Drift (Redline Kings MC Book 6), page 13
Kane’s mouth curved in that dangerous, approving way of his.
The men disappeared inside. Through Jax’s feed, the interior cameras blinked on—grainy night vision showing them setting up equipment on a desk, the courier case now open. Inside was a compact uplink server, cables snaking out to a phone mounted on a cradle. The yellow key icon glowed faintly on its screen.
“Transfer’s initializing,” Jax whispered. “They’re connecting to the broker hub.”
There was silence for a beat, then he whispered, “Uplink confirmed.”
Kane gave a sharp hand signal. “Move.”
We broke from cover as one.
Boots hit pavement in a smooth, practiced rhythm. The outer door opened at Jax’s override, and the five of us slipped inside while the others stayed to watch our backs. Somewhere deeper in the building, the uplink fan spun faster, whirring like an insect trapped in a jar.
Kane moved first, pistol in hand and ready to fire as he scanned corners. Edge moved stealthily behind him, blade ready and eyes glinting. Axle and I covered the rear while Jax tracked the uplink feed on his tablet.
A shadow crossed the hallway—one of the guards, phone to his ear. He didn’t finish the call. Kane grabbed him by the collar, slammed him into the wall, and dropped him silently.
Another guard rounded the corner, gun half raised. Edge stepped from the dark like smoke, blade flashing. One clean sweep, and the man’s body hit the floor.
Jax murmured, “Server link’s live. They’re mid-upload.”
Kane turned his head slightly. “Cut it.”
“Already on it.” Jax’s thumbs flew, lines of code spilling across his screen. “Key uplink looped to our relay… and—done. Broker hub’s blind.”
Kane’s expression didn’t change as he ordered, “Erase the source.”
We advanced.
The first burst of gunfire shattered the silence—short, suppressed pops echoing down the corridor. The courier tried to run. Axle raised his pistol, and with one clean shot, the man went down, knees buckling before he hit the floor. The case slid across the tiles, cables ripping free.
The room exploded in chaos. Shouts, another round of muffled shots, and the thud of fists hitting flesh. The Kings moved through it naturally, efficient and cold. Every angle covered, every threat neutralized. Not a single wasted motion.
I scanned the mess, searching for one face.
Fuck! Ethan wasn’t there.
Then movement caught at the edge of my vision—a back hallway door swinging and a body racing up the stairs. I broke from the group and followed whoever thought they’d escaped our wrath.
My boots hammered against the linoleum, then up the narrow stairwell that reeked of dust.
“Drift,” Kane’s voice crackled in my ear, low and calm. “Edge’s got a clear view. That’s him. We’ll sweep the lower floor.”
“Copy,” I replied, my breath even despite my racing heart as I climbed fast.
On the second landing, a door slammed. A beat later, I shoved it back open. The overhead lights flickered weakly across rows of metal shelves stacked with outdated hardware and dusty office equipment. Ethan stood at the far end, a gun trembling in his hand.
“Don’t!” he shouted, his voice breaking. “Stay the hell back!”
He shook so badly he could barely keep the barrel aimed. I kept moving, step by step, prowling toward my prey, until the muzzle was pointed straight at my chest. His finger wasn’t even on the trigger.
I caught his wrist before he realized his mistake, twisted it sharply, and the gun clattered to the floor. He stumbled back into a rack of metal shelving, causing boxes to topple, scattering papers and old cords across the concrete.
Quickly, I bent and snatched the weapon from the ground, shoving it into the waistband of my jeans.
“Talk,” I ordered.
“I didn’t know!” he babbled, voice high and panicked. “She was a pawn, that’s all they said! They told me she was the weak link, that she had the access we needed. Just a name to use!”
“Bullshit.” My voice came out flat and cold. “You watched her. Followed her. Broke into her fucking home.”
“They made me!” His hands fluttered, desperate. “You don’t understand, these people—they’d kill me if I didn’t—”
I was sick of listening to his irritating voice.
My fist landed square in his face. The sound cracked sharp in the small room, and his blood spattered the side of a filing cabinet.
He gasped, holding his face, his eyes wide with disbelief. Probably wondering why the fuck I hadn’t shot him instead. I leaned in close enough to smell the fear rolling off him—sweat, cheap cologne, and copper from the split in his lip.
“They weren’t the ones you should’ve been afraid of.”
I walked calmly back across the room and shut the door. The latch clicked, the sound ominous in the reactive silence. Ethan looked around, his expression terrified, and I smiled.
When the door opened again, the building had quieted. My knuckles throbbed, skin torn across two of them, and there was some blood on my clothes. Otherwise unharmed, the rest of me was calm.
Edge leaned against the wall across from the stairwell, wiping his blade clean before tucking it back under his cut. Axle crouched over the courier’s case, checking the contents—drive, burner phone, and encrypted modem—all intact. Kane stood near the end of the corridor, posture relaxed but eyes alert, while Jax typed furiously, cleaning digital traces from the uplink servers.
“Feed’s scrubbed. Key network’s burned.”
“No traces back to us?” Axle asked.
Jax glanced up at him. “Next time you insult me, Ashlynn’s gonna have to find another way to get knocked up.”
Axle scowled. “You talk about Ashlynn and get—”
“You two done measuring dicks, or do I need to put both of you on your asses?” Kane didn’t wait for them to reply before his gaze found mine. “You get what you needed?”
I nodded once. “I’m good.”
A short, collective silence followed—mutual understanding, no need for questions. When it came to our women, there was no line we wouldn’t cross.
Edge straightened, stretching his shoulders. “That was fun. But let’s get the fuck out of here. Callie’s still fighting morning sickness, and if I’m not there to hold back her hair the next time it hits, I’ll be the one catching hell.”
Axle chuckled as he latched the courier case. “Softest psycho I know.”
Edge smirked. “Says the guy who almost cried when Racer’s kid called him Uncle Mace for the first time.”
“Fuck off,” Axle shot back, but his grin said he wasn’t bothered.
From the back of the hall, Tyre snorted. “You’re all fucking whipped.”
Edge turned his head slowly, his smile curving like a blade. “Careful, brother. You just jinxed yourself. Universe hears shit like that and starts shopping for your soulmate.”
Tyre blinked, then swore under his breath, which made Kane laugh—a quiet, deep sound that didn’t happen often. “He’s not wrong.”
Tired and anxious to get back to my woman, I grumbled, “Let’s move before you tempt it any further.”
We left the same way we’d come in, nothing but shadows. Except we were leaving bodies and useless circuits behind. But Nitro had made Edge a toy to take care of that too.
Outside, the air was cooler, heavy with the metallic tang of recent rain. As we made our way through a copse of trees to the field where we’d parked our rides, we felt a ground-shaking boom, then saw the orange glow of flames over the tree line.
Kane gave Edge a dry look. “Subtle.”
He grinned. “It was Nitro’s gadget.”
“Don’t pretend you didn’t give it a little boost,” I muttered.
“I can neither confirm nor deny.”
Our comments trailed off as we reached the row of motorcycles waiting just beyond a sliver of moonlight.
Jax slung his tablet across his chest and gave one last glance back at the smoke and ash swirling in the wind. His expression was blank, but I could see the guilt in his eyes. He felt he’d failed Alanna, which was complete bullshit.
“She’s safe,” I pointed out. “That’s all that matters.”
He exhaled through his nose. “Yeah. Still feels like I missed something.”
“You didn’t,” I assured him. “You gave her peace. That’s more than most of us ever get.”
He nodded once, then followed the others to their bikes.
Kane was already astride his, helmet resting on the tank and his engine purring. “We ride straight back. Clean-up teams will handle the rest.”
Edge rolled his shoulders, swinging his leg over his seat. “You think the brokers got the message?”
“They will,” Kane said. “If not, we’ll write it louder next time.”
Taking a last look at the fire now raging in the night, the weight in my chest eased a little. Another job done. Another threat erased. The most important one ever.
Alanna was safe. That was all that mattered.
I mounted my Harley, making the leather on the seat creak as the engine growled to life beneath me. The sound rolled across the lot like thunder gathering over water. One by one, the others joined in until the air vibrated with it—a brotherhood of machines with one heartbeat.
Kane signaled, and we rode.
Our road captain, Axle, was at the front, while I took up the rear.
I was the last man anyone would see in their mirror—and the one nobody saw after that.
The night swallowed us whole, our tires slicing through wet pavement, exhaust smoke curling into the dark. And for the first time in weeks, the rage in me settled into something steady. Not peace exactly—men like me didn’t get that—but close enough to breathe.
22
ALANNA
The hum of conversation filled the clubhouse, but it did nothing to calm my nerves. I’d been pacing for the past twenty minutes, wearing a path into the wood floor.
“Girl, you’re gonna groove that board right through to the basement,” Savannah drawled from the couch.
“I can’t help it.” I twisted my fingers together, glancing toward the door again. “They should’ve been back by now.”
“I’m sure they will be soon.” Lark’s voice was steady, calm in the way only someone who’d survived her own chaos could manage. She was curled up in one of the leather chairs, her feet propped on a stool and one hand resting absently on her still-flat stomach. “Your brother is probably just being extra careful to make sure there are no trails that can point toward you later.”
“Yeah.” I raked my fingers through my hair with a sigh. “That could be it.”
“Or Jax and Drift could be in another fistfight,” Savannah teased. “Since it wasn’t club business, Kane told me all about how they duked it out in the sand over your honor.”
“Duked it out?” Callie echoed with a snort.
“Hey, it sounded good in my head.” Savannah giggled. “And you can’t convince me you weren’t as curious as me about the bruises on Jax and Drift’s faces when they brought Alanna to the clubhouse.”
“Fair point,” Callie muttered.
“I definitely asked Jaxton about it, but he tried to act like it was no big deal,” Lark murmured with a grin.
“I’m sure he did.” My shoulders eased a little as I sank into the chair across from Lark. “I always wanted a sister, but I got Jaxton instead.”
Lark grinned, her eyes sparkling. “Hey now, he’s not that bad. Even if he did try to smash Drift’s face in for daring to touch you.”
Savannah gave me a pointed look. “And if you’d gotten that sister back then, Lark wouldn’t be pregnant now. And you never would’ve met Drift.”
I laughed, the tension in my chest breaking for the first time all day. “Yeah, that would’ve been a damn shame.”
The low rumble of engines punctuated my words, and my heart leaped into my throat.
Lark’s hand found mine and squeezed. “Told you they’d be fine.”
I was already on my feet before the first bike shut off, running for the door. It swung open just as I got there.
Chance was the first one through. Behind him came Jaxton, Kane, Edge, and Axle. Everyone looked tired but alive.
I didn’t wait for explanations. I threw myself into Chance’s arms, the breath whooshing out of me as he caught me tight against his chest.
“It’s done,” he murmured against my hair. “You’re safe.”
The words cracked something open inside me. I nodded, unable to stop the tremor in my voice when I whispered, “Thank you.”
“Unbelievable,” Jaxton grumbled somewhere behind us. “Yet again, she doesn’t even ask if I’m okay. Just runs straight for him.”
Lark crossed the room and wrapped her arms around his waist. “That’s how it’s supposed to be when you fall for someone.”
He made a dramatic gagging sound. “Gross. Can’t we at least keep the mushy stuff out of club territory?”
That earned a round of laughter from the women and a collective shake of the head from the men. Even Kane’s mouth twitched.
I twisted in Chance’s hold to glare at my brother. “You literally had your wedding reception in this clubhouse. How is that keeping the mushy stuff out?”
“Yeah, but shit’s different when it’s your sister.” Jaxton glared at Chance. “And the man who was supposed to be your best fucking friend.”
My eyes narrowed. “I mean, there was definitely a lot of fu—”
Chance clapped his palm over my mouth, cutting off my taunt. “Quit needling your brother. He’ll come around eventually, and he just helped keep you safe.”
“It was a hell of a lot more than just helping,” Jaxton grumbled.
Kane finally took pity on me and explained, “The ring’s down. Your data’s secure. Nothing left for him to touch.”
Relief flooded through me so hard my knees almost buckled. “Guess having a hacker for a brother has its perks.”
Jaxton scowled immediately. “You know how much I hate being called that, smart-ass.”
Chance’s arm tightened around my waist as he shot my brother a look. “Enough.”
I tilted my head back to smirk up at him. “You’re not the boss of me.”
“Yeah, it’s not like she’s even officially your old lady yet,” Savannah pointed out.
Rev ducked behind the bar, grabbed a brown paper bag, and tossed it to Chance. “This came for you.”
Chance caught it easily and pulled out a small leather vest—similar to his but sized for me.
Shaking it out, he turned the back toward me so I could see the property patch that announced to the world that I was his. But then he froze and muttered, “What the hell?”
I didn’t understand what was wrong until he flipped it over, and I saw the front of the vest. Jax Jr. was stitched above the left breast pocket.
A low growl rumbled from his chest. “Who the fuck thought this was funny?”
Jaxton didn’t even pretend innocence. He crossed his arms over his chest with a smug grin. “You claim my baby sister, you deal with the branding.”
Lark snorted, Savannah and Callie howled with laughter, and even Kane’s mouth twitched. I clamped a hand over my mouth to stifle my laugh.
“This shouldn’t even be possible.” Chance glared at Jaxton. “You just found out about us yesterday.”
My brother shrugged before admitting, “Already had the patch made in case we’re having a boy. Just put it to good use yankin’ your chain. Can’t say you don’t deserve it.”
Lark tilted her head back to look up at Jaxton. “We haven’t even discussed names yet.”
“I know, baby.” He stroked his hand down her spine. “Had a Lark one made too, thought it’d be a fun way to do one of those gender reveal things like you’ve been watching on social media.”
She pressed her face against his chest with a sniffle. “Aw, that’s so sweet.”
I took the vest from Chance’s hands and slipped it on. “I kinda like the nod to my brother.”
Chance’s expression eased, and his hand brushed the back of my neck as he murmured, “You gotta be fucking with me.”
“Maybe a little,” I admitted with a grin.
He shook his head and sighed. “At least he didn’t mess with your ring.”
Jaxton grinned, wicked as ever. “Or did I?”
Chance’s head snapped up. “Shut up, fucker. It’s safely upstairs in my room.”
The laughter that followed chased away every lingering shadow in the room.
I tugged on Chance’s arm. “Show me.”
His hand settled at the small of my back as we climbed the stairs, the noise from the lounge area fading with every step. When we reached his room, he closed and locked the door behind us. Then he crossed to the dresser and opened the top drawer.
When he turned back toward me, there was a small black box in his hand. “I bought this before I ever admitted to myself that I could have you. Loved you then, even though I tried like hell to deny it. Told myself you deserved better than me.”
Emotion clogged my throat, and I shook my head, stepping closer until I could press my palms against his chest. “What I deserve is to spend the rest of my life with the man I love. And that’s you.”
The tension in his body broke all at once. He cupped my face, his thumb brushing my cheekbone. “Say that again.”
“I love you, Chance.”
His mouth found mine, the kiss slow and reverent, unlike our usual heat. When he pulled back, he pressed his forehead to mine. “I love you too, Alanna. Been fighting it since the day I saw you walk down the aisle for your brother’s wedding, all grown up and too damn beautiful for your own good.”
I laughed softly, tears stinging my eyes. “Guess you lost that fight.”
“Glad I did.” Flipping open the jewelry box, he let out a relieved sigh. “At least that fucker didn’t mess with this too. Meddling bastard.”
