Page 54 of Silent as Sin
We followed down the short hall and into the office. The room was cramped, scarred desk shoved against a wall, a couple wooden chairs, and old filing cabinets. Crusher was already there, leaning on steel, arms folded, eyes flat. Chaos shut the door behind us. The lock clicked, and the air went heavier.
Warden stepped to the desk, not showing an ounce of weakness. “We’re here about Bones.”
Vandal’s eyes narrowed. “One of my brothers. Watch how you tread.”
“No disrespect,” Warden said, even. “But Bones wasn’t clean under Venom. He was Venom’s right hand in filth even you wanted no part in. You remember what that was, poison that stains anyone who touches it.”
Vandal’s jaw ticked. Crusher didn’t move, but his focus sharpened.
“And now,” Warden went on, “he’s circling The Devil’s House. That makes him our problem. Could make it yours if he drags your patch into it.”
Vandal leaned back slow, but his stare stayed cutting. “You accusing me of hiding him?”
I cut in, my voice hard. “He’s been sniffing around what belongs to us. That’s not just personal —that’s our patch. Bones keeps pressing, he’s not poking at one man, he’s poking at The Devil’s House. You think we’ll let that slide?”
Chaos bristled, shoulders rolling like he was ready to swing. “Careful. You don’t walk into our house and start throwing threats.”
I leaned forward, blood hot. “Not a threat. A promise.”
The silence hit jagged. Heavy. Like the whole room was waiting to see who’d move first.
Finally Vandal spoke. “We haven’t seen him. Not in weeks.”
“That doesn’t track,” I said. “Bones doesn’t just vanish.”
Vandal’s stare never left Warden. “You’re right about one thing. Venom’s filth was poison. I didn’t let my men touch it then, and I won’t now. If Bones is still crawling in it, he’s on his own. Don’t mistake my silence for cover.”
Crusher uncrossed his arms, his voice calm but cut through. “If Bones comes back through our territory, he won’t like what he finds. We keep our borders clean of the flesh trade. Always.”
No bluff. No wasted words. Even Chaos shut up.
Warden gave one sharp nod. “That’s enough. We’ll handle ours. Just make sure he doesn’t confuse your distance for protection.”
Vandal didn’t blink. “Keep your leash tight. You lose control of your side, don’t expect me to clean it up.”
That was the line. No handshake. No brotherhood. Just a wall between us and them.
Back in the main room, noise crashed over us, music blaring, voices loud, laughter edged like blades. The women were gone. Dragons leaned in the shadows, arms crossed, eyes cold. No one smiled. No one blinked.
Crusher lingered in the doorway, his stare finding mine. “If Bones is after something you care about,” he said solid as stone, “end it fast. Men like Bones don’t stop until they’re in the ground.” Then he turned back inside, swallowed by the room.
Engines roared to life around us as we mounted up. The desert stretched endless ahead, heat shimmering on the blacktop.
But the knot in my chest didn’t ease.
If Bones hadn’t been seen in weeks, it didn’t mean he was gone. It meant he was planning, and I’d left Wren right in his path.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
THROTTLE KEPT TOhimself, the kind of companythat didn’t press or pry. He sat in a chair across from me, boots up on the table, eyes half on the TV. Some old action movie, gunfire and roaring engines, but he wasn’t really watching. He was there for one reason, to keep me safe.
I curled on the couch with a book open in my lap. The words wouldn’t stick. Every time I tried to follow the story, my mind drifted back to Ashen. To last night. To the way his arms had held me tight, his voice soft and rough in the dark, saying how much I meant to him.
A warmth spread in my chest that wasn’t just safety. It was dangerous, raw, the possibility of something I’d never let myself hope for after Venom.
The restlessness finally won. I closed the book. “Bathroom.”
Throttle gave me a quick glance, then back to the screen. “The one in the hall. I’ll be right here.”
