CHAPTER 7 - The Ghost's Darkness

Albert hit Tommy again.

And again.

Blood splattered across the wall, across Albert's knuckles, across the floor where three bodies already lay cooling. Tommy stopped fighting back after the fourth punch, just hung limp in Albert's grip, but Albert did not stop.

"Albert," I said.

He did not hear me. Or maybe he chose not to.

His fist connected with Tommy's ribs. Something cracked.

"Albert, that is enough."

"Enough?" He slammed Tommy against the wall. "This piece of shit tried to murder you. Killed three good men. Betrayed both clubs. And you think that is enough?"

Tommy coughed blood. "Please..."

"You want mercy?" Albert's voice was ice and fury. "You gave Eva nightmares. Made her look over her shoulder. Put laser sights on her chest." Another punch. "Where was your mercy then?"

"Albert, stop!" I grabbed his arm.

He whirled on me, and for a second I saw something feral in his eyes. Something that made me understand why they called him the Ghost. This was the man who could kill six different ways before a body hit the ground. This was the enforcer, the weapon, the monster everyone whispered about.

Then he saw my face and something shifted.

His grip on Tommy loosened. The kid collapsed to the floor, barely conscious.

"He deserves worse," Albert said, chest heaving.

"I know. But that is not your call to make." I looked at Derek, who watched the whole thing with disturbing interest. "Get my father. And Knox. They decide what happens to him."

Derek nodded and left.

Albert stared at his bloody knuckles like he did not recognize them. "I wanted to kill him. I still want to kill him."

"I know."

"Does that scare you?"

I should have said yes. Should have been horrified by the violence, the rage, the darkness I just witnessed. Instead, I told the truth.

"No. It does not."

He looked at me then, really looked at me. "What kind of person does that make you?"

"The same kind it makes you, I guess." I moved closer, stepping over Tommy's blood. "He tried to kill me. He murdered people I knew. And you protected me. That is all that matters."

"Eva—"

The door burst open. My father stormed in with Knox and half the damn membership of both clubs behind them. Marcus took one look at Tommy's broken face and the bodies on the floor.

"Everyone out except leadership," Knox ordered.

The room cleared until it was just Marcus, Knox, Ruby, Jacks, Albert, Derek, and me. Tommy groaned on the floor.

"Someone tell me what the hell happened here," Marcus said.

Derek explained everything. The recording, the confession, the cartel's extraction. Tommy worked with the Sinaloa to sabotage the alliance, killed three Reapers to cover his tracks, and hired multiple attempts on my life.

"And the cartel?" Knox asked.

"Gone," Derek said. "Once the operation was compromised, they pulled out. Tommy is worthless to them now."

Marcus kicked Tommy in the ribs. The kid whimpered.

"We should make an example of him," Jacks said. "Put his body somewhere public. Show everyone what happens to traitors."

"No." Ruby's voice cut through the violence. "We need him alive."

"Why?" Marcus demanded.

"Because he is not working alone." Ruby lit a cigarette with shaking hands. "Think about it. Kid is nineteen. Barely a prospect. How did he get cartel contacts? How did he know about alliance negotiations that were kept secret from most of the club?"

Silence.

"Someone higher up helped him," Knox said slowly. "Someone with access to information."

"Someone in this room," Ruby finished.

Everyone tensed. Hands moved toward weapons.

"That is insane," Jacks said. "We are all loyal—"

"Are we?" Knox looked around. "This alliance threatens people's positions. Their power. Maybe someone figured if the peace treaty failed, they would benefit."

"You are paranoid," Marcus said, but his eyes were scanning faces.

Tommy laughed through broken teeth. "She is right. Had help. Someone who wanted the same thing. War."

"Who?" Albert grabbed Tommy by the throat. "Give me a name."

"Cannot. Made a deal. Protected." Tommy's eyes rolled back. "But they are close. Closer than you think."

His head lolled forward. Unconscious or dead, I could not tell.

"Get him to a doctor," Knox ordered. "We need him alive to talk."

Jacks and two others dragged Tommy out.

My father moved to the bodies, knelt beside them. These were men who rode with him for years. Brothers in every way that mattered.

"I failed them," he said quietly. "Let a traitor in."

"We all did," Knox replied.

"No." Marcus stood, and I saw the cancer eating him from inside, making him smaller, weaker. "I am president. It is my job to protect my people. And I could not even protect my own daughter."

"Dad—"

"You are getting married tomorrow, Eva. One day early. We move up the ceremony." He looked at Knox. "Agreed?"

"Agreed. We cannot risk another attack."

"Wait," I said. "Tomorrow? I am not ready—"

"You do not have to be ready," Albert said, his bloody hand finding mine. "You just have to show up. I will handle the rest."

"There is still a traitor out there," I protested. "Someone who helped Tommy—"

"Which is exactly why we are doing this now," Knox interrupted. "Once you are married, killing you becomes pointless. The alliance is sealed. The traitor loses their motivation."

"Unless the traitor is trying to stop the wedding entirely," Derek said, speaking for the first time since returning. "In which case, moving it up is exactly what they want. Forces a rushed ceremony, poor security, everyone distracted. Perfect time to strike."

"Then what do you suggest?" Marcus demanded.

Derek smiled that cruel smile. "A trap. We announce the wedding is tomorrow, let the traitor make their move, and catch them in the act."

"Using Eva as bait," Albert said flatly. "Again. No."

"It is the only way—"

"I said no."

"It is my decision," I said, pulling my hand from Albert's. "And I am tired of being the victim. If there is a traitor, I want them exposed. So yes. We move the wedding to tomorrow. And we see who tries to stop it."

Albert's eyes went cold. "You are risking your life."

"I have been risking my life since my father announced this arrangement. At least this time, I am choosing to do it." I looked at Marcus. "Tomorrow. We end this."

My father nodded slowly. "Tomorrow."

Knox pulled out his phone. "I will make the arrangements. Eva, you stay here tonight. Albert, you do not leave her side."

"Was not planning on it," Albert said.

The room cleared out until it was just the two of us and the blood drying on the walls.

"You should have let me kill him," Albert said quietly.

"Maybe. But then you would be the monster everyone thinks you are."

"I am that monster, Eva. You saw it tonight."

"No. I saw you protecting me. There is a difference."

He turned to face me, and in his eyes I saw something I did not expect. Fear.

"What if I cannot keep you safe tomorrow? What if the traitor gets through?"

"Then you do what you do best, Ghost." I stepped closer, close enough to feel his heat. "You haunt them until they are dead."

Something shifted in his expression. Possessive. Dark. Hungry.

"You are not afraid of me," he said. "You should be."

"I know. I cannot figure out why I am not."

His hand cupped my face, thumb brushing my cheek. Blood still stained his knuckles.

"After tomorrow, you are mine. Really mine. No more counting down to freedom."

"We made a deal—"

"Deals change." His voice dropped lower. "And I do not share, Eva. Once you are my wife, I am keeping you."

I should have argued. Should have reminded him about our arrangement, about my plans to leave.

Instead, I leaned into his touch.

"One day at a time, Ghost. We survive tomorrow first."

"And then?"

"Then we see if you can handle being married to someone who is not afraid of the monster inside you."

His phone buzzed. He checked it, his jaw tightening.

"What is wrong?"

He showed me the screen. A message from an unknown number:

Congratulations on moving up the wedding. I will send flowers. Black roses for the funeral. See you tomorrow, bride.

The traitor was watching.

And they were ready to strike.