Page 9 of Spinner's Luck

“You think Dragon Fire had her?”

“I don’t think,” she said firmly. “I know. And I know your club got her out.”

I studied her face, looking for cracks in her armor. Coming here wasn’t easy for her, that much was obvious. But the bigger question was how she knew about anything tied to us.

“If we did,” I said carefully, “how did you find out, and why should we trust you?”

She let out a sharp, humorless laugh. “Relax, Spinner. I’m not a spy, and I sure as hell don’t work for those assholes. Just let me talk to Zeynep.”

Her eyes flashed, daring me to argue, but there was a vulnerability buried beneath the defiance.

I wanted to press her, to demand answers about why she was tangled up in this mess to begin with, but something in her gaze stopped me. Whatever she wasn’t saying, it could wait. At least now we had a name—Zeynep. An unusual name, one I hadn’t heard before.

“Come with me,” I said, my hand holding her arm as if that could keep her from disappearing again.

I turned and headed back toward the clubhouse, Lucy at my side. My mind raced as fast as my pulse.

If she was here for Zeynep, she’d have to talk to Devil first. And if Lucy had ties to Dragon Fire—even indirectly—this was going to get messy. Fast.

CHAPTER FIVE

LUCY SAT STIFFLYin the chair in Devil’s office,her posture ramrod straight, her eyes darting around the room like she expected someone to jump out of the shadows. The light from the overhead fixture cast stark angles across Devil’s face as he stood across from her, arms crossed over his broad chest, his expression carved from stone.

“So, we meet again,” Devil said, his deep, cutting voice slicing through the tension hanging thick in the room. “You’re here about the woman we found.”

“Yes.” Lucy’s voice sounded relaxed, but I caught the slight tremor in her hands as she gripped the armrests. “I know you have her, and I need to see her. She’s my friend.”

Devil raised an eyebrow, the motion so subtle it was almost imperceptible. “And how do we know you’re not working with Dragon Fire?”

Lucy’s eyes narrowed, her jaw tightening. “I don’t work with sick, abusive pigs.”

The corner of Devil’s mouth twitched, though it wasn’t amusement that lit his eyes. “Maybe not. Or maybe this is all a setup.”

“She saved my life,” I said, stepping forward without thinking, my voice firm but careful. Interrupting Devil was walking a thin line, and we all knew how much he hated it. He was the only one in the club who knew I’d met Lucy before the fire, and I had no idea how much of that he was going to let slide.

Devil’s cold gaze shifted to me, his expression unreadable. “And that’s supposed to mean something? Trust isn’t earned with one good deed, Spinner. She lied about knowing anything about Dragon Fire—or you—when I questioned her after your attack.”

“No,” I admitted, holding his gaze. “But it means we should hear her out.”

Lucy shot me a look that could’ve cut glass. Her lips pressed into a thin line, and I could tell she wasn’t thrilled to hear me say I didn’t completely trust her. Tough. The stakes were too high for blind faith.

“I’m not a threat to your club,” Lucy said, her voice firm despite the flicker of vulnerability in her eyes. “I’m just worried about Zeynep. She can vouch for me.”

Devil stared at her for a long moment, the silence dragging out until even I started to feel the weight of it. Then he let out a low sigh and nodded. “Fine. You can see her. After that, we’ll talk more. But until I know for damn sure you’re not a threat, you’re not leaving this clubhouse.”

Lucy’s head snapped up, her eyes blazing. “What?”

“You heard me,” Devil said, his tone flat and final. “Spinner, she’s your responsibility. If she so much as breathes wrong, it’s on you.”

“Got it,” I said, swallowing a chuckle at Lucy’s reaction. I glanced at her, but she refused to look at me, her jaw set, stubborn as ever. She hated being told what to do, I knew that much. But she was lucky to get even this from Devil.

“Welcome to the Devil’s House,” Devil said with a smirk, stepping back as Lucy and I turned to leave the room.

The door clicked shut behind us, and Lucy let out a tense breath, her fists clenching at her sides. “You can’t just keep me here.”

“Looks like we can,” I said, leaning casually against the wall, trying to diffuse the tension. Her glare, sharp enough to cut a man down, only made my smirk widen.

“This isn’t over,” she snapped, her fire flaring bright and unapologetic.

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