He chuckles and socks me softly in the arm. “Report to me when it’s done.” I nod and start to leave the office. When he says my name, I turn to him with a raised eyebrow. “Don’t shoot him.”
Shrugging, I say, “No promises.”
I’m glad I didn’t promise not to shoot anyone. Because Sid is in my goddamn face, joking like we’re fucking friends. I don’t like him. I’ve never liked him. He thinks we’re buddy-buddy because he’s been in the family for so long and worked closely with Carter. Carter might like this fucking dickhead, but I don’t.
“Come on, Deck,” he says, slapping me on the arm like he has the right. “You know how it is when you have some pussy waitin’. Gotta go get it while it’s hot. Feel me?” He slaps me on the arm again.
I look to my right to meet Hendrix’s eyes like I used to, and it cuts through me like a knife when I find the spot empty. Hendrix is gone, and he’s never coming back.
I’m alone.
Turning back to Sid, I narrow my eyes and say, “You leftmy brother and brother-in-law unprotected so you could get your dick wet?”
A few Whitlock men close ranks around us, staring Sid down. Even some St. Clairs close in, glaring at the asshole for leaving their boss without protection.
Sid looks around nervously, rubbing his hands together. “There were other men there. Other men that?—”
“You had your quadrant,” I cut him off. “You had the section you were supposed to keep your eye on. What if someone had slipped through and gotten to them? What the fuck would you have done then?” I get in his face, standing nose to nose with him. “I set up the fucking posts the way I do for a reason, so they’re always fucking guarded. You left my fucking brother unprotected!”
Carter may piss me off sometimes, but I love him. If someone had gotten to him and hurt him—and Kai, I guess—I would have gone crazy and lit the fucking city on fire.
Even thinking about it—the thought of being alone in this world without my brother—has my trigger finger itching. I keep my hand away from my gun, but it’s a near thing.
Until Sid scoffs in my face and turns his fucking back on me. “It’s all good. I’ll be there next time. Tell Carter not to worry. I’ll make sure no one hurts a hair on his precious head.”
Before I even give my hand the command, my gun is out and Sid has a bullet in his calf.
Again, I’m glad I didn’t promise.
But fuck Sid for turning his back on me. I don’t tolerate disrespect, and every man in here knows it. I don’t know what Sid’s fucking deal is, but he’s gonna learn today.
He screams and drops to his knees, holding his bleeding calf. “Fuck!” he shouts in pain. “Fuck! I apologized! You didn’t have to shoot me!”
Walking over to him, I pull his head back and place mygun under his chin. Sid’s eyes go wide, fear swimming in their depths.
In a deadly quiet voice, I say, “Don’t youeverturn your fucking back on me.” I pull his head back until his spine is nearly curved. “Leave my brother unprotected again and I’ll?—”
“You’ll what?” he grits out, trying to fight out of my hold. “You’ll kill me?” He scoffs. “That’s all you do, talk with your fucking gun. Before long, there won’t be any men left in this family because of you.”
His criticism hits hard, but I don’t let it show. I simply let his head go and push him away from me. “Clean yourself up. You’re fucking demoted. You’ll be on fucking warehouse duty until I feel like you can handle more.”
Warehouse duty is just him sitting with the packages and making sure no one breaks into our place. So basically nothing.
Before I holster my gun, Sid laughs and struggles to his feet. Under his breath, he says, “That’s what I thought, bitch.”
With a growl, I turn around and empty my entire clip into him, watching his body dance and twitch before he falls to the ground.
Sid takes a few gasping breaths before he shudders and goes still. I walk over to his body and look down at his still face. I curse under my breath, but school my expression as I snap my fingers. Three men run over, standing in front of me, awaiting orders. “Hope the pussy was worth it,” I growl, spitting on the body. “You and you, take his body to the acid baths.”
One of the men I point to, Austin, is the son of the man I shot months ago after he took issue with Carter promoting me to handling all security. Austin’s father, Butch, was with our family for decades, working security for Dad. I guess he felt he was due the position with the regime change but fuckhim. He questioned my brother in front of both families, making him look weak. I made sure he wouldn’t make that mistake again.
I’m surprised Austin is still working for us. He was there when his father died, but he understands that this is all business and in this business, disrespect isn’t tolerated. I don’t say it, but I admire him for putting that behind him and continuing to be loyal to this family.
“Got it boss,” Austin says, moving quickly to grab Sid’s arms while another man, Ian, grabs his legs, grimacing at all the blood.
The last man, Donny, is tasked with clean up.
As I tuck my gun back into the holster, I think about what Dad and Carter said to me today. I tried to use my head and not jump to violence first, but Sid fucking tested me. He got what he fucking deserved.
