Chapter 167 Acting president
Ryder's POV
The Steel Wolves brothers gathered at the hospital to make it official.
They filled Tommy's room, standing shoulder to shoulder, looking serious and solemn. Snake was there. Diesel and a dozen other brothers who had survived the attack at the Romano house.
"Jaxon sent word from his room," Snake said, holding a piece of paper that looked like it had been written in shaky handwriting. "He's appointing Ryder Christopher Kane as acting president until he's recovered enough to reclaim the position."
The brothers nodded, murmuring their agreement. No one argued or questioned the decision. Jaxon was still their president, and if he wanted me to lead in his absence, they would respect that.
"All in favor?" Snake asked.
Every hand went up.
"Motion carries." Snake shook my hand. "Congratulations, Prez. We'll follow your lead."
They took turns shaking my hand or clapping me on the shoulder. Offering support and pledging loyalty. Talking about how we would rebuild and move forward.
I went through all the motions and said all the right things. Thanked them for their trust. Promised to honor Jaxon's legacy and lead the club well. I also talked about the challenges ahead and how we would face them together.
But my mind was hundreds of miles away in Arizona with Sage.
"We need to talk about the clubhouse," Diesel said. "The damage from the attack is extensive. We're going to need contractors, permits, money."
Apparently, the attack that happened at Jaxon's place also took place at the clubhouse to prevent reinforcements from coming from the club to the house to help out. If not for Diego and Elena that day, we were actually fucking screwed.y
"Handle it," I told him. "Get estimates and bring them to me. Whatever we need to do to rebuild, we'll do it."
"What about the police?" another brother asked. "They're still sniffing around, asking questions."
"Cooperate with them," I said. "We've got nothing to hide. Dante orchestrated the attack. Inspector Adams who is the federal agent that offered federal protection and immunity in exchange for useful intel was dirty. The more we help them build their case, the faster they'll leave us alone."
Snake pulled out a notebook. "We've got funerals to plan for the brothers we lost. Six of ours died that night. Their families need support."
"Set up a fund," I said automatically. "Make sure their families are taken care of. Medical expenses, funeral costs, whatever they need."
The brothers nodded, looking satisfied with my decisions. They saw a leader stepping up to handle business. They did not see a man whose entire world had just fallen apart.
We talked for another hour about logistics and rebuilding and moving forward. I signed paperwork making my position official. I also made phone calls to contractors and lawyers should in case the police decide to be crazy and turn the shooting situation with Inspector Adams into a he-said she-said situation. I handled club business like it was the most important thing in the world.
But every time my phone rang, my heart leaped hoping it was Sage.
It never was.
The brothers finally left, promising to handle their assigned tasks and report back. Tommy and I were alone again in the hospital room that had become too familiar.
"You did good," Tommy said from his bed. He was sitting up now, getting stronger every day. "They trust you."
"I don't care about their trust." I slumped into the chair beside his bed. "I just lost Sage."
"You lost her a week ago when you decided staying in this room was more important than checking on her." Tommy's voice was blunt. "Today she just made it official."
"Thanks for the reminder." I ran my hands through my hair. "What am I supposed to do now?"
"You're supposed to run the club until Jaxon recovers." Tommy shifted in his bed. "And you're supposed to figure out how to live with the consequences of your choices."
"I didn't choose to lose her."
"You chose not to call her for seven days." Tommy met my eyes. "You chose to stay in this room instead of checking if Jaxon survived surgery. You chose to let Diego be the one who showed up for her. Those were all choices, Ryder."
I wanted to argue but he was right. Every decision I had made in the past week had led directly to this moment.
My phone rang and I grabbed it, checking the screen with pathetic hope.
It was the club's lawyer, calling about another thing on the list of million things to be settled.
I answered and handled the call, making decisions about cooperation and legal strategy while my chest felt like it was caving in.
When I hung up, Tommy was watching me with concern.
"You need to eat something," he said. "And sleep. You look like hell."
"I feel like hell."
"That's what happens when you lose the love of your life through your own stupidity." Tommy's voice was gentler now. "But you're still alive and you still have responsibilities. So you need to take care of yourself."
He was right. The club needed me to be functional. Tommy needed me healthy. I could not afford to fall apart, no matter how much I wanted to.
Over the next few days, I fell into a routine. I handled club business from Tommy's hospital room. Signed papers and made phone calls and dealt with the aftermath of the attack. I coordinated with the contractors about rebuilding the clubhouse and Jaxon's house. I worked with the lawyers on the shooting investigation. I organized funerals for the brothers we lost.
I went through the motions of living while feeling like a ghost.
Every time my phone rang, I hoped it was Sage. Every time someone knocked on the door, I looked up expecting to see her. Every night when I tried to sleep in the uncomfortable hospital chair, I thought about her in Arizona with Diego.
Tommy was discharged after five more days. I took him back to my place and set him up in the spare room with everything he needed to recover comfortably.
"Have you called her?" he asked as I helped him get settled.
"No."
"Why not?"
"Because she told me not to." I adjusted his pillows. "She made her choice."
"She made a choice based on hurt and fear." Tommy grabbed my wrist to make me look at him. "That doesn't mean it's the right choice or that it can't be changed."
"She's with Diego now." The words tasted bitter. "In Arizona. Probably planning another wedding."
"Then go get her back."
"I can't." I pulled away. "She doesn't trust me anymore. She doesn't want me."
"Did she say that?"
"She didn't have to."
Tommy sighed. "You're an idiot."
"I know."
The days blurred together. I ran the club from my living room instead of Tommy's hospital room. I attended meetings and made decisions. Gave speeches at funerals about brotherhood and loyalty while feeling like a complete fraud.
I finally forced myself to visit Jaxon two weeks after Sage left. I owed him that much, at least. He was my brother and my president, and I had been avoiding him because seeing him meant confronting what I had lost.
A nurse let me into his room. Jaxon was sitting up in bed, still pale but looking stronger than the last time I had seen him.
His eyes met mine and the first words out of his mouth were, "Where's Sage?”