“You’re right,” Brooks says to Bruno, forcing the ire from his voice, “You’ve got the gun. You’re the boss.”
“Fucking right I am,” Bruno roars, pressing the piece more firmly against my skull.
“Do you have demands?” Brooks presses, holding up a firm hand to keep Agent Mitchell from protesting.
“Demands?” Bruno blinks, the wheels of his brain spinning. “Yeah...Sure. Demands. I’ve got some.”
“Well...What are they?” Mitchell asks, blindly following Brooks’ lead.
“Lay them out for us,” Brooks urges.
“I...I’m, uh...” Bruno stammers. The strain of thinking through his trigger-happy haze is getting to him.
“Come on, anything you want,” Brooks pushes. “Anything at all in the whole world. Anything that will keep you from hurting the woman I love.”
The “L” word does it. Bruno’s shock at hearing a badass biker sling “love” loosens his hold on me, just the tiniest bit. I gather every ounce of strength in my slight body, reverting back to my days of self-defense training at Quantico. I was the best in my class back then. We’ll see if that pays off now.
I grab hold of Bruno’s wrist and twist hard, hearing the joint crunch as his gun goes flying. An agonized yowl rips out of his throat as I cock my elbow and send it barreling into his sizable gut. I seize the bulky agent by the shoulders, draw back my knee, and slam it into his crotch. His voice cuts out in a ragged gargle as he topples onto the ground before me.
“That,” I gasp, staring down at the fallen giant, “is for Belle, you maniacal prick.”
At once, the swarm of law enforcement officers descend upon Jeff Bruno, cuffing and hauling him away to an armored van. He’s too stunned to form words, but the look he shoots me is one of pure hatred. But I can’t give too much of a shit, where Bruno’s hurt feelings are concerned. Steadying myself against my beloved Mustang, I turn back to Brooks.
In a heartbeat, he’s closed the space between us and scooped me up in his arms. The adrenaline that’s been pumping through me drains out at once. I feel myself begin to tremble uncontrollably, going loose and limp in Brooks arms. He hugs me tightly against his body, the musky smell of his leather cut filling my senses. I blink back tears of joyful relief as Brooks rains kisses down on every inch of me he can reach.
“I thought I was going to lose you,” he breathes, lifting my face to his.
“Lose me?” I say softly, finally finding my footing again, “Not a chance, Brooks.”
I bring my lips fiercely to his, throwing my arms around his shoulders. The taste of him—sweeter than ambrosia, smoother than the finest whiskey—revitalizes me. I feel more alive than ever before, just moments after being a hair’s breadth away from death.
Go figure.
“You really must love me, to say so in front of all these fine gentlemen,” I laugh, nodding toward the bikers and cops behind us.
“I guess I really must,” Brooks smiles down at me, his scruffy face breaking into a radiant smile.
I peer over his shoulder at the unlikely scene playing out behind us. Mitchell and Declan are standing toe-to-toe, with their respective armies behind them. As Brooks and I look on, they extend their hands toward each other and shake. Now I’ve officially seen everything.
“Agent Collins, are you OK?” Mitchell calls, beckoning me over.
“I’m fine,” I tell him, striding across the hillside with Brooks next to me. “All in a day’s work, right boss?”
“What you did was incredibly brave,” Mitchell says, shaking his head. “You should be proud of yourself, Collins. Very proud.”
“I know I am,” Brooks says, slipping his arm around my waist.
Mitchell opens his mouth to speak, but lets out a surprised yelp instead as two lithe bodies knock him aside on their way toward me. Brooks steps back as Kassie and Kelly wrap me up in their arms, appearing from out of nowhere.
“You guys!” I exclaim, looking wildly between them, “What are you doing here?!”
“We were hiding behind the guys,” Kassie gasps.
“What, you think we were gonna let them go without us?” Kelly scoffs. “Not on your life. Well...almost on your life, I guess.”
“You guys are insane,” I laugh, throwing my arms around them.
“Takes one to know one, sister,” Kelly winks.
“Take your time, Collins,” Mitchell tells me, “I think you’ve earned a few tearful hellos. I’m going to need you back at the field office ASAP, though. We need to get to the Lorenzo’s before they know what’s coming.”
“Think you can finally take them down now?” Declan asks, coming forward to stand beside Kassie.
“Maybe,” Mitchell nods, “as good a chance as any, at least.”
“And all we had to do was get infiltrated by a mole first,” Leo says, cocking an eyebrow at me.
I swallow hard, looking around at the assembled brothers. This whole time, I’ve been hoping that saving the clubs from Bruno would be enough to absolve me in their eyes. But what if they’re still angry with me?
“I’m sorry everyone,” I say, taking Brooks’ hand in mine, “I know you must be furious. But I assure you—”
“Furious? We never had anything to hide.” Declan says, stealing a glance at Leo. “Not to mention, you just delivered the Lorenzo family to the FBI on a silver platter. We should be throwing you a fucking party.”
“There’s a thought!” Kelly says excitedly.
“I’ll see you back at the office,” Mitchell says, shaking his head. “Your methods may be unconventional, but damn if you don’t get results, Agent Collins.”
I wrap my arm around Brooks’ waist as the law enforcement officers disperse, leaving me alone the Wraiths and Nine once more. We wait until the last cop car has disappeared over the hill before erupting into celebratory cheers. We’ve shaken off Bruno and the Lorenzo Family, at long last. Well, at least for now. But as exciting as this moment is, I can’t help but be a little nervous as the club presidents and VPs look me over.
“At some point,” Mac says, crossing his arms, “we’re going to have to talk about this whole undercover FBI agent business.”
“Is that some point...right now?” I ask, tightening my grip on Brooks.
“Are you kidding?” laughs John Baxter. “Right now, we need to book it back to the Forty Five Club and buy you a celebratory drink.”