He also has a few rules that fit my predicament with Chanel, but Johnny made it clear it’s not to be discussed with me. Now that he’s gone, I expect to get an earful now and then.
Good. Maybe I’ll have an incentive to get her out of my life.
“The ride was good, though? Aside from seeing… Medusa?” Pacino asks.
“It was like it always is. Scenic. Something Johnny would’ve loved. Suppose it was his final ride, huh?” I take a deep breath and release it slowly, letting the pain stabbing at my chest subside. “How’s business?”
“Fucked,” Capone says.
Gino “Capone” Greco shakes his head. It’s comforting to know that Johnny being gone is the only thing that’s changed. Capone looks like he could put on a jacket rather than a kutte and jump in as an extra in some mob movie. And his mood is as dark and cloudy as when I left.
He and Pacino come from that life, so it fits. In most cases, his mob ties should disqualify Capone from handling our money, but he knows the tricks to keep our shit clean. And the IRS off our asses.
“What’s going on?” I ask.
“Venom are just fucking shit up everywhere they go, but what else is new?” he says and leans back in his chair. “They poached Tommy. He’s part of SnakeBite Ink now.”
Tommy’s our best artist. He did a lot of my ink. “What?”
“Yeah. And that’s not the end of it. Shot out all the windows of the gym, which of course hit the equipment. That’s setting us back a few grand. The pawn shop got raided, which I have no doubt was their doing, and they got into Velvet and assaulted two of our girls.”
Jesus. If anyone mentions the Hellfire Daredevils MC, they immediately think of Velvet Desire. We run a brothel of high-end ladies with even higher-end clientele.
The girls are paid more than fair, and they have more protection with us than anywhere else. It also helps that the club can’t sample the product, which tends to make prospects leave when they realize they don’t get free sex anytime they want.
“Are they okay?”
“They’re fine. Queenie hit one of them with a paddle, and Jethro and I were nearby to make sure they never come back,” Pacino says with a smirk.
“We got the money, though, and Pacino increased security,” Capone says.
Sniffling, I nod, taking it all in. “And the guns? How have the first few runs with the Drifters gone?”
Jethro smiles. “Fucking fantastic. Now that we can work with them, I think the guns are going to rival our income from Velvet.”
There was a big consensus that we didn’t want to work with family when we brought up running guns. There’s a demand for it around here, but with my uncle in the head seat, there was a potential for issues. Once Jennings Molloy stepped down andput someone other than his son in the president spot, the club voted to move forward.
“We’ve doubled business already,” Capone says, his slicked back dark hair reflecting in the light. “It’s paid for all the damages we’ve had recently.”
“I think we need to teach Tommy a lesson on loyalty,” I say and crack my neck. “I volunteer for that one.”
“Sounds good,” Jethro says. “Let us know if you need any help.”
The room falls silent, and I know they want to talk about the elephant in the room. The one I’m trying desperately to avoid. “Anything else?”
The question hangs over us. Is the vice president going to move up into the head seat?
No one has the guts to say it, though. They’re all waiting for me. Treating me like a fucking child.
“Let’s just get it over with,” I bark a bit harsher than I intend to. “Johnny’s seat.”
Kannon Reed leans forward to rest his elbows on the table. “I nominate you, Zep. You’re the VP and acting pres. It’s a logical shift.”
I can feel all eyes on me as I stare at the empty spot. All I want to do is punch something and scream before heading out to kill the head of the Black Venom.
“No.”
“No?” Jethro asks.
