Seems as if it is a stupid question, but Storm, Winter, Tea, and I are very close. If she is going to be assisting two of us, she has to be able to get along with women.
“Catty women, no. Strong, independent women, yes.”
I almost want to squeal out loud. I will never do interviews again, but Jinx makes it almost worth the hassle today.
“Are you able to pass a drug test?”
She laughs while nodding her head yes.
“Your take on drinking?”
She bites her lip and appears nervous again.
“Answer honestly.”
She picks up my red marker and taps it against the table. “You live once. I work hard, and when I let loose, I like to drink a little. I’m not an alcoholic.” She gasps. “Oh god, did I screw up my chances?”
Is she kidding me? “You’re hired!” Piper, chill out. A little too enthusiastic.
“Seriously?”
I nod my head and pass over the employee handbook and forms Winter told me she had to fill out. Screw being a manager. It sucks balls.
“The owner, Winter Breaker—yes, I know her name is weird as shit—is on bed rest. Storm, the bar manager, will be out of town for the next week or two, so you’re stuck with me until then. They’re crazy for wanting me to start training you, but we’re out of options here.”
Jinx sets my marker down, nods at my pen, and I push it over to her. “You don’t seem so bad,” she says while she clicks the pen. “I peg you for a free spirit.”
Where did this lady come from? “You peg me right.” I smile.
My phone dings with a message. Jinx is busy reading and filling out paperwork, so I dig it out and read a text from Sniper.
Snipe – Where r u?
Good grief. I text back my response.
Me – At Sated, hiring. Where are you?
He will be pissed with my question.
Snipe – Piper, fuckin stop it! I’m tellin Frank to watch ur ass. Club business, c u tonight.
My good mood has evaporated into thin air. Bastard ass.
“Jinx, you’re in for the ride of a lifetime,” I say as I put my phone back away.
She lifts her head to peer at me. “What do you mean?”
I motion for Frank, and he does not hesitate to walk over. “You see his leather cut?”
Frank is prospecting for the club. If you ask me, he is one of the lucky ones. He has been on doorman and bodyguard duty for a few weeks. He has not had to clean toilets or anything of that nature lately.
Jinx trails her eyes up Frank’s massive physique, and I nod for him to go back to the door.
“Breakneck MC, huh. I’ve seen them around town.”
I snort. She has seen them around town? “They own this town, hunny. Shit can get messy around here. I sure hope you can handle large, sexy, badass men and a shit load of drama.”
I’d rather her be aware now before it is too late, and I am stuck doing stupid interviews again.
“I can handle it,” she replies as she peers back down to the pile of paperwork.
We will see.
***
Chapter Six
Sniper
Riding up to Petra’s place with the atmosphere so thick with tension is a strange feeling. Petra may have been in the drug cartel business, but we earned his trust, got familiar with this place, and now that is long gone and we’re about to stroll in blind.
As we turn off our bikes, I say glued to my brother’s side. I am not only his blood brother, but I am his sergeant-at-arms. It is my job to protect him, and him alone when in these situations.
Pyro, Smokey, and Rap flank us. The older brothers stayed behind to watch the club. With fuckers running amok trying to take over businesses, we don’t need to get robbed by leaving our clubhouse with no protection. We don’t have a shit load of drugs around the club, but we have the largest stock of guns in the area. We lose those, we lose everything. It would take a very long time to rebuild our supply.
These Mexican cartel members are some big ass dudes. Almost as big as the Russian mafia we’ve had to deal with in the past. But even though they think they are intimidating, they are wrong. Their size and machine guns mean jack shit to me and my brothers. Not one of these motherfuckers has the skill that I have. I could have stayed back and picked these motherfuckers off in one minute, and we would control everything. Now that the thought is in my head, I wish we were back at Church around the table where I could present my idea.
Not one person says a fucking word as we follow these fucktards up into Petra’s open garage. Shit is fucking weird he isn’t here anymore.
My brother takes a seat in the fucking old, torn up chair he always sits in when we come here, and we close flank around him. Our guards will not go down, so they are wasting their time if they think we will ease up.
“Petra was a friend,” Braxx says and the tall, skinny fuck I assume is the dude in charge says nothing in return. He sits there and rubs at his chin as he mean-mugs my brother. “I run this town and Petra used that to his advantage of gainin’ clientele. Everyone that knew his pipelines happens to be iced, and all that is left is me,” he says while he lights a smoke. “Before you get your cartel panties in a twist, I’m here to tell you we don’t want the fuckin’ drug business. I’m willing to offer up all the info Petra had stored in his damn head. It comes at a price, of course. We want to stay the fuck out of it. I give you the information you need, and in return, you keep us the fuck out of it, and we still get our cuts when hookin’ you up with more vendors.”
That gets the drug lord's attention. He sits up, and in a thick accent says, “That easy? Some dollars on the dime and you offer up the shit I need?”
I don’t know how they do shit in Mexico, but here in Jamaica Nevada, this is how we run our shit.
“That fuckin’ easy,” my brother responds.
“Carlos, get this man a fuckin’ notebook,” the drug lord orders one of his men. “You don’t order for personal use?”
My brother laughs. “Of course we do. We have a few people we sell to, but nothing big like Petra had runnin’. I’ll put our usual down on the pad of paper as well. You want to be in the know when it comes to the drug business in this area. You need to befriend an informant named Juan. I’ll write down his contact info. You’ll never meet him. He’s a ghost and runs on burner phones.”
After Braxxon says this, Pyro takes out his phone and shoots off a text to Juan to let him know to be expecting these fuckers to contact.
“Juan is impressive. If he dumps a phone, he somehow has this magic, fuckin’ goddamn skill to let everyone know. He calls or you call, and after you get what you want from him, he tells you a drop off point for his pay, and that’s it.” Prez erupts in laughter. “Don’t try scoutin’ out the place to find out what he looks like. You’ll be wastin’ your motherfuckin’ time. When I say ghost, I mean he is a fuckin’ ghost.”
I would love to know what Juan looks like. We’ve all talked about it before. We know we have seen him around, and he is most likely a friend we know who goes by a name different than the informant. There is no way in hell he has eluded us for all these years, in the town we have in our pocket.
“I ask, one boss to another, that you don’t fuck with my informant. If you decide to use him, respect my town and me by not fuckin’ it up. Juan will always be valuable to the illegal community, and there would be a lot of pissed off fuckers if something were to happen to him.”
The drug lord eyes Braxx and uses a tone that pisses us all off. “Is that a threat?”
My brother crosses his ankles and answers him. “You’re the fucking Mexican cartel. I wouldn’t threaten you, I’m not a goddamn fool, but I do know how business goes. You’re comin’ into my town, and you need somethin’ from me. In return, I ask for a little spendin’ paper, and to be respectful of what I have fuckin’ built. You don’t see our asses down in Mexico, do you?”
I can’t help but snort and my brother chuckles.
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“You make a valid point, although, do you think I give a shit if this is your town or not?”
I cock my gun with his response. He had to go and fuck this shit up.
“There is nothin’ left to discuss. I’ll prepare for a turf war, then,” my brother says while he stands. I move closer to him.
“Wait,” the drug lord orders while he stands.
My brother doesn’t move. He is waiting for this fucker to piss him off some more. It will fuel the fire he wants to rage now.
“There is no wait. You said you don’t give a shit if this is my town or not. That means you have a problem with respect, and I ain’t got time for motherfuckers like you. You may be the fuckin’ cartel, but let me tell you somethin’. You think this town will deal with you fuckers comin’ in like you own the place? They’d rather be scared of us than the cartel,” he seethes. “I have the fuckin’ entire town in my pocket, and a wife whose money would squash yours. You want to play, we’re gonna fuckin’ play.”
I would call my brother a goddamn idiot for mentioning his wife’s money, but he’s playin’ his cards. He is letting this fucker know that he has the power and the funds to fight until the end. Protection around Winter is going to be tenfold now. She is going to be fucking pissed.
The drug lord’s men cock their guns, and the echoes of ours follow.
“Go ahead and shoot. My brother, who you don’t need to know because he’ll pick you off before you can pull your triggers, will have iced most of your men. Then where will you be? A squattin’ dick in someone else’s town without protection.”
My trigger finger is doing a happy dance. It begs me to pull it back and kill these fuckwads.
“Now that is a fuckin’ threat, you dumbass. You’ve had your chance. We’re outta here. Fuck with my town, and we’ll pick you off one by one. Don’t believe me? Call up the Russian mafia. We picked them fuckers off one by one until there were a few left, and those few ran off with their cocks tucked.”
The drug lord makes a motion with his hands for his crew to lower their guns. “We don’t need to start bloodshed right now. We’ll take what we want eventually.”
What a dumb fuck. My brother’s laughter roars as we walk out. They may be the fucking cartel, but we’re goddamn Breakneck, and we are used to motherfuckers starting shit with us. Grant you, this is the largest we will have ever gone against. We do have the manpower, guns, and the funds to cover our asses.
He wants a war? Well, he got himself one.
When we reach our bikes, we wait for our Prez to give us our orders as we straddle our ladies.
“When we get back, call up the other charters, Pyro. Their families are safe, but ours are not. Get them here. Our town needs our fuckin’ protection too. We can’t cover everything by ourselves,” he growls low so that someone might not hear. “Shoot Juan a fuckin’ text; tell him not to help these fuckers. You can tell him everything. It’ll piss him off too. They don’t have his number because I didn’t get a chance to write it down, but he needs to be cautious anyway.”
More goddamn bloodshed.
“Pyro and Smokey, you guys need to go and get Berry. Since she lives the farthest, you both need to go. Two is better than one. Rap, can you handle swingin’ by Sated to get Piper,” Prez asks as we hit the throttles on our ladies.
Shit, Piper!
“Prez…” I drawl. “I’d feel a fuck ton better if you, Rap, and I all went to Club Sated.”
“That’s fine, but let’s make this shit quick. We gotta inform the other brothers. I’ll call a gathering meetin’ so we can prep the family.”
Great. It’s about to get ugly.
“We need to get Zig Zag and Storm back here, but I want Shadow to keep Tea fuckin’ far away. ZZ has lost enough fuckin’ members of his family; let’s not let him lose another. So don’t call Shadow back, and that’s a fuckin’ order.
What bullshit. All of this is fucking bullshit.
We notice three cars following us as we leave and you can tell my brother is losing his patience. He shakes his head back and forth as we ride along the highway. When Pyro and Smokey turn off to get Berry, one car veers off and trails behind them. The other two vehicles tail us all the way, until we pull in front of Sated.
Piper is walking a redhead out of the building when I turn my lady off. Prez, Rap, and I are all thinking the same thing as Piper hugs the woman. Her being friendly with whoever that is cost that redhead her freedom. If these cartel assholes think Piper is friends with this girl, they will go after her.
When I nod my head no, Piper tells the redhead to hold on a second.
“Club problems. Get your new friend, and let’s go.”
The redhead looks taken aback by my behavior and she should. I am the strange man who ordered them to follow us.
“My name is Jinx, and I’m sorry, but I won’t be coming along.”
Trying to apologize doesn’t cover the sassy from showing.
Piper pulls her aside and gestures with her hands. I can’t imagine what the fuck Piper is saying to her, but whatever she has said caused the redhead to stumble a little backward.
Whatever was said works because she follows Piper as she walks towards me.
“You’ve got some explainin’ to do to this lady,” she points, “when we get there.” She walks towards Tea’s car. I hope to fuck she is taking care of it because Piper tends to be a little messy.
“Frank, Piper won’t be coming back tonight. Make sure, if you need anything here, to call me and only me. Leave Piper and Winter alone. Shit goin’ down, and if you want to prove yourself, here’s your chance,” he threatens.
Thank fuck the redhead is out of hearing range because if she weren’t, she’d be running for her life, scared shitless if she isn’t already.
***
Chapter Seven
Piper
Beside me, Jinx shifts with nervous movements as I drive back to the compound. Me and my overfriendly ways cost her her freedom for a while. I am such a fuck up sometimes. The club has been quiet about business dealings, so I have no idea what the hell is going on, but if he made me drag a stranger back home, it has to be awful.
“I’m sorry,” I say as I wait for the large Breakneck gate to open. “I have no idea what is going on, but I feel like it has to do with those two cars following behind the guys on our way here. They don’t ask for anything that isn’t necessary.”
She leans her head against the window. “I won’t pretend not to be pissed, because I am, and where I am at now in my head… I wish I wouldn’t have applied for the job.”
If she thinks her saying so would make me angry with her, she is wrong. I wish she didn’t apply as well. She wouldn’t be here if she hadn’t.
“You deserve to feel the way you do. Honest to god, I don’t know what the hell is goin’ on, but Braxxon will let us know, especially since I have you with me. He won’t keep you in the dark.”
She turns her head away from the glass to look at me. “Who is Braxxon?”
“He is the club president. Also, my friend’s husband. A town badass.”
Jinx huffs and turns back to the window. “This is bullshit.”
Whoa. First curse word I have heard come from her mouth. “It is. Again, I am sorry. We’ll listen to what they have to say, and if you’re stuck with me for a bit, we will get fuckin’ wasted tonight,” I offer. She did say she likes to unwind after working. I think this is a worthy occasion.
“I hope to hell you have something strong then.”
Well, well. The sweet is gone. Damn. I liked that about her.
I change the subject from drinking to something we will have to know if she is stuck on the compound. “If you are stuck at the MC, is there anyone who you have to call?”
A laugh sputters from her mouth. “Yeah, right. It is me and me alone. My father died a few years ago, and who the hell knows where my mother is.”
Shit. “I’m sorry.” I hope she understands that.
“I
t was a while ago.”
Okay, then.
The gate opens and I pull in. When I park, I take a deep breath and prepare her.
“The guys look rough, and they are. Their looks don’t deceive you. Almost all of them are fine as hell, too. So if you are stuck here, at least you’re stuck lookin’ at sexy the entire time.”
The upside of lockdown and it’s the only enjoyable part about it all.
“I’m sure my husband will love that,” she says, and it throws me off.
“You said—”
“Gotcha!”
Damn her.
“When I am nervous, I joke. I shouldn’t, but it is a habit. It helps my moods.”
Maybe she is sweet and has a small, sassy side. I sure hope so. There are enough smartass bitches around us.
“You’ll definitely throw the girls off with that behavior. You gave me fuckin’ whiplash, chick.” I laugh and grab the handle. “You ready?”
She straps her purse to her side. “I have no choice, right?”
I give her a sad smile and shake my head no.
“Well then…”
I take that as my cue to open the door, and she does the same with hers. Once we are out and the doors of Tea’s car shut, I click the alarm, and we head towards the clubhouse.
“That large, tall building is the live-in. Basically, the slut free zone. The family area and that small building over there is the office, and you can tell what all the other small buildings are.”
Jinx looks around. “You can’t tell how big this place is from the outside. It is huge once you are inside the gate.”
She thinks it is big now, but she won’t be thinking that if she is stuck here with us. The guys throttle into the compound and linger behind in the parking lot as we walk inside.
“Whoa, cigarette and weed-filtered air.”
“Sorry.”
She will probably get tired of hearing that come from me, but I can’t help it.
“No biggie. I’m not a smoker so it is heavier on my senses.”
When we round the corner, I gesture for her to sit on a barstool. She does and she lays her bag on the bar counter. I want to scream, “Get your name brand purse off of there. You don’t know what disease infested shit will crawl up onto your bag,” but I can’t because the chick will be scarred for life.
Discovering Me (Breakneck #4) Page 4