CHAPTER 6 - Claimed By Wolves

"A weapon?" The word tasted like ash. "What are you talking about?"

Damien released me, pacing the small office like a caged predator. "Marcus Ashford has been secretly funding the Savage Kings for months. Real estate deals, money laundering—he provides the clean front while they do his dirty work."

"That is impossible. Richard's father is a legitimate businessman—"

"Is he?" Damien spun to face me. "Think, Flora. How does a developer acquire prime real estate in contested neighborhoods without problems? How do his projects never face union issues or delays?"

My stomach turned. "The Kings intimidate people for him."

"Exactly. And in return, Marcus helps them expand their territory. Our territory." His fist slammed against the desk. "They have been systematically destroying everything we built. Now I know who is behind it."

"So what does that make me? Bait?"

"Leverage." A knock interrupted him. "Come in."

A man entered—older, with silver threading through dark hair and cold authority in every movement. Leather vest marked him as someone important. President patch on his chest confirmed it.

"This her?" His eyes dissected me like a specimen.

"Yeah. Flora, meet Axel. Club president." Damien's hand settled possessively on my lower back. "Axel, we have a problem."

"Several, apparently." Axel circled me slowly. "You know who her family is? What kind of heat she brings?"

"I know."

"And you brought her here anyway. To our clubhouse. Our home." Axel's voice was dangerously quiet. "Give me one reason I should not throw her back to the wolves she came from."

"Because she has information." Damien pulled me closer. "She has been inside the Ashford world for two years. Engaged to the son. Invited to family dinners and business events. She knows things."

Axel's interest sharpened. "What kind of things?"

All eyes turned to me. I suddenly understood what Damien meant. They did not see a person. They saw an asset. A tool to use against their enemies.

"I do not know anything about illegal activities." My voice came out smaller than intended. "I was just Richard's fiancée. Arm candy for parties."

"You hear things at parties." Axel moved closer. "Private conversations. Names dropped. Deals mentioned. Think carefully, girl. What did Marcus Ashford discuss when he thought no one important was listening?"

The dismissal stung. "I am not helping you if you talk to me like that."

Silence crashed through the room.

Damien tensed beside me. Several men reached for weapons. Axel's expression went glacier cold.

"Excuse me?"

My survival instincts screamed to back down, apologize, submit. But I was done submitting to powerful men who saw me as an object.

"You want my help? Then treat me like a person, not a thing you found on the street." I forced myself to meet Axel's stare. "I left everything for Damien. My family, my home, my entire life. The least you can do is speak to me with basic respect."

Axel studied me for an endless moment. Then, impossibly, he smiled.

"She has spine. I like that." He turned to Damien. "You claimed her yet? Officially?"

"Not yet."

"Do it. Tonight. I want everyone to know she is protected club property before word spreads about her identity." Axel headed for the door. "And Flora? Welcome to the Iron Wolves. We will be having a long conversation about Marcus Ashford very soon."

He left. The tension eased slightly.

"What does he mean, claimed?" I asked.

Damien would not meet my eyes. "It is a club thing. Marks you as under my protection. Means no one can touch you without going through me first."

"How do you mark someone?"

"Tattoo. Small. Usually here." He touched the inside of my wrist. "Property of Damien Cross, Iron Wolves MC."

Horror and something else—something darker—twisted in my chest. "You want to brand me like cattle?"

"I want to keep you alive." His hands framed my face, forcing me to look at him. "You do not understand how clubs work. Women here are either old ladies—claimed by a member—or club girls. Club girls are shared. Available to anyone with a patch."

The implication hit like a fist. "And without your mark, I am a club girl."

"Without my mark, you are fair game." His jaw clenched. "I will not let that happen. So yeah, Flora. I am going to put my name on you. Tonight. Because the alternative is watching you get passed around until you break."

Nausea rolled through me. "This is insane. I cannot—this is not—"

"This is the world you chose." His voice gentled slightly. "I know it is not pretty. I know it is not what you imagined. But it is real. And right now, my claim is the only thing keeping you safe."

"What if I say no?"

Pain flashed across his face. "Then I put you on a bus to anywhere else. Give you money. Help you disappear. But Flora—" His forehead touched mine. "If you leave, you are on your own. The Ashfords will find you. And I cannot protect you if you are not mine."

"So I am trapped either way."

"You were always trapped. At least this cage has a man who will burn the world down before he lets anyone hurt you."

The door burst open. Bull rushed in, blood streaming from his temple.

"They are here. Savage Kings. Fifty of them, maybe more. They are coming for the girl."

Gunfire erupted outside.

Damien shoved me toward a hidden panel in the wall. "Get in. Do not come out until I get you."

"Damien—"

"NOW!"

He pushed me into darkness and slammed the panel shut. Through cracks in the wall, I watched him grab weapons, his face transforming into something primal and terrifying.

"Let them come." His voice carried death. "Anyone who wants her goes through me first."

The clubhouse exploded into war.

And I was trapped in the walls, listening to men die over me.