Page 90 of Knight With Benefits

“I regret every interaction with them. Their type would be bad enough on their own, but having the Purists to band them together makes things worse. We’ve been lucky so far, but I have a feeling adding another to the body count between us is going to cause problems.”

There was still a crowd of Knights around us, as well as some of the patrons from the bar who’d come out, so I couldn’t see how bad the mess was. I had no doubt the one who’d tried to cut Knox’s throat was dead, but I wasn’t sure if I’d seen all of the others leave.

“Should I call Tucker?”

Tucker was our cleaner when we couldn’t leave the bodies where they fell. I doubted David would appreciate having to deal with the blood on his doorstep himself, especially since some of it was his. None of us wanted the cops coming to The Hangout and possibly getting nosy, so the body and the car still sitting at the end of the building had to go.

“Already done. Patch is on his way to fix up Knox and Jason, so you should go to your mate.”

A weight lifted from my chest knowing I wouldn’t have to wait any longer to reassure Gwyn and soothe the anxiety I could feel from her.

“And what about yours?”

Sebastian’s lips ticked up as he huffed.

“Danger and I are right behind you.”

Chapter Forty-Three

Gwyn

My stomach twisted, threatening to empty what little was left in it on the floor of the church. Having the bond and feeling the waves of anger was almost worse than not knowing what was going on, the sudden calm through the bond raising the hairs along the back of my neck.

Was it over?

Was everyone okay?

I watched Brooke pace across the space in front of the pews, the far off look in her eyes telling me she was paying attention to what she was getting through her bond as well. Her expression was calm, but her quick steps made it obvious she was just as worried.

Charity had come to sit next to me, while Blake leaned against the closed door our mates had disappeared through, and Patch kept his spot behind us. None of us had spoken, and I finally broke.

“I’m so sorry for causing all this.”

Brooke paused in her pacing while Charity reached over and took my hand.

“It’s not your fault. The Purists are the problem.”

I lifted one shoulder, not sure I could accept her assurance.

“Even if my son wasn’t involved with them, he’d have been causing problems.”

She patted the back of my hand.

“And the guys still would have done the same. They don’t let those weaker than them be taken advantage of. It does hurt more when it’s someone in your family though.”

She grimaced as if she had personal experience of being hurt by family, and I wondered what the story behind that was. It seemed like everyone associated with the Hell’s Knights had their own story and trauma, yet they’d still come together and supported each other.

My heart ached, wishing the same could have been said of my actual family. My first mate had been abusive, controlling, and was thankfully dead. My eldest son was following in his father’s footsteps despite seeing the pain it caused. My youngest wanted nothing more than to escape and move on with his life without us. Instead of pulling together, we’d fallen apart, and I couldn’t see a way to fix it.

“Even without us, the Purists and the Knights would be clashing. We might have been catalysts, but we aren’t the reason they’re fighting,” Brooke added.

I wasn’t sure what to say to these two women who were younger than me but seemed wise beyond their years. It was sad when the world we lived in meant the young didn’t have a chance to be wild and carefree anymore. I wasn’t sure there had ever been a time when omegas could be carefree.

Falling back into silence, we waited until we spotted Patch rise from where he’d been sitting and move towards the door. He said something to Blake, who stepped aside and let him out before I thought to ask where he was going, or if he’d gotten a message about what was going on. Knowing he was their medic didn’t help my anxiety.

I sat with my hands clenched in my lap until I couldn’t take it anymore, standing just as I heard a fainty rumble. Freezing, I held my breath and strained to hear until I was sure the only thing it could be was approaching motorcycles.

When I walked toward the door, Brooke and Charity fell into step behind me, all three of us confronting the alpha blocking the exit.

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