“My ass was in a cell, so they know I didn’t have anything to do with it.”
“Yeah, except two days later your ass was sprung.” He leans forward. “Here’s my problem, now they comin’ after me.”
“Fuck.”
“Yeah. Two nights ago they grabbed one of my girls.”
“Shit,” Z mutters.
Loco pins Z with a harsh stare. “I got her back, but she ain’t gonna be any good to me for a while.”
Now I feel like shit. It’s bad enough Vipers fucked with me. But them going after my business associates and innocents pisses me the fuck off.
“Now, I been helpin’ your boy, Sway with his problem down south, but it’s cost me some territory here. I gotta stay focused, you know?”
“Yeah.”
“I know that ain’t got nothin’ to do with you. My relationship with them’s worked in my favor.”
“Good.”
“Way I see it, you and me got a common enemy. It only makes sense for us to work together to get rid of the Vipers.”
“I agree.”
He looks surprised that I agreed so easily. But I’m not stupid. If we’re going to do this right, I need his help. “I want to push them out of Ironworks. My club’s not big enough right now to hold that territory on our own.”
“So you want my crew to do it?” He’s grinning like a maniac and I wonder what the fuck I’ve gotten myself into.
“We want easier access to Vermont. Right now, I need to get to Bennington, we’ve gotta go up to Lake George, into Rutherford and back down.”
“You gonna try and move product into Vermont?”
“Maybe. Not right now. You’re still getting my entire supply.”
Smug fucker grins at that. “Ironworks is dry. Lot of product to move there. Fuck Vermont. But I get what you’re saying. We can definitely do that. Teamwork, Rock.”
Inwardly, I groan. But I flash a tight smile. Next to me, Wrath moves ever so slightly. Laughing, I’m sure. Dick.
“Last thing, Rock. And I want you to remember I don’t have to explain myself to you. This is pure courtesy, since I got mad respect for you.”
Oh, I can’t wait to hear this.
“What Ironworks lacks in weed, they make up for in pussy. And I know you done everything to keep that out of Empire. I respect that, but—”
“Since when are you working girls?”
“Since I recognized the need for my services. Viper girls are miserable. Half them high as fuck and hooked on all sorts of shit. They ain’t happy willing little hookers.”
My stomach twists. “Yeah?”
“I got a stable of ten solid girls. Taking a page from your book, you know. Treat ‘em well. Fair split, provide protection and they bring in a ton of cash.”
“My what?”
“Your dance club? Everyone says you guys run it fair so bitches are trippin’ over themselves to work there.”
“Okay.”
“And your club. Your brothers are all solid. Got your back no matter what. ‘Cause they know you’d do the same.” He shrugs. “Works better than ruling by fear. Better results.”
“Oh, we’re still afraid of him,” Wrath says with a snicker.
Z glances over at me. “Positive reinforcement, prez.”
My morning’s taken an even more bizarre twist than I could have imagined. “As much as I enjoy having you psycho-analyze me and my crew, can we get to the point?”
Loco leans in again. “My point is, me and my crew will help you get the Vipers out of Ironworks, split the area with you, keep things tight, and in return you don’t give me shit about my working girls.”
“Where are you running this from?”
He gives me a sly smile. “Water Street.”
A short, sharp laugh bursts out from my throat. “You shittin’ me? You’re running a brothel right in downtown Ironworks? No wonder you’re on Ransom’s radar.”
His shoulders lift in a phony-sheepish gesture. “I got a good deal on a nice brownstone. Ironworks PD is easy, keep the street clean, hand ‘em a few bucks and they look the other way.”
“Yeah, except they probably ran straight to Ransom and told him what you were up to.”
Loco cocks his head as if that thought had never occurred to him.
“Yeah, okay.” I hold out my hand and he shakes it. “We’ll get a plan together.”
“Fair enough. You can come check the house out if you want. See the girls are there willingly. Come and go as they please. Any girl you want is on the house.”
Yeah, I can’t imagine anything I want to do less. “No, thanks.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
The last couple weeks before the wedding are nuts. I’m elbow deep in invites when Murphy finds me in the dining room.
“Hope, I get an ‘and guest’ too right?” Murphy asks.
I’m curious who he plans to bring. “Of course.”
“Cool. Thanks.”
I raise an eyebrow and wait for him to elaborate. “You remember Serena? She’s taking classes up here. I don’t know, we’ve been hanging out.”
“Oh, that’s great. She seemed so sweet when we met.”
Murphy’s taken aback but he shakes it off. “How pissed do you think Heidi will be?”
Crap. I hadn’t thought about it. Another thought occurs to me. One I don’t like very much. “Wait, you’re not inviting her here to make Heidi jealous, are you? Because that’s not fair to Heidi or Serena.”
He shakes his head but takes a second to meet my eyes. “No. I don’t know. I don’t know what I’m doing anymore. I’m trying to do the right thing for her, but it’s making me miserable.”
“Well, it’s not all about you.”
“I know. She says she loves Axel. All the time. And how happy he makes her. But don’t know if she means it or she’s trying to rub my nose in it or what.”
Honestly, it’s probably all of those things combined, given that Heidi’s seventeen. “Girls at that age are a little nuts Murphy. I remember. I know I was.”
His eyes widen as if it never occurred to him I’d ever been a teenager. “Yes, Murphy, I haven’t always been an old hag.”
The burly jerk laughs. “You’re far from hag territory, Hope.” His laughter stops abruptly and he turns serious. “I feel like a creepy perv waiting ‘til her birthday, you know?”
“Yeah, it’s a little creepy,” I agree and he smirks. “Don’t look at it that way. Just be her friend like you always have. If it’s meant to be it will.” I lower my voice, because I feel like a traitor for saying what I’m about to say. “I like Axel. A lot. He’s a good kid.” Murphy nods grudgingly. “But Axel’s her first real boyfriend. Girls rarely end up with their high school boyfriend. When she starts college, she might—”
“Meet someone else? Great.”
I chuckle. “All I’m saying is they might go their separate ways. All on their own.”
His mouth turns up, and I cut off whatever he’s about to say. “You mess with them and do something to break them up, she’ll end up hating you, Murphy. Just let it happen naturally.”
“Thanks, Hope. Sorry I’m being such a pussy when I know you got other stuff to do.”
I roll my eyes at him. “You’d be a bigger pussy if you just bottled it up.”
He barks out a laugh. “I guess. But I wouldn’t talk about it with any of—”
“The guys?”
“Yeah. Or Teller. I think he’s relieved Heidi’s with Axel.” He snorts. “Don’t blame him. I had a sister, I wouldn’t want her with me either.”
The way he says it honestly breaks my heart a little. “You’re a good guy. If I had a younger sister, I’d let her date you.”
I don’t care if he gets mad, I have to give him a hug. He lets me and wraps his arms around me.
“I wish you’d been around ten years ago to steer all us fuckers in the right direction.”
“Who says I knew anything back then?”
Trinity keeps me
running from one place to the next. For a simple, low-key wedding there seems to be an awful lot to do.
Suspiciously, I never see a bill for anything.
“They’ll bill after,” Trinity says one day when I ask.
“Bullshit. Rock’s taking care of everything, isn’t he?”
She grins and shrugs. I feel bad, because I know Rock’s accounts must have taken a beating after the thousands of dollars in legal fees we had to hand over to Glassman.
“I’m fine,” he assures me when I ask.
“Just go with it, Mrs. North,” Trinity teases me over dinner a few nights before the big day.
My cheeks heat and I steal a glance at Rock, who’s wearing a half-smirk. Wrath and Trinity both stare at us. “What?” Trinity asks.
“Nothing.”
“I don’t think Hope plans to change her name,” Rock says.
“Kendall’s my maiden name,” I explain.
Everyone except Rock stares at me.
“You’re okay with that?” Z asks Rock and I shoot a glare at him.
Rock chuckles. “Careful, Z.”
“What is this, 1950? Seriously, this really surprises you guys that much?”
Wrath shakes his head. “Nope. None of our business anyway.” He shifts and Z winces.
“Why’re you kicking me, fucker?” Z grumbles.
Rock picks his fork back up. “Probably better for her anyway, in case shit goes down in the future.”
That certainly takes my appetite away.
“Gonna file separate taxes too?” Z asks.
“Why’re you guys so nosy?” I snap.
Wrath holds his hands up. “Hey, I didn’t say a word.”
Rock pins him with a stare. “There’s married, filing separate or whatever. Let the accountant figure it out.”
“But that’s—” I snap my mouth shut, but I think Rock senses what I was going to say. His mouth quirks into another wry smile.
“What, Baby Doll?”
“When I took tax law, we were taught only politicians and criminals file that way,” I mumble.
Everyone—even Rock—has a good chuckle.
“Jerks.”
Rock lifts his chin at Trinity. “You got a final guest list, Ms. Party Planner?”
Yes, she does. She shoves her plate out of the way and pulls her staggeringly large wedding binder up, dropping it on the table with a thud. The binder’s rarely more than a few feet away from her. The guys groan when they see it.
“Can we burn that thing when the wedding’s over?” Teller asks.
Trinity glares at him. “No. I’m saving all my notes for Heidi’s wedding.”
Everyone gets a good laugh at that.
Except Teller.
“Where is she, anyway?” Murphy asks and Teller glares at him.
“Library.”
“Is that code for Axel’s apartment?” Z snickers.
“Fuck off,” Teller gripes.
Oh boy. Heidi’s eighteenth birthday’s only a few weeks after the wedding. But since her classes started, she’s been asserting her independence a lot more, driving Teller nuts in the process.
“Guest list?” Rock prompts.
“Everyone from Downstate RSVP’d yes.”
“Oh, goodie,” I mutter. Trinity catches my eye and chuckles.
“Your people all said yes,” Trinity says, pointing at me. “Except, I didn’t get anything back from your mom.” Her mouth twists down and I shrug.
“I’m not surprised. It’s better that way.”
“Wolf Knights officers are coming. You’re sure you’re okay with them being up here, Rock?” Trinity asks.
He sits back and I watch as his gaze strays to Z and Wrath before answering. “Yup. Our clubs are good.”
“Okay.”
“Did you guys figure out Rock’s bachelor party?” I ask.
“Oh, yeah. We got something big planned,” Z answers while rubbing his palms together.
“I don’t even want to know.”
“He wouldn’t let us get strippers,” Murphy says. “We had to improvise.”
I hold up my hands in an innocent gesture. “Just so you know, that is not my fault. I told him I didn’t have a problem with it.”
The guys laugh. “We figured.”
“You assholes will understand one day,” Rock grumbles.
“Fuck, I understand now. I don’t want them either,” Wrath adds with a big grin.
Trinity gives him a curious look.
After that scintillating dinner conversation, I pull Trinity out of the dining room, into the hallway.
“Can you help me with something?”
“Anything, Hope.”
I push her into her room, so none of the guys overhear us. “I want to get a tattoo.”
“Really? What?”
I point to my lower hip. “Mrs. North, with his crown, maybe?”
“Don’t you think he should go with you?”
“No. I want to surprise him. He’ll never expect it.”
“That’s true.”
“At least the Mrs. North part, he can go back and help me have the crown added later.”
“Chickening out?”
“How much does it hurt?”
“I’m the wrong person to ask. I don’t tolerate it well for some reason.”
“That’s not encouraging.”
“Sorry.”
I bite my lip. I really want to do this. A little pain is worth it. “Can you help me set it up before the wedding?”
“How are you going to hide it from him?”
“I’ll just tell him no sex before the wedding.”
Trinity laughs so hard, she starts hiccupping, which is of course, when Wrath comes in. “What’d you do to my girl, Hope?”
“Nothing.” I throw Trinity a pleading look and she finally stops laughing.
“Let me tell him, he can set it up. It’s his friend.”
“No way. He’ll tell Rock.”
“Hey. I kept your secret about going to get his wedding band,” Wrath protests.
That’s right he did. “Promise not to laugh?”
“Now, Cinderella, don’t have me make promises I can’t keep.”
Trinity starts laughing again. “Don’t tease her,” she says between giggles.
“I want to get ‘Mrs. North’ tattooed on me.”
Wrath doesn’t laugh, but he does stare at me for a minute before answering. “Don’t you think he’ll want to go with you?”
“Yes, but I want to surprise him. Wait a second. I don’t have to take my pants off, do I?”
They both laugh at me. Jerks.
“Where, Hope?” Wrath finally asks.
“Either my lower hip, or between my shoulder blades.”
“Hip might hurt less since it’s fleshier,” Wrath points out.
“Are you calling me fat?”
He rolls his eyes to the ceiling and actually mutters “God help me,” which I find hysterical. “Yes, I’ll set it up for you, Hope,” he finally says.
“Thank you.”
“How are you going to keep it a secret?”
“Oh, tell him, Hope,” Trinity giggles.
“No sex before the wedding.”
Wrath just stares at me.
“What? Lots of people do that. It’s romantic.”
He covers Trinity’s ears with his hands. “Stop giving her ideas.”
I point at him. “Jerks. Both of you.”
My brothers put the perfect bachelor party together for me. A way to put some of the bad shit of the past few months in my rear view so I can start my future with Hope, knowing some scores are settled.
Vipers are next on my list. Although, Loco’s been doing a good job holding up his end. His crew’s made a lot of progress in Ironworks.
Things are looking up.
Well, as “up” as they can be when going on a murder spree two nights before my wedding.
Murder spree’s more dramatic than what it actually
is.
Just a bit of payback.
Izzard’s still wearing two hand casts when we track him down. In Viper territory. Fancy that.
Vipers are running their own brothel outside Ironworks city limits in the middle of nowhere. It’s a sad, ramshackle, hillbilly crackden type of house. That’s where Izzard spends his time when he’s not busy beating on inmates and molesting ol’ ladies.
Figures.
I told Hope on the beach that I’ve never enjoyed hurting someone before. It was true at the time.
But this I’m going to enjoy the fuck out of.
Wrath and Z take care of clearing the downstairs for me, getting the girls out and keeping them quiet so they don’t run and bring a bunch of Vipers back before I’m ready to deal with them.
Ransom has been a slippery fucker to track down. Where the Vipers are hiding their shady prez is a mystery, but it’s only a matter of time before we find him.
No loose ends.
The lock clicks as I open the door to the room Lizard’s waiting in. “What took so long, bitch?” he snaps.
I close the door behind me. “I ain’t here to suck your dick, Lizard.”
“Oh, fuck,” he gasps. Like the pussy I know he is, he opens his mouth to yell for help.
The nine-millimeter in my hand shuts him up. “I’m just here for my five minutes, like I promised.”
He shakes his head and tries to sit up.
I lean against the dresser across from the bed. The pose is casual, but inside I’m anything but.
“See, messing with me was one thing. I get it. I’m a bad guy. But once you touched my woman—”
“I got a kid.”
I straighten up and circle around to the other side of the bed. “Yeah? When’s the last time you saw your son?”
He opens his mouth, but I’m not here to get in touch with our feelings. And I already know the answer.
Turns out I don’t even need the whole five minutes.
“Did Wrath tell you what they were doing tonight?” I ask Trinity as Axel holds the door to the tattoo shop open for us.
“No. He said it was club business, not a bachelor party.”
“My ass,” I grumble.