Promises | ✔️

Chapter 9: Accept Her

DAMIEN POV

I walked back to the cage in a better mood than I was in this morning. Naya Belle Gardner. What a pretty name. Why was I thinking about her? I tried to overlook the thoughts, but I couldn't.

The real reason I had let Naya stay with us was not because Rocco had told me it was best for the gang's secrets or that Violet wanted her to stay. I actually wanted to keep her close. I don't know what came over me, but there was something about her that made me want to protect her. Even if it meant she would be part of our gang and the dangers that came with it. But, that wouldn't be a problem. Why? Because I would keep an eye on her. Even if she didn't know it. I was only doing what was best for her. I could see how vulnerable she was. She was nearly assaulted by two disgusting old men. And today when I saw her crying, I hated it. God. What was this? Stop thinking about her, Damien.

I scanned my hand on the lock pad outside the hidden door and stepped into our secret place underneath the bar. I brushed away the thoughts, bringing all my attention to the Scarlet Vipers, and walked to the stage.

"Vipers," I said into the mic, but only a few turned to listen to me.

I cleared my throat. "SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Immediately everyone turned to look at me.

I smiled in satisfaction. "Ok. We have a few things to discuss. First things first, the Black Wolves found the body of Carlos Gyle." A few gasps and murmurs spread around the room. "As of right now, they don't know it was us, but we can't keep our guard down. Keep your weapons with you when traveling in their area. It's only a matter of time before they figure it's us. And we all know what happened last time." More people started murmuring.

The last time we had killed one of their men, they had invaded one of our other meeting places, trashed it, and stole five grand. I wasn't about to let that happen again.

"That brings me to the second point. To increase safety and privacy, we will be revamping all security measures. This means everyone will have to get rescanned." Some people in the crowd groaned. "Violet and her team will work on that, and it should be up and running by the end of next week. Tomorrow, Rocco will give you more information on how this will be executed." I looked at my sister and nodded at her, while she gave me a thumbs up and a big smile.

"And finally, my last point. I received word that our new shipment of guns will be coming in tomorrow night. I will be leading and will bring along a few of you. We will meet here at 7 tomorrow night." Everyone nodded along. "Now. Are there any questions?"

Someone raised their hand in the back.

"Yes?" I asked.

The figure stepped up and I instantly realized it was Jake. He was young, around Violet's age, and relatively new to the gang. Joined us 2 months ago, just before....the incident.

"Who's coming with you?" Jake was a passionate fighter, but he still had a lot to learn.

"Scar, Leo, Max, Wes, and Dash," I responded. I knew he would be disappointed, and it was proved with his groan. "Any more questions?"

I saw a hand shoot up to my right. I looked and saw it was Zoe. This whore. The only reason I haven't kicked her out yet is that she's one of the best when it comes to talking her way into something. A natural flirt. And that comes very handily with the horny men out there. I nodded at her.

"Who's the new bitch?" She better not be talking about who I think she is.

"Who?" I asked, even though I already knew.

"The bitch you brought down here. The outsider." Zoe put extra emphasis on 'outsider'.

My hands naturally formed fists and I grit my teeth, but I slowly calmed down. "One. She is not a bitch. You're a bitch." I glared at her and she gasped a little. "Two. She will be here more often, so you should expect to see her. And three. Her name is Naya." I looked around the room and some people were whispering. "And if I hear anything. And I mean ANYTHING that's against her, venom will be running through your body. And lots of it." I saw people's eyes widen as they were shocked.