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Whatever the case, I was prepared to face the enemy.
This time, I would win.
A half an hour passed and there was no sign of anyone. I was prepared for the long duration, but I had the distinct feeling Michael wouldn’t allow this to go on to the wee hours of the morning.
After two hours had passed, I was getting antsy. When my phone rang, I answered without looking at the screen. “Yeah?”
“This is Larry from Prestige Mechanics.”
“Larry. What did you find out?”
“Look. First of all, I trust every one of my employees. They’ve been with me for years. Cooper assured me that he was working on your brother’s car the entire time.”
I heard a hitch in his voice. “But?”
“But Mr. Masters didn’t pick up the car, which was unusual. He’d been coming to us for several years and never once did he even allow his wife to come in. He was just that kind of guy.”
“So who picked it up? A woman?”
“Wait a minute. Let me ask him real quick. Just hold on.”
I wasn’t a patient man, but I was certain what he’d come back and tell me. Maggie had been hired by my brother three years before, almost the exact same timeframe as when he’d started gambling, at least from what I could tell. She’d gotten close and relayed every scrap of information to Michael when asked.
“No. Cooper remembers it was a guy dressed in a suit. He remembered that because Mr. Masters always wore casual clothes. It just struck him funny. I don’t know if that helps or not, but that’s all Coop could remember.”
A blast of icy air slammed into my system. Fuck. My instincts had been wrong. I’d placed Harlow, my niece, and two innocent people in harm’s way. What the fuck was wrong with me. “Thank you, Larry. That helped a lot.” After ending the call, I immediately dialed Harlow’s number. The call went straight to voicemail. “Harlow. Whatever you need to do, get everyone out of the house. Now! Go somewhere public. Call me when you’re safe.”
I grabbed the weapons, barely yanking my keys off the coffee table before heading outside. On this night, I’d take the truck. When I heard a rumble, the sound increasing every second, I stopped short. As dozens of headlights appeared, I fisted my hand in the air. Now I had an army.
Cage swung his leg off the bike, yanking off his helmet as he took long strides in my direction. “You goin’ somewhere, buddy?” He threw out his hand. When I clasped it, he dragged me into a bear hug.
“A sight for sore eyes and damn good timing.”
“What’s goin’ on?”
“I made a mistake trusting the wrong person. Now, the woman I give a shit about is in danger, the little girl I promised to take care of smack in harm’s way.”
The ugly light of the front porch highlighted the fury on Cage’s face. “We can’t let that happen. A man ain’t a man if he allows anyone to hurt a woman and child.”
“We need to protect them at all costs.”
Cage nodded. “Don’t worry. I’ll assign several of the boys to take them to safety.”
“Good. I appreciate that.”
“I did what I could to keep any Los Zetas from coming this way, but I can’t promise anything.”
“Understood. You’d done enough and I appreciate it more than you know.”
“Yeah, well, what you did for me, for my family, is something I’ll never forget. Come on, Kings. We gotta roll. Get your bike, man. Now, you’re going to learn how we handle business the right way,” Cage roared.
“Follow me. We need to ride,” I told him.
“Hey, there’s nothing like being on the open road.”
I headed for my bike, turning around once and whistling. When Cage shifted in my direction, I tossed him one of my weapons. He caught it in midair, holding it high in the sky. It had been the first gesture he’d done accepting me into the fold, one I’d never forget.
“Whoa!” he yelled.
