Cocky Secrets (Cocker Brothers #29)

20. Sage

TWENTY

Sage

“ S cream,” Briar whispers in my ear.

I blink and pull back to look at Briar’s ruthless face to find his eyes softer than they were.

“I’m not going to hurt you. Your father did me a solid and I’m here to repay it.”

My tilted head is my unspoken question, What did he do?

Briar whispers, “He set my sister free. She’s got a good life now. I need you to scream like I’m hurting you…or they will.”

I let out a scream that would put horror movies to shame. It causes a ripple of disgusting laughter outside. The door starts to open and Briar kicks it shut, shouts, “Do I sound done to you?”

More laughter.

He locks eyes with me, darkness wrapping around us. I’ve got so many questions and no way to ask them. What I don’t know about The Ciphers missions could fill up this whole warehouse and ten more like it. They keep the darkest stuff from me, but from the feel of The Spiders, I can guess the worst about Briar’s sister. A bit of hope has seeped into my heart that I have an ally on the inside. As he nods, I scream again, and begin to beg like he’s hurting me, “Please stop! Please no! What are you doing! No!!!” Another blood curdling scream.

More laughter.

None try to come in again.

Briar punches his own leg to make it sound like a fist hitting skin. Again and again, he punches himself, his chest, his thigh, and I cry out every time like it’s me weathering the blows.

Briar holds his finger to his mouth, telling me to stay quiet. He waits a moment and we stare at each other. He walks outside and I hear him say, “She’s out. I’ll keep watch in here. You?—”

Then, it happens. A door somewhere bursts open, and in explodes The Ciphers. I recognize their voices, hear my father shout, “Where’s my daughter!” his voice thunderous.

Briar rushes in, grabs me and throws me over his shoulder, carrying me out as an offering.

“Get away from her!” Dad shouts,

The Spiders freeze, shock rippling through the room. I see them all, my family, and my eyes go wide as they lock with Bears, who’s in full uniform.

“You brought a cop?!” Soot growls. “You fuckin’ pussys.”

Bear’s fists clench, his muscles taut with rage. Without waiting for a response, he charges forward.

Complete chaos erupts.

The first Spider lunges at Dad, but he dodges, delivering a swift punch that connects with the man’s jaw. The sound of flesh meeting flesh reverberates through the warehouse time and again as the battle between clubs takes off. I watch in awe as The Ciphers move with precision, a whirlwind of strength and fury.

This is what they train for.

Thrown over Briar’s shoulder I watch, still bound, heart pounding as the fight rages. The Ciphers swarm in like a tide taking down The Spiders one by one. I can see deadly determination on each of their faces, the unyielding loyalty they have for me, and I begin to sob.

Atlas charges for me. “Sage!” he yells, face lit up with vengeance. “Hand her over!”

He rushes toward Briar and me, and I can see the adrenaline coursing through him. My captor, my knight, sets me down. “She’s safe.”

“Tell that to the bruise on her face!” Atlas snaps at him, and starts to punch.

I cry out, “No!” causing confusion in Atlas. “Just get these ropes off. Don’t hurt him. I’ll explain later.”

Dad has beaten Soot to a pulp, and Jett and Luna have taken down two guys equal to Soot’s size. The fight continues around us because there are far more Spiders than Ciphers.

Atlas kneels beside me, pulling out a knife, and in one swift movement, the rope falls away from my wrists. Briar is kneeling on the ground, and he’s cut the ones from my ankles. I move my limbs, feel my ankle crack from having been in the same place for too long.

“Are you okay?” Atlas asks, concern etched across his features.

“I’m fine, just—get us all out of here!” My voice is urgent as I rub my sore wrists, adrenaline flooding my body.

Atlas rejoins the fight. Briar and I watch as The Ciphers take the upper hand, their training shining through. My father is a force of nature, taking down another Spider right before he sucker-punched Bear from behind. I can’t help but feel a swell of pride mixed with relief.

“Let’s go!” Briar urges, grabbing my arm and pulling me toward the exit. We weave through the chaos, ducking under swinging fists and flying bodies.

Just as we near the door, I hear a shout behind us. “Get her!” It’s one of The Spiders, anger boiling in his eyes. “Briar, get her outta here before they can take her back!”

His club brother thinks Briar is still on their side, still going to hurt me. I use the cover to rush out, glancing behind me just in time to see Bear grab a metal pipe and swing it at a guy coming after Sean. It connects with The Spider’s side and he crumples to the ground in agony.

We burst through the door and into the headlights of four patrol cars that skid to a stop on the other side of rows of Harleys, sirens tearing through the stillness of the night, dust flying like an ominous cloud. “Police! Put your hands up!”

Briar and I throw up our arms, and because Bear is with my family, I feel confident that the cops are on our side, so I shout, “I’m Sage Martinez! I’m a member of The Ciphers!”

With guns brandished, we’re surrounded, their expressions severe. Seven sets of eyes dart between us and the cacophony of fighting coming from inside, behind us. The cops split up, half of them stalk the entrance, guns at the ready.

“Police! Everyone freeze!”

The warehouse falls silent.

I hear what sounds like a kick, followed by a grunt and Jett saying, “There. Now we’re done.”

“Is everyone okay?” I hear Celia ask, panting.

Bear’s presence changes everything, and the police defer to his words, “We’re all good here. The Spiders are through. Cuff every one of them. You’ll have to carry most of them.”

Relief washes over his face as he appears in the doorframe and spots me. “Sage!”

I rush to him, and feel myself wrapped in his strong arms. “I’m okay! I’m safe! I went to see you! I had to see you! I’m so sorry!”

“I thought I lost you,” he whispers, voice thick with emotion.

“I’m safe. I’m right here. Thank to all of you. And…”

I turn to see Briar getting cuffed, his Spider jacket giving him away as being from the wrong side. A male cop announces, “He was trying to get away with her as captive.”

“No,” I reply, my voice steady now. “He was getting me out of harm’s way.”

Dad peels me out of Bear’s arms and crushes me to him in a hug. “My Sage! Are you alright?” His eyes fire up at the sight of my bruise. “What did they do to you?”

“Just the one punch, Dad.” I look at Briar who shakes his head. “Let him go.”

“No,” Briar mumbles. “I deserve to be with them.”

“But you…”

“He kidnapped you, Sage,” Dad says, like he’s talking to a child.

“He kept me safe. He said… you saved his sister.”

Dad’s eyes narrow on Briar, then clear. “Melissa.”

Briar nods. “That’s right. She…got clean.”

Dad looks at Bear, memories in his eyes. “Let him go.”

One cop argues. “If he’s part of The Spiders gang…”

I straighten my back, voice trembling, “If he hadn’t saved me, I’d have been raped. Probably by several of them!”

Dad demands, “You did that for her?”

Briar frowns on a nod. “But I won’t get the clean life Melissa got.”

Jett explains, “Leaving his club won’t equal freedom. They won’t stop hunting him for this betrayal.”

A female cop says with confidence, “Then let’s make sure they stay behind bars.”

Dad’s gaze sweeps across the silence of Jett and Luna, Tonk Sr., Scythe, my brothers, Soph, Celia and Sean. I know what they’re thinking. With the way the system is, The Spiders will be free faster than any of us want.

More police cars arrive and one by one, The Spiders are cuffed and hauled away. The Ciphers answer questions for the reports, and wait with the unspoken commitment to making sure The Spiders don’t escape.

I watch Briar riding away in the back of a patrol car, and he meets my eyes, giving me a stoic nod. I return it, mouthing, “Thank you.”

The Ciphers gather around Bear and I. And as I look around, I know that nothing can break the bond we share, but I hold my hand out to Bear, “I need your phone number,” because I’m not willing to give him up in order to keep that bond. I can have both. Some way.

My rugged cop smiles, takes me into his arms under The Ciphers’ watchful eyes. “I’ll give you anything you want.”

Under her breath, Sofia Sol mutters, “Good luck keeping them apart now, Honey Badger.”

Bear kisses me and they applaud, a surprise to both of us that makes us smile through the kiss. I pull away to say, “Ciphers, meet my future husband.”

Bear’s eyes go wide and he lets out a laugh that echoes off the entire world.

Dad mumbles, “This wasn’t part of the plan,” under his breath, walking away and pulling out his cell phone, “I’ve gotta call your mother.” After a second, “Meg! We found her! Yes, she’s safe and The Spiders have been taken into custody. But we have a problem. She says she’s marrying the cop. What do I think?” Dad glares at Bear. “I think she couldn’t have picked a better guy.”