"Jax!"

There was more money inside.

A lot more.

Jax shrugged.

"Must have multiplied."

Cole burst out laughing.

Emily counted the bills.

"This isn't mine!"

"Nope."

"I only gave you ninety-three!"

"And you got ninety-three back."

Jax pointed toward the original wrinkled bills.

"The rest is from the people who watched you teach us all a lesson."

The bikers had secretly collected money for Sarah and Emily.

Enough for rent.

Food.

Medical care.

And a fresh start.

Emily looked at Jax.

Then she threw her arms around his enormous waist.

Jax froze.

The Iron Wolves immediately began laughing.

"Don't tell anyone," Jax muttered.

"Too late," Cole said, recording him.

Chapter 7

Three months later, Sarah and Emily moved into a small house near town.

It wasn't luxurious.

But it was safe.

Emily finally had a room of her own.

Her mother found a new job at a community health organization.

And every Sunday, the Iron Wolves visited for dinner.

Emily had become their unofficial mascot.

She painted tiny wolves on their motorcycle helmets when nobody was looking.

She called Cole "Uncle Grumpy."

She called Jax "Uncle Giant."

Jax hated the name.

Everyone else loved it.

One evening, Emily sat beside Jax on the porch.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Depends."

"Are you always scary?"

Jax looked offended.

"No."

Emily smiled.

"Only when you're awake?"

Cole nearly fell out of his chair laughing.

Jax shook his head.

Emily became quiet.

"Why did you help me?"

Jax looked toward the sunset.

"I told you. I had a sister."

Emily nodded.

"What happened?"

Jax remained silent for a while.

Then he answered.

"She needed help once. Bad people scared her. I thought someone else would step in."

Emily's smile disappeared.

"They didn't?"

"No."

"So she got hurt?"

Jax nodded.

Emily took his hand.

"You're different now."

Jax looked at her.

"Why?"

"Because when I asked for help, you didn't wait for someone else."

For the first time, Jax had no answer.

The words hurt.

But in a strange way, they also healed something.

Chapter 8

Victor Kane's trial began six months later.

The courtroom was packed.

Sarah testified.

Tommy testified.

The security footage was shown.

The illegal warehouse operation was exposed.

But the most emotional moment came when the prosecutor showed the photograph of Emily standing in front of Jax with ninety-three dollars in her hands.