Chapter IV: The Guardians of the Roadhouse
Dutch took the black box, crushed the antenna under the heel of his heavy boot, and walked over to Lily, who was standing nervously by the diner's front porch.
The massive biker dropped gently onto one knee, looking straight into the little girl's tearful face with profound gratitude.
"You saved twenty lives today, little one," Dutch said softly, unhooking a polished silver guardian bell engraved with the club's emblem from his handlebars and placing the chain gently into her small hands. "As long as an Iron King rides these roads, you and this roadhouse are under our permanent protection."
Behind him, Dutch signaled his road captains to contact local federal investigators with the frequency codes from the recovered devices.
From that day forward, the isolated Desert Roadhouse had the fiercest, most loyal escort in the state—guarded by the very brotherhood a little girl's courage had saved from the flames.