The MC President's Forsaken Wife (Zara and Knox) novel Chapter 164

Chapter 91-2

He gently shifts his weight, forcing me to turn my head slightly while keeping me pinned securely to his chest.

“Look at the monitor, Zara,” Locke commands gently, his hand sliding up to nape of my neck, his fingers tangling in my hair to hold me steady. “Look at the screen”

I force my tear-blurred eyes toward the tablet. The four grids show the perimeter

Grid one: the quiet, carpeted lobby downstairs, where two massive, Grinning Skulls MC prospects sit on leather chairs right by the front doors, heavy jackets zipped up, eyes sharp

Grid two: the private elevator vestibule on the ground floor, locked in red standby light

Grid three: the rain-slicked roof deck directly above us, a club enforcer pacing the perimeter in a heavy waterproof jacket.

Grid four: our hallway directly outside the bedroom door, completely empty, bathed in the soft glow of the nightlights.

“Nobody is out there,” Locke murmurs into my hair. “The elevator is completely dead. The physical lock is disabled. The only way up to this floor is if someone types the code into that pad downstairs, and the second a single digit is touched, the alarm on my phone goes off right beside my head. She isn’t here, baby. She can’t hurt you. Nobody can’

I let out a long, shuddering breath, the icy knot in my stomach slowly beginning to loosen, though the terror still lingers like smoke in the back of my throat. I press my face back into the skin of his neck, breathing in the scent of him. soap, leather, and pure heat

“I feel like I’m going crazy,” I say, my voice raw and broken in the quiet room. “1 feel like she’s everywhere now. Every time I close my eyes, I hear her laughing in that elevator”

Locke’s arms tighten around me so fast it almost takes my breath away. He drags me higher onto his lap. pulling my legs around his waist until I am wrapped completely around him, held entirely off the mattress.

He rocks us gently, a rhythmic, swaying motion that feels so profoundly protective it brings a fresh wave of

quiet tears to my eyes

“You’re not crazy,” Locke says softly, his hand rubbing heavy, firm circles up and down my spine. “She tried to poison your mind because she couldn’t break the lock. That’s what people like her do. Zara. When they realize they can’t take what you have, they try to make you hate living in your own skin. I won’t let her do that to you. I won’t let her take your peace”

We sit like that in the dark for a long time, the steady, rhythmic sound of Locke’s thundering heartbeat beneath my cheek serving as the only metronome in the quiet room.

The hard tremor in my limbs slowly settles into a dull, exhausted ache My body feels entirely drained, hollowed out by the sheer adrenaline spike of the nightmare

Dad looked so broken today,” I murmur quietly into the dim light, the image of him standing in the kitchen finally pushing past the horror of the dream 1 think this has hurt him more than he’ll ever really let on

+hapter 21-2

Locke sighs, a long, heavy breath expanding his chest against mine “Cobra’s mourning a ghost. He’s “grieving the idea of what she could have been if her mother hadn’t denied Willow information about you for over thirty years. But he knows the truth now. He saw it in her eyes just like we did

“Do you think he’s going to be okay?” I ask “He looked he looked older, Locke Like ten years were piled on top of him the moment he realized what she tried to do to us”

“He’s the President of the Skulls, baby,” becke says, his tone firm, leaving no room for doubt. “He’s survived club wars, federal indictments, and forty years of blood He’s tough enough to carry the grief What matters right now – what Cobra cares about more than his own damn life is keeping you safe”

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LUCK DRAW

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