He clapped his hands in anticipation as he watched the bikes being delivered at the shop. His dad and mom had laughed when Shift told them how he tricked her into getting him a Road King but he knew, secretly she was grateful. Shift may be a badass chick but she worried about their son and his safety and she wasn’t above kicking Justin’s ass if he ever hurt Kale.

Justin signed the papers for the delivery guy before he headed to the back of the shop where his son’s room was. He opened the door and found Teak sitting on Kale’s bed reading to him. Kale’s eyes were drooping and he knew his son was falling asleep.

“Hey…um…T-Teak, is it?” Justin asked as he scratched his head trying to remember if he got her name right.

“Yeah, you got it right.” She said as she threw him a smile and he gave her a curious look.

“Cool. How’s he been?” Justin asked as he made his way to the other side of Kale’s bed and took a seat on it.

“Good. Just sleepy from the medicine. He’s been asking for his mama though.” Teak told him, smiling as he caressed his son’s head.

“Yeah he’s a mama’s boy,” Justin told her with a sad smile, “Of course me being gone for half of his little life made it to where he only had his mama. He’s growing up so fast,” Justin told her with a frown.

“He’s so handsome…just like you,” Teak blurted out as Justin cocked his eyebrow at her,” I-I mean just…that he looks like you…n-not that you’re handsome…but…oh my God…you are handsome but…”

“Teak, I get it.” Justin told her with a smirk before he let out a chuckle.

“Just please don’t tell Shift.” Teak pleaded with him as he nodded his head.

“Trust me Shift won’t be told that you think I’m handsome.” He said with a laugh as Kale’s eyes fluttered open.

“Daddy? Where’s my mama?” Kale asked and Justin had to laugh.

“She’s with Grandma Lynn. Buddy, what do you say we go for ride? Daddy got a new bike! Do you want to go for a ride with me Kale?” Justin asked as he looked at his son with a smile on his face.

“YAY! But can I see my mama first Daddy?” Kale asked him as he pushed Teak to get out of his bed as quickly as possible.

“Sure buddy! Let’s go find your mama,” Justin told him as he took Kale’s small hand in his much larger one, “Oh Teak, thanks for watching him for us.”

Teak knew Justin was a hardass, everyone knew that, but she didn’t know this side of him. The side he only showed his son and probably Shift in their private bedroom. No wonder Shift stood by his side no matter what. He was completely adorable and Teak could feel herself falling for him.

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Lynn stood outside with Shift as they looked at the new bikes and talked about Teak. She held up a finger to Shift as her cell rang.

“Hello?” Lynn said into the phone as Shift looked at her curiously.

“Lynn, it’s Dr. Rutherford….Alyssa is awake.” Dr. Rutherford said over the phone.

Lynn covered the mouthpiece on her cell as she told Shift it was Dr. Rutherford.

“Has she said anything?” Lynn asked calmly even though she was freaking out on the inside.

“No, she’s just asking for Justin. I think it would really be good for her to see him.” Dr. Rutherford told Lynn as she bit her tongue at that statement.

“I’ll tell him. I know he’s concerned about her.” Lynn lied as she hung up the phone.

Shift shook her head at the look on Lynn’s face, “What happened at the hospital?”

“Alyssa’s awake…you know what that means.” Lynn told her as her and Shift shared a look.

“JT can’t be involved.” Shift told her as Lynn nodded her head in agreement.

“Mama!!!” They both heard Kale yell as he let go of Justin’s hand and ran to Shift.

Justin eyed the serious looks on both Lynn and Shift’s faces before him and Shift shared a look that said ‘not now’. He watched as Shift turned her attention to Kale and plastered on a smile for their son. She took Kale into her arms and picked him up off the ground as he held onto her.

Justin knew what it was like to love Shift with all your heart so he didn’t mind his son being a mama’s boy. Besides he knew Kale was going to grow up as a mixture of him and Shift. Hopefully he would run The Wolf Pack when he was older.

“Mommy, Daddy said he is goin’ take me for a ride on his new bike! Did you know he got a new bike?” Kale asked in the excited tone he always gets when he gets to ride on his daddy’s bike.

“Yeah I did KT. I got one too!” Shift told him as he giggled.

Justin smiled as Shift used Kale’s nickname. Kale loved his nickname because it sounded just like his daddy’s. He also loved when Shift called him KT and Justin thought she said JT.

“Is it like Daddy’s? Because Daddy’s is the best!” Kale told her as he played with her hair.

“No, it’s better than Daddy’s! How do you know Daddy’s is the best if you haven’t seen it yet?” Shift asked as Kale looked at Justin before giggling again.

“Nuh huh. No bike is better than my daddy’s. Daddy always has the best!…Because my daddy is the best!” Kale said as he shouted the last part as Justin and Shift laughed at him.

Justin watched as Shift put Kale down and Kale ran to the bike he assumed was his daddy’s. Justin made his way over to Shift, pulling her into his arms as his hands rested, interlocked on her lower back. He leaned down and captured her lips in a kiss before she rested her head on his shoulder.

“I love you Aiden.” He told her as he kissed her temple.

“And I love you Justin.” She told him as she stood on her toes and kissed his lips softly.

“Did you want to come along with me and Kale?” Justin asked as he nuzzled against her neck taking in her citrus scent that he had missed.

“I’ve got to go to the hospital. Alyssa woke up. You should drop by there after your ride with Kale.” Shift told him as she ran her fingers through his hair.

“Should I go with you?” Justin asked her with worry.

“No, you can’t be involved. You’re going to need an alibi. Take Kale, stop for some ice cream, drop him off back here and wait for me before you head to the hospital.” Shift told him as he nodded in understanding.

“Someone’s going with you, right?” He asked as his thumb caressed her cheek with concern.

“Your mom. I’ll be fine…take care of our boy…don’t make me have to hurt you.” She told him with a wink as his hands cupped her face and he kissed her again.

“I’ll be safe with him. You and him are my world. You be safe too and I’ll see you later.” Justin said as he let go of her before kissing her cheek.

“JT, that cage,” Shift said as she took a look at a tan Toyota Camry parked near the shop, “has been parked there for three days straight. Make sure they follow you when you’re with Kale.”

“Thanks baby girl.” He said with a small grin as he kissed her forehead before heading to where Kale was waiting with Lynn.

Shift watched with a smile as Justin knelt down in front of Kale and helped him put on his small helmet and sunglasses. She laughed as Justin unzipped his saddlebag and pulled out a small sleeveless leather jacket that had The Wolf Pack name and logo on the back. It was an exact replica of Justin’s cut just made for Kale. She watched as Kale’s eyes lit up as he put on his little cut. That was her boy, ready to follow in his father’s footsteps.

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Lynn sighed more to herself than to Shift as they drove to the hospital in her cage since Justin’s Cutless was still at the hospital. Shift would be picking it up once they were done. She had never wanted Alyssa for Justin especially when she knew only Shift could tame Justin. This was a tough life and Shift had been dealt a hard hand when her parents died but she never held that against the club.

She didn’t like Alyssa for Justin or the club but she didn’t want to have to do this either. For Lynn though protecting the club meant protecting her son and if that meant making sure Alyssa didn’t talk then she would make sure she didn’t talk.

“Why don’t you check on Justin’s Cutless…you shouldn’t be around when it goes down.” Shift told Lynn as Lynn threw her a confused look.

“Shift? You can’t be serious!” Lynn told her shaking her head.

“You put her in the coma…I should be the one to end it.” Shift told her.

“What about Justin?” Lynn asked, “He’s not going to like it that I left you.”

“JT isn’t here. Besides I can work LJ better alone.” Shift told her as Lynn finally agreed with her.

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Dr. Rutherford looked up from his charts at the nurse’s station he was standing at when he heard the elevator ding. He was hoping it was Justin since Alyssa had been asking for him nonstop. He was caught by surprise though when Shift walked off the elevator and not Justin. She walked right up to him with all the confidence in the world.

“We need to talk.” She told him as she looked around them for any perking ear.

“He’s not coming, is he?” Dr. Rutherford asked her and she could tell the nurses were trying to listen in.

“Not here.” She stated.

“Follow me,” He told her as they walked into an empty hospital room, “What’s going on?”

“Alyssa can’t walk out of this hospital alive.” Shift told him.

“What? Why are you telling me this? Why Shift?” Dr. Rutherford asked as he started to raise his voice.

“Because it’s your choice how she dies…”

“I can’t choose that! I’m calling the cops!” He shouted.

“Shhh…Fine, you let her walk out of here and The Wolf Pack will hunt her down, torture her, and kill her. Do you want that? I came here to warn you, to show her some mercy.” Shift told him as he stared at her.

She could see the wheels turning in his head.

“I don’t believe that! You want her just as dead as the rest of the Pack! You don’t show mercy! You, out of everyone, has a reason to want her dead!” Dr. Rutherford spat out.

“My score with Alyssa was settled long time ago when she lost her child. Her and Justin are officially divorced and that is all I ever wanted. I don’t want her dead! I never wanted that! But I don’t get to say who lives and who doesn’t. She had a score to settle with the club and Justin. You can either kill her with morphine and make it painless or you can place her into The Wolf Pack’s hands. And they’ll show no mercy…she will be hit, she will be kicked, she will be raped, she will be bruised, she will be cut and she will scream and cry for mercy and be shown none. I promise you that! At least you will know that you’d be saving her from that.” Shift pleaded with him.

“W-Where is the rest of the Pack?” Dr. Rutherford asked.

“At the clubhouse just waiting for her to leave. They want to do it after Justin sees her. That’s the sign. After that visit she’s as good as dead,” Shift told him as she opened the door prepared to leave, “LJ, do what’s best for Alyssa,” she stated before she left.

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Dr. Rutherford watched as Shift pushed the elevator button and waited until it reached their floor. She got on and stared at him as she reached into her leather cut and pulled out a cigarette from her pack. She caught his eyes as she stuck the filter end in between her lips then tapped the skull and crossbones patch on her leather cut.

He wasn’t stupid, he knew what that meant….he just wondered who would get the patch for killing Alyssa, Shift or Justin? He knew he couldn’t let the Pack get their hands on Alyssa. As much as he didn’t want to believe what Shift was telling him, he knew she wasn’t lying. If The Wolf Pack wanted Alyssa dead he knew she would be dead no matter what he did.

So while he was in the medicine locker he made his decision that he would help Alyssa, whichever way he could. He grabbed the small vials of morphine and stuffed them in his lab coat before anyone could see.

He took a deep breath before he entered Alyssa’s room.

“Hey LJ. Is Justin on his way?” She asked as she threw him a smile.

He felt his heart thump in his chest as he tried to force any words out of his mouth. He licked his lips before he answered her.

“Yeah later in the day. He’ll definitely be stopping by. So, we’re going to give you some morphine to kill the pain of those headaches. Not too much just enough to ease the pain.” He told her as he filled the syringe and she nodded her head.

She was trusting him to take care of her. Trusting him to uphold his doctor’s oath but he knew The Wolf Pack would do everything Shift said they would to her and he couldn’t live with that.

He inserted the needle into her IV as she stated, “If I’m asleep when Justin comes, please tell him I love him.”

“I will.” He simply said as he watched as she slowly drifted off to sleep before filling the syringe with another vial of morphine.

Tears started to fall from his eyes and his hands started to tremble as he positioned the needle into the IV. She slowly started to slip away…never to see the light of day, or feel the wind on her skin, and to never see Justin again.

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Shift took a deep breath as she walked to Justin’s Cutless, finally lighting her cigarette as she dangled the keys in between her fingers. She spotted Lynn sitting in her cage next to Justin’s Cutless.

“Did you get the pics?” Shift asked as Lynn waved a digital camera at her as she smoked her own cigarette.

“The doctor did it, in the hospital room, with a needle full of morphine.” Lynn told her with a laugh as Shift chuckled at her Clue reference.

“Are you suspecting or accusing?” Shift asked as she leaned on her arms hanging through Lynn’s opened passenger window before taking a puff.

“Definitely accusing. Maybe we should get the good doctor a patch of his own?” Lynn suggested.

“Maybe…Once you develop those pictures I see the doctor helping out the club more…whether he wants too or not.” Shift told her with a sly smile.

“I better go get our blackmail developed. Feels good to lose 125 pounds of useless rat.” Lynn said as she and Shift shared a laugh as Lynn started her cage.

“I better get home to my men. See ya later Mama Lynn.” Shift said as she climbed into Justin’s Cutless finally at peace.