Page 10 of Beast
Chapter Four
Beast sat behind thescarred wooden desk in his office, the thick scent of motor oil and smoke still clinging to the walls.
The Iron Sentinels clubhouse was quiet for now, the lull before another storm.Gunner sat across from him, leaning back in the chair, boots propped up on the edge of the desk like he owned the place.Beast tolerated it—barely.
They’d just finished going over the latest runs, talking numbers, patches, and club politics.But Beast could tell by the way Gunner kept glancing at the door that there was more coming.Something heavier.
“You gonna spit it out or keep pretending you’re just here for the whiskey?”Beast grumbled, pushing his chair back and folding his arms.
Gunner sighed and sat up straighter.“I asked Techie to dig into Pixie’s past.”
Beast’s jaw tensed.“You what?”
“I did it because I knew you wouldn’t,” Gunner said calmly.“And because if she’s dragging heat our way, we need to know what we’re dealing with.”
Beast’s fists clenched on the arms of his chair.“That wasn’t your call.”
“No,” Gunner agreed.“But I’d make the same one again.”
Before Beast could say something he’d regret, there was a knock on the door.Techie peeked his head in, glasses slipping down his nose, laptop in hand.
“Got what you asked for,” he said, stepping in.
Beast gestured for him to shut the door and speak.
Techie opened his laptop and turned it around, the screen already on a series of files and mug shots.“Her name’s real.Pixie Marlowe.No criminal record, but her name came up in a sealed investigation out of Red Rock County about seven months ago.”
Beast leaned forward, his interest piqued despite his annoyance.
“Her brother, Matt Marlowe, died a year ago,” Techie continued.“Military vet, good guy by all accounts.But here’s where it gets messy.Matt’s best friend, Bradley Cole—he’s bad news.Connected to a couple of shady ops, nothing ever stuck.But there’s chatter on the dark boards now.Rumors he’s looking for someone, asking quiet questions, greasing hands.Doesn’t say her name, but the description?It’s Pixie.”
Beast felt something cold settle in his gut.
“There was an incident,” Techie added, voice a little quieter now.“Unconfirmed, but someone said Brad killed a guy in front of a witness.Right around the time Pixie disappeared.”
The room fell silent.
Beast sat back in his chair slowly, the weight of the information pressing down on his chest like a goddamn boulder.The image of her flashed in his mind—small and pale, curled up in the corner of the warehouse, too tired to run, too scared to breathe.She never told him the truth.Not all of it.But now he understood the fear in her eyes, the way she never let her guard down even when she smiled.
“Why didn’t she say anything?”Beast muttered, more to himself than anyone.
“Maybe she thought you’d throw her out,” Gunner said.“Or maybe she figured you’d go looking for blood.”
Beast didn’t answer.He felt a bitter taste rise in his mouth.It wasn’t just anger—it was the realization that he’d let himself grow attached to someone with a target on her back.And still, even with that knowledge, his first instinct wasn’t to push her away.It was to protect her.
“She’s got every reason to be running,” Techie said.“But I don’t think she’s the kind of girl to stay on the move forever.”
Beast closed his eyes for a moment, rubbing a hand over his beard.
“I’ll handle it,” he said finally, voice low and steady.
Gunner gave him a look but didn’t argue.
