“Is that right?” I sneer, sarcasm dripping off every word.
“This is our hangout now, which means you fuckers ain’t welcome.”
I swivel my head, then turn back to Viper. “I don’t know what the fuck you’ve been doin’ here, ‘cause the place looks like a shit-hole, but I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.”
I turn to Ace, who flanks my right side. “What else would you expect from a bunch of dogs? Not only do they shit where they eat, they like sticking their dicks in these used-up cunts.”
Ace barks out a laugh. “Sure they do, that’s ‘cause no hot piece of ass would wanna get with a bunch of limp-dick Dogs.”
Viper’s spine stiffens, and he exchanges a look with his enforcer.
“Why are you looking at him?” I spread my arms wide. “You wanted a piece of me the other day, so what the fuck are you waiting for?”
“What’s going on over here?”
I jerk my chin to a guy approaching us in a baggy suit, at least fifty pounds overweight. “This is what you call a bouncer?”
“We don’t allow fighting in here.” The bouncer lumbers over to us, and I suppress a laugh.
Maggie could take this guy down without breaking a sweat. Shit, my dark-haired, nameless beauty could do a job on him. Fuckin’ ridiculous.
Viper throws the guy an evil grin. “We’re just catching up, right, Deuce?”
“Right.” I grab Viper around the shoulders much tighter than necessary. “Been a long fuckin’ time.”
“You got any problems, take them outside,” the bouncer warns, then shuffles away.
“Sure thing.” I slap Viper on the back hard enough to make my point.
“This ain’t over,” Viper sneers.
“Damn fuckin’ straight, ‘cause the Kings are back, and we’ll go wherever the fuck we please.” I jab my finger into Viper’s one-percent patch. “So, you better take yourself and the rest of your mangy dogs and hightail it back to Philly where you belong.”
“And when I hit,” Viper leans in, “you’ll never see it coming.”
I laugh in Viper’s face then sit down as Fist and Ace watch my back until Viper and his crew leave.
Ace settles in next to me. “He ain’t playin’. That crazy motherfucker thinks his crew is on top.”
“But we’re gonna show them different,” Speed adds.
Shady holds out his fist, and we all tap knuckles.
The brothers all agreeing sends a jolt to my chest, like maybe they’re finally believing in me, themselves, and the Kings. Especially Speed and Shady. Scratch had the brains, and Ace and Fist were too damn cocky for their own good, but Speed and Shady were the weaker links. The ones I always had to keep an eye on.
“And we gotta act, like now. Talking about this shit is one thing, but doin’ is another.”
“Agreed. We can’t let the Dogs get a foothold here or in AC.”
I plug a smoke between my lips, and Ace lights me up. “I was just shit-talking before, but why do you guys think it took the Dogs so long to move in?”
They all exchange a look I can’t decipher, then Scratch offers, “‘Cause about six months ago, they scored some big drug deals. Word was they made a lot of big drops up and down the coast, along with a shit-ton of money until their VP fucked up.”
“Fucked up how?”
“Sampling too much of the product. Thinking he was invincible, but in the end, it was two other guys who ended up going down for it.”
“And you think Viper managed to hold on to some of this money?”
