Page 14 of More Tricks

“The Mad Dogs were easy, but the De León Cartel is another story. We will be going into a place where we have no support or connections, the center of enemy territory,” I explained. “Think about how much planning we did for this last job and how fucked up it got.”

Sprocket watched me for a moment, then took hold of my arm and pulled me to stand in front of him. “Clearly, we took our punishment too far if now you’re standing here telling me that all hope is lost. While I don’t support you throwing yourself into danger unnecessarily, I’m not looking to change you into someone you’re not. Dax, we need your brand of crazy to make this work because only someone with a screw loose would ever attempt to take down the people we are going after.”

“You realize that is the opposite of what you’ve all been telling me the past twenty-four hours, right?” I grumbled.

Sprocket smiled and shook his head. “No, it’s not, but I’m glad that something has broken through that stubbornness. What we want more than anything else is to be a team. Tell us the plan, the whole plan, not just the parts you think we need to know. Be honest with us. We can take it, I promise. I won’t say there might not be disagreements but at least give us the chance to talk it out. It’s not you against the world, Dax. It’s us against the world. What attacks you, attacks us, and we don’t back down for anyone who hurts what’s ours. There are eight of us all coming from different backgrounds and expertise, don’t count us out because we’re a bunch of bikers.”

“I would never,” I countered with a scowl. “You’ve all proven that you're smarter than the average biker thug.”

“At least we have that going for us,” Sprocket mumbled before continuing. “You say we don’t have connections in New York City, well I hate to break it to you, little rebel, but we do. The FBI is there, and Cam can work whatever magic he has in that work, and don’t forget about Void. He’s our ace for this job, having spent a fair amount of time in the underbelly of New York as a cage fighter.”

“I might have been banned from official fighting, but the underground doesn’t mind when you leave bodies behind. Who knows, maybe we could get you in on a fight or two for fun. I know a guy who’d kill to have someone like you in the ring,” Void interjected from behind me, making me jump.

For a big guy, he was a silent motherfucker. Glad I trusted him at my back and with my life. Peering over my shoulder, I met his icy-blue eyes. “It won’t draw too much attention for you to make a return?”

“Little demon, are you thinking we are gonna show up in New York and no one will notice?” Void asked with a chuckle. “You might not rule the East Coast, but that doesn’t mean people don’t know who you are. The reputation of Two Tricks is far and wide. There will be no sneaking around.”

“Then how the fuck are we going to pull this off? If everyone knows who I am, and I draw a crowd, then there’s no way Diego won’t know I’m gunning for him after the mess I made of the Mad Dogs,” I spluttered.

Void’s eyebrows shot up, and he looked over my shoulder at Spencer. “Has she had coffee yet?”

“Pretty sure, but she was just washing dishes, so I feel like this might be a case of the body snatchers,” Sprocket teased.

I pulled away from Sprocket so I could face them both, arms crossed, chin up. “What is that supposed to mean? I clean up after myself, and so what if I’m wanting to be more prepared for this next hit?”

“Little rebel, you only put away your dishes after one of us has asked. It's not something you do naturally. Which is fine but to consciously make the effort is out of character, wouldn’t you say?” he pointed out. “As for what Void’s worried about is that you sound like you’re scared, and our Dax isn’t scared of anyone.”

I scoffed at them, dropping my hands to square my shoulders. “I’m not scared of those bastards.”

“Then I suggest you act like it because right now it sounds like you are terrified to attack these guys,” Void challenged. “Little demon, they framed you for the murder of a son Diego killed himself. You just need to get mad. Then this problem will go away. The Mad Dogs threatened you, Harper, and us by making a mover against the Saints. Right now, you have nothing invested in taking them down other than it will hurt Marco, who you’re absolutely pissed at.”

Sprocket nodded his head as he scratched his jaw deep in thought. “I think that will be solved once we tell Eagle about Elena. Dax doesn’t know anything about her, so there’s no connection. They can pull out the pictures and home movies and share how hard she worked to get into that school. If that doesn't work, I’m sure Wes has a list of shitty things they do. We can start running through them to see what hits home.” My jaw fell open as I watched them talk about this like I wasn’t standing right here.

Did they really feel like I wasn’t invested in this part of the plan? Fuck, I’m the one who made the plan. But did they have a point about me being so reluctant to make this happen? When it came to the Mad Dogs, I was willing to put myself in danger to get the end result I wanted. Did this mean Harper was safe? Or would Marco keep gunning for her until I brought him down?

The call from Harper last night told me they'd made contact with Prim, so she must be alright. Didn’t sound like it was a great experience, but what teenager is fun to be around? Would they be back in time to help? Maybe we did have more people at our backs than I originally thought.

“I think we lost her,” Cognac fake-whispered as he waved a hand in front of my face. “Loba, are you in there? Earth to loba.”

I batted his hand away and scowled. “What the fuck, man?”

“Ah, there she is,” he cheered, grinning at me like a fool. “Did these two take away your coffee or something?”

“Why does everyone think I haven’t had my coffee?” I snarled.

Cognac booped me on the nose and answered, “Reaction like that, and the fact your mug is barely touched and sitting on the counter cold as ice.”

“What?” I blurted as I pushed past him to find that he’d been correct. “How did that happen?”

Another mug appeared before me, steam rolling out, signaling it was fresh. I glanced up to see it was Cam offering up the beverage. “It’s better for all our sakes to ensure you drink all of it,” he stated, his face blank of expression.

Rolling my eyes, I took the happy bean juice and made a show of taking a big gulp even though it scorched down my throat. “Ah, good as new,” I announced. “Now, is there anything we need to deal with before Eagle gets back?”

Before anyone could answer, there was a knock on the door, then seconds later, Gabriella Rossi walked in with her son. I hadn’t seen her since the party the guys kidnapped me at but seeing as she’s the older sibling to Eagle and Picasso, it was inevitable.

“Oh, do come in, don’t mind the fact I’m not wearing any pants,” I greeted, then hid my smirk at her glare by taking another sip of coffee.

“Mom, I told you to wait for them to answer the door. It’s not just the guys anymore,” Demitri muttered, rubbing the back of his neck.