FIRE & RUIN
Chapter 14
HALLOWEEN NIGHT
The Nest was packed.
Dig up Her Bones loud on the speakers.
Lights strung across the courtyard, flickering red and orange. Costumes everywhere—cheap masks, fake blood, kids earlier replaced now by hangarounds, girls, full patches, prospects, friends and family. All with drinks in hand and voices rising.
The party had taken over.
But the kuttes were still on.
Always.
Lane, Kait, Blaze, Diablo, and Kode had taken over a table, in the clubhouse, next to the bar.
Drinks in front of them.
Talking.
Watching.
Working without looking like it.
Kait sat back in her chair, one leg crossed over the other, still a little stiff but holding her own.
Lane sat across from her.
Not close.
Not far.
Just enough.
Blaze was mid-story, already half laughing at his own shit.
“…that bull was over a ton. He almost broke my leg.”
“I don’t get it, man, why do you wanna fuck with a beast that weighs over a ton?” Diablo cut in.
“Cause your mom gives great head, Diablo,” Blaze shot back, grinning.
“Fuck you,” said Diablo flipping the bird and they laughed.
Kode leaned back, scanning the crowd more than listening.
Then—
The girls walked in.
Jojo, Peaches, Dulce, Amber.
And Daphne.
All black. Fangs. Eyes sharp.
“Who’s that?” said Kode immediately.
“Glad you asked.” Said Kait and put her hand up.
Daphne smiled flashing the fangs and walked up like she belonged.
Didn’t hesitate.
“This is Daphne,” Kait said, nodding toward Kode. “Daphne—Kode.”
Kode looked at her.
Really looked.
Then smirked.
“I love you.”
Daphne smiled.
“I know.”
That was it.
Done.
They were already locked in.
Jojo clapped her hands once.
“I’m getting a drink and gonna go talk to that sexy man over there,” she said pointing at Halo.
“Let’s go watch this trainwreck,” Peaches said to Dulce and they followed her off into the crowd.
Gone.
Blaze turned to Amber already pulling her closer.
“You tryna dance or what?”
She laughed.
“Can’t dance to this,” she said laughing.
“Wasn’t talkin’ about that,” said Blaze.
Hands already on each other, disappearing into the crowd.
Lane shook his head.
More small talk about nothing and everything.
Music, the party, the idiots fighting in the corner, and anything that wasn’t club business.
Return of the Phantom Stranger now on the speakers.
Diablo began to headbang slowly, and they began to talk about music.
“I had no idea you played guitar,” Kait said.
“Yeah,” Diablo said. “Just don’t have time to lately with all the shit going on.”
“He used to play for us at the base all the time,” said Lane.
Kait looked at him and nodded once.
Then Alejandra slid in beside Diablo like she’d been waiting for the spot.
He smirked.
“Hey,” he said.
They fell into their own thing quick.
Low voices.
Easy.
Melanie hovered in behind Alejandra.
Eyes already on Lane.
She stepped closer.
Too close.
Hand brushing his arm.
“Hey, need anything?” she said softly.
Lane only glanced.
Didn’t move toward her either.
“I’m alright.”
Flat.
Done.
She didn’t take the hint.
Shifted closer.
Kait saw it.
Lane finally glanced at Melanie.
Once.
Cold.
“No, thank you.”
That was it.
She froze. Just for a second.
Then forced a small nod.
“Still nothing on Kolton?” she asked Diablo.
He shrugged.
She sighed.
“Okay.”
She pushed her chair back.
“I’m calling it,” she said.
No big announcement.
Just a statement.
Diablo glanced up.
“You good?”
“Yeah, just… tired. Need a little clean air too.”
Didn’t look at Lane.
Didn’t look at anyone.
She heard some people say bye but she didn’t stop.
Just walked.
Lane didn’t follow. Didn’t even move.
He was only watching the space she left behind.
Deciding.
A minute later he stood up.
Casual. Like nothing.
“I’ll be back.”
The lake house sat quiet against the dark.
No lights. No movement. Just the shape of it against the water.
Kait grabbed the small lamp from the porch and pushed the door open. She stepped inside, sweeping the light across the room as she moved.
Bare walls. Unfinished corners. The few things that had been brought in.
A couch.
A round wooden table.
Four chairs, set like someone had actually thought about how she’d use the place.
A carboard box with kitchen utensils.
Mr. Holloway.
She slowed when she saw it all together.
And smiled.
She set the lamp on the table and stepped back. The glow pushed the darkness just far enough without filling the room.
It felt… different.
Not empty.
Not lived in either.
Something in between.
She set her keys down and walked over to the couch, dragging her fingers along the back.
Solid. Clean. Simple.
Light blue.
“Nice,” she murmured.
Better than she expected.
Better than she needed right now.
She even considered staying the night.
Kait exhaled slowly, letting the day slip off her shoulders.
No music.
No voices.
No one watching.
Just quiet.
She moved to the back door and pushed it open, stepping out onto the dock. The wood felt firm under her boots—new, untouched.
The lake stretched out in front of her, dark and still, catching pieces of the night sky and breaking them apart.
She stood there a moment.
Breathing.
Letting it settle.
Alive.
That word hit different now.
The sound of an engine cut through the silence.
Low and distant.
Kait listened.
There it was again.
Closer.
Her body tightened before her mind caught up.
She stepped back inside and moved to the kitchen utensil box, digging through until she found something.
A steak knife.
Not much but it could be enough.
The engine kept coming.
Steady.
Not rushing.
That didn’t make it better.
The lamp behind her cast just enough light to outline the entrance.
Kait reached back and clicked it off.
Darkness swallowed the room.
Took position just inside the doorway.
Everything else stayed dark.
Her breathing slowed.
Controlled.
Her grip tightened.
Tires on gravel.
Closer.
Then—
The engine cut.
Silence dropped hard.
Kait didn’t move.
Didn’t call out.
Just listened.
Waiting.
Footsteps.
Slow.
Measured.
Coming toward the door.
Her grip tightened on the handle.
Ready.
One step.
Then another.
A shadow filled the doorway.
Tall.
Still.
Something about the way he stood—
The posture.
Then it clicked.
Kait exhaled, just a fraction.
The knife lowered slightly.
“Kount.”
THE BURN BARREL - MERCY, TX
Chaos is My Life bleeding through the walls.
Kolton leaned over the tank of The Mare, one hand braced against it as he dragged a line clean across the metal.
Buzz stood across from him, already grinning, already wired.
“Damn, you look like shit,” Buzz said.
Kolton snorted, head tipping back slightly as he felt the sting of the glass in his nose.
“Been worse.”
Buzz laughed.
“Yeah? Looks like you barely made it.”
Kolton didn’t answer.
Didn’t care.
“Reyes been moving?” he asked.
Buzz leaned against the wall, arms crossing.
“Yeah. Not clean, though. They’re jumpy.”
“Where.”
Buzz tilted his head.
“Why?”
Kolton’s eyes sharpened.
“Just tell me.”
A beat.
Buzz gave in.
“They’ve been cutting through the ranch roads north of Sarita. Short runs. In and out. They’ve been staying put.”
Kolton nodded once.
Filed it.
“That it?”
“For now,” Buzz said. “But something’s off. Like they’re expecting something, and I’m guessing it’s y’all. But you didn’t hear it from me. Harvey already said the C.U. ain’t taking no part.”
Kolton smirked faintly.
“Yeah, I know.”
He straightened, already done with the conversation.
Buzz watched him.
“You ain’t right, man.”
Kolton shrugged.
“As opposed to what?”
His phone went off in his pocket
He ignored it.
Went off again.
Kolton pulled the phone out, flipping it open.
“Yeah.”
Static.
Then—
“—ton—where the fuck—”
“Huh,” Kolton snapped.
More static.
Then Buster’s voice came through, breaking but loud enough—
“Toast’s back!”
Kolton went still.
“What?”
“She’s—back—man—she’s at the—”
“Kait’s back?”
“Yeah—”
The line cut.
Dead.
Kolton stared ahead.
Heartbeat kicked.
Hard.
Alive.
A grin spread across his face.
Sharp. Wrong.
“Taking off?”
“Yeah, gonna go see my girl.”
He swung onto The Mare.
Engine roared to life.
Buzz stepped back.
“Try not to die tonight, yeah?”
Kolton didn’t answer.
He took off.
The road opened up.
Wind tearing through him. Engine screaming beneath him.
Unstable.
He twisted the throttle.
The Mare surged forward.
Faster.
Didn’t see the lights at first.
Didn’t care when he did.
Red and blue flashed in the distance.
Then behind him.
Sirens cut through the night.
Kolton didn’t slow.
Not yet.
Not when he was this close.
Not when he was about to make things right with her.
LAKEHOUSE
Her voice came out quieter than she expected.
He stepped forward into the low light.
And there he was standing in front of her.
Kait lowered the knife the rest of the way, letting it hang at her side.
“So this is your new place?” he said.
His eyes moved over the room, her face, the bruising on her jaw, the way she was standing, the steak knife in her hand.
“Why’d you leave without letting anyone know?”
She answered with a lazy shrug.
“You’re not supposed to be by yourself,” he cut in, stepping closer. “Not after what just happened.”
She swallowed.
“Besides, you just got out of the hospital.”
That edge was still there.
Different now.
But still his.
“If they find you alone… and vulner—”
Kait shook her head once. Closed her eyes.
“Stop.”
That got him.
Not loud.
Not emotional.
Just firm.
She set the knife on the table.
“I just needed quiet. Just… silence.”
Lane kept looking at her.
Breathing steady, but tight.
“You still should’ve told someone. You could’ve had a couple of prospects just posted up outside. You could’ve told me.”
Kait’s jaw tightened.
“Well… I’m fine.”
He got closer.
“Are you?”
She nodded.
He gently touched one side of her face and turned it to the light to see the bruise on her jaw.
“He hurt you…” Lane said, quieter now, but no less intense.
Kait looked at him.
“It’s nothing.”
For a second, neither of them moved.
“This is not nothing.”
“I got him first.”
“I heard.”
Lane moved her hair away from her face.
“I thought you were gone.”
Kait shook her head slowly and looked up at him.
“I thought I was never going to see you again.”
“Lane…”
“Don’t disappear on me like that again.”
“I wasn’t trying to.”
He kissed her jaw gently. Barely touched his lips on her.
Kait’s chest rose and fell once.
“What did you want to say to me when I came back?”
“Nothing.”
She didn’t look away.
Didn’t soften it.
Just stepped into him and kissed him.
Lane reacted instantly.
One hand at her jaw, the other pulling her closer, returning it just as hard.
His hands began to wander.
Then he stopped.
Pulled back just enough, breath rough, forehead still close to hers.
“If you’re not sure about this,” he said low, controlled, “you need to send me on my way right now while I still have some control left.”
Kait didn’t move away.
Didn’t think about it.
“I’m not sending you anywhere,” she said. “And I don’t want you to control anything.”
That did it.
Something in his expression shifted.
Gone.
“Then let me go crazy on you already.”
Kait nodded.
And he was back on her.
Harder.
No restraint this time.
His hand came up behind her neck, pulling her into him as their mouths crashed together again.
No pause.
No space.
Just heat.
Her back hit the wall with a dull thud, and she didn’t push him away—just pulled him closer, fingers tightening under his kutte.
And she wasn’t letting him go again.
His mouth moved from hers to her jaw, down her neck, rough, claiming, not asking—
Kait tilted her head back just enough, breath catching, one hand gripping the back of his neck to keep him there.
KOLTON
The siren stayed on him.
Didn’t push.
Didn’t fall back.
Just there.
Kolton eased off the throttle, jaw tight, eyes forward. He rode it a few seconds longer than he should’ve, then veered onto the shoulder, gravel spitting under the tires as he brought The Mare down.
Engine still running.
Hands locked on the grips.
The cruiser rolled in behind him.
Door opened. Closed.
Steps.
Steady.
Kolton swung off the bike, killed the engine, and turned just enough to see him.
“Evening,” Officer Michael Richter said.
Kolton gave a short nod.
“Yeah. Hey man, I’m just trying to get home. I’ll slow down.”
“Get off the bike for me, sir, please.”
He did.
Loose. Like it didn’t matter.
“Got ID?”
“In my wallet.”
The officer checked it.
“Anything on you I need to know about?”
Kolton smirked faintly.
“You tell me.”
Officer Richter didn’t react.
Just stepped in.
Hands moved over him—quick, practiced. Jacket first, then his pockets. He paused, fingers pressing in once, then pulled something free.
A small bag.
Then another.
Kolton’s expression didn’t change, but the edge in it shifted.
“Turn around for me, Mr. Westfall.”
Kolton didn’t move right away.
For a second, it looked like he might say something.
Then he turned.
Hands behind his back.
The cuffs snapped shut.
The ride to the station was quiet.
Cage between him and the front. Red and blue flashing over the inside of the car, breaking his reflection apart in the glass.
Kolton leaned back, head against the seat, breathing through his nose.
Intake at the County Jail hadn’t changed.
Fluorescent lights.
Cold.
“Well, been a minute since I had one of y’all here,” said the intake officer when he saw Kolton’s kutte.
They turned him, hands on his shoulders, moved him where they needed him. His pockets were emptied into a tray—phone, keys, cash. Belt pulled free. Boots scuffed against tile.
Kutte.
Ink pressed to his fingers, one at a time.
Black on white.
He didn’t fight any of it.
Didn’t rush it either.
Just let it happen.
They finally let him make his phone call.
Receiver heavy in his hand.
He already knew who he was calling.
The line rang.
Once.
Twice.
Click.
Nothing.
Then her breathing.
Quiet.
Breaking.
“Mom.”
Silence.
He waited.
“I’m in County.”
Kolton heard Don start to say something in the background but Loraine covered the phone.
“I need you to—”
“I can’t.”
Soft. Barely there.
Kolton’s jaw tightened.
“What?”
A small sound on the other end. Like she was trying not to cry.
“I can’t,” she said again. “Your dad says… your dad says no.”
That sat there.
Heavy.
Kolton didn’t answer.
Didn’t argue.
Didn’t ask again.
He just hung up.
He stayed there a second longer, the receiver still in his hand, then set it back down.
Slow.
The high was slipping.
Fast.
Something rougher settling in underneath it.
He leaned back against the wall, eyes forward, jaw tight.
Alone.
LAKE HOUSE
Lane didn’t slow down.
His hand locked at her waist, pulling her into him as he shifted her back into the couch.
Kait moved with him.
No hesitation.
No pause.
Clothes were already gone—somewhere between the front door and the kitchen—forgotten, nothing left between them now.
Her hand came up behind his neck, eyes locked on his, steady, certain.
That was enough.
He adjusted.
Closer.
Deliberate now.
Her breath broke as she felt him, her grip tightening, not pulling away, not stopping him.
He followed through, and everything shifted.
Kait pulled him closer. Her hips already moving with his.
No stopping now.
He caught her silver eyes—
steady, locked on him, no hesitation…
and it hit him harder than anything else.
His jaw tightened, teeth clenched briefly as he felt her move with him, real, there, not going anywhere.
He had her.
At that moment she was all his.
Whatever control he had left—gone.
His hand tightened at her waist, getting deeper, needing to feel all of her, like letting go wasn’t an option.
It never was.
Kait matched him.
Every bit of it.
Her fingers dug into his shoulders now, keeping him close, not letting him set the pace alone, moving with him, pushing back just as hard.
The rhythm built fast.
Her breath broke, sharp, her head tipping back as it hit—
Not just release.
Everything she’d been holding onto giving way all at once.
“Lane—” she gasped as she held on to him.
He followed her there as soon as he heard her say his name.
His jaw tight, grunting, releasing.
Every bit of it.
Didn’t pull away.
Couldn’t.
Wouldn’t.
They held on.
Like neither of them were letting go again.
Lane stretched out along the couch, taking the full length of it without thinking.
Kait fit into him easily, her head tucked near his shoulder, one arm draped across his chest.
He kept one arm around her, hand resting at her side, not tight, not holding—just there.
She shifted slightly, getting comfortable, her leg sliding over his without a second thought.
He adjusted with her.
Familiar. Natural.
Like they’d done it before.
Kait tilted her head just enough, brushing her mouth against his again.
Slow this time.
No urgency left in it.
He answered it just as easily, turning his head toward hers, not letting it go far.
Another kiss.
Then another.
Not building.
Not rushing.
Just… relief in every kiss.
Her fingers traced along his chest, like she wasn’t even thinking about it anymore.
Like she didn’t have to.
Because she was allowed to.
He ran his hand down her side and felt the scar under her left breast again.
Maybe from a bullet, but he didn’t ask.
Not now.
Silence settled back in around them.
Comfortable.
Real.
Kait exhaled softly, her lips brushing his once more.
“Happy Halloween.”
Barely above a breath.
He didn’t answer right away.
Just looked at her.
That crooked smile pulling at one side of his mouth—subtle, but there.
Then he leaned in, brushing his mouth against hers again.
Slower this time.
Different.
His hand slid along her side again as he shifted, turning her onto her back without breaking the contact.
Kait let out a quiet breath, something almost like a laugh slipping through it.
Didn’t resist.
Didn’t question it.
Her hands came up to his shoulders, pulling him right back down as he settled over her.
“You think we’re done?” he murmured.
That smile stayed.
“I didn’t say that.”
Faint.
“Good, because we still have all night.”
He kissed her again, a little rougher this time, like he knew exactly how much she could take.
Kait met him halfway, just as ready, just as sure.
No hesitation left.
No distance.
Just instinct.
And the night stretched on.
