“Well, we have a warrant to search the place.”
The detective handed over a folded piece of paper, and Yoda glanced at it before nodding solemnly.
“All right boys,” the detective called out to the officers in the room. “You know the drill. Look for anything illegal, especially drugs and weapons.”
The couple that had been playing darts headed for the door, but a uniformed officer blocked their path, holding his hand out to indicate they should stop.
“Let them go,” the detective said. “It’s Outlaw Souls that we want here.”
The officer stepped aside, and the couple hurried out of the place. None of us Outlaw Souls would have tried to leave even if we could. This was our bar.Our club.
“What is this about, Detective…” Hawk trailed off with a raised brow.
“Hamilton. Detective Hamilton.”
“Okay. Detective Hamilton. Why are you here?”
“What’s your name?” Detective Hamilton asked Hawk instead of answering.
“Hawk.”
“Your legal name,” the man growled, he pulled out a small notebook from his back pocket.
Hawk sighed but answered, “Pedro. Pedro Sanchez.”
The detective scribbled his name down, then moved on. He went behind the bar, where two of his men were already going through everything. I watched, my hands closing into tight fists as they carelessly knocked glasses onto the hardwood floor, shattering them. They didn’t care what kind of mess they were making or that Outlaw Souls would have to pay to replace those.
Bastards.
But I kept my mouth shut. I got a ‘get out of jail free’ card last time the cops took me in, and I didn’t think it would happen again if I got mouthy with the detective.
We all sat there, tense as the place was tossed. They went into the back room, and I could hear them moving the tables and chairs around. I was sure they were in Yoda’s small office too, probably making a mess as they tried to find something to use against us.
At least they couldn’t pat us down without cause. Their warrant wouldn’t cover the things in our pockets.
“Come on, you gotta be kidding me,” Snake muttered as the cops went as far as to remove the dart boards and pictures from the walls, like they expected to find a safe built into the wall or something equally ridiculous. They pulled down a framed picture of our founder, Javier “Gunner” Vicario, and carelessly dropped it to the floor, letting the glass break. It was the ultimate disrespect, making my anger surge. Letting it cloud my judgment, I started to stand, ready to go tell the guy exactly what I thought of his actions, but Hawk’s hand on my shoulder stopped me.
“They’re trying to provoke us,” he said in a quiet voice. “Don’t give them the satisfaction.”
It seemed to take forever for the police to go through everything, and in the end, they came up empty. Detective Hamilton was scowling as he received the reports from his men. They’d found nothing.
I wanted so badly to give him the smuggest smile I could muster, but Hawk’s word lingered in my mind. They were just looking for a reason to take us in. I didn’t need to draw attention to myself.
“All right, boys. You’re clear—this time.But watch your backs because I’ve got my eye on you.”
He strode out, followed by the rest of his men.
“You know, that sounded a lot like a threat to me,” Chalupa said, crossing his arms over him and shaking his head. Yoda was already on the phone, calling Ryder.
“That guy’s a dog chasing a bone,” I commented, taking a swig of my beer. The thing was room temperature now, making me grimace as I swallowed. “What we need to do is figure out who sicced him on us in the first place.”
“Gotta be that church again,” Trainer said, tossing a couple bills onto the bar for another drink. “The one that started the petition to close the strip club.”
“Last I heard, that damn thing got nearly a thousand signatures,” Pin added, looking disgusted. “Why the hell can’t people mind their own business?”
“Well, I just talked to Ryder,” Yoda said, tucking his phone back into his pocket. “They executed a warrant at the auto shop too. Tried to catch us with stolen merch, but they didn’t find anything.”
“They won’t stop looking.” Hawk sounded pretty of this, and I couldn’t disagree. “You know, I looked into that church, and I learned that the minister is new, just started a couple months ago. I’d bet anything that he’s the one pulling the strings here.”
