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“Anyway," she continues, "While you were out there, getting your kicks, I was at home, working.”
“Someone’s got to put the hours in.” I yawn again, and she flashes me a wink from over her glasses.
“Yeah, I guess you’re right. Not sure which job is harder though.” She’s not wrong there. Between work, clubbing and shadowing Phoenix whenever I can, I’m beginning to seriously lack sleep. “So after All Saints' failed attempt earlier this week to blow us all up—” she shivers unintentionally, “Logan’s using his network to get more answers. People talk. To us, at least. It’s clear that All Saints are not happy with our agreement and are looking for a way out.” She grimaces. “And there's more."
“More?”
Mia shrugs. “We know that All Saints is up to something. And this might be it. They’re supposedly moving their business from Redhook to Elizabeth Port, which makes sense if they’re trying to get out of our agreement. I mean, they know that they failed in sending us on a one way ticket to hell. And it’s creating chaos. And chaos doesn't make friends, because it's basically bad news for everyone's business.”
“Not a single gang out there who wants to be caught up in that kind of mess,” I mutter. Phoenix failed, because of me. He now carries a death warrant on his head. Because of me.
“Exactly,” Mia agrees.
“Why’s Logan even planning on negotiating with them? If death is what they want, they can get it.”
“Don’t underestimate Logan, Kai. If death is what they deserve, they’ll get it. But Logan’s a sly leader, and won’t draw any more attention to illegal operations than necessary. What All Saints did was bold, and stupid. It could have killed innocent people, and that would have been the end of them.
“Could have killed us.” She ignores me, instead pushes her glasses further onto the bridge of her nose.
“We’re trying to stay subtle here, and only strike when we know exactly when and how. So for now, nothing changes. This little mission stays ours. That means that you, D. and Owen are the only ones involved, and I will report back to Logan. He doesn’t want anyone else to worry more than they have to.”
“You got it.”
“I know you don’t want to keep things a secret from your family, neither do we.” She’s right, I hate this part. I get it, but I don’t like it. “Connor’s my very best friend, I hate to keep him out of this, Charlie my only brother by blood. But after what he’s been through, with Mom and Dad, the execution and shit, I don’t want him to suffer again.”
“Yeah, I get that. I respect that.” She nods at me.
“I know you do. And this shouldn’t take long. Together we’re strong. All Saints is not making a lot of friends out there, and with the Void and the Business officially becoming one, big, powerful machine linked by marriage, smaller gangs will likely search for cover. All Saints will be history before you know it. Just…be careful, Kai. Logan’s exact words.” For the briefest of seconds I wonder if he knows about my evening escapades. My muscles tighten.
“What else did he say?”
Mia shrugs. “You know what he’s like. To be careful, to keep our ears open, and figure out what’s about to happen as soon as possible.Yadayadayada. Nothing really interesting will leave his mouth until he’s had that negotiation with All Saints in the pocket. We’ve got some guys patrolling Port Elizabeth , but so far, nothing.”
I exhale my relief. He doesn’t know about me. “When’s Logan meeting with them?”
“He’s working on it. Which brings me to something else. I have some more information about No One, or whatever his real name is.”
Phoenix.At the mere thought of him, my stomach fills with thousands of tiny needles. “No One? What about him?” I grimace, silently asking her to hurry the fuck up.
Mia blinks. “Remember that night that he left us that envelope with information on All Saints -”
“You mean the night that we caught him?” ThatIcaught him. Suddenly my pants feel a little tighter.
“Yes. Well, people saw him that night, after he took off, saw how he ran straight into All Saints clutches. And it wasn’t a pretty sight.” Her words linger in the air, turning ugly and heady.
“All Saints? Theybeathim?” My throat suddenly feels dry. She nods.
“Yeah. They tortured him, then sent him off to France.”
“Tortured him.” My hands fist together and I squeeze like a motherfucker. Images of Phoenix, small and hurt, make my blood boil and my lips tighten. “For two thousand dollars.”
“If you say so.” She doesn’t ask the obvious question after my little slip-up, seemingly too caught-up in her own thoughts, for which I’m grateful.
“I’m gonna be honest with you, Kai. This guy confuses me. When Owen told me that it was him who had the detonator in the park, I just couldn’t believe it. I mean, you’ve seen him, right?”
“Hm.”
“Then you know what I mean, right? He’s more like some wounded bird, not a killer. He seemed so genuine when he worked for us, not the kind who’d run off to work with the enemy at the next given occasion.”
