Total pages in book: 29
Estimated words: 26853 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 134(@200wpm)___ 107(@250wpm)___ 90(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 26853 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 134(@200wpm)___ 107(@250wpm)___ 90(@300wpm)
I sighed. Cameron shook his head. “Maybe we should hear why he went to visit Rico before we start jumping to conclusions, Ace.” Ace sneered at him. Cameron nodded at me. “Tell us what happened.”
“I reached out to Rico yesterday morning,” I began. “Asked him to meet up with me. I already knew it would cost something.” Ace clenched his jaw. Arlo shot him a hard look to keep him quiet. “We met at midnight at the river—our old meet-up spot. He told me the ring ran for five years before he even got wind of it. Which means there’s high players. Rico mentioned politicians and federal and local law enforcement.”
“Shit,” Arlo swore. Some of the fight died out of Ace at the news.
“He didn’t know much,” I continued. “Told me what he knew, which was basically what we’d already heard. The only time he got to speak to someone about it, someone came to him asking for protection during a shipment. Rico put a bullet between his eyes.”
“What’s his price for talking to you?” Arlo asked, steepling his fingers together on the table in front of him, peering at me through his glasses. “Rico always has a price.”
I shook my head. “He told me that trying to take down this ring was enough. Whether I manage it or fail, we’re even.”
“And you trust that?” Shaw asked me.
I let my eyes meet his before I nodded once. “Rico has never been shady, Shaw, and he’s always had my back. I trust him.”
Shaw nodded once before moving on. “Anatoly managed to get some information, but it’s not much. Just gives us some people to look out for.” He nodded once at Konrad. Getting up, Konrad walked over to the filing cabinet, unlocked it, and pulled out a manila folder. He handed it to Shaw before taking a seat again. Shaw pulled out six pieces of paper and passed them to me first.
Three cops. The mayor. And one of the state senators.
Benjamin Carlisle was the chief of police, the person in charge of the local department. His face was the first one I saw.
He was also the asshole that arrested me nine fucking years ago.
Carmen Rigby, one of the only female officers on the force, was the deputy chief of police. It turned my stomach to know that she was in on this. Was she just that fucked up, or was she just getting paid that damn much? How fucking twisted did you have to be a woman selling other women?
Jeffrey Richards was a lowlife piece of shit that was in one of the foster homes I’d been in when I was younger before I got tossed into my last group home. He was a low-ranking officer, no real rank to his name. But that smirk on his lips told me all I needed to know.
He was just as much of a shitty human being now as he had been back then.
The mayor, Phillip Brennan, was smiling in his photo like a good ole American man. His smile was warm, his hair perfectly combed and styled, and his suit immaculate. His eyes were inviting. But it just went to show how looks could be deceiving since he was involved in this and now on our shit list.
The last photo was of the senator, Dixon Riddle. He was older, well into his sixties, probably close to seventy. He had old-world views, and I fucking hated that he made it into the senator seat to represent the part of the state we lived in. I should’ve figured he’d have his fingers dug into this disgusting pie.
I slid the photos over to Cameron, who began to flip through them as well.
“Can’t track the senator much unless they happen to be home,” Shaw started, “but we can keep an eye on the others. Anatoly has more men to spare than we do, so he’s already got men watching all of them. But when you see these fuckers, make note of what they’re doing; just don’t make it obvious they’re being watched. Clear?”
“Clear,” I grunted along with everyone else.
“That’s it for now,” Shaw announced, slamming his gavel on the table. “Konrad, make sure those photos go back in the filing cabinet. Keep your ears to the ground and watch your back.”
“You got plans for the day?” Cameron asked a little while later.
I nodded as I grabbed an energy drink out of the fridge. “Need to head into the shop for a little while and finish up Arlo’s work truck.”
He grunted. “Have fun with that shit.”
I snorted and walked out of the kitchen, heading up the stairs to see if Blakely wanted to ride to the shop with me. It would more than likely be boring as hell for her, but it would get her out of the clubhouse for a little while.