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CHAPTER27
XANDER
“Who the hell is this girl?” Chucky asks as soon as I get off the phone with Pipe and he dispatches everyone to search for Laura.
My eyes meet Chucky’s and he nods toward Gillian as she works, trying like hell to scrub the blood out of Laura’s beanie.
“Laura’s twin sister. She was staying with us for a bit and was supposed to leave today,” I admit, not strong enough to withhold the truth.
“Wanna tell me what’s really going on? You know I can smell bullshit from a mile away.” He hands me a lit joint and I take a long drag off the smoke.
“You’ve got my back, right? Even when I fuck up?”
“Always, man.”
Chucky and I grew up together. He’s seen just about everything that I have and knows how bad things can get.
“Laura and Gillian switched places. Browning hurt Laura and Gillian came in to be her stand-in where any of the club was concerned. Gillian is tougher than Laura, has an easier time dealing with all of this because she’s been through it before. Laura hasn’t and I need to keep her safe, but I failed because Gillian’s ex came into my place and took my woman, thinking she was her sister. I was so determined to keep her safe that I put her in danger.”
He stays quiet for the longest time as I take a drag on my joint. “If that ain’t irony, I don’t know what else is.”
“Preach, brother.”
“So, the girl at the clubhouse last night…” he trails off, letting me fill in the blank.
“Was Gillian, not Laura.”
“Fuck, man. That sucks, but did I ever actually meet Laura or just Gillian?” He is really struggling to wrap his head around this.
“You did the first time.”
He nods before I hand him back the joint.
Then, Gillian screams. “Xander!” What the fuck now?
She runs into the room, holding up my flip phone, mid-ring. “It’s Donatello's number,” she explains and I jump to my feet. Snatching the phone from her hands, I flip it open and hit the speaker button.
“Yeah?”
“I’m looking for Gunner of the Black Stallions,” the raspy voice mutters and I turn my eyes on Gillian who seems completely perplexed by this.
“Speaking.”
“Apologies for any interruptions, but my name is Donatello Scafoni. My men went to pick up a…package, but seemed to have accidentally grabbed a possession of yours instead. I’m sure you realized yourpackageis missing by now.” He’s talking in code, like all these mobsters do, and it’s annoying as fuck.
“What do you want? Money?” I’ve got plenty of that in the cellar at the clubhouse.
“God, no. I just want a simple swap is all. You have my package there with you and I have yours here with me. We meet up and each of us is returned our rightfully owned belongings. Sound like a good deal to you?”
I turn my eyes to Gillian who nods, clutching her jacket tight to her chest. “I’ll do it. Just get her back,” she mouths to me and I nod.
“Time and place.”
“No time like the present, but let's meet unarmed. There’s no need to resort to violence.”
* * *
I climbin my truck and Gillian gets in beside me, huddled in her jacket. She’s been eerily quiet since the phone call from her mobster ex-boyfriend, but I’m not going to pry. Gillian has caused enough bullshit in our lives since day one. She deserves a little guilt.
