“It’s almost impossible to track casino-washed funds,” Ryker chimes in, hands in his pockets and leaning against the black marble countertop. “Any prospects?”
“Several. Including some of our members. Some allies and enemies of the Makarovs. Same for the Lunds. And …” I stall for a beat, my gaze drifting to Cash, who widens his eyes with another command to spit it all out, so I do. “Tessa’s ex, and his family, colleagues, and friends, which extends to some of her relatives.”
Axel’s shoulders are rigid. We all know what’s coming, and honestly, I don’t fucking blame him. His priority is me, us—this family.
So, he has to ask, “And her? Does she have involvement with the Bahamas casino?”
“No,” I lie.
Because she hasn’t in the past couple of years and what she did before doesn’t have anything to do with it. From what I can tell, she took a few trips with Hunter during that year and a half they dated. Though I do need to ask her if she knows anything about the money.
“You’re sure?” he presses.
I let my stare linger on him for a few seconds longer than what’s respectful. Haven’t done that since I was an unruly teenager, but while his initial skepticism is warranted, it ends now. “I’m positive, so drop it.”
Ryker is slightly softer in these circumstances because he relates to my protectiveness, but he’s still leery. “What about her family?”
“I don’t fucking know.” I scrub my hand over my face and look past them, watching Tessa laugh at something Jax said, which has both warmth and irrational jealousy coursing through me—her laughs belong to me. “They aren’t fans of mine. And I can’t stand the way they fucking treat her. I know that much. They seem to be average country people. Even Hunter, her ex, was an asshole, but he appeared shaken enough by our questions that he would’ve disclosed any intel he had about the money. Tessa sees them as belonging to a completely different world, and I get it. They do.”
“We questioned Hunter together.” Cash shuffles his card deck with one hand, his back braced against the fridge. “The guy is two-timing swine, but didn’t strike me as someone who was laundering stolen money.”
Ryker hums, organizing his thoughts. “Lund said there was a witness. What did the witness attest to seeing?”
An unbidden sigh escapes me. “They had the G-wagon, the house, and questionable activity—whatever that means. Obviously, no license plate.”
My response instigates rapid-fire.
“You disposed of that G-wagon?” Axel asks.
“Crushed like my GranTurismo is being right now. The one in the garage is new with different trim.”
Cash shoots next. “Who owned the house?”
“It was a leasing company. No cameras. I erased the tenant history and filled it in with fictitious names.”
Ryker pushes off the countertop, back ramrod straight and his bulldozer tendencies shining through his barked queries. “Where is the weapon? Who was on the lease? Did anyone go with you to the bayou? What cleaning service did you use?”
“The weapon was disposed of separately. I went alone after I got the victim to safety. And I used York—the cleaner Ty, Liam, and all those guys use. They’d referred me.”
“York is thorough,” Axel mutters, pondering something.
“Who were the tenants, Mad?” Ryker presses, not missing that I skirted that.
Cash stares at me with rapt interest. He was wondering the same thing.
It takes a beat for me to share it, but since Axel is one of KORT’s five primary leaders, he could strong-arm Liam into giving up the information anyway, so I finally just put it out there. “Tessa and her sister.”
No one seems overly shocked by that reveal. They suspected.
“This is really fucking hard to dissect when I don’t know how else Tessa is involved.” Axel’s dubious glower burns into me, but when I divulge nothing more, he exhales, resigned. “I’ll take the meeting with Makarov. Maybe I’ll get something from him.”
“Thanks, Papa Axe.” I smirk with my use of the smart-ass nickname I assigned him after our parents died. It began as a rebellious term of teenage disrespect and morphed into endearment.
He knows he means everything to me. He’s been a father, a brother, a mentor, and a friend. Ryker has too. And Cash? Well,I’d imagine he’s pissed I didn’t clue him in long before this and terrified this could all go south fast. That’s how I’d feel if the tables were turned. They all seem a little taken aback. We could very well be looking at war this week. It’s time to prepare for combat.
Axel bobs his head. “Are we protecting Tessa as an employee or as an untouchable?”
“An untouchable,” I answer without hesitation.
