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“Almost afternoon,” Jasper growled and reached for the platter of scrambled eggs. “Glad you could join us.”
I waved away his words and took my seat at the head of the table where I belonged. The breakfast spread was just what I needed to ward off the effects of this hangover. I started with a thick slice of toast slathered in whipped butter. “We need to discuss Addison Beck.”
“Jasper’s girlfriend?” Virgil laughed around a giant bite of food. “She is becoming problematic. Showed up at the casino the other night to issue a thinly-veiled threat to Maisie. Almost got her skinny ass kicked.”
I nodded at Virgil’s words even though it was the first I heard about it. Usually Maisie couldn’t stop talking. “She’s moved beyond problematic into being a pain in my ass.” I turned to Jasper so he could see how serious I was. “Whatever you have to do to deal with her, do it.”
Jasper shook his head. “You can’t kill every problem, Sadie.”
I blinked innocently and looked around the table. “Did I say to kill her? No, I said, deal with her. I saw the glint in her eyes when she looked at you. Use it to your advantage.”
Jas snort-laughed. “Seducing her won’t work. She’s too determined to see this family fall.”
Terry barked out a laugh that echoed in the dining room. “If you’re worried about your ability to seduce the ginger Fed, then it’s been too long since you’ve gotten laid.”
“Fuck you,” Jasper shot back while Virgil laughed. My meeting was about to spiral into the past if these three kept talking shit to each other around the breakfast table.
“Boys!”
My shout got their attention but sent a lightning rod of pain that shot from my forehead down my spine. “Business.”
“The business is Beck,” Jasper reminded me.
“I know, and if your cock can’t get the job done, maybe your gun can. Either way, we can’t afford to have that gossiping Fed be the undoing of everything I’ve built.”
I would kill the bitch myself before I let that happen. Hell, I would burn it all to the ground before I let the Feds get their hands on my empire.
Jasper snorted his disapproval but kept his mouth shut, which I welcomed at that moment.
“Sadie, she’s not the threat you make her out to be. If we’re not careful, we’ll have an even bigger target on our backs.” He stood and dropped his napkin on the table. “But you know best, right?” He didn’t wait for an answer before he stalked off with Terry on his heels.
“Well?” I turned to Virgil; sure he had an opinion on my actions since every-fucking-other body did.
Virgil shrugged his broad shoulders and shoved two final slices of bacon into his mouth.
“He’s not wrong, Ma. But you’re gonna do what you want. Always have. Always will.”
His words didn’t sound like a compliment, and my frown forced a deep rumbling laugh from his mouth. “What do you need me to do?”
I sipped my coffee, needing a few aspirins as a chaser. “Just keep an eye on things. Get your men out there. Get with Calvin about surveillance. Make sure no one is hanging around places they shouldn’t. And don’t kill anyone unless you have to.”
“Got it. Later, Ma.”
Virgil left me alone with my thoughts in the dining room, and moments later, Thomas appeared, a tall Bloody Mary in a chilled glass in his hand. “Feeling better?”
I gave a short nod. “The food helped, but this is just what I need.” I appreciated having Thomas around because he always seemed to read my mind and made sure I had what I needed.
“Good.” He stood in that stoic, judgmental way of his, hands clasped in front of him like he had something else to say. “Are you sure you know what you’re doing?”
I took a long sip of the Bloody Mary, hoping it would cool the fire in my blood at the constant challenges this morning. “I always know what the fuck I’m doing, Thomas. Don’t question me again.”
He nodded and let out a long-suffering sigh. “You’re drinking a lot and being irrational and worse, paranoid. That’s not the Sadie I know.”
“I’m the same badass Sadie I’ve been since the day we met. I’ve worked hard to be powerful, to be firm in my decisions. My choices. Don’t you forget that Thomas.”
“No. You’re not,” he insisted. “This Sadie right here? She’s a drunk. Prone to make mistakes and overlook details.”
I wanted to punch something at his insolence, but at least I was able to rein that impulse in. I snapped, “Bullshit,” and took another hit of the Bloody Mary. “I know everything that goes on, Thomas. Everything I need to know to maintain my control.”
Thomas arched a brow and nodded. “Then you must know that Madison is seeing Jameson Ellison, the local liaison for the Feds investigating the deaths of Bonnie and Mueller?”
