by Piper Stone
“He’s involved all right but from what I heard, he’s working with Salizare in order to find the assholes who stole his product. That doesn’t bode well for any of us.”
Shit. That was something neither of us suspected. Given the cutthroat environment, we’d all been waiting for a tactical war between the two parties. “What about the buyer?” I shifted to the back of the house, peering around the blinds on the door. From what I could see, there was no one within sight. While the security system I’d installed could detect movement from three hundred sixty degrees, there were software systems developed to easily shut down that portion without the main components catching the error.
“At this point, we need to consider him out of the picture. Do what you need to do, Crockett, but take my advice. Don’t trust this girl. I don’t buy the fact she stumbled onto your location, pretending to be in need. Not in the fucking least.”
I found it difficult to breathe, my nerves on edge. “Let me worry about that shit, Hawk.”
“What are you going to do?”
“I’ll figure it out and let you know as soon as I can. Do either Salizare or Capatelli know the Hell’s Fury are involved?”
“Not at this point but it’s only a matter of time,” he said under his breath. “People have big mouths.”
“Then you need to figure out who betrayed you.”
Hawk laughed. “I’d kill anyone else for even making that suggestion, but I’ll give you a pass. However, if I find someone, I know exactly how to take care of it. You’re going to have to expose your past to the others. You know that. There is no other choice.”
I cringed at the thought. I wasn’t entirely certain I was prepared for their possible wrath. No matter the reasons why or my loyalty for the past four years, I would be considered a traitor. I’d lied to everyone, including myself for far too long, hiding behind a persona that others remained uncertain of, but opening up about who I was could potentially place the entire club in danger. “Yeah, I know. They’re going to find out anyway.”
“You got that right,” he stated, the tone of his voice sarcastic. “Maybe it’s all for the best. You were never a part of this life, Crockett, no matter what you wanted to believe. Just stay in touch.”
I ended the call, holding the phone to my head, his words haunting. I’d once believed in justice and that there was good in every human being, no matter the crimes they committed. That ridiculous notion had been shattered along with even giving a damn about anyone else. I wasn’t certain I wanted or was ready to face the man who’d been lost to the violence that had altered my life, but the risky house of cards was caving in.
The sense of foreboding was increasing as I walked out onto the porch, staring at the screen on my phone. I eased my wallet from my back pocket, finding one of two business cards that held no meaning to anyone else but to me. I’d sworn the numbers would never be called, help would never be asked for, even though both contacts had insisted I keep and protect their contact information. They’d been two men I’d been able to trust, honorable in ways I certainly couldn’t claim after everything I’d done over the last four years.
One in particular was better suited to the possible danger as well as had the best connections in order to round up the perpetrators. Steve was a good man, even though he and I had never really gotten along. Calling him felt like a weakness.
But this was a necessity if I wanted any hope of living a normal life or just living for that matter.
Steve answered on the third ring. “Yeah? Who is this?”
“Crockett.” The nickname had stuck years before, my real name lost in the same purge as everything else in my life.
“Well, a cold day in hell just occurred,” he said, disdain in his tone.
I’d said those words to him the day I’d decided to disappear. I’d left my job, sold my other piece of property, closed bank accounts, and cancelled credit cards. The cabin was the only thing I owned outright, although my grandfather’s attorney had made certain changes so that no one could ever associate the property with my identity. My grandfather’s influence and wealth were almost as powerful as that of Capatelli’s, allowing me to hide in near anonymity. Years before, Steve had been the last man to track me down in a dive bar, laughing at me after attempting for the second time to change my decision.
I hadn’t budged.
We were unlikely associates, his sloppy attitude regarding the cases he worked on with the FBI not something I’d been able to tolerate. Still, he’d proven to be invaluable more than once, even protecting witnesses that would have otherwise ended up dumped in some landfill before seeing their day in court.
As with everyone else from my past, he’d never heard from me after that day in the bar. For all practical purposes, I’d died, resurfacing with another name, although that hadn’t kept me from almost meeting the grim reaper only two nights after I’d vanished. I’d always had the feeling someone had followed me, attempting to finish what the cartel hadn’t been able to do. Then Hawk had come along. I’d never really thought about just how convenient that had been. “Yeah, hell is exactly what we’re talking about. I need your help.”
Snorting, Steve took his time answering. “If you’re calling me, I guess it must be good. I thought you were dead, drowning in a bottle. Lo and behold, I actually have what looks like a picture of you on my computer, a wanted man in connection with a huge drug run. Heroin. Lots of bricks. Funny that this picture would end up on my desk since it’s from all the way in Jacksonville, sunny freaking Florida when my ass is stuck in a windowless office in the heart of political town US of fucking A.”
“Don’t give me shit, Steve. I don’t need it right now,” I snarled, my nerves on edge. My damn photograph had been captured on some camera. Fuck. That was the last thing we needed. With all the connections Salizare had, if he had an indication of what I looked like, he could uncover my real identity. Damn it. I’d been careless.
“Yeah? You may not like what I have to say but I’m going to say it. As I was saying, it’s really funny how the FBI director himself sent me the email, asking out of curiosity if I’d heard from my old buddy. He actually remembered distinctly that you had a funky nickname, as he called it. Crockett. Like the eighties cop show. My boss doesn’t have a sense of humor but found it funny that you’d resurfaced on the other side of the law and working with a man that pretty much everyone was certain you were going to hunt down. Imagine what I had to try and tell him as I glared at the rather good photograph.”
“I’m not working for that fuck. You know that.”
Steve chuckled bitterly. “That’s what I said, even commenting the photo looks nothing like you. Long raggedy-ass hair. A damn beard that looks like birds live in it. Couldn’t be my buddy, the one who drove a Beamer and wore a freaking Movado watch. Then again, what the fuck do I know? But as I said before, here you are calling me. What in God’s name are you into?”
“Some shit.”
“Uh-huh,” he huffed. “Tell me something I don’t know.”
“I’m not working with Salizare, but I am trying to take him down and I have just the way to do it.”
There was instant silence on the other end of the phone.
“You’re either drunk or you really did lose your mind,” he said half under his breath.
“Maybe both, but you need to listen to me.” When he said nothing, I continued against my better judgment. This was risky as shit no matter what angle. “Yeah, I did take some of Salizare’s party favors.”
“Then you’re just itching for a bullet in your brain.” Steve sighed several times.
“What I have could elevate your career to places you never thought possible. If you’re not interested, I can call someone else.”
“Fuck. You still know how to play hardball, especially for a dead man.”
“You know why it’s important for me!” I snapped.
There was silence before he cleared his throat. “What the fuck. If you’re serious, then
let me hear it but I ain’t promising anything. Salizare is a bigger fish than my pay grade.”
“This could end his reign of terror. If I give you this case, you will make promises no member of the Hell’s Fury will be indicted.”
“Hell’s Fury? What in God’s name have you gotten yourself into, buddy?” Huffing, he grumbled under his breath. “Not sure I can promise you that, Crockett. They’re bad news and always have been. If they’re involved in some crooked deal, I doubt I’ll have any say in whether the members are rounded up.”
“Then I’m hanging up the phone.”
“Goddamn it! You have no idea what you’re asking me. Just fucking tell me the deal and I’ll see what I can do. You’re throwing out names like they’re no big deal but trust me, it’s a huge deal to the powers that be.”
I hesitated before providing the basics and when he spent a solid ten seconds laughing, he pissed me off. “Like I said, I’ll call somebody else if you can’t handle it.”
“Wait a minute. Just wait a goddamn minute. That was always your protection, no freaking patience,” Steve huffed. “How much heroin are we talking about?”
“Let’s just say in its current form, street value is well over two million. However, Salizare has no plans on selling it until it’s doctored, at least tripling the value.”
“Posh?”
“I can’t read his mind, but my sources tell me that yeah, he’s brought the designer drug back in full force. Big once again on the Miami scene. That much I do know. I just took the opportunity to swipe a stash coming in from overseas.”
“Whew. You got balls. That means you have a price tag on your head and he’d going to want it back.”
“You let me worry about my health and safety. Now, it’s time to reel him in since we couldn’t do it before.”
Steve sucked in his breath. “I don’t how you plan on luring him into some kind of trade and honestly, I don’t want to know. You also know exactly what happened before. I can’t tell you that the mood has changed, but this new director is itching to catch some huge fish. However, this is some story you’re telling me. Makes me nervous for you, buddy. What am I saying? Makes me nervous for half the population on the East Coast. Salizare has to be pissed. I’m surprised we haven’t heard anything from our informants.”
“Probably because he’s worried about his buyer driving a stake through his heart,” I said, chortling afterward.
“I just don’t know about this. Your involvement. The past. Now, you’re running with the Hell’s Fury? It’s risky all the way around.”
I laughed. “I don’t have time to waste on crap, Steve. Either you want this arrest or you don’t. I’ve got plenty of people I can call.”
“Don’t throw me that line of shit, Crockett. If you’re calling me, you’re in dire straits. I suspect there’s no one else you figured would help you after the way you left. If you really think the Hell’s Fury aren’t expecting to get a piece of the pie, you’re nuts. Then again, maybe this is a ruse. Ten million or so will buy a lot of nice trinkets.”
“What are you getting at?”
“What I’m telling you is that they’ve been under investigation by the FBI for years. They were involved in small shit at first, their random crimes handled on a local level, but they’ve escalated over the years, now involved in aspects of espionage and blackmail. I guess we can add drug running to that list. Maybe you need to turn yourself in, buddy, before this shit gets way out of hand.”
The news hit me harder than I would have expected. While a small portion of the MC had been involved in various criminal activities, their brutal pasts had been pushed aside several years before I’d been recruited. Or so I’d thought. Granted, even though I’d been initiated into the upper echelon, I wasn’t often involved in what Hawk liked to call their inner sanctum; a solid three dozen men who spent the majority of their time in or around the clubhouse. “That’s bullshit. They’re not in the game and neither am I. Just scores to settle and nothing more.”
“Right. Just a bunch of guys deciding to take on the most dangerous crime lord in the United States. If that’s really the truth, you might have left the frying pan and jumped headfirst into a major fire. I just hope you aren’t involved more than you’re telling me because I doubt I can protect you.”
“I get it,” I said under my breath, my mind reeling. He didn’t need to know any of my plans. If a significant number of soldiers were arrested, picking Salizare off would be easy. And Capatelli? That portion of the information I’d leave off the table for now.
The quiet between us was unsettling.
“What about the buyer?” His question was one I’d expected.
“Let’s just say another major player that you won’t mind getting off the streets.”
“This clandestine thing isn’t going to fly with my superiors.”
I laughed. “If you come through with your end of the deal, I’ll tell you about the buyer. Just trust me on this one; this particular asshole needs dropped into a prison cell for the rest of his life.”
“Christ. All right. I’ll trust you, but you’re going to have to come clean if this works out.”
There were a whole lot of ifs at this point.
“Any news on the murder investigation?” I asked, although as soon as I asked the question, I could tell by the single clearing of his throat nothing had happened. There hadn’t been a law enforcement officer, prosecutor, or judge who hadn’t known who was behind the murders. No one had been willing to go up against Salizare and his army. They knew exactly what would happen.
Including the fact their families would bear the brunt of harm for daring to go against such a powerful organization.
“Nothing new, Crockett, but I was pulled off the investigation after you left town. I can try and find out, but I don’t think you want me searching through red-flagged files while attempting to get approval for this sting operation you’re proposing.”
I wasn’t well liked among the ranks, especially since I’d publicly accused several of them of covering up evidence after the murder.
I grew antsy even standing on the front porch, my skin crawling. Of all the men I’d trusted in my life, Hawk was the only one I knew wouldn’t steer me wrong. Steve was a longshot at best. He and I had been at odds more often than on the same side. However, for all the gruff bullshit he issued, he was a man of integrity. “Fine. I won’t bother asking you again. Now, either you’re in or you’re not. Your call, but if I hang up, don’t blame me when blood rains in the streets of Jacksonville.”
“Jacksonville? Not Miami?”
“I have my reasons including getting the lion out of his den. I need an answer.”
There was another moment of hesitation. I almost hung up, figuring he’d already contacted one of his superiors and was attempting to trace the call. What I was offering him on a silver platter would keep him in accolades for the rest of his career.
“Jesus Christ. You’re still a ballbuster. I’m in. You knew I would be, but I have to run this up the chain of command, Crockett. This isn’t the kind of operation I can put together on my own. There’s too much at stake but I promise you I’ll go straight to the director himself. This may be exactly the kind of operation he will approve, especially since he’ll get all the kudos.”
At stake? Yeah, like determining the risk factors for several upstanding politicians and powerful moguls who gladly looked the other way in order to have their proclivities supplied to them at no cost. “Fine. You do that but the moment I set up the buy, there’s no turning back. And that’s going to happen in the next forty-eight hours.”
“Understood. I’ll call you with the details when I have them,” Steve said.
“No, I’ll call you exactly twenty-four hours from now. If you don’t answer, I’ll know the deal is off. I’m still going to go through with my end. That’s the way it’s going to be.”
Steve laughed softly. “Fine. One piece of advice whether you like it or not. This kind
of merchandise isn’t just a heavy volume. This is about the possibility of acquiring control of a major league drug operation. Greed does a lot of things to people. Don’t trust anyone.” While Steve was one of the best at what he did, working on more than one drug buy during his career, I resisted breaking into laughter.
“Trust me, Steve. I haven’t, and I won’t.” Unfortunately, I had more questions than answers in my mind. There were about a dozen ways this could go wrong, but both Hawk and I would have the revenge we’d sought for years.
I dropped the phone onto the deck, crushing it under my boot before walking back inside. There were several other pieces to this ongoing puzzle yet to be deciphered, far too many with Kelly’s name attached in some manner.
Either she was going to tell me every last bit of what the fuck was going on or I would hire a driver to take her back to Atlanta with a note to Michael shoved into her hand. No one played me. No one.
I moved up the stairs two at a time, finding Kelly just as she was finishing dressing. “You bought me clothes. And they fit.” Cocking her head, she narrowed her eyes when she noticed my face. “What’s wrong?” she asked, backing away several feet.
I was momentarily taken aback by the way she looked in tight-fitting jeans, a shirt hugging every voluptuous curve. Even the shimmer on her face from the sunlight streaming in the window was enough to snatch a portion of my breath. Blinking, I purposely looked away.
“We need to talk right now, and I mean talk.”
“O-kay. What happened?”
“This location has been compromised, and there’s no possible way that could happen without help.”
“Help? What are you insinuating? You still believe I’m working with Michael?”
“What I believe doesn’t matter, but you’re coming with me.” I dragged her by the arm, leading her down the stairs and into the kitchen where both Wade and Dylan were drinking coffee.
“Jesus. What the fuck’s gotten into you?” Dylan half laughed until he noticed my face.
“We need to grab everything that’s necessary. We’re leaving in thirty minutes,” I retorted.