For the sake of any loved ones missing them, I hoped they made it out of that warehouse. And I hoped this taught a lesson to every damn club out there. They weren’t invincible, and it wasn’t okay to leave a man behind. I wasn’t even a patched member, and I knew that.
Epilogue
Ashes
Seeing Nikki walk into that warehouse had been the scariest moment of my life. I’d already heard Cinder refuse to give Ramirez what he wanted, and I didn’t think he’d change his mind just to save my woman. Then she’d surprised the shit out of me and stood up for me and every man in that warehouse, demanded that Cinder do the right thing. I was both proud of her, and pissed as fuck.
But now that we were back home and standing in front of the Pres and VP, I was back to scared. I had no idea what Cinder would do to Nikki. I didn’t think he’d do anything to physically hurt her, but she’d suffered enough emotional trauma already. She was stronger than anyone realized, even me, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t break if the right pressure was applied.
“She didn’t mean to undermine your authority, Pres,” I said, hoping to smooth things over. “Nik was just trying to save me and the others. She said what she did because she loves me.”
Scratch snorted. “Your woman has brass balls, Ashes. Hell, hers might be bigger than yours.”
I wanted to flip him off, but I refrained. Barely.
“I’m not going to do anything to Nikki, so relax. She’s not only your ol’ lady, the mother of the future generation, but she’s also the sister of an officer. No one knows what she said, or my response, except the people in this room and the other two Devil’s Boneyard members who were in that warehouse. Ripper and Magnus both think she walks on water right now and won’t say a damn thing about the incident. Since she stood up for the men from the other clubs, I don’t see them saying a word about it either.” Cinder leaned back in his chair, the leather creaking. “Ripper and Magnus already gave me their version of what happened. Now I want to hear it from you.”
I ran a hand through my hair and winced as my fingers grazed the cut on the back of my skull. Ramirez and his men had worked me over pretty good.
“I went with the others to stake out what we thought was a rival club. It was a setup. Ramirez and his men rounded us up like fucking cattle. We managed to take down a few of them, but we were outnumbered.”
Scratch chuckled. “Boy, that’s not what he wants to hear. He wants you to tell how little Nikki here kicked ass and saved all of you sorry bastards.”
Nikki bit her lip and looked up at me, but I could see the laughter in her eyes. Yeah, she could laugh it up with the rest of them. Honestly, I was proud as fuck that she’d handled herself so well. Pissed that she’d been in danger to begin with, but seeing her go after those guys and hold her own? It had been pretty fucking impressive.
“All right. My woman saved our asses, freed us, and then talked you into bringing us home.” I folded my arms and stared at the Pres and VP. “That what you wanted to hear?”
“Yep,” Cinder said. “You’ll both be happy to know that the other clubs also got their men back. Ramirez could be an issue, but for now we’re going to monitor the situation. The fact each club had two to three men taken means that we have some work to do. Nikki was right when she called this a family. It is, and she was also right that you don’t leave family behind. So, we’re going to figure out where shit went wrong and make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
“So I’m not in trouble?” Nikki asked.
Cinder smiled, a rare occurrence. “No, darlin’. You aren’t in trouble. Just don’t pull that shit in front of my men, or we’ll have a problem.”
“Glad to have you back, Nikki,” Scratch said.
“Back?” she asked.
“We know that what happened with Bane was hard on you. Instead of pushing through, you retreated into yourself. Since Ashes was keeping a close eye on you, we left things alone, but maybe we should have stepped in,” Scratch said. “Renegade insisted you were fine, but you never came to any of the club events. It made me wonder.”
She gave a little nod. “Yeah, I got lost for a while, but Ashes wouldn’t give up on me.”
“And when he needed you, you refused to give up on him,” Cinder said. “You’re the perfect ol’ lady for Ashes, and we’re proud to have you as part of this club. Now go get your son! Meg might be in heaven, but I want to get some fucking sleep tonight.”
“Thanks, Pres,” I said and led Nikki from the room.
We’d gotten back into town about six hours ago, and after I’d been patched up, we took a nap. I knew she’d wanted to pick up Oliver right away, but neither of us would have been any good to him. We’d been through hell.
“I thought he was going to be angry,” she said as we got into the car.
“I wasn’t sure how he’d react, but I’m glad to know he appreciates your strength as much as I do. I’ve always known that you were strong, Nikki, but you’ve proven it to everyone here and with the other clubs too. I’m so fucking proud of you, baby. And in the spirit of honesty…” I wasn’t sure how she’d take this next bit of news, but I didn’t want to lie to her, not even by omission. I pulled away from the clubhouse and headed for Cinder’s house. “I think those men knocked the sense back into me. When we woke up earlier, I remembered everything.”
She clenched her hands in her lap. “Everything?”
I stopped the car and reached out to clasp her hand in mine. “Everything. And, Nik, I still love you so damn much. Everything I felt after losing all my memories, all the moments we’ve shared, it’s all still here. You’re the most important person in my life, you and Oliver both. I love the two of you more than anything else.”
“We love you too, Archer. So very much.”
A tear slipped down her cheek, and I leaned over to kiss her, my lips brushing over hers. She was so sweet, and yet fierce when she needed to protect those she loved. Scratch and Cinder were right. She was fucking perfect for me. I was the luckiest bastard ever to have her in my life.
“Let’s go get our son.”
“You… you still think of him as yours, even knowing… everything?”
I squeezed her hand. “Honey, he is mine. I was there during your pregnancy, when he came into this world, I’ve changed his diapers and walked the floor with him. We might not share the same blood, but he’s mine in every way that counts.”
I drove the rest of the way to Cinder’s house, and Meg was out front waiting for us, Oliver in her arms and the diaper bag at her feet. Nikki launched herself from the car and ran for our son, cradling him close to her. I got out and went over to them. Meg reached out like she was going to hug me, then retreated.
“I’m fine, Meg. A hug won’t break me, especially from a tiny thing like you.”
She wrapped her arms around my waist and gave me the gentlest hug I’d ever gotten. When she released me, I pulled Nikki and Oliver against my side. My son blinked up at me, then cooed. Brushing a kiss against his head, I breathed in his scent. I’d missed the hell out of him. “Let’s take our boy home,” I said.