Barber’s laugh intensified and he pointed toward the door. “You can’t tell me you don’t see it. Colt looks like you. Sure you aren’t related?”
Colt. Fuck, of course. Matthew Coltrane. He was Uhlig’s right-hand man. He’d been around for a long time, but I didn’t see him as often as Uhlig.
King shrugged. “You have a clone.”
He didn’t wait around for me to argue before he powered onward, most of the guys following him. Scar and Charley stayed behind, and I suspected they were backup in case something happened. I strode forward, shoving past the others until I was at King’s side as we walked in.
The moment I entered, anger slapped me so hard I thought I was going to vomit. PD sat in the middle of the room on a metal chair, arms tied behind his back and his ankles secured against the chair’s legs. He was watching us through a swollen left eye and his face was beginning to bruise on his cheek and jaw. Drying blood layered his chin.
Despite how injured he was, he offered me a small smile.
Rage beat down on me and I ground my teeth. It took every fiber of my control not to race to Uhlig and plant my fist in his face over and over again until he was a bloody pulp.
“Calm,” King murmured, eyeing me with trepidation. “If you want to prove to us that you can handle assignments, you need to show me.”
I glanced toward PD again, his gaze pleading. He wanted me to do the same. This wasn’t only about us, it was about the club. Our family.
I squared my shoulders. “I can handle it.”
King gave me a gentle thump on the back, and we walked over to where Uhlig was waiting in an office with glass walls. His men surrounded the periphery of the warehouse, watching us carefully. Two men in suits stopped us as we reached the office.
“Only three are allowed in,” one of them grunted out.
King sighed and pointed at me and Jester. “Come with me.”
The fact that he chose me had me standing straighter. I was going to prove to him I could do this. I wasready, even if I wanted to take Uhlig’s head off for hurting PD.
I glanced back toward PD and raised my hand to let him know we would sort this out. The wobbly smile he gave me told me he trusted me and that meant the whole fucking world. I wasn’t going to let him down. I couldn’t.
I bumped into the frame of the doorjamb when I lost my balance and winced at the sharp spike of pain that resulted. King gave me a concerned glance, but I brushed it aside as I stepped inside behind him. Shit happened.
Uhlig sat in a brown leather executive chair behind a dark oak desk. He had his fingers linked together on the wood in front of himself and a grin curved his lips. The bastard was too relaxed and satisfied as far as I was concerned. What would King do if I punched the smugness off Uhlig’s face?
Beside him stood Colt, arms crossed and spine stiff.
“Derek.” King fell into a guest chair in front of Uhlig and crossed his leg over his knee, his relaxed good ole boy routine a charade I knew well. “Tell me why you have my man tied up to a chair out there.”
Uhlig wasn’t a hugely muscular man, but he was strong. He had a handsome face with bold eyebrows. His five-o’clock shadow was neat and he had a prominent nose and short dark hair threaded through with some silver. He was wearing a pair of sunglasses that he pulled off, then set on the desk.
“King. King, my friend, we’ve had a good relationship, haven’t we?” He raised his eyebrows. “We stayed out of each other’s way, and when it suited us, we helped each other.”
“Yeah. That’s true.” King paused. “Which is why I’m surprised you thought torturing one of my men was a smart idea.”
Uhlig opened his arms. “Complete misunderstanding.”
I doubted that. Uhlig loved playing games. I pressed my lips together tightly as Jester took the second seat beside King. I stayed standing behind them, offering my support.
“You see, my men thought he was part of the crew that hit my truck and took my money. They worked him over before I got here.” He flashed his perfect white teeth.
Lie. Huge fucking lie.Anger burned in my veins. The things I wanted to do to this asshole....
Colt snorted and reached over to grab a lighter from Uhlig’s desk. He lit the tip of his cigar.
King pointed at it. “You have enough to share with the class?”
“No,” Colt said without missing a beat. He inhaled smoke, then blew a few rings.
King laughed in a low tone and his gaze tracked back to Uhlig. “Derek, I don’t appreciate the accusation.”
