Page 41 of Where Sinners Repent

“So grumpy,” Maddy croons.

Ash’s eyes immediately soften when they land on her.

“Sorry, Angel. Big day,” he glances over at me and Kai, as Kai closes the door behind us.

The rowdiness fades as soon as I step into the room.

Ash gestures to the chair next to him, pulling Maddy onto his lap. “Sit.”

I lower myself into the one beside them, Kitty resting on my leg. Kai remains standing behind me like a bodyguard, arms folded across his chest.

“Tell us what’s going on, Roxy,” he murmurs, staring at me through his lashes.

The words are right there, but they become lodged in my throat. Each fighting their way to get out.

Maddy leans over to grip my hand. It gives me enough strength to start.

“My brother called me.” I swallow, waiting for one of them to fill the thick silence. But they don’t. All eyes are on me, questioning. “My brothers...” I swallow again. Fuck, I need a drink and twenty-four-hour nap. “They aren’t good people. The people they hang around aren’t good people.”

Tears burn my eyes.

“I was one of them.”

Lifting my, I expose a mess of a tattoo. From the first glance, it looks like a callalily. But when you look closer, you notice the scythe peeking through. The mask of wraith.

Maddy inhales sharply, squeezing my hand tighter.

My lip trembles.

“They were only grunts, I assume. Doing the dirty jobs of breaking and entering. Sometimes selling drugs in clubs. Nothing big. And I was never there for any of that. I barely know anything about the Wraiths, to be honest.”

My next breath shudders.

“They... they kept me at home. I was there... for them. Their friends. Other than that, I did some tattoos. Men would visit to get their tattoos redone.”

Anger flashes across Ash’s face. Sadness etches over Maddy’s.

“But it’s okay,” I reassure her. “I got out. Three years ago I ran and never looked back. But they’ve found me. I thought that being in another territory would help.” The next words come out as a whisper. “But still, they found me.”

Ash’s lips purse. “Roxy, the territories would have continued to protect you if it wasn’t for recent events,” he bites out. “I’m sorry that they didn’t do as they should've.”

I nod, but the words don’t make sense to me.

“Do you remember when I got hurt?” Maddy pries.

I nod again.

“Well, that night, it spurred a lot of animosity between other clubs. Some who think we’re in the wrong. Right now, the Devils are as vulnerable as they’ve ever been. That’s why your brothers seem to think it’s okay to wander into our territory.”

I swallow. This is bigger than I could have imagined.

“He did say things have changed,” I murmur, a shiver coiling down my spine. “But what does he want with me?”

Ash’s face twists into a form of viciousness that makes me nervous. “Maybe we should find out.”

Even Maddy looks confused.

“You agree to meet them.”