Impulsively (Dante's Nine MC) (26 page)

“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.”

“It’s not like we’re unused to secrets, around here,” Kelly
says, looking pointedly at Leo.

“That’s for fucking sure,” he laughs.

“Come on,” Declan says, tugging Kassie playfully toward his bike,
“let’s go.”

One by one, the members of the Devil’s Wraiths and Dante’s
Nine hop back on their Harley’s and take off. Only Brooks and I linger behind,
taking our sweet time. 

“Let’s make a deal that this whole getting-a-gun-pointed-at-you
thing doesn’t become a habit, all right Red?” Brooks says, handing my helmet.

“I’m afraid I can’t make any promises,” I laugh, securing
the half-shell over my hair.

“When he had you there...Babe, I haven’t been scared like
that since I was a kid,” Brooks admits, “I can’t let anything like that happen
to you again. I don’t think I could take it.”

“And what about you?” I ask, circling my arms around his
waist. “You gonna promise to stay out of trouble, too?”

“Come on,” Brooks laughs, “you see what my world is like.
You know I can’t make a promise like that.”

“Then we seem to be at a bit of an impasse,” I smile. “We
live dangerously, Brooks. There’s no way either of us can promise to stay safe.
We’re wired to take risks. The best we can promise is to try our hardest to
keep one step ahead of the game. To make it through.”

“For each other,” Brooks grins, pulling me tightly against
him. “I think I can live with a promise like that. Just as long as I’m still
allowed to beat down any motherfucker that tries to mess with you.”

“You do you, babe,” I laugh reaching up to run my fingers
through his tumbling curls, “But right now, could you just do me a favor and
kiss me?”

“You’ll never have to beg a kiss from me, Red,” Brooks says,
lowering his lips swiftly to mine. It’s a simple, searing kiss—sealing our
promise to live for each other. “Oh, damn...” he mutters, breaking away for a
moment, “Should I start calling you Quinn now? Agent Collins?”

“You know...I think Red’s grown on me,” I smile, “Let’s
stick with it, shall we?”

“Well. Look what the cat dragged in,” grumbles Chuck Jones,
as he opens the door of his office to me.

“Nice to see you again too, Chuck,” I laugh, wrapping my
mentor up in a big old hug.

“I see you managed to not get shot. That’s good,” he
chuckles, giving into my display of affection. “Seriously, Collins. I’m glad
you made it through alright.”

“More than alright,” says Mitchell from across the office.
He crosses the room to shake my hand. “I take it you’ve had some time to
recuperate, Collins?”

I review the past two weeks in my mind. Partying with the
MC’s, screwing Brooks every which way, girl time with Kassie and Kelly...

“Yep. Very restorative time,” I grin. “Just what the doctor
ordered.”

“You’re lucky you didn’t need a real doctor,” Chuck says,
shaking his head. “After that stunt with Bruno...”

“I did what I had to do,” I shrug. “Once I started
suspecting Bruno of foul play, I had to find a way to get a confession. He outranks
me here. There was no way I was going to take him down on my word alone.”

“I can’t believe how blind I was,” Mitchell mutters, “All
through Operation Inferno Bruno was colluding with the Lorenzo’s. And who knows
who else over the course of his career. You think you know a guy...”

“You can’t blame yourself, Agent Mitchell,” I tell him, “I
just had a...different perspective on the matter.”

“I’ll say,” Chuck laughs. “Our resident biker chick.”

“That’s me,” I wink.

“And the MC’s...they don’t hold it against you, the fact
that you were gathering intelligence on them?” Mitchell asks, raising an
eyebrow.

“It’ll take time for me to earn their trust back, but it
paid off in the end,” I shrug, “Assuming, that is, that the Lorenzo Family will
be prosecuted for buying Bruno off?”

“Oh, that they will,” Chuck nods. “We’ve got bank records
from Jeff Bruno that will finally provide some hard evidence against them.”

“And Bruno?” I press, “I assume he’s getting locked up?”

“Fuck yes,” Mitchell nods, “His assault against Ms. Taylor
alone would be enough to put him behind bars. But his actions against the FBI,
against his country...those will keep him locked up for sure.”

“Good,” I say resolutely, “We’re lucky to be rid of him.”

“There’s always one bad seed to spoil the lot,” Chuck says,
“but we’ve weeded him out now, thanks to you.”

“You really think there was just that one bad seed?” I
laugh, “I’m starting to think that things aren’t as black and white as all
that, Jones.”

“We recruit the best people we can,” Mitchell says.

“Of course you do,” I shrug, “But that doesn’t guarantee a
damn thing.”

“What are you saying, Collins?” Jones asks, cocking an
eyebrow at me.

“I’m saying...” I begin, trying to choose my words
carefully. “I’m saying that I may be having a change of heart, concerning my
career.”

I watch as Mitchell and Jones catch my drift. There’s no
delicate way to go about this, I guess. But after all that’s happened to me
over the course of this case, I can’t just go back to my old life here in San
Bernardino.

“Are you saying...you’d like to do something else within the
FBI?” Mitchell asks slowly.

“Not exactly,” I tell him with a bittersweet smile, “I’m
saying I’d like to explore other options...altogether.”

“You want to leave?” Chuck asks. It breaks my heart to hear
the edge of sadness in his voice, “But you just nailed this case, Collins. You
could have any assignment you wanted here. Really make a difference.”

“That’s the thing,” I shrug, “I’m not sure if this is where
I can make the most of my skills. Make the most of my life. I guess I’m just
looking to find the place I’m happiest, gentlemen. And I don’t think that place
is at the FBI.”

“No. It’s in some biker bar or other, right?” Mitchell asks,
surly to be losing a good agent.

“Perhaps,” I shrug, “it remains to be seen. But I’ll never
forgive myself if I don’t at least see what else is out there.”

“We’ll need you to testify against Bruno,” Mitchell says,
back to business at once.

“Oh, gladly,” I smile, “but after that, I’ll be taking an
indefinite leave of absence.”

“What are you going to do in the meantime, other than learn
to shoot pool and ride a Harley?” Chuck asks.

“I’ve been offered a full time position at CrowdedNest,” I
reply. “It’s a good, solid operation they have going there. I think it will do
a lot of people a ton of good. It’ll be nice to do something good for the
world...that doesn’t involve gun fights and maniacal rogue agents.”

“Can’t argue with that logic,” Chuck laughs softly, “but
we’ll miss you around here, Collins. I’ll miss you.”