Page 28 of Xane

That fucker thought he could have shattered her beyond repair, and maybe he would have eventually succeeded...but it doesn’t mean she’s fucking broken.Yet, it pains me to hear she thinks that’s the way we see her.

Now I’m the one narrowing my eyes.“I don’t consider you broken.”

She crosses her arms in front of her chest.“Then you won’t mind if I stay.”

Dammit.

Roux snickers.“The woman has a point.It’s better to know about the monsters before you’re surrounded by darkness.”

“She was already locked in darkness and experienced the fucking monster we have locked in the basement,” I snarl.“I don’t want her to worry about a damn cartel we need to take out.Which can backfire if we don’t handle our shit correctly.”

“Which is why you should put a microchip in her, and the rest of the guys, like we have.We could have known exactly where Balta was before this shit happened,” Fawkes says as he takes a seat at the table.“Might also need to teach her how to shoot a gun so she can wear one.”

Z frowns.“You have a microchip inside you?”

“All Broken Deeds MC members have one.Once the patch over is done they will have one as well.The old ladies get them too, and since you’re the only one...yeah, you’ll get one too.It shows our vitals and works as a GPS tracker.Working crime cases for the government involves getting kidnapped or lost sometimes.”

“Easier to track down,” she mumbles, more to herself than to me, and bobs her head.“I want one.If they take me again, you’d be able to track me down.”

Red hot fury fills my veins at the mere thought of someone harming a single hair on her head.

“No one is going to fucking take you again,” I snarl.

She wrings her hands.“You don’t know what the future entails.No one does.I’m pretty sure being burned to a crisp wasn’t on Balta’s bingo card either, but you know...shit fucking happens.”

Her voice was a mere whisper when she started, but the “shit fucking happens” is bouncing off the walls.I raise one of my eyebrows in reply to her outburst, silently asking if she’s done and wait for her to react.The old Z would shove my chest, get in my face, and throw some more attitude around.With what recently happened to her, I have no clue how she’ll react.

In fact, she doesn’t react at all but holds my stare instead.

I give her a slight nod.“Fine.Stay.Once we’re done here, I will place the order for the microchips.”

The corner of my mouth twitches when she stalks to my chair, pulls it away from the table, and plants her ass in it.The smile quickly disappears when I reach for my phone, knowing the incoming call will be about Balta when Neo’s name appears.

“Yeah?”I rumble and listen to the update.I swallow hard.“Thanks, brother.Come back as soon as you can.”

Ending the call, I glance around the table at the rest of the brothers.Roux, Fawkes, Stellan, Fenrin, Jaw, Malic, and Lass.All of them are looking at me and I can tell they already know what I’m about to say.

“He didn’t make it, did he?”Zora sadly asks.

I give a tiny shake with my head to confirm her statement.A flow of curses fills the room followed by silence.

Zora’s voice is filled with emotion when she asks, “Did he have any family?Relatives?”

I answer her question with another shake of my head.“He lost his brother last year and didn’t have anyone else.It’s why he started prospecting a few weeks before my father’s death.”

Zora gets to her feet and shoves my chair closer to the table.“I’m going to make a few calls and start the funeral arrangements.”

Every pair of eyes is locked on my old lady, and I can see the respect they have for her.

Leaning in, I brush a kiss on her cheek.“Thanks, darlin’.”

She gives me a sad smile when I pull back, and she pats my chest.“I do expect you to give me an update about the woman and the rest of the stuff you guys discuss.”

“You have my word,” I vow.

I watch her leave church and know I’ll tell her everything.Clearly, after everything she’s endured, she’s moving forward.Where I want nothing more than to protect her and keep her safe...not telling her everything might be a mistake.

If she knows what kind of people we’re dealing with, sees the faces, what they’re capable of, and linked to?I won’t let her be caught off guard.Knowledgeisfucking power.Spence tells his old lady everything.