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They didn’t wave back

I perched on the top step of my porch as they pulled to a stop and flicked out their kickstands Ky sot tohere?”

I hugged Ky He held on a little too long It eird I pulled back, curious, only for hi around my ranch I was about to ask hiave

“Hey, Styx How’re Mae and Buraced Styx’s lips

“Good,” he signed, but my attention snapped back to Ky when my brother said, “Get inside, sis We need to talk”

He grabbed uided me forcefully up the porch steps “Hey!” I said He pulled harder, not releasing my arm “Hey! Dickhead!” I wrenched my arm back I turned on my heel to ?”

“For once in your fucking life, will you just do as I say, Sia?” Ky said, exasperated His face was redin fact, so were his eyes

I crossed ? Why are your eyes all bloodshot? Why do you look like shit?” I shookme like a damn child?”

Ky sighed His eyes closed, and he opened his mouth to speak But then he didn’t

Styx cleared his throat “Been a stressful time lately”

“Why?” I asked, immediately panicked “Is Lilah okay? Grace?” I quickly checked my brother over for wounds, orhell, I didn’t knohat else What the hell trouble bikers could get into “Are you okay?”

My heart started pounding, soh my body like a poison Ky opened his eyes and nodded “Everyone’s fine” But I could see through his pretense I was just about to call bullshit when Ky blurted, “Garcia’s back”

I was sure the as blowing, because I saw strands ofin front ofso I was meant to hear, yet to my ears, he made no sound I was lost to thefloorboards as they approached eddownat my ear as he caressed my burned flesh As—

“Sia!” Ky was holdinged my throat I blinked fast to rid the flood of tears from my eyes “Sia,” he repeated, softer this time I stared at my brother, wordlessly “Get inside”

I let hilass of whiskey appeared in my hand a second later, courtesy of Styx I knocked it back in one, relishing the burning feeling that filled lass on the coffee table and turned to look

at Ky

“You better?”

“Yeah,” I said “He’she’s found me?” My voice was choked I couldn’t have hidden my fear even if I’d wanted to

“Not yet,” Ky assured an to pace “Soo, and Garcia was involved Fucker saw me and Styx” Ky met Styx’s eyes Styx nodded Ky removed an envelope from the pocket of his cut He placed it before me I stared at the obviously expensive stationery on the table My hands shook as I slowly reached forward and opened it A Polaroid picture peeped out When I finally pulled the picture out and turned it to face me, every ounce of blood in my veins seemed to drain to my feet

A single black rose

A black rose, on a bed I recognized so well

There was no note No explanation But I didn’t need one This ie spoke more than a thousand words ever could

“Mi rosa negra,” the echo of his voice whispered inaround the words like a delicate silk scarf wrapped around a thorn-studded vine

All of the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end “Where?” I cleared my throat “Where was this sent to?”

“The club” Ky slumped to sit beside me “Don’t like the cryptic shit”—he pointed to the Polaroid—“but I know that it’s his brand or soirls he traffics?” I instinctively ranmy shoulder, where the small black rose tattoo had once desecrated ertips, out of sight but never gone And if I ever dared show my bare skin to the sun, a white outline would form as the area around it tanned Erased, yet forever seared into my very flesh

Worse still, the longer I stared at that picture, the more someone else flickered to my mind, a face I reflexively recalled several tiht have happened to her But only ever enough to taunt me; I didn’t kno to mentally unlock the rest Where she was—