“I can handle my woman just fine. And I trust my brothers plenty. But Everly doesn’t. She has a thing against bikers, as it were, and she won’t submit to our protection.” I sigh. “In fact, she’s quite adamant we don’t help her at all, which is why I came to you. She doesn’t have any reason to distrust you, and your men can watch her without being noticed. Whereas, in this town, the Kings are well-known and rarely left alone when in public.”
Vincenzo’s smile widens. “You mean the way women flock to your cut and don’t leave you alone? I can see where your woman might find an issue with that.”
“No. I mean, the people of Oakridge are friendly with all of us, and hiding isn’t going to be easy when everyone in town knows who we are, with or without the cut.”
“And the tourists?” Matteo teases. “The women who are just passing through and looking to scare a biker for the night. They’re not of any concern?”
“Fuck you both.” It comes out as a growl.
“Careful, Mr. Wright.” Vincenzo’s tone changes. “I might let disrespect slide in Gabriel’s clubhouse from time to time, but I won’t be disrespected in my own establishment.”
“The point is, your men can blend in and keep an eye on Everly and Kaylie. Listen, Everly mentioned not long ago that she thought she was being watched. Someone was lurking around her house. I put cameras in, and normally I spend a lot of time over there, but shit’s complicated.”
“Why not move them into the clubhouse?”
“That’s complicated too.” I sigh. “Everly has a history with bikers, and she said a bunch of shit to me about the lifestyle and her opinions, and now things are a little uncomfortable for her there.”
“She pissed off Sadie,” Matteo states it as a fact, not a question. I nod. “Yeah, that would make thingscomplicatedfor anyone.” His smile is one of pride.
“All that doesn’t matter. I need someone to surveil Ever and her kid sister for me while the club figures out how to handle the Devil situation. She won’t accept a Prospect. She will make his life a living hell and call the cops to force him to back off. But after discovering that it was one of those Devil bastards that fucked up her salon, putting her out of business for a bit, I know she needs to be protected. My gut tells me there’s more to allof this, and Everly is somehow involved. Not intentionally, but still.” I lean forward with my elbows on my knees. “Everly has two months until she is finally granted full guardianship over Kaylie, and this shit with the Devils could seriously mess that up for her. I can’t let that happen. I made a promise to always take care of them and keep them together.”
“All right. Let’s say I do agree to protect your little girlfriend and her sister, what’s in it for me?” Vincenzo tilts his head as if he’s won one over on me, but he has no idea the prize I’m about to hand him if he does this for me.
“Revenge,” I reply, looking directly at Matteo. His eyebrows shoot up to his hairline. “One of the assholes that was supposed to have been at the warehouse in Florida according to Kayce’s intel—the same warehouse you found Shea battered and bruised in—he made it back herealive.”
Matteo’s eyes narrow while his nostrils flare. “You know this for sure?”
“Saw him with my own eyes. He was at Glitz 'n Tass the other night harassing some of Ghost’s girls. I recognized him from Kayce’s files.”
“Where is he now?”Matteo growls. Vincenzo puts up his hand, warning Matteo to back down. He stands tall, fixing his suit jacket, but he’s not calm by any means.
“You have this man in custody?” Vincenzo asks, his voice gravelly, as if he’s barely holding on himself.
“Not yet. But I’m certain he’s linked to the guy fucking with Ever. You help me protect her, and I’ll get Pres to give you your prize, and Matteo can interrogate him. I’m sure he knows a lot about what Shea went through.” It’s my turn to smile. I know I’ve got Vincenzo’s interest now. There’s no way Matteo will let that fucker live. Not after what he did to Hawk’s sister, Shea, who happens to be living in Matteo’s penthouse.
It was Matteo who found and rescued Shea. Hawk said she had been beaten all to hell and was scared out of her mind. She wouldn’t even look at Hawk because he wore a cut. Anyone resembling a biker terrified the poor girl. The only person she seemed to trust was Matteo. I wasn’t there, but heard all about how this big, beast of a man in a suit sat on the cold cement floor across from a terrified Shea and handed her his knife.
I don’t know what the conversation was between them, but Hawk said Matteo made her feel safe enough to follow him out of the warehouse and get into his car, which is how she came to live with him. Matteo’s been looking to take his anger out on someone to avenge her ever since. But the island having been blown to shit and the others already dead at the scene, left him with some pent-up frustrations and a few loose ends, I guess you could say.
“Very well, Mr. Wright.” There’s a hint of something behind Vincenzo’s glare. I can’t quite make it out. “I will do whatever is necessary to protect your woman and her sister. And if you should capture thisDevilbefore we do, you agree to hand him over—alive. Do we have a deal?”
“I’ll have to get Pres to release him to you if we—” the look Vincenzo is giving me gives me pause. This is not a negotiation. I will have to turn over the man in question with or without the Pres’s approval.
Fuck.
Something like that will not only cost me my patch, but more importantly, my life for betraying the club. I sigh, long and deep, frustrated at the choice I’m about to make, but knowing I have no other choice. “Deal.” I stand, shaking his hand before heading to the door to leave. My hand is on the knob, and Vincenzo’s parting words give me momentary pause.
“Remember when you explain this to Gabriel, that you came to me and set the terms of this deal. I don’t want any misunderstanding between us and our friends. Hmm?”
Shit. Now I have to go tell Pres what I did and hope he doesn’t put a bullet in my head straight away.
I’m fucked.
7
EVERLY
I finally fell asleep in the wee hours of the morning, and now I’m being woken up by Kaylie jumping on my bed while shaking me and yelling, “Get up! Get up, Sissy! Someone’s at the door!”
