Shaded ✔️

CHAPTER 12

"Nate, come take a shot!" I laughed as he stumbled over, already drunk. This was just another night for us, coming home from work and drinking together with the rest of the club like a dysfunctional family of 30. I loved it. I smiled as Nate, wrapped his arm around my shoulder, holding up a shot glass. His light brown hair was messy, his hazel eyes lit up with a combination of drunkenness and happiness.

"Cheers to my sister, the best tattoo artist this club will ever see and for being accepted into the best art school in the city!" He drunk rambled on about how happy he was that I was going to college in the fall and we all laughed. He looked down at me, happiness and pride in his eyes. I smiled back at him.

"Hey, Stas is here, I'm going to go say hi." I gave him a weird look, confused by his sudden interest in my best friend who had just walked through the doors. He kissed the top of my head before going to see her. I ordered another round, pulling Val away from the girl he was attacking with his mouth.

"Scar, what the fu-" I slid a shot to him, holding mine up.

"You take care of him when I'm gone for school, understand?" A sad smile made its way on to my face as I realized just how much I would miss all my brothers, not just Nate. He held his shot up with a nod.

Before we could drink it, chaos broke out in the clubhouse. People were screaming at the sound of gunshots. I looked at Val, letting the glass drop on the floor and shatter. He rushed through people, shoving everyone out of his way. I tried to follow, but I wasn't big enough to barrel through everyone. When I finally made my way to the door, Stas was holding her hands over her mouth, tears in her eyes. She saw me standing there, a look of pure horror taking over her features. I could see her mouth moving but I couldn't hear anything. She shook her head, trying to get me to stay with her as I pushed her away and through the door, just as a body hit the floor.

Nate.

JAX POV

I rushed into the abandoned warehouse, gun in hand. Domenico fucking King didn't give me much information, just told me that Scarlett had been taken by a rival club because some idiots thought she was his old lady. He didn't go into detail about why these guys wanted him, just told me he couldn't go. He knew I was with the Sons because of my cut. He sent me and a couple of his guys to go get her from where they were keeping her. I told Val what was going on, told him I would get her out of there. I had a feeling this wasn't new. Scarlett seemed like the type of girl to get herself into trouble.

I thought back to the first time I saw her. We were at the Sons' clubhouse to talk about a patch over. My club was small, so I really didn't have much of a choice. I guess the guy sitting outside hadn't been informed that we were coming, and opened fire, thinking we were a threat.

I saw her stumbling out from the back, barely managing to stay on her feet and heading right into the middle of the crossfire. I got off my bike as quickly as I could, wincing as I heard it make contact with the pavement.  I barely made it to her before she stumbled, tripping over her own feet. She hit my chest, losing her balance, so I grabbed her. I remember the first thing I thought was that this girl was seriously fucked up. My second thought was that she was fucking beautiful. I could tell she was struggling just to keep her eyes open, so I picked her up, her head hitting my chest. She opened her eyes a little, seeing me for the first time.

"Are you an angel?" I had to laugh. If she only knew. She smiled a little. Her voice was barely above a whisper.

"Finally."

Then she passed the fuck out. Like out cold. Val came storming up to me, asking what the fuck I did to her, pulling her from my arms and into his own. From the way he looked down at her, I could tell that he cared for her more than anything else, himself included. Maybe she was his old lady. He thanked me once he realized I was helping her.