“I don’t like the sound of that at all,” Tina said with a large frown. “Are you sure? What if… what if it’s dangerous?”
“It’s going to be a hell of a lot more dangerous for the person that tries to break in, you can bet on that.”
Tina chewed at her bottom lip. “I’ll stay with you.”
“No! Absolutely not!”
“Think about it, Jack. With two of us, one can sleep while the other listens. If someone starts breaking in while you’re sleeping, I’ll wake you up.”
“No. No way in hell. Forget it.”
“Jack... I’m not Colette. You don’t have to protect me.”
“That’s not the point. I—”
“That’s bullshit and you know it. That’s exactly the reason. But you need my help, Jack. You can’t go all night without sleep. Not for more than one night, anyway. Let me help you. Please.”
Jack chewed his lip aggressively, feeling torn. Tina was right—it would be better to have two so one could watch while the other slept… but he didn’t want to put her in harm’s way. On the other hand, they would be waiting in ambush and the thieves won’t know they are there. On the third hand, so to speak, this may all be an exercise in futility and nothing would happen.
“Okay. But you take first watch… and if you hear anything… anything… you wake me up, okay?”
“Deal. Where are we going to sleep?”
“In the car.”
“Not very comfortable.”
“I never said it would be. You sure you don’t want me to drop you off at the motel?”
“No. We’ll just have to figure out some way to work out the kinks later.”
Jack snickered. “None of that. We have to be alert.”
***
“Jack!” Tina whispered through the open window of the car. “A truck just pulled up outside.”
Jack was instantly awake. It was a few minutes after one in the morning. “You were supposed to wake me at one,” he whispered as he quietly got out of the car.
“I was just going to when I heard the truck pull up. I listened a moment to see where they went. I think they stopped right outside, but I didn’t look. I was afraid they would see me.”
“That’s my girl. Okay, get in the car and keep your head down. No matter what happens, you stay in the car. When they get inside, hit the headlights, but if the shit really hits the fan, you start the car and haul ass out of here. Got it?”
“I can’t leave—”
“If the shit gets that deep, you won’t be leaving me. I will already be dead. You promised me, Tina.”
She fumed for a moment. “Okay,” she agreed. Now, whether or not I actually do it or not is another matter.
When the big roll-up door rattled, she squeaked, got into the car, and quietly shut the door before scooting down low in seat. It was dark in the warehouse and with Jack crouched by the passenger door, when the headlamps came on, the bad guys were going to be blinded and an easy target.
The door rattled again and then there was the shriek and groan of straining metal. The intruders worked at the door for several minutes as it resisted their attempts to break in. Finally, there was another shriek, followed by a loud bang that made her jump.
Everything was quiet for a moment and Tina began to think they had given up and gone away when the door at last rumbled up. She could see four shadowy figures enter inside, silhouetted against the brightness of the greater Los Angeles metropolis.
“Now,” Jack whispered, and Tina flipped on the headlamps. “First one to move, dies!” Jack declared as he stood, his Beretta M9 pistol pointed at the figures as they blinked into the glare.
“Don’t shoot, Jack!” called the man—the buyer’s agent that had been by earlier in the day—as all their hands went up.
“Who sent you?”
“I don’t know, man! Some guy! He said there were some cars in here. He sent us a picture of the two he wanted. When we got them, we were supposed to call him. That’s all we know!”
“Was it Goremykin?”
“I don’t know no Goremykin. That’s just the name he gave me. Maybe.”
“Did he sound Russian?”
“Kind of. Maybe. I don’t know what a Russian sounds like except in the movies! He sounded kind of like that.”
“What’s the number are you supposed to call him?”
“It’s on my phone.”
“Take it out… slowly. If you come out with anything other than your cell, all of you die—starting with you.”
The man reached very slowly into his pocket and carefully retrieved his phone before he held it up for Jack to see.
“Give me the number. Tina, write it down.” Albuquerque area code? What the fuck? he thought as the man read off the number.
“All of you. Take out your cells, put them on the floor, then step away and lay face down on the floor. Do it!” Jack barked when no one seemed inclined to move.
The four men lay down. “Don’t shoot us!” a second man begged.
“I’m only going to ask you this once. Are any of you armed? Don’t lie, because if you lie and I find a weapon I’m going to shoot all four of you.”
“I have a knife! I have a knife!”
“Anyone else? No? Okay. Where’s the knife?”
“My front pocket!”
“Nobody move,” Jack said as he stood over them. “If any of you so much as twitch, you’re all dead, so your lives are in each other’s hands. Tina! Call the number then bring me the phone. I want to speak with Goremykin.”
Tina dialed the number. “No answer.”
“When were you supposed to call?”
“As soon as we got the cars.”
Jack fumed for a moment, then kicked three of the four phones into a loose pile that he ground under foot. “If I so much as see your face again… I will kill you. Do I make myself clear?” he growled.
All four men nodded.
“On your hands and knees… you crawl out of here. Do not stand up until you reach the truck. When you reach the truck, stand up, get in, and drive away. If you do anything other than what I just said… well… let’s just say that with sixteen shots, I’m bound to hit at least a couple of you. Am I clear?”
Once again all four men nodded.
“Get moving. And remember… the only reason you are not dead already is I don’t want to have to clean up the mess.”
Tina smiled as Jack threatened the men. “Not wanting to clean up the mess” was the same phrase he used when he caught her breaking into clubhouse. She knew that Jack was an easy going, laid-back guy, but he could be scary as hell when he wanted to be… like now. The four men hurriedly began crawling away, not wanting to risk their asses by taking a stand.
“Hey, you… asshole,” Jack called, and all four men stopped. “What’s the code to unlock your phone?”
“I will have to show you.”
“Nobody move,” Jack said as he picked up the phone and carried with him to the man. He put his gun directly to the man’s head. “Stand up.”
The man stood and Jack handed him the phone. He drew the pattern to unlock the phone—a simple one, easily remembered. Jack took the phone from him. “Back on your knees.”
He followed the man down with his gun and then stepped back. “Okay. Get out of here.”
“Why did you let them go and why did you keep his phone?” Tina asked after the men drove away.
“They’re just punks. They aren’t worth the trouble to kill, and I didn’t want the police involved. I kept the phone because I am going to try Goremykin on it and see if he answers.”
“Did you notice the number has an Albuquerque area code?”
“Yeah. That worries me too. Why would a Russian have a New Mexico area code? Or an American phone number at all?”
“I don’t know. You don’t suppose…?”
“I know what you are thinking. And… I have to admit, it doesn’t look good. But who is it?”
“I don’t
know. I don’t know who to trust,” Tina lamented.
CHAPTER THIRTY TWO
Jack tried several times the next morning to reach Goremykin until he finally gave up. “What a bunch of shit,” Jack muttered as he pitched the stolen phone into a dumpster at the motel.
“What now?” Tina asked.
“Now… I have to decide who I can trust,” he said as he pulled his own cell out of his pocket. “Seth… Jack. Call me when you get this message.”
“Do you think he did it?”
“Don’t know. That’s what I hope to find out.”
Twenty minutes later Jack’s phone rang. “Hey, Jack. What can I do for you? How’d the inspection go?”
“Funny you should ask that. Someone tried to double cross us. The agent was a stooge. He came back later and tried to steal the cars.”
Seth was quiet for several moments. “Since you know that, I assume they didn’t get the cars?”
“No. I moved them before they got there and I was waiting on him.”
“Did you kill him?” Seth asked after another long pause.
“No.”
“Did he tell you who he worked for?”
“He said Goremykin, but…”
“But what?”
“But the phone number… it was an American phone number with an ABQ area code.”
“…What are you saying, Jack?”
“I’m saying that something more is going on here than meets the eye.”
“Jack… I know what you are thinking, but it wasn’t me, I swear! I just passed the information along to Goremykin! I wouldn’t cross the Sons! I wouldn’t!”
Jack stewed for a moment. He wanted to believe Seth, but there had been too many leaks. “Get me Goremykin’s number. I’ll deal with him directly from this point forward.”
“I understand. But… that removes all the checks and balances we have in place to prevent someone from—”
“I know,” Jack interrupted. “But right now, I don’t know who I can trust. And to be honest, Seth, you, and the rest of the Sons, are in no position to question my loyalty. Twice someone has crossed us, and until I find out who that person is, you are just going to have to trust me.”
“I will need to talk to the rest of the Sons, Jack. If you have Goremykin’s number, you will have the cars and access to the buyer. You could…”
“I’m the only one that knows where the cars are. It’s my way or no way,” Jack said, his voice stone hard.
“I will call a meeting tonight and let you know what we decide.”
“You do that,” Jack said before he hung up.
“Well?”
“I don’t trust anyone,” he said, then smiled at her. “Present company excluded of course.”
***
Tina looked at Jack as they sat on the bed in a loose embrace. They were watching a documentary on the evolution of motorcycles on the television… at least, she was. Jack appeared to be staring into space. He had brooded all day. Not that she blamed him. Someone in his organization, someone he thought of as his friend, had probably crossed them. Twice.
“It’s Marshall,” he said when he looked at his ringing phone. “Jack.”
“Jack. Marshall. Seth is here with me. We voted and it was unanimous. Are you ready for the number?” Jack snapped his fingers and pointed at the paper and pen on Tina’s side of the bed. “Ready.”
Marshall read him the number, which he repeated back.
“We also decided that from this point on, there has to be at least two Sons on every conversation.”
“Good thinking,” Jack said. His voice was still cool, but not as cold and hard as it had been.
“Jack… I’m really sorry this has happened. I’ve let you down.”
“We both have,” Seth’s voice added.
“I’ll find out who crossed us, Jack, I promise you that. And when I do…” Marshall continued, his voice deadly.
“Don’t do anything stupid,” Jack warned.
“Don’t worry,” Marshall said. “I’ll only make them wish I had killed them.”
In spite of himself, he smiled. Marshall was a bulldog and he carried a grudge. He wouldn’t want him on his tail because he would never let it go. “Okay. Just don’t get carried away and end up in prison, okay?”
“You worry about the cars. I’ll worry about the bastard that sold us out. If it was one of us, I will find him. Or her.”
“Good enough. I will be in touch.”
“That seemed to go well,” Tina said, picking up on Jack’s improved mood.
“Yeah. I hate this! It’s so hard for me to believe it was one of the Sons, but who else could it be?”
“I don’t know. I’m sorry, Jack.” She felt bad for him as she recalled her own betrayal in Roswell. He had stood fast and true as everyone around him, even her, had violated his trust.
He could read the sadness in her eyes and knew what she was thinking. “Don’t even go there. We talked about what happened. You’re the only person I can fully trust now. I need you to be strong for me.”
Tina studied him and she could feel her heart melt at his words. “I will never let you down again. I promise.”
“I know,” he said as he kissed her lightly.
***
Jack dialed the number Marshall gave him as Tina watched sleepily. It was approaching eleven, which made it almost ten in the morning in Moscow.
“Goremykin,” a voice said with just a trace of British and Russian accent.
“Mr. Goremykin. My name is Jack Carter. I have the Ferraris you are to purchase.”
“How did you get this number, Mr. Carter?”
“Your sales contact gave it to me. She works for me and I asked for it. We’ve had… a situation. And you and I need to speak openly and frankly.”
“What situation?”
“Your agent, the one you sent to inspect the cars before purchase, tried to steal the cars. I don’t like it when my customers try to cross me, Mr. Goremykin.”
There was a long pause. “May I call you Jack?”
“Yes.”
“Jack… I haven’t dispatched my agent yet. I don’t know who arrived and said they represented me, but I assure you, I had nothing to do with it.”
“They knew you by name.”
“Perhaps so, but that changes nothing. People in your organization also know my name. Perhaps you should be concerned with your own people.”
“Steps have been taken, Mr. Goremykin. That is why I am contacting you. You will be dealing with me directly now.”
Again Goremykin paused, and Jack could sense him thinking. “Very well. Pyotr Rodchenko will be arriving tomorrow evening. He is one of my most trusted associates. He will identify himself and give you a word. That word will be… Maranello. I will contact you later today with his flight information. You will deal exclusively with him or me.”
Jack smiled. Maranello, Italy, is where Ferraris are made.
“As a sign of my good faith, I will deposit one million dollars into your account, to be applied to the final selling price.”
“Thank you, Mr. Goremykin. I will have one of my associates contact you with the wire information. But, so we are clear, if the money is not in our account, I will be a no show at the airport and I will let the GTO go to our other customer.”
“That is acceptable.”
“I look forward to doing business with you, Mr. Goremykin.”
“And I with you, Jack.”
Jack immediately dialed Greg’s number upon hanging up.
“‘lo?” Greg’s sleepy voice came over the phone after a number of rings.
“Greg. Jack. Get Goremykin the wire instructions. Do it now. Let me know the moment the million hits.”
“Jack… there is nobody around to back me up,” he mumbled and yawned.
“I’m backing you up. I’m telling you to do this and I am sending Marshall a text as soon as I hang up, telling him I told you to do this.”
“Okay… Jack. I
will send him the instructions in a few minutes,” Greg said, sounding more alert.
“Good man! Make it happen, Greg.”
“Go back to sleep, baby,” Greg said faintly before he came back strong. “I’ll do it now. He should have the information in fifteen or twenty minutes. Where do I send it?”
Wild & Inked: A Motorcycle Club Romance (Desert Sons MC) (No Saints in Biker Hell Book 2) Page 27