toward the clubhouse. “Inside. All of you. We’re calling a vote.”
Rae followed them in, the air thick with tension. The church room was already filling with officers and patched members, voices low and urgent.
Tank slammed the gavel on the table. “Meeting called to order.”
Rae stood near the wall, arms crossed, ledger under her arm. She didn’t sit. She didn’t speak. She didn’t need to.
Tank pointed at her. “Callahan was attacked by Reapers on our territory.”
A murmur rippled through the room.
Jax stepped forward. “They’re escalating.”
Brick scoffed. “Or she provoked them.”
Rae’s voice cut through the room like a blade. “If I provoked them, they’d be dead.”
Brick opened his mouth, but Tank raised a hand. “Enough. We need to decide what to do with her.”
Rae lifted her chin. “You don’t get to decide what to do with me.”
Tank slammed the gavel again. “This is club business.”
“So am I,” Rae said.
“You’re not a member.”
“I’m Callahan blood.”
Tank’s jaw tightened. “And that’s the problem.”
Rae stepped forward, placing the ledger on the table. “My father was dealing with the Reapers. Someone in this room knew. Someone helped them. Someone betrayed him.”
Silence.
Heavy.
Accusing.
Dangerous.
Jax’s eyes swept the room, sharp and calculating.
Tank leaned forward. “You’re saying one of us killed Viper?”
Rae didn’t look away. “I’m saying one of you helped.”
Brick shot to his feet. “You don’t get to accuse us!”
Rae didn’t flinch. “I’m not accusing. I’m stating a fact.”
Tank slammed the gavel again. “Sit down, Brick.”
Brick sat, seething.
Tank turned back to Rae. “You want to stay? Fine. Then you follow our rules.”
Rae crossed her arms. “Which ones?”
Tank’s eyes hardened. “The ones that keep you alive.”
Rae stepped closer, voice low. “I don’t need your protection.”
Tank leaned in. “You need something. Because the Reapers aren’t done.”
Rae didn’t blink. “Neither am I.”
Jax finally spoke. “We vote.”
Tank nodded. “All in favor of Rae staying until we resolve the Reaper threat?”
Hands went up.
Not all of them.
Not even most of them.
But enough.
Tank looked at Rae. “You stay. For now.”
Rae nodded once. “Good.”
Tank leaned back. “But understand this — you’re not here as Viper’s daughter. You’re here as a liability.”
Rae picked up the ledger. “Then I’ll become an asset.”
Jax watched her with something dark and unreadable in his eyes.
Tank exhaled. “Meeting adjourned.”
Rae turned toward the door.
But before she reached it, Tank spoke again.
“And Rae?”
She paused.
Tank’s voice dropped. “Next time the Reapers come for you… don’t go alone.”
Rae didn’t turn around.
“I wasn’t alone,” she said.
She walked out, leaving the room in stunned silence.
Because every man in that room knew exactly what she meant.
She had her father’s ledger.
She had her training.
She had her rage.
And she had herself.
- Writer
