Mom waves a hand at me dismissively. “Protecting my family is what I do, Coal, you know that. Maybe I’m not as tough as my daughters, but that doesn’t mean I’m weak. Nora is my daughter, the same as Opal, Bee, Jeanie, and Thea. This man hurt her through his connections, so as far as I’m concerned, he has to pay. It’s what a mom does. But you’re right, I don’t have the stomach for the next part, so I’ll leave you all to it and go and have a cup of tea with my other girls. We’ll see you for brunch at the clubhouse.”
Mom turns to Tinman, who’s smiling proudly at her. “Always knew you were meant for this life, Maggie. Come on, I’m with you. I’d rather see my babies than be here.”
He’s still a brother through and through, so it’s no surprise when he turns to me and says, “Shout if you need help with clean-up, Coal.”
“Will do.”
I wait until they’ve gone before turning to Nora and Bee. “Ladies, if you’d like to get dressed behind the van, and we’ll get everything sorted. Shout when you’re done.”
“No problem.” Nora scoops up a bag, and she and Bee disappear behind the van.
Copper and Nickel found gems when they met their women.
And that became clearer with each bit of information Nora extracts from Burres after we’ve had our turn at softening the fucker up for her.
CHAPTER 16
NORA
Bee and I lean against the wall as we watch the Wraiths beat Burres. They know exactly where to make it hurt without causing too much damage.
“What a sight,” Bee breathes happily.
I chuckle; she’s not wrong.
We don’t have a roof on the QD yet, so we can’t hang Burres up while the men work him over. Instead, they form a circle around him, bouncing him from brother to brother using their fists.
I have to admit, it looks more effective than stringing him up. He sobs after the first punch. Fucking weak-arsed pussy. I bet he doesn’t give a fucking scooby about the girls who pleaded with him not to sell them.
“It is a fine sight,” I agree as Nickel punches Burres in the kidney, pushing him towards Brass, who punches him in the stomach.
Blue delivers the next punch.
I love this club. They’ve filled a hole I didn’t realise I was empty when I left the army.
Coal lets them take out their anger on the man for ten minutes before he looks over at me with a raised eyebrow. “Nora, you think he’s ready for you?”
“Sure. Strap him to the table, and I’ll get my stuff.”
Moving to the wall, I open the cupboard and survey my tools. We have electricity and water running in here, but not much else.
We need to make sure the cleanup is easy. Bottles of bleach are lined up against the back wall, and we’ve covered the entire floor with plastic.
I select the truth serum from my stash, but first, I want to see how much information I can get out of Burres before I use it. I only have a little left, and I’m not sure when I’ll be able to get more from the Skulls.
After perusing my torture devices for a few minutes, I decide that tonight is a good night for the Pear of Anguish. It’s similar to a modern-day speculum, but not as sleek. One end is pear-shaped and opens like a flower when you turn the screw. It can be inserted into all sorts of interesting places. Tonight, we’re going to use it for a bit of waterboarding.
The table I designed can be turned over, or we can stand it upright. I knew what I needed, and Cross, Iron, and Brass built it for me inthe workshop.
Behind me, the brothers are strapping a crying, snivelling Burres to the table, ignoring his cries about us having the wrong man and paying whatever we want if we let him go.
“Ready for you, Nor,” Nickel says.
“Thanks, honey,” I reply, turning with my tray of goodies.
Placing them on a wheeled trolley, I push it over to the table and stop beside Burres, who's now silent with fear. I stare at him for a minute, looking him up and down. Gone is his polished façade, replaced by a snivelling weasel.
“Please,” he whispers, “you have to help me. You have the wrong person. I can pay. As much as you want.”
