Chapter Four: Blood in the Water

My father was waiting when I got back to the clubhouse.

He sat in the shadows of the common room, a glass of whiskey in his hand. The room was empty except for him. That was never a good sign.

"How did it go?" His voice was too calm. Too controlled.

"Fine. I signed the papers."

"What papers?"

My stomach twisted. "The prenup. Sarah Chen explained everything."

He stood slowly, his eyes narrowing. "What exactly did she explain?"

I should have lied. I should have kept my mouth shut. But I was so tired of secrets and fear and pretending.

"She told me about the businesses. The ones registered in my name. The ones you never told me about."

The glass shattered against the wall beside my head. I flinched, throwing my arms up as whiskey and broken glass rained down.

"You stupid girl!" He crossed the room in two strides and grabbed my throat. "What did you tell Kane?"

"Nothing! I swear!" I clawed at his hands, gasping for air.

"If you ruin this alliance, if you embarrass me—" He squeezed harder. Black spots danced in my vision.

The door slammed open.

"Let her go."

Jackson's voice cut through the room like a blade.

My father's grip loosened slightly. I sucked in a desperate breath. Jackson stood in the doorway, Hawk right behind him. Both men looked ready for violence.

"This is club business," my father said. "Between me and my daughter."

"She is my fiancée. That makes it my business." Jackson walked forward slowly. "I said let her go, Marcus."

For a moment, I thought my father would refuse. His fingers tightened on my throat. Then he shoved me away. I stumbled, catching myself on a chair.

Jackson was beside me instantly. His hands were gentle as he tilted my face up, examining my throat. His eyes were completely black with rage.

"Get in the truck," he said quietly. "Now."

"Jackson, I cannot just—"

"Now, Lisa."

I looked at my father. He was watching Jackson with cold calculation, not fear. Not regret. Just measuring his opponent.

"She is still my daughter," my father said. "You do not get to take her yet."

"Actually, I do." Jackson pulled out his phone and showed my father something on the screen. "Sarah Chen filed the marriage license this morning. Backdated with a judge's signature. As of today, Lisa and I are legally married. She is under my protection now."

My mouth fell open. "What?"

"You lied to me," my father said, his voice deadly quiet.

"No. I changed the timeline." Jackson pocketed his phone. "The wedding ceremony in two weeks is for show. For the clubs. But legally, she is already my wife. Which means if you touch her again, you are assaulting a Steel Serpent's old lady. And that means war."

The room went completely silent.

My father's face turned purple with rage. "You manipulative son of a—"

"Choose your next words carefully, Marcus." Jackson's voice was soft. Dangerous. "Because I am looking for a reason. Any reason."

Hawk stepped forward, hand on his gun. The threat was clear.

My father looked at me, and the hatred in his eyes made me want to disappear. "This is not over."

"Yeah. It is." Jackson took my hand. "Come on, Lisa. We are leaving."

I let him pull me toward the door. My legs felt like water. My mind was spinning. Legally married. How was that even possible?

"Lisa!" Ruby ran into the common room, her eyes wide. "What is happening?"

"I am leaving."

"What? Where?"

"With me," Jackson said. "Pack her things. You have ten minutes."

Ruby looked between us, confused and scared. "Lisa?"

"Please, Ruby. Just do it."

She ran upstairs. I stood there with Jackson's hand wrapped around mine, facing my father across the room. This was it. The moment I had dreamed about for years. Freedom. Escape.

So why did it feel like I was jumping from one cage into another?

Ruby came back with two bags. Everything I owned in the world fit in two bags. Jackson took them from her and handed them to Hawk.

"Wait." I turned to Ruby. "Come with me."

"What?"

"Come with me. You do not have to stay here."

Ruby's eyes filled with tears. "Lisa, I cannot just—"

"She can stay," my father said. "She is useful. Unlike you."

The words cut deeper than his fists ever had.

Jackson pulled me toward the door. "Let's go."

Outside, a black truck waited. Hawk loaded my bags in the back. Jackson opened the passenger door for me.

"I did not agree to this," I said. "You cannot just marry me without telling me."

"Would you rather I left you in there with him?" Jackson gestured at the clubhouse. "He was going to kill you, Lisa. Eventually. Maybe not today. Maybe not tomorrow. But soon."

"You do not know that."

"Yes, I do. Because I have seen it before. Men like your father do not stop. They escalate. And you were running out of time." He stepped closer. "Now get in the truck."

"Why did you really do this? What do you want from me?"

His jaw tightened. "I want you alive. That is enough reason."

I climbed into the truck. Jackson got in the driver's side and started the engine. As we pulled away, I looked back at the clubhouse. Ruby stood in the doorway, crying. My father stood behind her, watching me leave with cold, calculating eyes.

I had escaped. But I did not feel free.

The house looked different in the late afternoon light. Less like a home and more like a beautiful prison.

Jackson carried my bags upstairs while I stood in the living room, numb and confused. When he came back down, he went straight to the kitchen and poured two glasses of whiskey.

"Drink this."

I took the glass with shaking hands and drank. The alcohol burned going down, but it cleared some of the fog from my mind.

"We need to talk," I said.

"Yeah. We do."

"You married me without my permission. Without even telling me."

"I know."

"That is kidnapping. That is—"

"Necessary." He set his glass down. "Your father was going to use those businesses to frame you. Sarah found evidence this morning. Bank accounts. Transactions. All in your name. All illegal. The Feds are building a RICO case, Lisa. And your father set you up to take the fall."

The room spun. "No. He would not—"

"He already did. Sarah has proof. Bank statements. Emails. Everything." Jackson pulled out a folder from a drawer and handed it to me. "Read it yourself."

My hands shook as I opened the folder. Page after page of evidence. Accounts I had never seen. Money I had never touched. Transactions I had never made. All with my signature. All traceable back to me.

"Oh god." The papers slipped from my fingers. "He was going to send me to prison."

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because you know too much. Because you are a liability. Because men like your father only care about themselves." Jackson picked up the papers and put them back in the folder. "But you are legally my wife now. My lawyers can prove you had no knowledge of any illegal activity. They cannot touch you."

I looked up at him. This man I barely knew. This killer. This monster. He had just saved my life.

"Why are you doing this?"

He was quiet for a long moment. When he finally spoke, his voice was rough. "Because someone should have saved my mother. And no one did."

The words hung in the air between us.

"What happened to her?"

"My father beat her for fifteen years. And when she finally tried to leave, he killed her. Made it look like an accident." His eyes were haunted. "I was twelve. I watched him do it. And I was too weak to stop him."

My chest tightened. "Jackson—"

"I swore that day I would never let it happen again. Never stand by while someone suffered." He looked at me. "So yeah, I married you without asking. I dragged you out of that clubhouse. I made decisions for you. And I would do it all again. Because you are alive. And that matters more than your consent."

The brutal honesty stole my breath.

"I am not your mother."

"No. You are stronger. You just do not know it yet." He walked toward the stairs. "Get some rest. Tomorrow we tell both clubs we are already married. It is going to get ugly."

"Jackson." He stopped. "Thank you. For saving me."

He looked back at me, and something shifted in his expression. Something almost soft.

"Do not thank me yet, Lisa. You are out of one cage. But you are in another one now. Mine. And I am not letting you go. Ever."

He went upstairs, leaving me alone.

I sank onto the couch, my mind racing.

Jackson Kane had saved me from my father. Protected me. Given me freedom I had never had.

But his last words echoed in my head.

I am not letting you go. Ever.

I had escaped my father's prison.

Only to find myself locked in Jackson's.