Page 12 of Burned in Stone
I think about Cash last night at the hospital. The way he’d pulled me onto his lap when I said I wasn’t family, the fierce protectiveness in his voice when he told me I belonged. The way he’d held baby Rose’s tiny fist and looked at me like he was seeing our future.
A future I can’t have. Not because I don’t deserve it, but because Gabriel won’t allow it.
“It’s not about fair,” I say, my throat tight. “It’s about keeping him and the club safe.” It’s the truth, but not the whole truth. The rest of it—the part I can barely admit to myself—is that I’m so tired of fighting. I’m so tired of looking over my shoulder, of jumping every time my phone rings, of wondering if this is the day Gabriel finds a new way to hurt me. And Cash? He represents everything I want and everything I can never have. Because the moment I let myself have him, Gabriel will know. And he’ll take him away. That’s what he does.
“Forgive me for pointing out the obvious, dear. But isn’t it a bit late for that? You’ve said yourself that the club is the reason you came to Stoneheart, why you took that job in the first place.”
“I know.” I sink onto the bench across from her, suddenly exhausted. “I thought I could just... blend in. Stay on the fringes—just close enough to feel safe.”
Mrs. Yu gives a soft, sad smile that makes my insides ache. “Oh, my sweet girl. A flame like you doesn’t blend in. You burn.” She gestures vaguely in the direction of the street, toward where Cash’s bike had been parked. “And that man? He’s pure gasoline.”
I let out a heavy sigh. She’s right. I’ve been a fool, thinking I could hide on the edge of a bunch of outlaws without getting pulled into the danger zone. I wasn’t blending. I was just waiting for the inevitable explosion.
“Last night was a mistake,” I say finally, the words tasting sour. I lift my eyes to meet hers. “I shouldn’t have…” My words trail off and Mrs. Yu’s expression softens.
“Liking a man isn’t a mistake, Mercy.”
“Letting him touch me is,” I snap, immediately regretting the sharpness in my tone. “Letting him think he has a claim. Gabriel... he doesn’t share. He never did. If he finds out about Cash, he won’t see a rival to be beaten. He’ll see a threat to be eliminated.” His cold, methodical rage flashes through my mind. I shudder despite the room’s humid warmth. “I have to end it.”
I’ve tried to be free. I’ve tried to build something new. But every time—every time—Gabriel finds a way in. A lawyer calling my phone. A PI showing up at my door asking questions. That ‘welfare check’ last month where an Ailington cop just happened to be in the same place I was. He’s never going to let me go. And the worst part? I thought I could outrun him. I thought putting hundreds of miles between us would be enough. But it’s not. It’snever enough. And bringing Cash into this? That’s not freedom. That’s just giving Gabriel another weapon to use against me.
Mrs. Yu studies me for a long moment. “So you’re going to push this young man, thisCash,away?”
I nod, chewing on the edge of my thumbnail as certainty takes over. “I have to.” The decision feels like ripping off a Band-Aid. “I let myself forget for a few minutes there. But it’s the right thing to do.”
“The right thing is rarely the easy thing, dear.” She folds a dishtowel with a final, crisp snap of fabric. “But sometimes, running away from a good man because you’re afraid of a bad one... that isn’t right, either. It’s just fear.”
She gathers up the basket of folded laundry and heads into the backroom, leaving me alone to process her words.
It’s just fear.
Easy for her to say. She doesn’t know what it’s like to never be far enough away—to change your number four times and still hear his voice, to build a new life that can vanish with one phone call. That isn’t fear. It’s reality. It’s a reminder that freedom and safety aren’t the same thing.
Being near the club has kept me safe so far. Stoneheart’s reputation makes most people think twice before entering their territory and asking questions, and for a while, that was enough. But gettinginvolvedwith one of them? That’s different. Men like Gabriel don’t care about lines or consequences. If he finds out, he’ll quit caring about appearances. He’ll use his connections and make it his mission to tear the club apart just to get to me—and even men as resourceful as the MC wouldn’t be able to stop him.
My phone buzzes on the folding table, and my blood runs cold.
But when I check it, it’s just a text from Kya asking if I can cover an extra shift this week.
The relief is temporary. Every unexpected call, every sudden knock at the door, every stranger who lingers too long at the bar—they’re all reminders that my past is always there, always watching.
By the time I drag myself upstairs to get ready for my shift, I’ve convinced myself. This is compassion—protecting Cash, protecting the club. The apartment feels smaller now, more motel than home. I pull on my jeans and rehearse the lie I’ll give him,Cash.Last night was a mistake.
It’ll hurt to say it, but better that than watching Gabriel turn the man I care about into collateral damage. I left to be free. But freedom doesn’t mean safe. It just means running alone.
6
MERCY
Three Months Later
The last customer stumbles out of Devil’s Bar at two-thirteen in the morning. I flip the lock with a satisfying click. My feet are screaming, my back aches, and I’m pretty sure I’ll smell like beer and whiskey until I die, but there’s something peaceful about a bar after closing. It’s like the building itself takes a deep breath and relaxes.
“Finally,” I mutter, kicking off my heels and sighing as my bare feet hit the sticky floor. “These things are instruments of torture.”
“Could’ve worn sensible shoes.” Cash’s voice comes from behind the bar where he’s already started counting the till. Because of course he is.
It’s been three months since that night at the hospital when baby Rose was born. Three months since we played strip poker in this very bar and nearly crossed a line I’ve been too scared to approach since.
