It was a hard ride that night, and I couldn’t help but be slightly distracted. The thought of what Brianna had proposed to do, what she was putting on the line for the cause, had my guts in knots. I trusted her to keep her word about merely seducing and distracting…But I didn’t trust King to honor her limits.
The roar of the thirty or so motorcycles reverberated off of the Vegas Strip. There was no doubt that we were here, and we didn’t really care for the element of surprise. I was at the helm of it all, the road in front of me ripe with opportunity. Lane and Cole were behind me, and Sonny and Spawn took up the third row. After that, it was all Black Reapers. The wind was warm and fresh—what a beautiful night for this, I thought.
Cars moved out of our way, and I saw people turn their heads in wonder or shock. The few patrol cars we passed conveniently found something better to do, and we rode on without a disturbance. We passed by the street that led to Brianna’s apartment, and I had to hope that she was safe, wherever she was.
We pulled up to the warehouse in Chinatown. There were prospects and fully patched King’s Men alike patrolling outside. The Black Reapers stopped a few yards behind me, pulling out their weapons but not leaving their bikes. I rode up to the entrance, and the plan was falling into place. The guards at the door had their guns drawn, but eyes wide.
I parked my bike and swung over, holding my hands up in a show of innocence. The one guarding the door was a prospect, and I saw Port—one of the executive officers—up on the walkway on the second story. They each had their guns out, but I knew they wouldn’t shoot me. Not without wanting to know what’s going on first.
“What the hell are you doing, Crush?” the prospect asked.
“What I should have done a long time ago,” I answered. “Now, I’m gonna let you in on a little secret. You join our side and take down King, you live. You don’t, and I put a nine-millimeter between your eyes. Your call.”
“This is mutiny,” said Port.
I looked up at him, and I heard the click of a safety turning off. Before he could make a move, a gun fired from behind me. He fell over the railing, the bones of his neck letting out an audiblecrack, a clean hole through his head. I turned to see Cole smirking at his aim.
“That’s exactly what it is,” I said looking at the prospect.
He gulped and nodded and beat feet towards the street. He didn’t get far before Sonny shot him clean through the leg. He crumpled to the ground. Sonny nodded to me, and one by one, the Black Reapers dismounted. It was like watching a wave of black and leather as they moved as one body. We gathered at the door, and Cole silently gave the signal.
I kicked in the door, expecting to be met with gunfire and chaos. But there wasn’t any. There were King’s Men, and lots of them, with their guns drawn and ready to battle. No one made a move, and I counted how many men I could see. There were at least twenty, with however many were hidden in the shadows or rooms. We were outnumbered, exactly as we planned to be.
“Listen closely,” Lane boomed. “If you join us in the fight, you’ll be patched in either as a Reaper or given the freedom to leave and go on with your merry lives.”
There was a slow, melodic beat of heavy steps that echoed off of crates and walls. It came from above, in the second story walk of metal grates. The air was tense, and it was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Lane and Sonny came to stand next to me, and we walked further into the well-lit space.
I watched as King strode out in his white suit, his two bodyguards with him. He was in the walkway, looking down at all of us. But more importantly, it forced us all to lookupat him. The pieces clicked into place more and more. My stomach plummeted, and I knew that something was horribly wrong.
If King’s here, then where the hell is Brianna?
“He’s mine,” I growled to the Reapers.
“Oh, I’m so scared,” King mockingly whimpered. “I’m just shaking. I actually should thank you, Crush. You have provided me with such a great opportunity. I get to clean my hands of a rat and massacre the Black Reapers all in one shot. It’s like Christmas practically. Although, I do have to say that Brianna was the best gift. She was so warm and soft, not to mention just an absolute treat.”
I looked into his cold beady eyes. But I had faith in Brianna to stay true to her word. Whatever happened between them, it wasn’t her choice. I ground my teeth together and raised my gun, aiming just above his shoulder. I didn’t want to kill him so quickly—the best part about this plan was that King would watch his empire fall. And I planned on giving him a front-row seat.
“He’s bluffing,” Ash’s words cut through. He aimed his gun higher, setting King in his sights. “I can just tell.”
“Is that so, Ash?” King chuckled. “Well, then I guess the birthmark on her—”
I pulled the trigger. The shot went wide, as I had wanted it to. To give King a quick and easy death was not the plan either. King’s eyes were wide, and his bodyguards acted fast. They whipped out their own guns and aimed at me, waiting for King’s signal. He raised a bony hand and curled it into a fist.
And then, all hell broke loose.
The Black Reapers and I scattered as gunfire rained down. The plan was to offer freedom to anyone we engaged with in one-on-one combat. If they refused or our life was on the line, they were getting a bullet to the brain. It was more my rule than anyone else’s—I was spearheading the operation, I would be the most at-risk in the battle. That was the caveat.
But it was better than being under King. As I ducked behind a crate, it exploded into splinters of wood from the impact of a bullet. I rolled over as best as I could to the next crate. And came face to face with none other than Port’s brother. He had murder in his eyes, as if he knew what had already happened outside. He threw a punch, but I just shot him through the throat.
Probably for the best,I sighed silently.
I turned to the chaos that stuck to the warehouse like shitty wallpaper. There were bodies of King’s Men on the floor, at least ten of them, some wounded, some dead. Hopefully, the Black Reapers were faring better. Otherwise, it wasn’t going to be much of a battle. I saw King look on in pride at the carnage below him, his bodyguards turning their heads, watching for anyone coming up the stairs.
In my distraction, I was tackled by one of the more built prospects. I managed to dodge his pistol whip, wrenching the gun away and throwing it across the room. He gave a swift kick to my still-healing thigh, and the nerves shot down my leg in pain. It was enough to give him time to kick my gun out to the center of the warehouse. I managed to knee him in the groin, scooting out more towards my gun. He recovered and climbed back on top of me. He had no gun, but his hands wrapped around my throat and squeezed.
I scrambled for my gun, just barely out of reach. In the distance, I heard King’s laugh. I couldn’t reach the weapon, so I tried to pry the surprisingly strong grip of the kid off my throat.Well, this was definitely not part of the plan, I thought as black began to dot my vision. If the boy would let me breathe, I could maybe convince him to turn.
“Looks like I found the newest Crush,” King’s voice rang out.
