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“Sal, perhaps you’d like to tell King all that we know?” Dane says as he glares at me.
“Thanks to Dirt’s dogged determination—”
I cut Sal off, “It wasn’t me, it was Guru.”
“Yes, but you pointed him in the right direction.”
“That’s—”
“Dirt, shut the fuck up and let Sal speak,” thunders Dane as he slams his hand down on the table.
My lips go into a hard, thin line, and I nod once. My anger is getting the best of me, and I know it’s because of the way King spoke about Lore. I put my hands under the table and dig my nails into my hand to keep myself in check.
Sal gives me a tight smile. “As I was saying, we did some digging, and your VP, Bulldog, is having money funneled to him from a woman. Dirt, what is her name?”
“Dee Tremone.”
“Deedee,” King replies and slumps in the chair. “How much?”
“Does it matter?” asks Sal.
King shakes his head and looks at Dane. “And you think I knew?”
Dane spreads his hands out on the table. “Hopefully, no, but at best, you’ve run a fucking shoddy chapter.” Dane stands and leans over the table. “We had a shooting here, and we sent it out on the wire like we’re supposed to, but you’ve lost members and nothing. Why?”
King rocks back and forth in his seat as he processes all the information. “Because I didn’t want to look weak.”
Dane scoffs and crosses his arms over his chest.
“No, it’s true. We can’t all be the great Dane Reynolds who had the money to pull out of drugs and guns and married a fucking rock star.”
“You keep my wife out of it.”
“Okay, okay, let’s talk about the casinos. How? Hmm? How the fuck did you even get in on a deal? For years, all the MCs in Vegas have ever been to the fucking Italians is fodder for their wars. We do their dirty work, then one day you come to town, and suddenly, we are partners in not one but two casinos.” By the time he’s finished his rant, King is yelling.
Sal makes a noise, and all heads swing in his direction. “You’re jealous,” he states.
King throws a hand in the air and stares at the wall.
“King, I’m not one of you. When I first came to Tourmaline, my task was to discover why we, the Abruzzi family, were being squeezed out of the gun trade. I was sent in to find out what was going on and, if necessary, neutralize the threat. Instead, I found Dane’s sister, who became my wife, and the Savage Angels,” he pauses. “I’ve found Dane to be a man of his word. It’s the reason we have a handshake deal. I’m the owner of the casinos, but I’m part of the Abruzzi family and a captain in their organization. They did not take it well when I went ahead with these deals with Dane. Out of my own profits from the casinos, I pay them a tribute, but I clearly underestimated their desire to have control, just like you’ve let jealousy cloud your judgment. As a consequence, your VP has allowed the very people we needed to keep out of the casinos in.”
King stares at him and then swings his head in Dane’s direction. “What are we going to do about Bulldog?”
“Nothing right now,” states Dane, but he motions for Sal to keep talking.
“You’re going to get our people back in the casinos and be smart, only those with no criminal records. I’m going to position myself in Vegas and oversee the whole operation, including the parts of the business you were in charge of. You’re going to tell your men it’s a temporary thing and make it sound like I’m giving you a break. As for Bulldog, do nothing. Let him think he’s got one over on us. Observe who he’s close to, and when the time is right, we will wipe them all out.”
Sal’s words hang in the air like a weight around our necks. The gravity of his revelation settles in, casting a solemn shadow over the room.
“What about the missing MC members?” King asks.
“When the time is right, we will avenge our fallen members,” states Dane with steel-like resolve.
“And me?”
“Do your fucking job. Inform us when things aren’t running like the should or you have a problem. I didn’t send out to you and everyone else we’d had a shooting so you’d all come here. I did it as it’s how we agreed to operate with open communication. Change has to start with the heads of the MC. Without it, we’re fucking lost. Problems, like the shit we’re dealing with, spread within our ranks, and I won’t tolerate it. Just like I won’t have you challenge me in public. Ever. Again.”
King takes a deep breath and nods once.
