“We had our fun, but our attorneysays we gotta lay low for the next few days to see what happens.”
A round of astonished groans came in unison from his brothers. Some were more pronounced than others. But they were all growing angrier with each second that passed.
Their hands had been tied for far too long. The frustration so strong Fox lost momentary control of the rowdy group. Tank didn’t though, clapping his hands loudly together as he pushed to his feet. He came off as such a mean motherfucker. The guy wore revolvers on each hip, giving off the Wild West vibe. It wasn’t above imagination that he’d use the guns inside this room.
Luckily, it didn’t come to that.
Fox continued as if Tank weren’t standing, giving everyone the evil eye.
“In other news…” Fox let that hang, looking over at Dev. They stared at one another. Any other time, Dev would have popped off at the assessing look he got. Today, he kept his mouth shut and lifted a brow in challenge.
“Okay then.” Fox gave a shake of his head as if clearing his thoughts. “I guess we’re doin’ this. We got some decent shit comin’ our way. I’ve been holdin’ on, tryin’ to get us through the last year.” Fox glanced at Dev again then over at Diesel. Based on that glare, his brother was pissed off. “Dev’s decided to take the second position seriously. He’s officially takin’ the spot. Trainin’ to take over the club someday.”
Mack reached over the table, gripping Dev’s shoulder, squeezing hard before being grabbed from every different direction. Their pats and congratulatory fist bumps jostled him around in his seat.
He grinned, eating up the appreciation, only because Cash was watching. If he could even see Dev from this angle. He finally lifted to his feet, the love he received had to be pissing his father off. With a wave of both hands, he settled the group down far more effectively than his old man had.
“Thank you, thank you. It’s an honor.” He reached for the forty-year-old gavel as if it were some kind of coveted trophy given as a prize at an award show. “And privilege to formally accept a position that was assigned to me at birth. I can guarantee more mornin’ church meetin’s with donuts for everybody. Wait, did anyone bring donuts this mornin’? Did I miss ’em out there? It’s a celebration!”
“Sit down, Devilman,” his father barked. “Stupid shit.”
Laughter filled the space. He wasn’t sure his old man had meant the insult as a joke. Whatever, he figured Cash might agree with his father’s simple summation.
“The last thing we gotta discuss is Keyes. You heard from him?” His father glanced at Dev as he settled back in his seat.
“No, not really,” Dev said, his mind racing over how much he’d already let out.
“So that’s a yes,” his father answered.
“No. It’s not a goddamn yes,” Dev shot back, refusing to be backed into a corner. The firm set of his old man’s jaw was a warning, but Dev didn’t care in the least.
“We need to be on the lookout for Keyes. Don’t know what’s gonna happen now that Cummings is off the street.” What the fuck did that mean? Didn’t matter. It pissed him off regardless.
“Well, I fuckin’ know,” Dev barked. “He’s accepted that fuckin’ deal. We were too goddamn late.”
“And has anyone seen the deal?” Fox shot back as if Keyes were lying. What a stupid thing to ask. Of course no one’s seen anything. That deal was all Cash-induced. Nobody needed to go search for it either. “Do we in fact know there’s a deal? The whole thing’s fuckin’ shady.”
A dragon resided within Dev. Fire breathed across his soul and boiled the blood in his veins at the obvious implication. He got so mad, so fast that his vision blurred. That said a lot. Dev spent a good majority of the time pissed off.
“He wouldn’t lie to me or us if that’s what your suggestin’. We’re his brothers. When we didn’t live by that code for him, he still did with us. This club isn’t gonna jump to another false narrative, especially about Keyes turnin’ on us. This club losin’ Keyes is our fuckin’ loss, not his.” Dev’s fist slammed down on the table, rocking the hard wood and floor beneath.
“So you think. You’re the one that kept pointin’ out he’d been given a load of shit from the prospects and us.” Those words came from Mack which meant his old man was relaying their private conversations.
Dev jumped from his chair, leaning across the table toward Mack, his fists ready to do his talking for him. “Don’t fuckin’ question Keyes’s loyalty again. He gets tagged, you better take me too ’cause I’m comin’ after every one of you motherfuckers. Guaranteed.” Dev didn’t give idle threats. He made sure that showed on his face as his gaze bore the seriousness of the warning.
“Settle down,” Tank said as gently as his gravelly voice allowed. “Nothin’s happenin’ to Keyes. He was always right with the club.”
“Damn fuckin’ straight he was.” The tension-filled silence held. Dev had to physically rein himself in, rolling his neck and shoulder muscles, taking deep, even breaths before he took his seat.
“We’re takin’ the next two weeks off. Expect to hit it hard at the beginnin’ of the year. We should know then what’s what with the bitch DA,” Fox said to the chorus of groans. “Holiday BBQ’s set for the thirty-first. Get with Ace as to who’s doin’ what. Don’t make him come find you,” Fox said.
Dev’s gaze stayed glued to his father, thinking about his hands suffocating the life out of him for his accusations against Keyes and many other offenses.
Dev was on the government payroll now. Keyes was going to be just fine.
Chapter 11
“Your top-secret meeting place with Keyes is your mother’s house?” Cash asked, sounding either dumbfounded or astonished as Dev turned his cage on the street leading to Carly Fox’s home. Dev reached for the garage’s remote control, pressing the button as they pulled onto the drive leading to her back garage.
