Isaac will send more men now he knows I’m here. Hell, for all I know he could be waiting at the gate for Nox to send me out. If it comes down to it, they’ll hand me over to save themselves, and I wouldn’t blame them. I’m no one to them, and I fucking lied.

“I’m sorry,” I murmur.

“You’re fucking sorry?” Nox hisses at me. “Is that supposed to fix this shit?” He scrubs a hand over his jaw. “I went up against my fucking brothers. I claimed you as mine. Do you know what that fucking means?” He shakes his head. “You’re a fucking lying cunt.”

“What’s your link to Blackwood?” Rav demands, and I watch Nox flinch from his voice, turning his head as if too ashamed to look at his best friend.

I swallow hard and shift my eyes to Ravage. The man scares me half to death, but I steel my spine anyway. Showing fear is something I can’t afford even though I’m petrified. I glance at Nox again, a tear burning down my cheek. My next words will destroy everything.

“He’s… he’s my husband.” I shouldn’t tell them this. They might think to use me as leverage against Isaac, but what choice do I have? Spill the truth now, or spill it later under duress. I know what men like this will do to get their answers. I’d seen Isaac do it first hand and the club won’t let me walk free without answers.

Nox’s eyes flare and I see the unbridled rage in them. I watch the man who made love to me disappear, watch something inside him break. His head shakes, as if he doesn’t want to hear the words.

“His wife…” It sounds strange on his tongue and I steel myself as something dark in his eyes comes to the forefront. “You’re fucking married to that psychopath?”

I swallow down my bile, his words making my skin crawl.

“Yes.”

He growls. “What was this to you? A way to piss off your old man? You put me in a position where I touched another man’s property! I can’t fucking undo that!”

Property. That’s all I’ll ever be. Someone owned by someone else. I’ll never be free.

I lift my chin and snap out, “I’m no one’s property.”

“You belong to Isaac fucking Blackwood.” He reaches under his kutte and pulls out his gun. I jolt, but he doesn’t aim it at me. He throws it at me and I catch it instinctively and awkwardly, the metal heavy in my hands.

He opens his arms wide, invitingly. “Take your fucking shot.”

My heart stops. I shake my head. “What? No, never.”

He glares at me like I’m a stupid little girl.

“You put a price on my head the moment you let me between your fucking legs, so why not finish the fucking job yourself?”

“No, Nox.” I grab his arm and he shrugs free of me. “Please, I didn’t do this to hurt anyone. I was scared.”

“You should be scared,” Ravage says. “Your husband is one of the worst mobsters in the whole of London and we’ve stoked the fucking fire here.”

I jump back as he swears. Then he punches the dry wall hard enough to put his fist through it. Shaking the plaster off his cracked knuckles, Ravage snaps out, “Church now.” He points at Whizz. “You stay on this bitch. Don’t let her out of your fucking sight.”

The doctor nods and moves in front of me, crossing his arms over his broad chest as the other brothers file out of the room. Nox gives me a look of disgust.

I sink back onto the bed and let my eyes close as dismay fills my veins. I never wanted to hurt Nox, but this is exactly why I shouldn’t have let myself get close. I should have kept my distance, kept feelings out of this. Now, he thinks I’ve deceived him. I have, but not how he thinks. If only he knew the truth, but I don’t think he’s ready to hear it and even if he does, I don’t think he has much sympathy for me. I don’t blame him. My lies could have a huge impact on the Sons, but I can’t lie and say I’m not terrified that Leon and Elijah came here. That scares me more than fear of what the Sons will do to me. They’re Isaac’s right-hand men. Usually, they do his dirty work, but they’re as high up the food chain as they can be without taking Isaac’s position. That he sent them tells me everything I need to know.

My husband is pissed at me.

Whizz waits for the door to shut. All I can hear is my ragged breathing in heavy silence of the room.

“You love him?”

I blink at Whizz’s question.

“What?”

“Blackwood. You love him?”

“No.” It’s the truth. I don’t.

“But you’re still married to him.”

“Yes.”

He paces, his hands going to the back of his head, his body fraught with tension. “You being here is going to bring down a world of hurt on the club. You know that, right?”

“I know.”

He grits his teeth. “Yet you still fucking came here? Fuck me, Lucy. Natasha. Whatever your fucking name is.”

He glares at me and mutters a “Fuck! Do you know what you’ve done? Nox has to go to church and convince a room full of my fucking brothers not to blow your damned brains out or hand you over to your fucking husband.” He says the last word like it’s dirty—like I’m dirty.

Ice fills my gut. Whizz stands in front of me, his arms folded over his broad chest and peers down at me like I’m the enemy.

And in that moment, I realise I am. Because I’m no longer the sweet Lucy Franklin who took care of one of their own. I’m the siren who made Nox take his eye off the ball. I’m the bitch who is going to rain hell on the club, and I can’t even argue with it. I really fucked things up.

As much as I fought over the years for my freedom, I can never really leave my real self behind, because Natasha Blackwood will always exist as long as Isaac remains breathing, so maybe that’s how I fix this problem.

I kill my husband.

20

Nox

My brain feels like it’s about to explode. Titch said this could be a possibility, that Lucy might be involved in shit we didn’t know about and I ignored him. Now, I feel like a fucking idiot. I went against my brothers, made her mine, and swore she wasn’t involved. My trust in her, my faith in her is coming back to bite me on the arse. How the fuck could she lie to me like this? I love her. Hell, I told her as much, and the whole time she had a fucking dagger in my back.

Natasha Blackwood.

She is Isaac Blackwood’s fucking wife.

I shagged a married woman. I’m a guy who doesn’t live by any rules, who does what the fuck he wants when he wants, but I still have a code. I don’t touch married bitches. It’s more hassle than it’s worth. She’s put me in this position and I’m furious with her for it. She better cry big fucking ugly tears when Blackwood puts a bullet in me.

Everything about her is a lie. She’s not Lucy Franklin. She never was. Lucy has lived this double life for years. Her words, her actions, every little touch turns to dust in my memories. Was any of it real? I can’t think about it without wanting to strangle her.

I slam my body into my chair as my brothers gather around the table, sans Whizz who is keeping an eye on Lucy. What the fuck are we supposed to do with her? Hand her back? The thought makes me sick to my stomach, but she belongs to another man.