Page 38 of Vengeance

Chloe frowned. "That wasn't there before?"

"No." Doc's jaw tightened. "It had to have been delivered today."

Vengeance slowly set his coffee down. "Open it." Doc did. Inside was a single sheet of paper and nothing else. His expression darkened as he read it.

"What is it?" Chloe asked. He handed the page to Vengeance instead. The moment Vengeance's eyes landed on it, every trace of color disappeared from his face. His hand tightened until the paper crumpled.

"What does it say?" Chloe reached for it. He hesitated and then reluctantly handed it over. Her heart stopped when she read the two sentences.

You can hide the girl. You can't hide the rest of her family.

At the bottom, in elegant black ink, was a familiar signature.

—Dante Manzo

Chloe's hands began to shake. "My family.” She looked up at Vengeance. "What’s going to happen to my dad, my brothers and sisters, and my mom?” Terror flooded her chest. "They're going to Huntsville."

“How did they know that we’re here?” Vengeance asked.

“They must have followed us, somehow,” Doc said. “Dante has connections, money, and men everywhere.”

Vengeance was already struggling to his feet despite the pain, and Doc immediately stepped in front of him. "You're not going anywhere."

"I have to,” Vengeance insisted.

"No, you don’t,” Doc spat. “I just patched you up, and if you tear out your stitches, I’ll kick your ass.”

"If Dante can't get to Chloe, he’ll go after Bowie and her family.” His voice turned deadly quiet, and silence fell over the cabin because every one of them knew the same thing. Dante had just changed the rules of the game. This was no longer aboutcapturing Chloe. It had become a war against everyone Savage had ever loved.

"No." The word slipped from Chloe's lips before she even realized she'd spoken. "No." She said it again, louder this time. She pictured Dallas trying to keep eleven terrified kids calm while Bowie paced the clubhouse with a gun in his hand. They'd already buried Savage, and now Dante wanted to make sure they never recovered. Her chest tightened until it hurt to breathe.

"I'm going home,” she breathed.

Doc looked at her like she'd lost her mind. "No, you're not."

"I have to,” she insisted.

"You'll be dead before you cross the state line,” Doc said.

"I don't care."

Vengeance spun around to face her, nearly losing his balance. "I care." His voice was quiet but steady. "You don't get to throw your life away."

She laughed bitterly. "My family's in danger!"

"And if you go home, you’ll be giving Dante exactly what he wants,” Vengeance said. “He wants you running scared so that he can get to you.”

She spun toward him. "He threatened my mother!"

"I know."

"My little brothers and sisters, too!"

"I know." His voice cracked through the cabin, silencing everyone. For a heartbeat, nobody moved. Vengeance dragged a hand down his face before speaking again, his voice much softer now. "I know exactly what he's doing."

"Then how can you just stand here and do nothing?" she asked.

“I want to go back home just as much as you do,” he said. “But Doc is right—it’s not safe.”