“It’s not about the money, sweetheart,” the biker sneered. “I deserve some respect and if I can deliver the girl everyone wants to get their hands on, then that’s gotta get me a bucketload of respect.”
“Wait, two hostages are better than one.” Steve tried to get the focus back onto him.
“Like I said, bike only carries two.”
“Then, we can take my car. I’m not leaving the girl, and since you’re the guy with the gun, how about we take my car. It’s just parked around the back. The girl’s already escaped Garrison tonight. Take me and she won’t do anything crazy.”
Logically, Steve made no sense, but in the heat of the moment and with people starting to point to the gun, the biker motioned us towards the alleyway.
“Fine, she drives. You’re in the passenger seat and I’ll be sitting in the back with an easy shot through her head and into yours.”
Of course, Steve drove a manual. My ex-boyfriend had tried to teach me how to change gears, but I’d never gotten past bunny-hopping my way through traffic lights. My hand clenched around the gear stick.
Looking to Steve now buckled beside me, I shook my head. I couldn’t do it.
“I can’t, I can’t do it.”
“Drive.” The gun felt cold against my neck.
“I’ve never driven a manual before. I can’t use gears.”
“Oh, sweetheart. Didn’t your boyfriend here teach you?” The Redback got out and opened my door. Not letting anything come between the line of sight between the gun and my head. “Okay, the boyfriend drives. Careful,” he warned as Steve also got out of the car.
We took a step back while Steve claimed the driver’s seat. “I’d love to trust you, but since I don’t, how about you put this around his right wrist and steering wheel.”
The metal handcuffs were cold against my sweaty palm.
“But—”
“Oh, come on! Don’t tell me you’ve never handcuffed a guy before. Just pretend the steering wheel is a bed post. Then get in the backseat with me and we’ll have some fun.”
“No!” Steve reasoned before my second tear fell. “If you’re returning her to Garrison, he’ll want her unharmed and untouched.”
“What’s it to you?”
“Like you said, I’m her boyfriend and if Garrison is gonna punish anyone for touching her, then your gonna want him to take it out on me, not you.”
“Fine, bitch. Chain him up and get in the fucking back, I’ve got a spare set of cuffs with your name on them.”
“Where are we going?”
“Where I tell you to. Start the fucking engine and please, for the sake of this pretty face, don’t do anything stupid.”
In all the confusion, the Redback hadn’t checked my bag or to see whether Steve was armed. I hadn’t seen the gun since Steve took it off me and put it in his shirt. Surely, he hadn’t left it behind?
I had to believe that even with Steve handcuffed to the steering wheel and driving, the odds were starting to even up.
We had a hidden gun.
The Redback feared Garrison and wasn’t about to hurt me.
I smiled at Steve through the rearview mirror. Adrenaline had replaced dizziness, at least that had to be a good thing. With controlled breathing, I turned to the Redback, “I usually know the name of men before I get in a car with them?”
“Does it matter?”
“I know you’re a Redback.”
“I’m Solo.”
“Why are you doing this? Ibby is friends with Karnal.”
“Karnal’s no friend of mine,” he spat. “I rode with the Kingsmen, before Karnal convinced me to patch over to the Redbacks three months ago. Now, the bastards have done some deal and I’m supposed to pack up my missus and just leave town.”
“Sounds tough,” I soothed, still not understanding how Garrison fit into his plans. “How did she take it?”
“How do you think she fucking took it? She chewed out my ass and told me to stand up to them.”
“Sometimes us girls don’t understand how business works.”
“Smart girl. No wonder Garrison wants you. Reminds me, I’d better check in with the boss.”
Garrison’s plush tones filled the car, “Good evening Mr. Solo. I told you not to call this number unless it’s important.”
“Boss man, I’ve got you a special delivery.”
“You’ve got the girl?”
“How about she tells you herself.”
With my heart pounding, I shook my head, refusing to talk. Wanting to provoke Solo into reacting. Tonight hadn’t gone according to his plan and men in reaction mode didn’t think clearly.
Except he lowered the gun from my head, the click of the safety release sounding as it pressed against my thigh. He knew exactly what he was doing.
“No! Don’t!” I screamed.
“That’s my girl.” Garrison’s low chuckle put Solo at ease enough to restore the safety. “It seems you’ll be in time for a little reunion. Ibrahim has demanded a meeting. You’ll be amongst friends; I believe Karnal and Luther will be joining us.”
“Can’t fucking wait. We still have a deal?”
“Oh, yes. Whichever one of them dies, you get the crown. I always reward loyalty. Don’t I, Katie.”
This time I refused to answer, not that Garrison expected one. He barked out an address and Steve performed an impressive, illegal U-turn to head in the new direction.
I knew the restaurant. In less than half an hour we’d be at the same meeting as Ibby.
Yes, technically Steve and I had a set of handcuffs to deal with, oh, and Solo to get rid of.
But Steve had a secret weapon.
And I had a secret.
Hopefully, both would be enough.
Ibby
Not my smartest move.
Demanding a meeting.
Yes, Luther mostly had my back.
Karnal, well, not so much.
Walking into an ambush should have been accompanied by rockstar music, at least in my own head. Instead, all I could think about was Katie.
Darius was waiting for my call. If I didn’t call within one hour, Darius was to contact Steve and keep a watch over Katie. Be ready to move. If I didn’t call within two hours, they had to assume the worst – and get Katie out of town. New id, cash, whatever she needed.
By the end of tonight, she’d be safe.
“Mr. Mercia, Mr. Garrison is waiting for you.” The maître d recognized me while one of Garrison’s goons pulled Luther aside for a weapons check. Of course, he’d been carrying.
I’d wanted to but had listened to reason. Darius and Luther had agreed; walking in with a piece would be signing my death warrant. Walking in naked could at least be seen as a show of confidence, and respect.
Garrison didn’t bother acknowledging my approach, but with a slight nod to the maître d, the restaurant doors were locked with two of Garrison’s security standing guard, while two patched Redbacks stood near the kitchen exit.
Karnal sat to Garrison’s right with his VP to Karnal’s right. The two chairs to Garrison’s left held men I knew by sight and reputation, but not by name. A sole chair remained empty on his side of the room. One of the goons pulled up two cheap, plastic chairs for Luther and me. Our backs uncomfortably to the front of the restaurant.
“My apologies, Ibrahim,” Garrison’s apology reeked with insincerity. “A colleague of mine will be joining us later. I do hope you don’t mind.”
“Not at all. Should I wait until this colleague gets here to begin?”
“Easy,” Luther hissed, his warning falling on deaf ears. I’d been itching for this confrontation for months. No amount of caution from Luther would hold me back—then I looked at my friend. My actions would affect others.
Shit.
Okay, I’d tone it down, at least enough so one of us would walk out alive.
“Please, begin. I’m so eager to hear whatever you’ve got to say. If it’s relevant to my colleague, we can catch
him up later.”
Feeling confident about Katie’s immediate safety and knowing Darius’ transfer had already cleared, I straightened my shoulders and looked to Garrison, peer to peer. No longer moderating my language to get access to the loan or cowering to protect the woman I loved.
“Before we got into business together, I checked you out.” I started pleasantly, more for Karnal’s benefit than Garrison. Watching the speed with which Karnal changed sides almost caused whiplash, but at least I wouldn’t have to mediate a peace with Luther. Karnal had made his bed, hopefully Garrison didn’t snore.
“As I did you, what did you find?” Garrison allowed before taking a sip from his scotch. A bottle rested in front of each of my opposing seats. Not even water had been put in front of Luther or me. Probably a good thing, I thought, saved me from having to resist throwing it at the man opposite.
“You can be an arrogant son of a bitch. People say you drive a hard bargain and you’ve been known to drive fear into most people you’ve worked with.”
“All true, I’m proud to say.”
Garrison stood up as three men in impeccable suits appeared through the kitchen door. Looking like a casting agent’s dream for The Godfather, the older man nodded at the spare chair. One of his security detail immediately moved it to the back of the room. Away from the table. Whoever he was, he hadn’t picked sides, at least not yet.
Another good piece of news was that the newcomer had left Garrison’s handshake hanging in the wind. A show of disrespect? I’d have paid serious money just to watch that on repeat.
“Mr. Ibrahim, you were saying?”
I took a breath, last chance before there’d be no going back. “What I also heard was you play hard, but you never mix business and pleasure. You never go after a person’s family and you can be trusted to keep innocents from becoming collateral damage.”
“Of course, a businessman needs to be trusted to have honor.”
“Karnal, when I drank with you at the Redbacks, you invited me in, we drank together and even though I gave you unpleasant news, you allowed me safe passage.”
“I guess,” Karnal stuttered, his nervous glance towards Garrison didn’t go unnoticed—not by me or Luther who let out a soft whistle. Garrison might have a hold over the Redbacks, but perhaps Karnal was looking for an opportunity to be swayed.
“Even in all the crap between you and the Kingsmen, I know the extents you both went to make sure innocents were not targeted.”
“Other than your business,” Karnal had the grace to laugh. “We fucked you over good.”
There it was! The conceited arrogance from Garrison. His smile had never been broader, and now he was looking for scraps of acknowledgement from the stranger.
Bastard. The whole biker war had been a set up by Garrison.
“Not my problem anymore.” I shrugged and matched Garrison pearly white for pearly whites.
“Why is that?”
“I’m one keystroke away from selling all buildings. To the Sydney Society for Christian Fellowship.”
“Who the fuck are they?”
“Well, obviously the clubs will close, probably become community facilities. It doesn’t matter. The Fellowship are well connected with the local politicians and even law enforcement. No drugs, or women or any other pleasures of the flesh will be transacted in any of my locations. And because they are very careful about their clientele, you can expect additional scrutiny over all premises.”
“You said buildings.”
“Yeah, I owned the buildings before I started the nightclubs. Some of the land as well, in Coffs Harbour and Adelaide.”
“You’d throw all that away?”
“Abso-fucking-lutely. You fucked me over and went after innocents.”
“We had a deal.”
“That you broke. I know all about your deal with the Redbacks; to come into town and create havoc with The Kingsmen. It wasn’t about territory; the only reason was to follow your instructions.”
“How the fuck—who talked?”
“Karnal, you think your guys are loyal, but do you think they support what you’re doing with Garrison? They don’t like having targets on their back with Luther’s guys because you decided to sign a deal with the devil.”
Luther and I had thrown around ideas of what had driven Karnal to renege, but from Karnal’s reaction, my guess must have come pretty bloody close to the truth. “We organized a peace, but you blew it. Luther has been patient, but you’ve exceeded his tolerance.”
“What do you want?” Garrison took control of the conversation again.
“The Redbacks go back to our original deal,” Luther growled.
Laughing, I interrupted, “What my dear friend is suggesting, is that Redbacks versus Kingsmen could become bloody enough, but if his friends and my friends decide to join us from the sidelines, the Redbacks will wish they stayed out of Sydney.”
“Make your peace with Garrison, and we can talk,” Karnal acknowledged. It wasn’t what I wanted, but better than a bullet between the eyes.
“Okay, here’s my offer.” Was it my imagination, or did the stranger sit up straighter? “I make the payment, the final payment and clear my debt with Mr. Garrison. Mr. Garrison acknowledges the debt is paid and undertakes to leave my businesses, my loved ones, my friends and other business associates, and me alone.”
“Why would I want to do that?” Garrison dropped the perfect pronunciation, snorting his derision, “Your money isn’t good anymore. I don’t need it. I’ll have your clubs and your girl.”
Knowing Katie was safe regardless of what happened here, I replied easily, “You couldn’t even keep my girl for half an hour.”
For the first time, I acknowledged our audience.
Suited, silent men who Garrison was either courting or wanted to impress at how quickly he’d taken over influence of the Redbacks and destroyed my empire. Normally, I preferred to deal with smaller fish, but if these were truly men of honor, I still had one card to play.
“Gentlemen, we’ve never met but I feel we move in the same circles.” I approached them open palmed and with respect, assuming Garrison would withhold any punishment until he got me alone—unless I impressed these men. “We will always have business disagreements. Deals we wish we’d never made and other deals where we thought we had no choice.”
I used the power of silence, waiting to see who nodded and who remained transfixed. Even Karnal made a slight nod; probably trying to decide where his future was better placed.
“What Garrison has done, by incentivizing the, shall we say friction between Redbacks and Kingsmen,” I smiled at the understated description of what could end up being a bloodbath. “Garrison has created a situation I’m sure isn’t in the interest of any of us here today. What with an increased police presence and media interest in our community. Yes, my nightclubs took a hit but is there anyone here who was immune? Did Garrison clear his approach with anyone? Did he seek counsel, or did he initiate a biker war just so I might miss a couple of payments?”
“You little fucking rabbit. I will put you into a hole, so deep,” Garrison started before the old man with his own security guard silenced the room with the raise of his hand.
“Mr. Ibrahim, I don’t believe we’ve had the pleasure of being formally introduced. I am Norman Hastings. You may have heard of me?”
Holy crap. I’d heard about the legendary and reclusive billionaire. Some thought he was a myth. Lachlan had suggested reaching out to Mr. Hastings when we were getting desperate, but I’d never want to presume on the Sydney Godfather.
“Mr. Hastings,” I said, edging around the table until I could extend my hand. Damn Garrison, he could go fuck himself. This was Mr. Norman-fucking Hastings. I was in the company of business royalty and he’d come to me. Or at least to witness my destruction. “I am honored to meet you, sir. I have always tried to be respectful when opening a nightclub near one of your bars or restaurants.”
Always through interm
ediaries, I only hoped he’d gotten the messages.
“Your courtesy is appreciated. Garrison, why am I here?”
“I—” Garrison’s reply was interrupted by a commotion at the front door. Within minutes, we watched as a Redback escorted two prisoners.
Steve and Katie.
Before I could lose my shit, Katie winked.
Winked!
My Katie was being manhandled by an ogre wearing full Redback patch and winked.
“Greetings boss man! I told you I got the girl, and her boyfriend here. Two for the price of one, and you can give me my reward in cash, or I’ll take her for a quick spin.” Without reading the room, the ogre sniggered, “Make sure she’s ready for you, if you know what I mean.”
Only Garrison seemed impressed with the new arrivals. His business associates all looked to Norman Hastings, who’d looked to me.
“Mr. Hastings,” I maintained a respectful tone as if our lives depended on it, “I’d like you to meet Katie Elias, my girlfriend. This is the third time she has been abducted by Mr. Garrison as a way of distracting me from the business needed to repay my debt. Not only is she my girlfriend, but if you check my nightclub social feeds, she is an employee of The Club as a hostess and is employed by my nightclubs for her social influence. She should be off limits. As an innocent, and as my woman.”
Too many words, fuck. I wanted to grab her to my chest, kiss the shit out of her and pretend all had been forgiven and she really was still my girlfriend. Instead, all I could come up with was a speech worthy of a dying man.
“Mr. Garrison,” I turned to face the dead eyes. “I’m asking you to release Miss Elias. As my girlfriend and woman, she should be off limits in our dispute.”
“Why is that?” Norman asked, but already I sensed the changing room vibe.
“Mr. Hastings, with respect.” This time, my words were measured and delivered at a slower pace. I needed to give this Normal Hastings a chance to make a decision. Rushing another speech wouldn’t help my cause; wouldn’t save Katie or Steve, or even Chelle. “We operate in a world were business decisions aren’t always written down. We rely on trust between business partners.”
Hard Bargain: a Billionaire Suspense Romance (City Sinners Book 3) Page 24