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“And he won’t. We just have to be patient.”
“He fuckin’ raped her, Prez. Since she was fourteen.” My shoulders sag, gaze down, the words oozing out like mud.
The air in the room turns tense. We’re not angels, but we do have some morals, and we don’t fuck with the innocent. Back in the day, “the innocent” meant women and children, but that’s not the case anymore. Old-school gender roles don’t apply in the underground world of crime and deviance, so the club doesn’t give a shit what’s between your legs as long as you stay in your lane and don’t fuck with us.
“Fuck,” Cy curses, running a hand down his beard.
“I can’t let him walk around thinking he can get away with that shit.”
He sighs. “I understand what this must be doing to you, and trust me when I say it’s taking everything in me not to go over there and kill the bastard myself—”
“But your answer doesn’t change.” My posture becomes rigid, the anger I’ve been keeping at bay fighting to get out.
“Let me talk to Robert. Maybe he’ll have a solution if I go to him as a friend and explain the situation.”
I mash my finger into the table. “You and I both know Ray is invaluable to them. Having a dipshit with no association to the family, who’ll do whatever they want with no questions asked, isn’t something they’ll give up.”
“Maybe. Maybe not. It’s worth a conversation.”
A conversation? Is he kidding right now?
I jump to my feet. “With all due respect, fuck that. Since when did we start bowing to anyone? The only thing we owe them is money.”
“Sit your ass down, son!” Cy booms. “You know what we’ve been through the last couple years. We’re only just recovering, and you think we’re in a position to go to war with the biggest crime family in Reno?”
“It’s not like we’re some amateur outfit,” I argue as I take my seat again.
“Let me put this into perspective. We”—he motions around the room—“are friendly with the mayor. The Costas are friendly with the governor, the attorney general, and a shit ton of other politicians who could make our lives hell.” His gaze sears into me. “Are you beginning to understand where we rank in all this?”
I glance up at him with one last bullet in my chamber. “What would you do if it were Charlotte?”
His nostrils flare, and his face turns an unnatural shade of red as he stamps out his cigar in the ashtray. “I’d fucking hang him by his toes and gut him slowly.”
“Then you know how I feel.”
“All we have to do is pay them back,” Lucky chimes in. “Right?”
“It’s not chump change. They’re in this for two mil,” Cy says.
The room goes quiet, all my brothers trying to work it out. Despite the torment eating up my insides, I feel lucky to be in a room with nine other men who give enough of a shit about me to want this problem solved. I’d suffer at Ray’s hands ten times over if I knew this was where I’d end up.
“So we need to find someone with real deep pockets who wants to invest in the brothel.” Lucky drums his fingers on the table.
“It should be easier to convince someone now that we’ve been open a spell and have the receipts to prove what we’re capable of,” I say.
“Then that’s our mission.” Cy slams the gavel.
* * *
Not wanting to wake Navy if she’s sleeping or make her get out of bed if she’s not, I use my keycard to open her door.
“Navy?” I whisper into the dark room. It’s only early evening, so the sun should illuminate the space, but her blackout curtains are drawn.
“Yeah?” Her voice sounds strained, making my chest ache.
Using that as permission to enter, I walk inside, using the flashlight on my phone to light the way. “I brought you some food from the restaurant.”
“I’m not hungry.”
