Lila kept her eyes closed while Snake sped through the night toward their meeting location. When she was with Striker, riding at night was one of her favorite activities. Tonight the blackened sky felt anything but wondrous. It felt like a shroud, and she couldn’t bear to look at it.
The bike slowed, and then came to a complete stop, and Lila finally allowed her eyes to open.
“You stay on the bike until I tell you,” Snake ordered, swinging his leg off the motorcycle.
She pushed a button on her watch and glanced down at the glowing face. Eleven twenty. Snake had wanted to arrive before Striker and the No Prisoners. He’d said it would give him the upper hand.
Lila took a breath, and wiped her palms on her jeans. Her heart danced a nervous rhythm in her chest and she felt a bit dizzy. This exchange had the potential to turn into something deadly.
Still astride the bike, Lila checked out her surroundings. The night was so dark it was almost impossible to see more than five feet from her face. As she stared straight ahead she thought she saw something flash just a bit ahead of them. Was that—
In the next instant Lila’s hands flew up to cover her face as she was blinded by the high beams of a staggering number of motorcycles. Oh my God. The No Prisoners had arrived before Snake, and were lined up across the road. There had to be at least sixty bikes. Who were all these guys?
“Your shit is halfway between us, off to the right. It’s all there. As is the other package we agreed on.” In that moment, Striker’s commanding voice was the most comforting sound she’d ever heard.
Lila looked off to the right where headlights of a bike illuminated packages of drugs stacked neatly behind a bruised and bloodied man. She gasped at the sight of him, and her first instinct, as a healer, was to run to him. But she tamped down the impulse, and tried to locate where Striker’s voice was coming from. The lights were too bright and she couldn’t see a thing.
“Lila, baby, walk straight across to me. Once she’s here, Snake, you can take your shit and leave.”
Snake stood about fifteen feet ahead of her, his face a mask of fury. He had to feel humiliated by Striker’s show of force. Satisfaction flowed through her. His hands clenched and unclenched at his sides. Good. She hoped the bastard was embarrassed by how Striker beat him at his own game.
Lila scrambled off the bike and started toward the lights. She wanted to run, but was afraid to move too quickly. As she walked, she heard Snake yell after her. “Too bad, Lila. We coulda had fun.”
She shivered with revulsion at the thought.
“What did you do, Striker? Call in the National Guard?” Snake called across the gap.
When Lila drew close enough to see over the glare of the lights, she was shocked to discover how many men accompanied Striker. There were more bikes than she’d originally thought, and looked to be about a hundred men. Who were they?
“You should try being nicer to people, Snake. You might make some friends that way.”
Lila still couldn’t see Striker, but she searched the crowd noticing that each man wore a No Prisoners cut. The patches on the front indicated different locations, Vegas, Joshua Tree, Santa Fe.
After another two steps she swung her gaze up and down the line again and locked eyes with Striker. He stood right in front of her. A wave of relief hit her with the force of a semi when she saw him standing there looking fierce and protective. The flood of emotion was so strong that she stumbled and would have fallen if Striker hadn’t reached out and grabbed her.
He crushed her to him, and she wrapped her arms around his waist just as tight. “I’ve got you, Lila. You’re safe. Did he hurt you?” Striker whispered against her ear.
“No. Scared me a bit, but mostly they left me alone in a room. Who are all these people?”
He chuckled in her ear. “Family, baby. We put in a few calls to charters in nearby states. They rushed here right away. My bike is right behind us. Go sit, and we’ll be out of here soon.”
His family. The moment the word came of Striker’s mouth all the pieces fell into place for Lila. She released her hold on Striker, and moved toward his motorcycle. When she was seated, she looked at the men who’d come to support him. They stood together in a row, weapons trained on the ten Grimm Brothers who’d come with Snake, an impenetrable wall.
A family was exactly what they were. Not a conventional one, but one that instilled loyalty and respect. She had a conventional family. Two parents, a sister, and all the high society perks she could ever want. But they didn’t support each other, they weren’t loyal to each other, they probably didn’t even love each other.
This group of outlaws had her back more than her own blood ever had. They respected Striker, they loved him, and while Lila was with him that extended to her as well. No matter what happened, this family would take care of each other. They would be there for each other no questions asked. They’d ride hundreds of miles in one day to rush to the aid of a brother and his woman.
A warm feeling of support and acceptance replaced much of the fear she’d felt throughout the day. Where before she’d been prepared to walk away, convinced there was nothing here for her, she now saw the opposite might be true. This could be everything for her.
She looked up, surprised to see Snake and his gang riding off into the night. Lost in her own musings, she’d missed the final words between Striker and Snake. It didn’t matter. For now, it was over, the score settled and she was free to resume her work and her life.
As she watched Striker approach the bike, and his brothers mount up and ride off she smiled at him. She wanted him in her life, him and this crazy family that came along with him. The good, and the bad.
It didn’t matter if people in town didn’t understand their relationship. Lila had spent over twenty years concerned about what others thought of her. It was time to give that up. What mattered was how she felt about Striker, and she was pretty sure she was in love with him. The rest was just details they could work out together.
“You ready to go home?”
She let out a weak chuckle and reached for his hand. “I was ready to go home yesterday morning.”
Striker didn’t laugh at her attempt at a joke. He didn’t smile or take her hand. The man who had held her like he couldn’t breathe without her just seconds ago was gone, replaced by a hardened version Lila didn’t recognize. What had happened in the five minutes she’d zoned out?
Without another word, Striker climbed on the bike and they drove off. Lila had the distinct impression something had shifted in him, something that affected his feelings for her.