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I nod, turning from the window. “That will work. Angelica may or may not recognize her mother. She’d feel safer with you there. Angela’s been through quite a bit and could use a friendly face. The CPS agent is the same one who brought Wayne here. Something I’m not happy about but can’t control. I plan on playing nice with the woman until she gives me a reason to do otherwise.”
Puma makes a face. “She could be trouble. Although, her problem may have been with the MC. Take your kutte off for the meeting. There’s a chance the bitch won’t recognize you.”
Max nods before leaving us.
“I want the name of the so-called witness who tagged Viper as Wayne’s killer,” Puma orders.
“I don’t work for you,” I remind him.
He nods. “I know you don’t, but I still want that name. We need to figure out his game and stop him from hurting Viper.”
“And you don’t think I can do it on my own?”
“No, I don’t.” He holds up his hand to stop me from going off. “Not saying you aren’t smart enough to figure it out, but you have too many rules that you have to follow. We don’t have time for rules.”
“Jesus Christ,” I explode. “You aren’t above the law!”
“No. But I’m not bound by it, either. We know how to work around the system to get justice. Do you think arresting Viper on a lie is justice?”
“I’m not arresting Viper. I’ve asked her for an alibi, and I want to talk to this witness before I do anything.”
“But that isn’t what your boss wants, is it?”
Fuck. He has me there. “Sometimes you act like you’re my boss,” I grumble. My anger spikes when he laughs. “It’s not fucking funny,” I explode. “I shouldn’t have told you about Angela or the meeting today. But I did. What the hell’s wrong with me? I’m not a member of your club, but you’ve got me half-convinced that I’m part of it.”
“You are,” Puma says simply. “You became ours when you hooked up with Viper. Being part of our club doesn’t make you less of a cop. Keeping me in the loop isn’t a betrayal to that badge you wear.”
“Isn’t it? How can I justify working with an MC? I’m dividing my loyalties.”
Instead of answering, Puma picks up his phone and enters a number before putting it on speaker.
“Hey, Puma, what can I do for you?” comes a voice on the other end.
“You can do me a favor and explain how someone can be a good cop and still align himself with our MC. Shield is one of Dante’s men, and he’s a detective with the SDPD.”
My eyes widen at this. I barely choke out a hello as Shield chuckles. “Jesus, Puma. Way to put us both on the spot.”
“Just talk, asshole,” Puma growls.
“Fine. Funny enough, this is the second time this week I’ve had to justify myself. Look, I get being a cop and being a member of an MC would make me look like a dirty cop. I’m not. I enjoy being a cop, but the MC is my family. The two don’t have to be at odds. Not if I focus on what’s important. Laws are external. They’re created by men and change often. For me, justice is all that matters.”
“I get that. I do. But we can’t get justice by going outside the law. That’s just vigilante bullshit.”
“True, but what do we have when the law can’t, or won’t, provide justice? Who protects those the law doesn’t protect? I’m all for working within the system, but I’ll be damned if I can sit back and watch someone suffer because the system let them down. I couldn’t live with myself if I did.”
I need to think about this for a minute, so I divert the conversation. “You said you had this conversation with someone else. Your boss?”
He chuckles. “Fuck, no. My boss knows I’m with the Demon Dawgs, and while it bothered him at first, he’s come to terms. He has me working with another detective whose previous partner was dirty. He’s the asshole who set fire to the dojo that Reaper’s woman was in, along with two other Old Ladies.” I glance at Puma when I hear him growl.
“Fuck,” I mutter.
“The thing to remember is that not all cops obey the law. Too many of them abuse their position. It’s why I don’t have a problem being with an MC. Being a cop is my job. The club is my family. Every single member has my back, and I have theirs. I trust them explicitly. I can’t say the same for every cop I work with. Most of the time, I feel like I need to watch my back when dealing with my so-called brothers-in-blue.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN: VIPER
I stride out of Puma’s office, my temper rising with each step. I want to punch something. No, I want to punch someone. My father would be the ideal target, but he’s dead. I should probably stop to consider how I feel about that, but then again, I thought he was already dead until he showed up here yesterday. Fuck, was that just yesterday? Shaking my head, I take a seat at the bar just as Smooth grabs a beer. He flicks off the cap and hands it over.
“You look like you could use this, or maybe something stronger?” he asks, studying me.
