“It’s true,” Vienna quips. “Ever since Blancher tried to kick Shade off his throne it’s as if Shade is cleaning house.”
“That’s why they took Reva,” I muse.
“Right.” North points at me. “And right before the two of you walked in here, Deeds contacted me. They found another body.” His eyes slide to Vienna. “Wayman’s dead.”
Vienna’s eyes bulge. “You’re kidding?”
“Nope. They dragged him out of the river near his house a few hours ago. Some neighbor saw him jump from his apartment’s balcony but from what I’ve heard dead guys with bullets between their eyes don’t jump from balconies.”
“That fucker,” Vienna snaps. “I told you there was a rat in our team. I’m sure he was it, he ratted out my sister. He made sure her computer was wiped clean. Dammit, why didn’t I do anything? Ugh.” She takes her head in her hands and releases a string of curse words.
A phone dings with an incoming message. North glances at—what I now notice is a new phone—and places his old one on the table right next to the new one.
“Showtime. I received a text with an address. I guess they took me up on my offer.” North grins and stands.
“How do you want to play this?” I question, not liking the fact I don’t have all the details of this plan North came up with.
“Nash had some high-tech shit he wanted to test and I’m the guinea pig. This phone being one of those and this.”
North toes off his left boot, shoves his sock down and shows me his ankle.
“Sexy,” I remark, my eyebrow going up in question. What the ever-loving-fuck is he trying to show me here?
All the asshole does is grin and put his boot back on. “A few hours ago I had this red lump there because Nash poked me with something he can pinpoint me with but is completely off the radar.”
“You know this shit doesn’t calm my damn nerves, right?” I snap, still not liking this whole plan of letting North go in alone.
“I wouldn’t have it any other way, brother. Keeps you on your toes. And I need you on your fucking toes to have my damn back out here.”
“True,” I sigh. “But I can’t do shit out here and you know it.”
North grabs my cut. “Your job is to keep your woman safe. We all might think Wyman was in on things but what if Shade is tying up loose ends in a wider range? You know damn well Wyman was supposed to be our contact and lead this case along with Vienna. Vienna is Reva’s damn twin. He’s coming for her too, I fucking know it. You know where this leaves you, right?”
“Right?” I growl back. “Sitting on my damn ass keeping my eye on her while you go out and risk your damn life.”
North glances over his shoulder at Vienna. “Such a drama queen this one.”
I fist North’s cut and bring his face close to mine. My blood is boiling and the need to punch his damn face is skyrocketing. Doesn’t he fucking understand I can’t let him do this alone?
Chapter Ten
***Vienna***
I have to do something. The way these two guys go head to head is making my chest ache. Dashing up, I push my way in between the two of them. And again, I find myself caged in with Kray at my back while facing North.
“Stop it you two.” I throw a glance over my shoulder to let Kray know this part is mainly for him. “I don’t like this either but the man has a point. And think about it. What if I was some random chick or a dude for that matter? One who wasn’t on the back of your bike or shared pie after we shared a bed, huh? How would this play out? Would the both of you go undercover? Would these guys let two people in?”
“No,” Kray hisses through his teeth.
He’s still angry and I know how he feels. With Reva being at stake here I might be jumping a bit too soon on team North but the rational agent inside me also screams this is the best option. Kray needs to put his emotions on the back burner and glance at this from a different point of view. And I know it’s damn hard and all new for him.
“One would be playing a part on the outside while the other goes in. I know very well some missions have to be faced solo. But this is different.”
Oh, for fuck’s sake, stubborn man. “It’s different because of me?”
“Yes,” he hisses again through his teeth.
“Look man,” North sighs. “It’s not like we didn’t see this coming. And for sure as fuck it’s not like you’re trading me in for some cunt.”
Kray growls while I shoot daggers at North. What the hell is he thinking, stating something like that? “Not helping,” I snap.
“I wasn’t finished,” North sighs in frustration. “I knew when you walked in the bar you’d be it...a little hard to swallow at first realizing you weren’t the one for me or to share for the both of us but you’re it for him. Like I said; it’s not like he’s trading me in for some cunt. If he hasn’t had the balls to man up, I’ll say it, okay? You’re Old Lady material, Vienna. Our job doesn’t change because of it. Hell, our fucking friendship doesn’t change, and neither does our job. But with this case? You’re at risk.” North glances over my head and I know he’s holding Kray’s stare when he says, “A future Old Lady is at risk.”
I feel Kray’s arms circle my waist.
“So,” North continues. “Handing out tasks is easy as shit this time and it’s the whole reason I didn’t mention it to you before we set this all up. Our Prez is in charge as you know, and it’s why I went to him first. He agreed. I’m the one going undercover while Kray here will make sure you’re safe while our team works their ass off too.”
“Fine,” Kray rumbles, the feel of his voice vibrating through my back.
The corner of North’s mouth twitches. “Fine.”
“Better get ready then. Where you heading?” Kray asks.
“I need to head for some address mentioned in the text but it said I would get another text with the exact location of the meeting when I get there.” North nods, and heads for the room we found him in earlier.
“We should head back to the others back at the clubhouse, right?” I question while I follow Kray into the room where North is strapping all kind of weapons to his body. “Great way to earn their trust,” I snicker. “Meeting them armed to the teeth.”
“Weapons expert, remember?” North shoots me a wolfish grin and I can’t help but grin back.
“You could stay here, not many know where we live. Or take her to one of the three safe houses we own. Only the two of us know about those places,” North says. “If something goes to shit, I’ll head to one of those, as you and I always agreed upon.”
The look on Kray’s face is all telling so I take the liberty to voice what he’s not saying. “We’re heading back to the clubhouse. There’s no way Kray can keep focus when he’s not around others who are also working the case. He needs to be in the loop.”
North shoots Kray a wink. “See? Old Lady Material. Mind voicing that shit before I head out? You know, so I know someone can take care of your ass if shit does go wrong. Hey, if shit does go wrong and you want out, I’d be the only one who knows.”
I smack a flat hand against North’s chest. “Not funny, asshole.”
“It kinda is,” Kray chuckles. “And yeah, she’s my Old Lady.”
North steps toward Kray and grabs him in a tight man-hug. He slaps him on the back a few times before grabbing the back of his head while they whisper words back and forth. I take this time to admire my boots, otherwise I feel as if I’m intruding on their special moment.
“That’s it,” North sighs. “Time to head out. I’ve fed Kazz plenty. There’s no need to check him the next couple of days, okay?”
I give him a nod and keep my lips sealed, emotions running through me at the thought of him voluntarily walking into danger. Not only to do his job, but to save my sister with the twisted deal he made with me in mind. Somehow this guy managed to touch my heart, even if he’s an arrogant asshole at times.
He gives me a tight hug where I manage to whisper out words
to let him know to be safe and hurry back before he heads out. The rumble of a bike outside disturbs the silence between me and Kray. With our eyes locked there might not be words voiced but there’s a lot of things settling between us.
“Come on,” Kray finally says. “Let’s grab a few things and head to the clubhouse.”
I’m glad we decided to take the one bike to Kray’s house so it leaves us to head back on one bike too. With their home a long ride from the clubhouse, it’s actually exactly what we need to clear our heads. Kray steps away from the bike and I can see some of the tension is still flowing through him.
I step closer, take his head in my hands and ask, “Do you trust him?” Kray looks appalled and wants to tear away from my grip but I repeat my question, firmer this time. “Do you trust him?”
“Yes,” he hisses, clearly annoyed.
“Good, then trust him to do this his way and focus on helping him from the sidelines, okay?” Still annoyance and tension are flowing freely through his body, making me roll my eyes. “You two are like an old married couple. Why don’t you grow a pair and let that arrogant ass do his job?”
The corner of his mouth twitches. “He really is an arrogant ass, huh?”
“Uh huh,” I reply and grab our bags out of the saddlebags.
Kray takes them from me and when he enters the clubhouse—with me trailing along behind him—it’s Deeds who is waiting for us. Arms crossed, a grim look on his face as if any time a bomb can detonate, and his whole appearance makes me gulp.
I reach for the bags and mutter, “Let me take those and head for the room we stayed in last time.”
“No,” Deeds snaps. “Church. The both of you.”
Kray guides me into the room Deeds stalked into and closes the door behind us.
Deeds rubs a hand over his face and locks eyes with Kray. “I have no fucking clue how to say it so I’m just going to throw it out...North is missing.”
“What the hell do you mean, missing? He’s left the house in less than what? An hour and a half? Two hours, max. What the fuck happened?” Kray growls.
“He probably told you this, but Nash...”
“Yeah, he could track him,” Kray grunts as he interrupts Deeds.
“Right, well, we had him and then suddenly he was gone. At first, we thought he might have gone into a tunnel or the fucking computer had a malfunction, whatever. But he dropped off the radar and he hasn’t popped up.”
“What if we’re right about the bunker theory? Wouldn’t it block his signal? Or if they’d keep him in an isolated room first? Shade never meets people face to face. He could have North locked away, exterminate all the germs he might be tainted with so to say before he lets them into his pack,” I offer.
My heart is beating rapidly inside my chest and I hope I’m right because thinking the worst is ripping said heart right out of my chest.
“Nash’s stuff is state of the art, it wouldn’t be blocked by a damn bunker,” Deeds grumbles, stalks back to the door to swing it open and bellows, “Nash, get your filthy ass in here.”
A guy with shaggy dirty blond hair rushes inside. “What’s up, Prez?”
“Can North’s signal be blocked if he’s in a damn bunker?”
Nash slowly shakes his head after Deeds’ question. “It would have to be completely rebuilt with extremely thick material...you know, an old bunker but state of the art shit, then maybe. But I think I would still be able to get some faint signal. Wait.”
Nash rushes out, leaves the door open and before either of us can say a word, he’s back in the room. He has his laptop out on the table in front of him and his fingers dance over the keys like I’ve seen my sister do a thousand times.
“It’s still active. You could be right. It’s fucking weird, man. Look.” Nash points at the screen. It’s filled with a black background showing green thin lines and all sorts of names and dots. “On this map I can track him to a wide area. Normally I would be able to pinpoint someone I tagged up to a square inch. But now it’s only a wide range as if something is dulling the transmission. He’s definitely underground, and like I mentioned...not your normal type bunker either.”
“So, he’s in,” I quip. “He’s with Shade, right? I mean, he has to be.”
“Yeah,” Deeds drags the word out and connects his gaze with Kray. “You good with this? Talked everything through?”
I can feel both of them watching me but my focus is still on the screen. It’s hard to believe these guys managed to locate where Shade is hiding. I know it doesn’t have to be Shade’s place specifically, or hell, they might even have thrown North into a steel box and buried him thirty feet under. But I’d like to stay positive and keep my fingers, toes, eyebrows, whatever crossed in the hope North pulls through and gets Reva out of there.
“We’re not rookies and you know it,” Kray simply states.
The corner of Deeds’ mouth twitches. “Okay then. Another thing North mentioned was the claim he witnessed. You stand by it?”
“Eager much,” Kray mutters before he clears his throat and adds, “Have your Old Lady grab her gear, I’m ready when she is.”
Deeds rubs his hands together. “Good. Lips was fuckin’ smitten with her and when the background check came through I was on board with the whole thing too. Fuck. She’s a damn fine asset and you know it. Do you need to see her background? One hell of an agent with a long list of recommendations.”
I can feel my eyes bulge. “Excuse me guys, I don’t know when this whole talk switched from North’s plan in getting my sister back to somehow me being a catch? What the hell is going on?”
“He claimed you. You’re all checked out and cleared. He’s getting inked and so are you,” Nash easily supplies as if I’m a cow ready to be slaughtered because of my awesome quality meat.
“We’re done here,” I snap and stalk to the door.
To my surprise it swings open and Lips slips through the door and locks all of us inside. Her gaze slides through the room and she narrows her eyes at Deeds.
“What did you do?” she growls.
“Why the fuck do you think I did something, woman?” Deeds growls back.
Lips rolls her eyes. “Men,” she mutters at me. “Nothing is ever their fault.” She puts her hands on her hips and says, “Give me a recap of the last few minutes.”
“No one here going to remark how this is Church and women aren’t allowed in Church?” Nash tries to keep his voice down so only Kray and Deeds can hear him but apparently he’s not that tactful.
“I said, give me a damn recap.” Lips’ tone of voice says she’s reached her limit of politeness and heads are going to roll if she doesn’t get an answer in the next few seconds.
“It’s safe to assume North has reached his target. With him dropping off Nash’s radar...well, not fully but somewhat now Nash has managed to do something to see if he could...whatever. He’s probably in a bunker. Then these guys suddenly turn all weird and discuss how I’m all cleared, claimed, and labeled as a cow ready to be consumed or something.”
Lips releases a squeal and throws her arms around my body and hugs tight, completely catching me off guard. I’m standing here frozen, trying to get my bearings while at the same time I know I spent a great deal of time with this woman yesterday and found her—and all the other Old Ladies—sweet, understanding, open, and honest.
I take a deep breath to calm myself and finally hug her back. Even if all of this is overwhelming, I know very well me and Kray decided to see where this thing between us will go. Hell, Kray even promised something to North and with Deeds saying all of this...I’m pretty sure that arrogant ass set us up.
Kray steps up to us and pries me out of Lips’ arms. “Okay, that’s enough. Can I have a word with Vienna alone, please? All you fuckers are overwhelming the fuck out of her and with this thing between North now settled...Well, I think it’s settled because we always give each other the timeframe we agreed upon if everything is still set. And everything is still set
, right? No need to go in? We’re giving him his time to pull Reva out himself if possible?”
“Correct,” Deeds replies. “We didn’t expect him to fall off grid. Now we know it’s because he’s probably holding up in a bunker, we’re giving him the forty-eight hours he requested when he went in.”
“Good. Give us a few minutes,” Kray states.
Deeds nods and everyone leaves the room, leaving me alone with Kray while my nerves are starting to claw inside my chest.
Chapter Eleven
***Kray***
“Too soon?” The corner of my mouth twitches.
Though the laughter on the inside dies quickly when I can clearly read the frustration and aggravation in her eyes. All of this shit hitting her full force and the mere thought makes my shoulders sag.
“You think?” she sighs. “Look, one moment I think I’ve landed my ass in the twilight zone, the other it’s too good to be true when I’m alone with you, but then reality snaps back and the hurt slams through me because my sister is missing. It’s a bit too soon indeed. All of it. Well, maybe not the sex. The sex was good. Stress relief, yeah. Good.”
“We’re all human, Vienna.” I reach out and let my knuckles slide over her cheek. “Life goes on when shit comes crashing down. No matter how hard you get hit you need to push yourself to move forward. You and I are moving forward, all while handling your sister’s case. It sucks we have our hands tied but now Nash has tweaked North’s transmission and he can keep an eye on him. I’m sure they are gathering more intel as we speak. Not to mention I’d like a glance at those satellite pictures myself too when we’re done here. What I meant to say was...our connection is solid. I’ve always trusted my gut on things and I am following this through. The only thing keeping me from doing so is you. If you don’t want this,” I motion between our bodies. “Then tell me now and I’ll back away. I’ll keep you safe and we’ll part ways when North comes back here with Reva. And I damn well know he’s going to follow through on his word because he always does or he’ll fucking die trying.”
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