'They teach us how to fear,

They teach us how to hate

Then they arm us, and they march us off to hell'

I reach Ace and shove my gun into the back of my jeans, his shirt is soaking with blood, and his hands clench at his stomach. "Fuck," he groans as he looks at me.

I look back to both the cops, Stan is holding his arm and pointing to the car.

They are falling back.

I pull Ace's shirt up; the bullet is lodged into the side of his stomach. "Is it bad?" He breathes, his eyes wincing with pain.

"Buck! Get the car!" There will be more cops here within the minute, we needed to be as far away from here as possible.

"Tyson?" I look down to Ace, his face now turning pale, and his eyes hold fear. He is scared of death. I guessed most people are, but Ace appeared fearless.

His eyes remind me of when we were kids, of the pleading look of sorrow. The look we gave each other over our fathers. "You're going to be fine," I sit him up and he groans loudly. Buck pulls the car beside us and rushes to help get him in, before running back to the driver's seat.

I rip my shirt off and hop in the back with him, pressing firmly on his wound as his head rests in my lap. "Do we take him to a hospital?" I ask as Ace's eyes struggle to stay open. "Hey! Look at me," I say.

"We have a doctor in the gang, he is meeting us at the clubhouse," Buck says with a tremor to his voice.

"Hey Buck, I need you to focus okay."

I watch him nod his head.

"Just calm down and drive safely."

"Okay," he exhales a shaky breath.

"Tys-" Ace croaks but can't finish my name. His eyes close shut.

"Ace!" I softly smack his face. "Ace!" His eyes flutter but don't open. "Remember when we were kids- remember the bush behind the drag strip? We went exploring one day and a couple of kilometers in we found a little creek bed. When things got too much, we would always sneak off to that creek. One time we found that small rock with the blue opal wedged inside, do you remember? I would say to you-"

"It will protect us," Ace chimes in, his voice is hoarse, and his eyes stay closed.

"Yes," I sigh with relief. "We would take in turns of who looked after it." His hand reaches for mine, and he softly squeezes me; I hold on to him the rest of the way to the clubhouse.

As we pull into the driveway, all the lights are on and bikes and cars are parked out front. Bucks slides the car to the side of the house, before rushing to the back and pulling Ace out. Ace makes a small whimper noise as Buck moves him, then Buck runs him in with me closely behind them.

Members crowd us to check on Ace. "Move!" Buck yells.

"Back here!" A voice calls.

"Thanks Doc," Buck says as he gently places Ace down on a table. Doc quickly goes to work, setting up a drip and looking at his wound.

"Get out and shut the door," Doc says to us, Buck and I slowly back out.

I stand on the other side of the door for a while helplessly, before eventually sitting in a chair outside the room. Member's stay for a bit, but one by one they all go home. I put my hands in my hair from exhaustion and frustration, and as I bring them out, I notice the dried blood covering my arms.

I reach into my pocket and pull out my phone, sending Bella a message that I have to stay overnight. I hoped she wouldn't worry but I doubted she would be getting much sleep either.

At some point I fall asleep with my head against the wall. "Tyson," a voice calls.

I wake with a startle, my neck aching from the terrible sleep.

Doc is staring down at me sympathetically. "He's awake, if you want to go see him."

The sun has started filling the room, and I check to see the time on my phone. 6:05am. I stand and stretch my arms. "Here," Doc hands me a shirt.

"Thank you," my dry voice cracks as I try to get the words out.

Cautiously I open the door and head in, Ace is sitting up in a bed now instead of a table, with a white bandage wrapped around his lower stomach. He looks tired but at least some colour has come back to his face. "Brother," he calls to me.

I walk over to him and place my hand on his shoulder. "You look like shit," I say with a smile.

"You've looked better too," he smiles back. "Thank you," he says seriously.

"It's okay," I squeeze his shoulder.

"You saved my life," he holds out his hand to me. I go to grab him but at the last minute he opens his hand, inside his palm is the small rock with the opal. The blue is dark and then light, with bits of green down the bottom. It reminds me of the ocean.

"You kept it?" I whisper surprised.

"I want you to have it," I take it from him, studying it closer. He sighs, "you will need it."

I look at him confused. "Why?"

"Dad is in the office; he wants to see you."

I wedge the rock down into my pocket. "For protection," Ace says.

I have absolutely no idea why Flynn wants to see me, but Ace does, and by the look on his face; it isn't going to be easy.

I down some water before making my way to the office, the anxiety making its way back to the pit of my stomach. I knock quietly.

"Come in," Flynn calls.

I step inside, Flynn is smiling at me as he points to the chair on the other side of the desk. I sit down and try to offer a smile back.

His skin is still a sickly colour, and his eyes look like they droop down slightly. "Ace said you wanted to see me," I ask tentatively.

"Thank you for what you did last night, you are a true Lost Souls member," he says proudly.

"My brothers would do the same for me," I answer.

He nods his head, studying me silently for a moment. I try not to look away from his gaze.

"You aren't here to repay a debt from your father," he says as he entwines his hands together on the desk.

"Okay..." Is all I can manage in my confusion.

"Do you believe in karma?"

I frown, not expecting that question in the slightest. "Is this some sort of test?"

"No, I want your honest opinion."

"Well, my dad is alive after murdering my mum. Yeah, he's in jail, but he's alive so no, I don't believe in karma."

"Yes, I'm told you never ended up visiting him either."

I begin to panic. "You don't need to see him," Flynn waves his hand to dismiss my rise in fear. "I never believed in karma either, I pretty much spent most of my life doing as I pleased with no consequences."

He takes a sip of his drink and I wonder if this conversation is a struggle for him.

"I've done some terrible things in my life, things that I always felt like I got away with, but one day that all changed. Maybe it's because I pushed the boundaries too far. There's something you need to know and it's the reason you are here, but it won't be easy to hear."

I nod for him to go on.

"Your father and I were always best mates, for as long as I could remember. Our dads were close and so we grew up together, kind of like you and Ace. My own father passed, and I was thrown in to leading The Lost Souls too young. I got greedy, really greedy; and bored. There wasn't much I couldn't have or take. I fell in love with my sweet Jazmine, and your father met your mother. At first it didn't bother me, but I started seeing him less and less. I felt like he was going to leave The Lost Souls. I felt like I could have everything but his loyalty. I got jealous, and angry."

He coughs to the side a few times.

"I wanted a son, someone to follow in my footsteps, and lead The Lost Souls when the time would come. Jazmine as it turns out, couldn't carry a child. We had many miscarriages. I wanted a son, but I also wanted to keep her. To test your father's loyalty I asked for Scarlet, for your mother to be the one to carry my child."

Suddenly I feel dizzy in my seat, I attempt with everything I have to keep a straight face, but I'm sure the colour is leaving my body.

"I never had to threaten them, I guessed they knew what the alternative would be if they denied me my request."

The gun is still in the back of my jeans, and my hands shake as I fight to stop myself from shooting him in his fucking face.

"Your mother agreed and it wasn't long before she fell pregnant, of course as soon as she delivered, the baby was given to Jazmine and I to raise. A year and a half later you were born, but things were never the same between them. Your mother longed for her other child and your father hated Scarlet because he couldn't hate me."

He shrugs. "You know how the rest of the story goes," he stops to take another sip and I ball my hands into fists, both of them shaking on my thighs.

"My Jazmine ended up dying in a terrible car accident, a rival gang declared war on us, a war we have only just managed peace with, and now I'm dying; slowly and fucking painfully. It won't be long before I put a bullet in my skull, but I need to make things right first."

I try to focus on my breathing, and keeping my anger in check, but all I want is to help him put a bullet in his skull.

"I believe that karma will balance out with you and Ace leading The Lost Souls together."

I stand abruptly, knowing that I can't be in this room with him much longer. I pull the gun from behind me, but instead of shooting him, I slam it down on the table. I turn to leave, needing space and a minute to catch my thoughts.

"He's your brother Tyson. The only real family you have left," Flynn says as I pause by the door. I don't turn back to him as I leave.