She tossed the phone. Hard. I caught it out of reflex, palm stinging.
“Your President wants to yell in your ear,” she added.
I lifted the phone, not sure if I was more worried about what Blackjack would say or what Lady Liberty would do if I said the wrong thing.
“Yeah,” I said.
“Where the fuck have you been?” Blackjack’s voice snapped through the line. “You vanish mid-sentence, I hear shots, and then nothing.”
“Phone took a bullet,” I said. My hand still tingled. “Wasn’t me. I’m still pretty.”
“Debatable,” he said. I heard something in the background, maybe Mirage or Spade muttering. “Talk. Fast.”
“Miami’s alive,” I said. “I saw him. He’s banged up in places I didn’t know you could break, but he seemed fixable. He woke up long enough to talk. He confirmed he pulled what was in the bike before the crash and stuffed it in a backpack. That backpack is here. On me.”
“Contents safe?” Blackjack asked. His voice was flatter now. Dangerous.
“Yes,” I replied.
Silence. Then a low curse.
“Where is the rest of it?” he asked. “Whatever else was in that pack.”
“In the bag,” I said. “I didn’t touch the tech. Just the book. I can feel it. This is worse than I expected. If someone knows Miami pulled this, if someone knows I have it, you can kiss any quiet days goodbye.”
“Too late for quiet,” Blackjack said. “What about the hospital?”
“A shooter showed up,” I said. “Suit on, gun low. Was walking straight for Miami’s room.Valkyrie came in hot, told me to get down, took the first shots. Hit him twice, maybe three times. He ran. We had an active shooter alarm. Security and cops flooded the place. She dragged me out a side exit before they could decide the guy with the patch was involved in the problem.”
“And the cameras?” he asked.
“She says they have someone who can wipe them. They also have a girl inside who is going to keep eyes on Miami.”
“You trust that?” he asked.
I looked over at Valkyrie. She was standing beside Liberty now, head tilted, watching me with those icy eyes. Arms crossed, jaw tight. Other Vipers had gathered behind them. A wall of ink and leather.
“I trust that anyone who just put themselves between me and a bullet isn’t trying to sell me out before lunch,” I said. “Beyond that, trust is expensive. So, we’ll see.”
Blackjack grunted.
“Where are you now? Clubhouse or some other location?” he asked.
“Clubhouse,” I said. “Liberty dragged me here on a leash. She doesn’t look thrilled.”
“I’d be more worried if she was,” he said. “Listen to her, but don’t let that bag out of your sight. Not for anything. Not even if she says she’ll keep it safe for you. That bag isn’t leaving your back until I say so. You understand me?”
“Loud and clear,” I said.
“Eight-Ball is heading up there later,” he added. “I am sending him as my voice. You’ll stick with him once he arrives. Until then, Liberty’s house, Liberty’s rules. You fuck this up, you don’t just answer to me. You answer to every brother who has to live with what comes next.”
“Yes, Prez,” I said. “Sorry this is happening.”
“Don’t apologize for almost dying,” he said. “You apologize to me only when you do die.”
I nodded with a smirk.
Lady Liberty then walked over and snatched the phone back the second it left my ear. She didn’t move far, just paced in one tight circle in front of me.
