“I swear onAbby herself.”
Tank’s furious breathing slows…barely.
“That’s not enough,” Tank growls, voice hoarse. “But it’s… something.”
“The best something you’re going to get,” Spike says. “Because if you go off half-cocked tonight, you’ll get yourself killed. And then Abigail loses you, and you know exactly what that will do to her.”
Tank shuts his eyes for a split second. Pain ripples across his face. Real, raw pain he’d die before admitting.
Then he shoves the chopper door closed and steps back.
He’s not calm. He’s definitely not okay. He’s just… barely leashed.
“Now we need a fucking plan,” Spike says. “Maverick, is thereanypossibility Cortéz knows who you are?”
“I’m not stupid enough to say no.” Maverick crosses his arms. “I’ve run my empire from the shadows since we left Calabria. But if he dug deep enough…old photos, old articles…he’d find me front and center in any Moretti clan media back in Italy.”
“So it’s possible,” Spike mutters.
“But not likely,” I cut in. “He’d need a reason to be suspicious. And he probably researched all of us already. You’ve lived inPalm Springs longer than half our men. You blend better than any damn chameleon. He’s got no reason to single you out.”
“Even still,” Bones adds, voice like gravel. “Let’s operate assuming hedoesn’tknow who Maverick really is. That works in our favor. How do we use it?”
Maverick lifts his phone with a wicked little smile.
“I already contacted my uncle in L.A. about the attack on my estate,” he says. “He handles things when I’m not there. I’ve ordered a fleet of my men to Palm Springs. Discreetly, of course.”
“A fleet?” I raise a brow. “Just how many men do you have?”
“Oh, my sweet, nosy, never-shuts-the-fuck-up friend,” he chuckles. “Fucking thousands.”
“Thousands?” I repeat.
“Five thousand in the U.S.,” he clarifies. “More than ten thousand globally.”
“Wow,” I breathe. “Okay, that’s… shocking.”
“That, brother,” he says, pride leaking through his voice like gasoline near a lit match, “is my empire. And it’s why I vanish for weeks at a time. I run everything from here, where I get as much peace as a Don can have. But sometimes the boss has to show his face. Remind the clan who the fuck is in charge.”
“That’s hot,” I say, fanning myself dramatically. “Fuck, Maverick. Your Boss voice is giving me a boner.”
“I’ll be sure to let Eli know,” he deadpans. “Then he’ll know to only mention my name if he’s having trouble getting you excited.”
I stare at him.
I blink.
And in my mind, I’m already giving my brother the kind of makeover that requires a plastic surgeon and a closed casket.
“Don’t worry,” I smirk. “My dick’s in a constant state of agony whenever that boy’s within ten feet of me.”
Knuckles snorts. Spike, of course, ignores us entirely.
“Alright, here’s what’s gonna happen,” Spike says, rolling right over the conversation. “Tank and Bones, I want you both to go back with Maverick.”
“That’s not necessary,” Maverick replies. “My men already have the guards contained. My family’s being moved as we speak.”
Spike drags in a slow breath. “Look, brother… I know I can’t order you around. Hell, I never could. You refused to join us, and now I know why. And I get it. I truly do.” His voice softens. “But nothing that’s happened changes the fact that you’re our brother. Patch or not. Don… or not.”
