Nash Waters rubbed a hand over his full goatee and gave me a slow, knowing nod. “Glad you agree.”
If I didn’t know better, I’d think the young buck was getting cocky on me. But I’d known Nash since he and his hothead brother, Henley, used to hang around the Ryders’ compound when they were teenagers. Nash did some time, got out, and landed a job at Bellamy Motors, the only body shop in Destine we ever allowed to work on our bikes. A couple years ago, after I’d gotten the Blackbond Group up and running, Zayn brought me some sketches, and I knew instinctively this was gonna be a good match.
“You did this shit,” I continued. “Proud of you, man.”
Nash nodded again. “Thanks for giving me the chance.”
Returning my attention to the screen, I couldn’t help but flip back and forth. “Trying to decide which one is my favorite.”
This time Nash chuckled. “It’s Anubis for me, hands down. That one right there, purrs like a baby and fuckin’ flies on the wind. That’s gotta be the one we send to show. It’s fire! Nobody’s gonna beat us with that one.”
Sitting back in my chair, I grinned for the first time since I left Daufuskie Island. The last twenty-four hours had been a hurricane of bullshit that had me on the brink of heading down to Quantico and kicking in the doors of the FBI. That was obviously a bad fuckin’ idea. One that made me thankful for my years of living life and hard-won maturity. Shooting up a federal law enforcement building wasn’t the smartest plan, and I likelywould never come back from that shit. Still, somebody in that building was going to pay for initiating that bogus warrant and having the balls to walk up in one of my establishments to serve it.
“You might be right about that, but Isis is cold as fuck,” I added, trying to keep my mind focused on this meeting.
“She sure is. They’re a beautiful trio,” Nash said.
“Indeed. Congrats, man, for real. This is some dope ass work right here. I know you need a raise with them twins I hear Mica is about to drop any day now.”
Chuckling, Nash dragged his hand down the back of his head. “Shit, you have no idea how much babies cost. She’s had two baby showers already, one here and one her mother threw over in Paris a couple months back when Mica was still allowed to travel that far.”
“No worries about that, bruh.” I glanced at the screen again. “You keep producing work like this and you and your family will be set for life.”
His sigh brought my attention back to him.
“For real, Fury, I can’t thank you enough for taking a chance on me. That right there,” he said, pointing toward the laptop, “that shit’s been in my head for so damn long. Coming here to work for you, having access to top-of-the-line design equipment and engineers, it’s a fuckin’ dream come true.”
“Nash, man, you’re running the design department like a pro. You were obviously born for this. I’m just glad you had sense enough to take me up on my offer. The way you were negotiating had me wondering if we were really going to make this happen.”
Nash chuckled. “Shiitt, I knew if you were getting into the bike design business it was gonna be big, had to get the best deal I could for me and my new family before this shit blew up and other designers started trying to jump on the train.”
“Nah.” I sat back in the chair and dropped my elbows on the arms. “Zayn was pumped about you, and once I saw your sketches I knew you belonged here. You’re right, though, this collection is gonna be big and your name’s gonna be on it, right beside Blackbond.”
I knew potential when I saw it. I knew character and integrity. Nash had all three in spades and I was happy to have him on the team. It helped that I’d watched him grow up, and like so many Black men, watched him struggle to find his place in a world that was never built for our success. Sitting in the CEO’s office of a multi-million-dollar company with my name on the door and having the ability to lift up my brothers in the process was an honor.
When my phone buzzed in my pocket, I hurried to pull it free, frowning down at the screen instantly. “I gotta take this call. Go congratulate your team, and I’ll have Sonya get time on the schedule for us to loop marketing in to get this launch started.”
I looked up to see Nash stand and button his beige suit jacket. “Sounds good,” he said. “Mica wanted me to tell you to stop being a stranger. She said the twins will expect to put a face to all the gifts you’ve sent.”
I managed a half smile. Mica Bellamy-Waters was a force and a perfect match for Nash’s low-key but no-nonsense demeanor. I liked her and Nash a lot and appreciated their dedication to the community. “Tell her not to worry, Uncle Fury won’t be a stranger to those kids. They need to know who to go to whenever somebody tries to fuck with them.”
Grinning, Nash shook his head. “Yeah, you and KC are definitely brothers. He’s already trying to convince me they’ll need a security detail when they start school.”
“No doubt,” I said, as my phone continued to buzz. “You know we protect our own around here.”
“I know, and I appreciate all you and the Ryders do,” Nash said and headed for the door. “I’ll get out of your way, but thanks again.”
My response was a nod, and seconds later the door to my office was closed, leaving me alone. “Speak,” I said the moment I put the phone to my ear.
“He just pulled into the garage. Looks like he’s alone,” Cam said.
Cameron Jamison was Zayn’s younger brother. They were my Aunt Josie’s sons and had been riding with me and KC since we were kids. Aunt Josie was Mama’s best friend and was crushed when her only sister died. My siblings and I had been adults then, but that hadn’t stopped Aunt Josie from stepping in to be our mother figure whenever necessary.
“Any word from Zayn?” I wanted all my ducks in a row before I faced them with my Glock and began target practice.
KC immediately recognized the judge who’d signed the warrant and hacked into his home and office computers. The only thing KC knew more about than guns was computers and all the tech shit that went with them. There wasn’t a system he couldn’t hack or information he couldn’t find. So, barely twelve hours after the raid, he had names, addresses, and an email exchange that signaled this might be bigger than just the casino.
For two generations, the Ryders ran the streets of Destine and the surrounding towns. My grandfather, Iman “Mad” Mathias, and his best friend, Dillon Torrent started the club and wasted no time making themselves known for being ruthless businessmen on the regular and cold-hearted killers when provoked. My father, Archer, or Top Dawg as the Ryders called him, followed his father’s footsteps and I did the same. This club and all the business surrounding it was our life, so from the time I could walk I was trained to not only run the underground shit, but to perfect the legal lifestyle as well. I walked confidentlyin both worlds and spent my teens, twenties and early thirties making sure every club and mafia family along the East Coast knew not only who the fuck I was, but not to cross me either.
