by Wilder, L.
“I take it Miller’s not talking?”
“Fuck no, but from the sounds of it, he’ll be singing like a canary before long.”
“I hope you’re right about that.”
“Me, too.” He shook his head. “I don’t know if I can stomach much more of this shit.”
“Rough in there?”
“Fuck, yeah. Dude looks like he’s been through a fucking meat grinder. Turns my stomach just thinking about it.” A pained expression crossed Rafe’s face as he continued, “Hell, I would’ve started spilling it the second I saw Shotgun coming at me with a fucking sledge hammer, but this guy’s being all stubborn and shit. He hasn’t said a fucking word about what went down with the take.”
“Gotta wonder why he’s trying so hard to keep it under wraps.”
“I was thinking the same fucking thing.”
The screams continued, and I was considering going in to check on things when Viper and Axel walked up. I figured they were like me and eager to find out if Shotgun had managed to get him to talk, and I had no doubt that they’d both be just as disappointed as I was that Miller still hadn’t. Viper turned to me as he asked, “Anything?”
“Not a word.”
“Fuck,” he grumbled. “I’m about fed up with this bullshit.”
“I’m sure Shotgun feels the same. He’s been at it all fucking night.”
“I think I’ve got something that might help,” Menace interrupted as he come rushing up the hall. As he offered Viper a folder, he told him, “Here’s the information you wanted on Miller.”
Viper opened the folder, and after reading it over for a moment, he said, “It’s time to put an end to this shit once and for all.”
Without a moment’s hesitation he reached for the doorknob, and as he opened it, we were all hit with a foul odor of vomit mixed with shit. It was enough to turn my stomach, but the smell was nothing compared to the sight of Miller. Much like Danny, he was strung up with his hands over his head, but he was sitting with his feet bound to the legs of a chair. I had to fight back my gag reflexes as I looked down at his bare feet and shins. They were all broken and mangled from where Shotgun had worked him over with the sledgehammer, and I found it doubtful that Miller would ever walk again. His face was barely recognizable, and I was surprised that the guy was not only conscious but seemed completely aware of his surroundings. Viper grabbed a chair from the corner and took it over to Miller. As he sat down in front of him, he open the folder and said, “Scott Miller. Son of Donna and Hamilton Miller. 129 Tigrett Street, Texarkana, Arkansas. Age thirty-four.”
“Yeah...so?”
“Nicole Miller. Daughter of Scott Miller. Age seven. Living at ...”
Before Viper could finish, Miller spat, “What the fuck does my daughter have to do with this shit?”
“That is entirely up to you.” Viper held up the folder, showing Miller the picture Menace found of his daughter. “Cute kid. Sure would hate to see anything happen to her.”
“Look here, motherfucker. If you lay one finger on her, I’ll kill you! I’ll kill every last fucking one of you!” Miller barked, making it clear Viper had hit a nerve.
“I think we both know you’re in no position to make threats, so why don’t you just save us both some trouble and tell us what we want to know.” Viper closed the folder and leaned back in his chair. “Otherwise, me and my boys are gonna make another trip to Arkansas, and that sweet little girl of yours is going to find out what monsters are really made of.”
“Fuck you!”
“All right, then. Have it your way.”
Viper stood, and when he started towards the door, Miller shouted, “It was me. I’m the one who did it.”
“Any particular reason why it was our shipment you decided to fuck with?”
“I didn’t know it was yours. I just get the orders and fill ’em. I figured since it was such a big take, no one would be the wiser.”
“You thought we wouldn’t notice that over half of it was fucking trash?” Viper went over and reached for his throat, gripping it tightly as he growled, “The Ruthless Sinners don’t deal fucking trash, asshole. Not now. Not ever.”
Miller’s face was turning red from the lack of oxygen and he was close to passing out when Viper finally released him. Miller gasped for breath as he stammered, “I-I get that. I really do, but it’s done now. It’s not like I can take it back.”
“You’re right about that.” Viper stood over him, scowling as he studied him, then he turned and looked at us. I could see the wheels turning in his head, but I had no idea what he was thinking. After several, long moments, Viper walked back over to the chair in front of Miller and sat down. As he lean forward, glaring at Miller, he cocked his head and said, “You know ... something’s just not adding up with all this.”
“What are you talking about?” Miller asked, sounding innocent. “I told you everything.”
Viper shook his head as he grumbled, “I’m not buying it.”
“I don’t know what else to tell ya, man. It was me.”
“Okay, then why all the bullshit.” Viper cocked his head to the side as he said, “Why not just fess up to it in the beginning?”
“It doesn’t matter,” Miller told him. “You know the truth. That’s all you need to know.”
“I’m the one who decides what the fuck I need to know. Not you, asshole, so cut the bullshit!” Even though I was standing several feet away, I could feel the anger radiating off Viper as he growled, “I know you got a reason for putting yourself through all this shit, and you’ve got two seconds to tell me what the fuck it is or I’m going to get that daughter of yours and—”
“Don’t!” Miller pleaded. “I’ll tell you what you want to know.”
“I’m listening.”
“You gotta understand ... You finding out what I did is one thing. I know it’s bad, really bad, and you’re pissed that I swindled ya. Hell, I know I’m not walking outta here alive”—a troubled look crossed Miller’s face as he sat there staring back at Viper—“but the boss ... Fuck. If he finds out that I fucked with his product, that I put his distribution line in jeopardy, then it won’t just be me who goes down for it. My whole fucking family will burn for my mistake. I wasn’t gonna let that happen.”
“Too late.”
“What the fuck you talking about?”
“When you don’t show up with his cash, where do you think that boss of yours is gonna go first?” Miller’s face grew pale as the realization of what he’d done finally sank in. “You fucked up big, kid, and you’ve got no one to blame but yourself.”
Viper stood up, and as he started towards the door, Miller said, “You know my boss is a smart guy.”
“And?”
“When he puts two and two together, he’ll come looking for you, and when that happens, you’ll all go down. Every last one of ya.”
“And that’s why we have Billy,” Viper replied with confidence. “He’ll see to it that that doesn’t happen.”
Then, Viper turned and started for the door. We had the answers we’d been looking for, so our time with Miller was done. We all knew once Viper brought in Billy the Butcher, he’d see to it that Miller paid the final penance for his crimes against the club. Menace, Axel, and I followed Viper out of the room and into the hall. When the door closed behind us, Axel shook his head and said, “Dumb kid’s got no idea what a fucking mess he’s made.”
“No, he doesn’t.”
I knew Billy was good. Hell, he was the best around. That’s why we used him, but this wasn’t just a simple clean up. He would have to make sure no unwanted repercussions fell back on us, and considering everything that had gone down, that wouldn’t be easy. “You think Billy can keep this thing from coming back on us?”
Viper ran his hand over his beard as he said, “He’s going to have to. One way or another, we’ve gotta see to it that there’s no blowback from any of this. Last thing we need is some fucking drug boss thinking we fucked him over
... took out one of his guys and stole one of his shipments.”
“Yeah, losing a handler is one thing,” Axel replied. “Losing ten grand is another.”
“Maybe Billy can make it look like Miller split with the cash or something?” Menace suggested. “His boss has gotta know that he was delivering another order.”
“Maybe so.” Viper took his phone out of his pocket as he said, “I’ll get with Billy and go from there. I trust him to handle it.”
Before he made the call, Axel asked, “You need anything from us?”
“Get with some of the guys, and go over and check on the remodel at the new club. I want us opening as soon as possible.” Then, he turned to me and Menace. “You two stick around in case Billy needs a hand with something.”
“You got it,” Menace answered. “Let us know when he gets here.”
“You know I will.”
When Viper started down the hall to make his call to Billy the Butcher, Axel went to gather up the others, and Menace headed down his room to wait for Billy’s arrival. Since I had some time on my hands, I decided to go check in on Danny. I hadn’t thought to ask the others how he was doing, so I decided to go see for myself. When I got down to the infirmary, I found Danny in the room alone. He was lying on one of the gurneys with an IV stuck in his arm. At first look, I thought he was asleep, but as I entered farther into the room, he turned to look at me. “You here to finish me off?”
“Not exactly,” I scoffed. “Just wanted to see how you were doing.”
“I’ve been better, but this sure beats being in that room with that friend of yours.”
“I’m sure it does.”
“You find out what you needed to know from Miller?”
“That’s not something up for discussion.”
“What about my sister?” A hopeful look crossed his face as he asked, “Can you at least tell me if she’s okay?”
If the guy hadn’t taken a bullet for us, I wouldn’t have felt inclined to tell him a fucking thing, but since he’d risked his life, I decided to ease his mind a little. “She’s fine.”
“You still keeping her here?”
“We released her, but we’ve been keeping an eye on her.”
“You know she didn’t have anything to do with all this. Hell, she didn’t even know I was dealing.”
“Yeah.” I nodded. “I’m aware of that.”
“Not sure she’ll ever forgive me for putting her in danger.”
“I don’t know. Your sister seems to have a soft spot where you’re concerned.”
“Oh really?” His brows furrowed with confusion. “What makes you say that?”
“Just a hunch.”
“I don’t know.” He studied me for a moment, then replied, “Something tells me there’s more to it than just a hunch.”
“Seems to me that you need to be less concerned about my hunches, and more concerned about what’s going to happen to you now.”
“Like I told Delilah, I’m not expecting to up and walk out of here. I made a bad deal, and instead of facing the shit head on, I shot one of your guys.”
“I don’t disagree. You definitely fucked up, but what you did yesterday with Miller didn’t go unnoticed by Viper.”
“It’s not a big deal. Anyone would’ve done it.”
“I disagree with you there.”
“So, maybe there’s a chance for me yet ... or do you think he’s still set on ending me?”
“You wouldn’t be lying here hooked up to this IV if there wasn’t a chance.”
Danny nodded. “Good to know.”
“I gotta get going. I’ll be back later to see how you’re making it.”
“Thanks, man. I appreciate that.” When I turned and started towards the door, he asked, “When you see Delilah, are you gonna tell her about what happened at the meet?”
As I stood in the doorway, I turned to him and asked, “What makes you think I’ll be seeing her?”
“I guess you could call it a hunch.”
Even though I knew she’d be pissed that I hadn’t told her about her brother being shot, there was nothing I could do about it. Club business was never discussed outside of the club. Period. Whether I liked it or not, I had no choice but to keep what happened under wraps. Before I walked out, I looked him dead in the eye and said, “No, I won’t be telling her anything, and if you’re smart, you’ll do the same.”
When I left there, I went down to the kitchen for some coffee and a quick bite to eat. Sadly, the coffee was long gone, but there were some leftovers in the fridge that I was able to warm up. I’d just finished off the last of the bacon when Menace walked in. “Billy just pulled up.”
“That was quick.”
“I know. Apparently, he was already in the area.”
I got up and followed Menace out to the parking lot. When we got outside, Billy was standing by his van, and like the last time I saw him, he was wearing a pair of slacks with a white button down. His hair was perfectly combed to the side, and his glasses were down on the brim of his nose as he said, “Viper called.”
“Yeah, he’s waiting for you around back.”
He nodded, then went to the back of his van and grabbed his duffle bag. With it in hand, he followed us to the room where we were holding Miller. When we got to the door, Viper was standing there waiting for us. “Appreciate you coming and helping us out like this, Billy.”
“That’s what I’m here for.” His tone was all business as he asked, “So, what exactly are we dealing with today.”
Viper took some time to fill Billy in on what had gone down with both Danny and Miller. Once he was done, he casually opened the door, and we all watched as Billy stepped inside. Miller took one look at him in his slacks and dress shirt, then shook his head and chuckled under his breath, making it clear he had no idea what he was in store for. With a smile still plastered on his face, Miller watched Billy drop his duffle bag to the floor, then reach inside for one of his bright orange hazmat suits. Miller’s smirk started to fade as Billy stepped inside his suit and zipped it up. After pulling out a large plastic tarp, he looked over to Viper and said, “I’ll need him to be standing for this.”
“You got it.”
Shotgun stepped towards Miller and grabbed the chain over his head, giving it a hard yank and forcing him up. While writhing in agony from standing on his mutilated feet, Shotgun clipped the zip-ties at Miller’s ankles. Billy eased forward as he said, “That’s good. Leave his hands tied up until I get this done.”
Shotgun nodded, then stepped out of Billy’s way as he slapped a piece of duct tape over his mouth. Once it was secured, he opened the tarp and started to wrap Miller in it like he was already dead. I had no idea why he was doing that, but considering that he was a genius when it came to this shit, I saw no reason to question his methods. Miller, on the hand, was more than a little rattled by it all. There was no missing the fear in his eyes as Billy covered his face with the plastic.
After he had his body completely covered, he used duct tape to keep the tarp in place. As soon as he was done, he looked over to Viper and said, “Would you mind getting your boys to put him in the van?”
“No problem.”
After Shotgun removed the remaining restraints around Miller’s wrists, we carried him out to the parking lot and tossed him into Billy’s van. After we closed the doors, Billy turned to Viper and said, “I’m going to need his keys.”
Viper reached into his pocket for Miller’s keys, then handed them over to Billy. “Anything else?”
Billy started to remove his hazmat suit as he answered, “I’ll need you to text me the exact time and location of your meet yesterday.”
“I can do that. Anything else?”
“Not at the moment.” He put his suit into the duffle bag, then tossed it inside the van. As he got inside, he turned to Viper and said, “I’ll contact you when the job is done.”
He closed his door, and as he drove away, we thought our troubles with Mill
er and his drug boss were done.
We were wrong. Very, very wrong.
Delilah
“You seem quiet.” We’d been lying in bed for a half hour or so, and Zander hadn’t said more than two words to me. I was starting to think something was wrong. “Do you have something on your mind?”
“No, I’m good.” He pulled me over to his side and smiled. “Why? You got a problem with me being quiet?”
“Not at all. I’m just not used to it.” I cocked my eyebrow as I looked up at him and smiled. “You’re usually one to tell me exactly what’s on your mind.”
“Is that right?” He lowered his mouth to my neck, lightly trailing kisses below my ear. “Well, do I need to tell you what I’m thinking right now?”
“No. I have a pretty good idea.” I giggled as I inched away from him. “I was thinking we might get out and do something today.”
“Really? Whatcha have in mind?”
“Maybe you could take me out for another ride on your bike?” I’d only been out with him once, and that was just for him to get me back to my car. Even though it was brief, I’d actually enjoyed it—a lot. The weather was great, and I thought it would be a nice break for Zander, especially after he’d been working so hard to help the brothers get the new club up and running. “We could pack a lunch and ride out to Radnor Lake. Maybe look around and enjoy the sunshine for a little while, then we can come back here and have a late dinner?”
“Yeah. We could definitely do that, but first ...”
He rolled over on top of me, hovering just a moment as he looked down at me with those gorgeous green eyes. I watched in anticipation as he lowered his mouth to mine, kissing me, soft and tender. My hands drifted to his back, my fingertips slowly roaming before slipping into his hair. A low growl vibrated through his chest as his hand inched its way down my stomach, slipped under the waistband of my lace panties, and continued to drift lower until the tips of his fingers dipped between my thighs and inched towards my center. As my entire body shivered in anticipation, I inhaled a deep, torturous breath and tilted my head back to relish the sensation as he moved his fingers in slow, methodical circles. I was just starting to feel a slight tingling in my stomach when he reached for the hem of my t-shirt and quickly pulled it over my head. He’d barely had a chance to toss it to floor before he was reaching for my panties. As soon as they were gone, Zander was back on top of me, looking down at my naked body like a predator about to consume its prey, causing goosebumps to prickle against my skin. He lowered his mouth to my shoulder and trailed kisses past my collarbone down to my breasts. Heavy breaths and low moans filled the room as he took one of my nipples into his mouth. It felt incredible to be there in his arms, to have his body so close to mine, but I needed more. Eagerly, I rocked my hips forward, back and forth, causing his erection to rake against my warm, wet center. He growled once again, making every nerve in my body hum with need as I ground my clit against him.