Secrets In Shadows
1006 Words
Back in the war room, Crow slammed a file down.
“Got something. Cartel’s been quiet for years, but intel says they’re rebuilding. Using old bloodlines to settle debts. They call them Legacy Marks.”
He flipped the page. Lena’s birth certificate. Her mother’s signature.
And stamped across it, in faded red ink flip out:
"Reclamado – Property of Los Silencios."
Few minutes later, the engines roared like war drums out of the compound.
Jax led the charge, leather cut sharp against the wind, Lena’s birth certificate folded and tucked inside his vest like a silent promise. Behind him, Tank, Diesel, Roach, and Crow rode tight — the Dead Reapers at full strength.
But, they weren’t going for blood this time. They were going for answers.
The informant’s name was Santos. Ex-cartel, hiding in the skeleton of a roach-infested motel an hour out of town. He used to cook for Los Silencios — drugs and books. A rat with a memory sharp enough to bring the whole empire down.
But only if they got to him first.
Jax parked the bike and stepped off, gun drawn.
“Santos,” he called. “Come out before I count to five.”
Nothing. at first, then the door creaked.
A wiry man with hollow eyes peeked out, shaking.
“You with the Reapers?” he croaked.
“Depends on who’s asking.”
“I got names. Documents. But they’re watching me. They know I talked.” Immediately, behind him, a red dot appeared on the wall.
Quickly, Jax grabbed him and shoved them both to the ground.
A bullet shattered the motel window.
“Sniper!” Crow shouted.
Everything exploded into chaos.
Diesel returned fire from the truck. Roach hauled Santos into cover. Tank took a hit to the shoulder but didn’t flinch — just kept laying rounds downrange like thunder.
Jax dragged Santos to safety, pressing him against the filthy floor. “What do you know about Lena’s mother?!”
“Her name was Camila,” Santos gasped. “She wasn’t just running from the cartel — she was part of it. The accountant. She cooked the books. She hid millions.”
“Where is it?”
“I don’t know!” he shouted. “But they think her daughter knows. They think Lena was trained to replace her.”
Jax froze. Lena… an heir?
Meanwhile, back at the compound, Lena opened her mother’s old locket again.And this time, inside, she finally noticed the engraving on the back.
A set of numbers. Coordinates…
The compound was unusually quiet. Too quiet.
Lena slipped away from the watchful eyes of the remaining members of the club, clutching her mother’s locket. The cold metal felt heavier today — like it carried a thousand secrets.
She sat on the back porch, fingers trembling as she traced the numbers engraved on the locket’s back: 34.0522° N, 118.2437° W.
Los Angeles. Coordinates to a city she barely knew.
Her mind raced. Was it a safe house? A stash? Or a trap?
With a deep breath, she pulled out her phone and opened a map app.
The point marked a dilapidated warehouse by the docks.
“Jax needs to know.” But something stopped her.
A flicker of doubt. She glanced back at the compound. Jax wasn't back yet, and the other guys were strategizing inside, battle-weary but focused.
If she told them … it could change everything. Pull him and the others deeper into her past — and into more danger.
So later that night, when Jax finally came back without the informant, and while the others slept, Lena slipped out, her heart pounding with anxiety, and anticipation.
Two hours later, she arrived at the location on the phone map. It was a deserted warehouse.
The warehouse loomed against the moonlight, silent and foreboding.
She pushed the creaking door open.
Inside, dust swirled in shafts of moonlight, revealing rusted crates and shadows that seemed alive.
She walked in a zigzag manner around the warehouse. Totally clueless on what she is actually looking for until she sighed something.
It was a small metal box, hidden beneath a loose floorboard.
Swallowing hard, her fingers fumbled the lock. Inside, she found:
Ledgers. Photos of her mother with cartel members. A faded passport. And one last note, scrawled in a hurried hand:
“If you find this, Lena — run. They won’t stop.”
Suddenly, the sharp sound of footsteps echoed behind her.
A silhouette emerged from the darkness.
“Going somewhere?” Lena froze, heart pounding hard against her chest.
The figure stepped closer, lowering a hood.
“Easy,” a familiar voice said — soft, cautious. She instantly recognized the voice. It was Mara — her mother’s closest friend, the woman Lena thought was lost forever.
“I’ve been watching you miss Lena,” Mara whispered, eyes full of secrets and regret. “Your mother trusted me with everything... including you.”
Lena swallowed hard, the weight of betrayal and hope crashing down at once.
“Why are you here? Why now?”
“Because they’re coming. And you’re not ready to defend yourself yet.”
Mara’s gaze flicked to the metal box.
“I can help. But you have to trust me, because, Jax’s world was about to get even darker because of you!". Mara’s voice was low, urgent.
"But why?"
“Listen miss, Los Silencios aren’t just any cartel. They’re a ghost in the system — untouchable, ruthless, and ancient. Your mother tried to break free, but the blood ran deeper than she thought.”
Lena’s hands trembled as she clutched the box tighter. “Why did she hide all this?”
“To protect you. To give you a chance to choose differently.” Suddenly, the sharp snap of a twig outside.
Mara’s eyes snapped to the window. “They found us.”
“Get ready,” she hissed. “We don’t have much time.” Suddenly the once quiet warehouse, was filled with cold shadows as footsteps closed in...
- Writer
