The next two days blurred together, restless and uneasy. The clubhouse never settled—engines revving outside, brothers coming and going, phone calls ending fast whenever Ashley walked past. Smoke and whiskey hung in the air, but beneath it all was the same knot of worry Ashley carried inside.
Spider's death still weighed on them. The brothers showed their grief in loud ways—yelling, slamming doors, picking fights in town and coming back beaten up. But Nolan handled it differently. He hid it under work.
That afternoon, Ashley stood behind the bar, watching. Nolan was at the pool table, papers spread out with maps and notes she couldn't make sense of. Jax leaned nearby, rolling a knife between his fingers. Ace slouched in a chair, looking bored but paying attention. Cole stood tall a
