“Don’t you have to go back to the Hellions?” I say, folding my arms across my chest. “Not exactly your territory here.”
“Nice to see you too, brother.”
I always did like Max. I can’t fault that he’s had Willow’s back, and that’s cool with me. But he’s also not as dumb as he looks, and I swear to fucking god he uses that to his advantage.
“You wanted to talk,” I gruff. “So fuckin’ talk. Cut City Boys?”
“Yeah, I heard all about that when Willow was undercover. Some pretty shady shit.”
“We eradicated them and sent the Skeletons back to the hole they crawled out of with a little help from the Hellions, your point?”
He scoffs. “A little help?”
“Those assholes gettin’ into our territory ultimately secured their own demise, one we’re very proud of.”
“And I’m supportive of that goal, but the real Cut City Boys originated in Chicago. I had a couple of buddies in the joint thathad ties to the Chicago mafia back in the day, the very ones your buddy Riot brought down if I’m not mistaken.”
I pique a brow. “Okay, you’ve got my attention.”
“Then some gun-wielding psycho called Shade came to bring the club down in retaliation for her lover being murdered, and nearly succeeded,” he says, stunning me for a split second.
How does he know so much?
Riot used to be a sniper, but he gave that up a long time ago after he took out the head of the Mancini family back in Chicago. That’s all water under the bridge, so I don’t know why this is all coming up.
“For the record, he took out a crime lord on behalf of the Russians. Dimitri Minkoff paid very well, and let’s just say the Russians have a lot more control over the city than the Mancini clan ever did.”
Dimitri Minkoff runs the city now, keeping it mainly under some sort of civilized order, not that I keep tabs on what’s going on in Chicago. I don’t fucking care.
“That’s where the Minkoffs fell short,” he goes on. “And you’re wonderin’ what all of that has to do with us, right? I’ll get to that.”
I wave a finger at him. “There is nous,pal. Orwe.You’re an ally, and my brother-in-law, but that doesn’t mean I have to listen to shit, you got me?”
He grins that famous grin that I wanna knock it off his face. “Oh, but you will if it concerns my sister. I know you two never really gave up on one another.”
“I guess you know all about Shade and her takin’ out politicians, a Chicago senator, then she came after the Rebels, nothin’ new there.”
“I know it’s not a hard timeline to keep track of. I’ve got friends in low places. Even in the joint, I kept up with everythin’.”
I sigh. “Cut to the chase. What exactly did you come here to tell me?”
“The real Cut City Boys run out of Chicago and have expanded to Minnesota, and Michigan?—-”
“All places I have no interest in or plan to visit,” I interrupt. “Get to the point, pretty boy.”
“When Willow was undercover investigating that gang, they took the name Cut City Boys right around the time Chicago were expanding their wings.” He holds up a hand when I go to interrupt him, and I hold my tongue. “They were never real Cut City Boys, ever. My guess is they were plannin’ on bringin’ down the whole network, then takin’ the new reins when Chicago went down. That’s a whole other story, and let’s just say the leverage changed for the better.”
“What does it matter now, they’re all dead, and the real Cut City gang are in Chicago. Who gives a fuck?”
“It was a ploy. They wanted to start anarchy. Enlisting the help of the Skeletons meant a fresh beef with the Hellions. In any case, are you sure you got every one of those meatheads for sure?”
I stare at him. “The cops arrested everyone they could get their hands on, we took care of the rest. It’s been years. Nobody was left standin’, mark my words on that. City Boys are bad fuckin’ news.”
“That’s where you’re wrong, they’re actually kinda vigilantes, a lot like us, but a little more ruthless.”
I snort. “I doubt that, and there’s that word again. I still don’t get what this has to do with New Orleans and Willow. So what if the fuckin’ gang was obliterated and Cut City Chicago is left standin’. Who really cares? It’s up to the Russians to take them out if they want.”
“Except they don’t because their leader, Xander Miles, is some kind of goddamn anti-hero. I know his best friend, EthanJames, we were inside together,” Max goes on. “They were plannin’ a surprise attack in New Orleans because they found out what was goin’ on with the gang takin’ their name. They were gonna deal with it. You guys took out the trash before they got here.”
