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“We’ll throw in another stick to the deal. We’ve let the Armenians in. We don’t work with the Demonios anymore, fuck them, their northern trade route outta Cali is officially closed. This is Armenian territory now.”
“The Armenians?”
“Yeah, Zakarian Syndicate, Mayor Harris approved the relationship just this morning.”
“Cold hearted, money grabbing-”
“Yeah, save it Carmelo, not my business partners of choice, but you know my hands are tied on this.”
“Sophie, I would say stay at your parents house, stay safe-”
“No way, I’m coming!”
Colt sighed. “Course you are. We’ll come and pick you up-”
“What about Phantom? I have no idea where he is, I’m worried about him… where would he have gone?” She voiced her concerns out loud for the first time. Her voice sounded small.
Colt sighed again. “I don’t know Sophie, where does The Darkness go when it gets even blacker than black?”
* * *
Max.And Phantom. The two most important men in her life.
She sat in the Ford van, biting the skin around her nails. She only did that when she was nervous. Though the rest of the men with her didn’t seem to feel nervous. They were invigorated. She was squished next to Ash, with Lyle, Nix and Jared in the van, too. Nix was staring out the window, anywhere but at Ash. Rafe was following on his motorcycle. Rita, too, that had been another argument but, like Sophie, she’d insisted on coming. Some of the other members, the guys who worked for Jared and his construction company, also followed on their bikes. Carmelo and two other police officers, in plain clothes, followed in an unmarked police car. As Carmelo had said, it was indeed a convoy.
She felt the power of the brotherhood, in that moment. She’d missed Ash briefing them all, but they were all ready, pumped up, unafraid. Determined to rescue a teenage boy who none of them had met before. They were doing it because said teenage boy was important to Sophie. And Sophie was important to Phantom. And Phantom was important to them.
Despite his many flaws, Phantom meant something to them all. And, with no doubts or hesitations, Phantom’s battle had become their battle. They were a family, unconditionally bound.
She took a breath, Ash heard and looked at her.
“That you are doing this… for me…” She shook her head, unable to articulate how grateful she was.
Ash put a hand on her knee reassuringly. “Hey, you are one of us now, Sophie, you’re our little sister, a Black Coyote woman. You’re the other half of Phantom’s soul. The part that talks, and lives in the light,” he said with a half smile.
She felt warmth in the pit of her stomach. A sense of support, belonging, that she hadn’t felt with such intensity before. She had a problem, and all of these big, hardened men had wordlessly grabbed guns and jumped in a van to help out. They had her back, and they had her heart. She returned the half-smile. “He hasn’t claimed me yet, that’s what he’d have to do, right? To make me his old lady?”
“Claim you at the table, come before the committee?” Ash shrugged. “Normally yes, but fuck, he claimed you in front of the whole of the clubhouse with his cock and his knives, Sophie, in front of the whole town with a fucking face lick-”
She snorted quietly at the blissful ridiculousness of that moment.
Ash was doing a good job of reassuring her, she did feel calmer. “He’s yours. He’s ours. So you are ours, too.” Ash said, making it sound simple.
She nodded wordlessly in return. She turned and gazed out the window at the settling dusk. The sky seemed to know what was going on, it was a postcard perfect red sunset. Red, like the blood about to be spilled. Would it be Max’s? She tried not to whimper out loud. Not her little brother. Her time with him flashed before her eyes. Growing up when they were kids, on the beach, playing football in the park, watching movies, throwing popcorn… no, not Max. He’d become a rowdy, rebellious teenager, and seemingly fallen in with the wrong crowd, but she still saw him as that pudgy little boy running after her on his little legs, not able to keep up but he’d tried anyway. She couldn’t forgive herself if anything happened to him.
Colt had taken over the communications. He’d gotten in touch with the Demonios. He said he’d bring the money, but he had no intention of letting them have a dime of it. The bag sat in the van, on the front passenger seat. It felt like it was burning a hole in the seat, in the car, hell, in the road. Sophie eyed it with hate.
She didn’t know the plan, she’d been intentionally kept in the dark.
There was a murmur from up front.
“Carmelo’s got intel… guards on the perimeter. Empty warehouse, desolate, no one around…”
“Potential ambush?” Jared said quietly.
Colt grunted back.
The air in the van would have cut like butter under one of Phantom’s knives. They were all gearing up.
