Chapter 4 - Behind Closed Doors
The back alley behind the diner was narrow, sun-baked, and suffocatingly hot, smelling of hot asphalt and old garbage bins. Jax pushed the heavy metal door shut behind them, cutting off the noise of the club president’s laughter inside. He leaned against the brick wall, lighting a cigarette with trembling fingers, trying to regain control of his racing pulse. Leo stood a few feet away, holding the folded paper like a shield.
“You shouldn’t have come here, kid,” Jax exhaled a cloud of gray smoke, trying to sound stern, though his voice lacked its usual venom. “You have no idea what kind of hornets' nest you just kicked over.”
“Mom said you were brave,” Leo replied quietly, his voice steady despite the tears pooling in his eyes. “She said you didn't leave because you wanted to. She said someone made you choose.”
Jax stopped mid-drag, the cigarette burning down between his knuckles. He stared at the boy, shock rippling through him. Sarah had known. Even after all these years, even after everything he had put her through, she had protected his secret. Jax closed his eyes, memories of that rainy night fifteen years ago flooding back—the warning from a corrupt detective, the guns pointed at his head, and the ultimatum: leave town tonight, or both Sarah and the unborn baby would pay the price.
“She didn’t hate you,” Leo continued, taking a tentative step forward. “She waited for you. Every single birthday, she looked out the window hoping you’d pull up on a bike.”
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A sharp pain clenched Jax’s chest, far worse than any knife wound he had ever taken in a brawl. He knelt down so he was eye-level with the boy, ignoring the ache in his stiff joints and the heavy leather weighing him down. “Listen to me, Leo,” Jax said, his voice cracking slightly. “The men inside... they aren’t my friends. They’re wolves. If Diesel finds out you’re my blood, he won't hesitate to use you to break me.”
Leo stared back with those haunting hazel eyes and whispered, “Then keep me safe.”
