Page 126 of At The End Of The Day

I tried to hide my smile but wasn’t sure if I succeeded. The man was seconds from pissing his pants.

“Let me just put this out there for ya, Red. Think about Vin’s reputation. Now intensify that by a thousand. That’s how I feel about my man, so if anyone comes at him sideways, like your boy last night, the last thing they’re gonna see is the ground. Like your boy last night,” he repeated slowly. “I don’t fuck around. I got no tolerance and no patience, and if you think I’m gonna let anyone disrespect my man, you’re wrong. Dead. Wrong.”

Red gulped again, breathing faster. “No one’s here to disrespect no one, Dash. Honest. I just came out here to apologize and assure it won’t happen again.”

“See it don’t because I ain’t like Jackyl. He was happy with just running Mobile. I got no issues expanding our territory and liquidating surrounding obstacles.”

“No need for that,” he said a little louder, waving his hands. “Honest.”

I nodded once and waved a dismissive wrist. “Get the fuck outta here. Get off my land.”

“Sure thing, Vin. Dash.” Walking backwards, barely blinking, he collided with the driver’s bumper of his car, then the side view mirror before getting the door opened. Sliding onto the seat, he slammed the door, started the engine, and stomped the gas, speeding down the drive in reverse. A few yards away, he finally turned the Cadillac around and spun tires in the dirt before disappearing down the trail.

Dash burst out laughing and slapped the back of my shoulder. “That boy was shaking in his boots. Damn, Vin, I dunno what you did to him when you and Jack made that pact, but he is terrified of you.”

Staring at the cloud of dust dissipating behind his retreat, I grumbled, “You ever see that scar on his hand?”

“Yeah?”

“He used to own Jackyl’s old house.”

“No shit?”

I nodded, squinting against the sun when the clouds parted. “He claimed it during the turf war, but Red refused to sign over the deed. I stabbed my knife through his hand, trapping it to the table and held my gun against his head until he changed his mind. Then I drove out to his trailer in Sycamore Park and set it on fire.”

He gawked but laughed. “Oh, shit, that was you?”

I nodded stiffly and stepped into the house. “Mm hm.” Shutting the door, I finally tore my focus away from the drive, locking the bolt and pulling the shade over the glass partition. “Yup.”

Snickering, he went to the fridge and got a couple beers, ripping off the caps. “No damn wonder he’s scared shitless.”

“Yeah, well, it ain’t him I’m worried about.”

His smile falling, he set the bottles on the counter. “Yeah. True.”

I wagged a finger at the bowl of mac and cheese. “Finish up acorn’s lunch. I got a call to make.”

“Got it.”

Groaning and rubbing my face, I retreated to the office to put my gun away and call The Boss about what happened the night before. If Red knew what happened, that meant at least one person witnessed the whole ugly scene. I had to make sure Dash was protected or I had to make plans to get the fuck out of Mobile.

Chapter 51

Tyler Warren

Monday 10.21.2019

I stood in the kitchen at Vincent’s house, leaning against the sink and sipping a juicy box. Peering at him past the bendy straw, I couldn’t help the smile that tugged at the corner of my mouth. Almost from the first moment we hung out together at the house in Georgia, I knew he was gay. He may have thought he’d concealed it well, but to those who knew what to look for, the signs were all there. Not to mention, I’d caught him checking me out a few times here and there, especially when I walked around in only a pair of sweatpants. The gray sweats obsession was gender fluid.

That was also how I suspected Dash had homosexual tendencies, as well. Usually, the ones who protest the most, have secrets hidden in their own damn closet. At least, that was from my experience from living with my uncle before he and Roman reunited.

Now that the two of them were together and getting married, I wasn’t surprised, at all. In fact, I had called it a while ago. Even told Violetta as much. In my opinion, there wasn’t a more perfect partner for either. They were made for one another.

“So, how’s everything going? The Serpents give y’all any troubles?”

He shook his head, his lips pursed on the end of a beer bottle. Smacking them away, he replied, “No, not really. A couple people said something here and there, but we pretty much put them in their place right away.”

“Meaning someone got beat, strangled, stabbed, or shot.”