Page 144 of Depraved

“No.” I pushed myself away from the bars and started pacing. “They don’t have Alyx. Her father was pretty fucking upset. He didn’t seem like a dad who just found his daughter. No, I’m pretty sure it wasn’t the police who took her.”

Onyx stepped up to the steel bars and held his hand out to Manic. “Dude, gimme a smoke, would you?”

Manic pulled out a pack and gave Onyx a cigarette before lighting it for him through the bars.

With arms still dangling over the rails, Onyx let out a long breath of smoke. “Either someone spotted us out here, or we have a snitch.”

Manic and I stilled. Talking about a snitch was big shit. That wasn’t the kind of accusation one idly flung around. If you went around accusing someone of being a snitch and you were proven wrong, you kissed your motherfucking patch goodbye.

“A snitch?” I walked closer.

“Yeah, man. It’s the only thing that makes sense. That, or we were followed to the safe house. How else?”

I shook my head, rubbing my beard. “No one would have followed us. We never used the same way to the house twice in a row. Plus, Manic had been doing runs, like, ten times a fucking day. No,” I shook my head again, “we couldn’t have been followed.”

Onyx leaned to the side, facing me. “Then the only other option is we have a snitch.”

The detective came back in. “Hurry your asses up. We got company coming this way.”

“Manic.” I pressed against the bars. “Find her.”

He gave a light nod and pulled the hoody over his head, disappearing out the steel door.

I hung my head. Alyx was gone. I had no idea where she was. And to make things worse, I was in here, behind bars and unable to do shit about finding her.

“Do you think the Pythons are behind this?” Onyx went to sit back down on the bunk.

“It crossed my mind.”

“But?”

I bit the inside of my mouth. “I dunno. It just doesn’t seem like the Pythons’ typical MO.”

“Maybe they decided to be a little less predictable this time. And since you and Ink have been burying and burning dead Pythons, it wouldn’t be surprising if Slither upped his game.”

I opened my mouth, wanting to respond, when the steel door opened again.

“PC wants to see you.” It was the same detective who smuggled Manic in here, one of those dirty cops on our payroll.

I straightened. “Detective Harrison, right?”

“Yeah.”

“What the fuck is going on?”

He leaned closer, glancing at the door to make sure we were not overheard. “PC wants his daughter, man.”

“Yeah. And we were helping him find her.” I was getting sick of playing this game.

He shook his head. “An anonymous tip came through this morning. Said his daughter was spotted with Kings in Coney Island.”

I roughed my hand through my hair. “Who gave the tip?”

He lifted his shoulders. “Fuck me if I know.”

“Yo, Harrison.” Another guy peeked through the door. “The PC is waiting for him. Hurry the fuck up.”

Harrison unlocked the cell door and held out a pair of cuffs. I hesitated, thought I’d try to make his head implode with my mind. But he gave me a once-over and lifted a brow. “Don’t make trouble, okay?”