Rotating my neck until it cracked, I fought to remain calm while listening to Skola’s report. We were in the conference room at the compound. Zayn and the other members of the executive level had houses on the acres of land owned by the Platinum Ryders just outside of Destine. KC and Rafe had homes here, but they also had their own spots in town. Other members stayed at the clubhouse located on the property as well. But here, in the main house, was where the bulk of our business was done. As such, the house was built with reinforced steel and bulletproof tinted windows. KC’s team did routine sweeps of the entire property for listening devices, cameras, or anything suspicious. So, tonight’s meeting had been cleared for us to speak openly.
“Everything was all set for my meeting with Gomez. Me and Cash had already taken a meeting with his lieutenant, and he assured us we would get the green light for the terms of him becoming our new plug. We were well on our way to setup in Miami. Then, last night, one of the houses we secured after Rafe put Tariq down was set on fire. The other one was robbed, all the soldiers inside dead.”
Across the table Rafe cursed. To my right, Zayn’s palms flattened on the table, and he stared down at his hands covered in ink.
“What the fuck happened?” KC asked from his seat on my left.
Cash stood beside Skola. They were the only two who weren’t on the executive level of the club, present at this meeting.
“We thought it was that bumbass Santana,” Cash replied. “He talked a lot of shit at our first meet up. Like Fury said, he wasn’t the one runnin’ things down there. He wanted to be though so he wasn’t too happy to hear that we were moving in or that we had already made contact with the plug. Since we weren’t tryin’ to start a body count, I just busted his face up a little to get him to shut the fuck up and move aside. But after the houses got hit, we figured he’d done that shit. Gomez and his crew had product in both houses, they weren’t gonna blow that shit up. Only Santana had something to gain.”
“How’s that a gain if he was runnin’ the houses before y’all got down there?” Zayn asked.
Cash shrugged. “Like I said, he wasn’t too thrilled with us telling him we were taking Tariq’s spot. So, robbing one house he would get the product and money on hand. Burning down the other one, he gets to make Gomez believe a stranger was after his product all along. Then he walks away still breathing.”
“Did you get his ass?” Rafe asked through clenched teeth.
Skola stared straight ahead while Cash replied, “Yeah, after he cried and pissed all over the floor begging for his life. He said he didn’t do the houses though, was adamant it wasn’t him.”
Cash kept his focus on Rafe as his immediate supervisor. “Thing about it though, after I put him down, we searched his place. Thought we might find some of the money or the drugs, but none of it was there. We did find this though.”
He tossed a plastic bag on the table and Rafe immediately picked it up and dumped the contents out. A wallet, a phone and a business card.
KC reached for the card as Rafe picked up the wallet and opened it.
“Shit.”
I followed KC’s gaze down to the card and waited until he offered it to me.
Taking the card from him, I stared down at the name. I clenched my jaw then read it out loud, only because I knew the others were wondering what the hell was going on.
“Shawna Allen, Analyst, Federal Bureau of Investigation. She’s also Cade Donovan’s wife.”
Everyone in this room knew I was married to Dakota. They knew who Dakota’s family was. The heads of every unit in the club made up the executive level, and each of them had sworn not only their loyalty to the club, but to me as the highest ranking, still living, member of the founding families. While my grandfather, Mad, was alive his ass couldn’t step foot back in the states for fear of the bounty on his head and the open federal warrants.
Everyone in this room would lay down their lives for me and now, my wife. While that protection didn’t automatically cover Dakota’s family, I took that shit personal as hell.
“Thought you did a check on this guy,” Rafe said breaking the stunned silence that had filled the room since I said my sister-in-law’s name. He was holding the driver’s license he’d taken from the wallet.
“I did,” KC replied. “Full sweep on him and there was nothing there. Birth certificate, no criminal record, no credit, but utility bills and the lease to an apartment down there in his name.”
“Not his real name,” Rafe said and KC took the ID from him.
“Sonofabitch! Ladarius Allen.” KC frowned. “That’s Shawna’s bitch ass uncle, also known as Scottie. The one that skipped town after Cade handled that Jinx dude.”
This shit was getting worse by the minute.
“What the fuck do they have to do with us not getting the meeting with Gomez?” Zayn asked, bringing his gaze up to stare at where Cash and Skola stood.
“Not sure,” Skola responded with a nod. “All I know is that Gomez’s lieutenant hit me up about an hour after reports of the fire started running on the news, and said the meeting was indefinitely on hold.”
“Nah.” Zayn shook his head. “Ain’t shit on hold. We’re claiming that territory with or without him as our supplier.”
I nodded my agreement with Zayn. One monkey don’t stop no show.
“I still want to know who hit those houses and I want to know that shit right now,” I told Skola. “KC, you trace every step Scottie took after he ran his ass outta Alexandria. I wanna know everybody he or this fake ass Santana spoke to while he called himself setting up down there. I’m guessing Tariq was his new recruit once Jinx was out of the mix.”
Rafe frowned. “You’re probably right.”
