AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Jericho rubs his chin. “Yes, you came to the right people.”
“It was the priest wasn’t it?” Arrow asks, leaning in more with a gentle tone. “He knew you needed something…”
“Money,” she mutters, darting her eyes to the floor in pure shame.
“We do offer loans,” Jericho says.
“And sanctuary,” Arrow says with a nod.
“My husband…” She sucks in a breath, on the verge of tears. “He drinks too much and takes it out on the kids and me. I need a loan. I need to get away from him.” She discreetly swipes a hand under her eyes, shaking more as she does.
“Don’t worry. We’ll get you all set up,” Arrow says with compassion, lighting up at the thought of helping an innocent woman run from her husband.
That’s the thing about Arrow Amour that no one seems to understand. Is he a ruthless killer willing to take off the fingers of any man who touches his woman? Yes. Is he willing to take down the enemy with everything he’s got, even if it gets him killed? One-hundred percent. But there’s another side to him, only the individuals down on their luck and the ones who seek him out in the confessional get to see—his compassion. He may not have a loving bone in his body, but he deeply cares for the unfortunate. Maybe it’s his father’s influence from being raised in the church as a child. Or maybe, it’s who he truly is deep down.
Arrow rushes about, explaining the process to the poor woman—Lori Heins—as she later tells us. Much like a bank, we keep records of everyone who takes money from us. Even the ones who give us a sob story. They sign the papers, and then, they’re on their way with a wad of cash from our vaults to start their new lives. Some pay us back in full within the time limit we give them. Others, we have to track down and give a reminder of their promise.
“Yes. I will pay you back when I get back on my feet,” Lori says, nodding her head with gratitude.
“And you understand,” Jericho starts, slowly getting to his feet and putting his hands in his pockets.
The last thing we want to do is intimidate the small, fragile woman. We know the circumstances she’s led us to believe. She’s gotten the coin from the Pastor at church. But if there’s one good piece of advice Jericho’s father taught us, no one is as they seem.
Snakes live in the deepest part of the pits, but when they come out to face you head-on, they’ll bite you so fast—you wouldn’t have seen it coming.
“That we know who you are. You’ve handed us your information. Your husband’s name. Your children’s information. We don’t operate entirely in good faith, Mrs. Heins. We operate on money. This is a loan. Not a charity case. We’ll gladly help you in every avenue of getting you back on your feet…”
“A house, a job, a car, and anything else you might need. But my brother is right. There is a time limit to this, okay? No horse shit,” Arrow interrupts with passion.
“No!” she gasps, holding a hand to her fragile heart. “No horse shit, absolutely not. I will pay you back! I just need to get away from him and save my children before... It’s too late,” she says, sniffling and wiping her nose.
“Understandable. Then, take this as your key to freedom. Your repayments start in six months as a courtesy for your situation. Don’t mistake our kindness for weakness, though. We will find you if you run or don’t pay.”
She nods. “I understand! I promise. I just…”
“Now, go and start your new life,” Jericho says, nodding his head toward the door to get her moving.
“Thank you again. This is going to get us so far in life. You don’t understand.” With that, Lori scurries her way out of our suite with the cash and on her way to a better life. I hope, at least.
“Can I take her husband’s fingers?” Arrow asks, standing up with a sadistic smile.
I snort, getting to my feet. My cigar burns between my fingers when I slowly make my way toward the large window overlooking the crowd to indulge in my favorite activity—people watching. Observing others has always been somewhat of a pastime of mine. I could watch for hours, taking in a stranger's habits. Even now, above them all, they fascinate me.
‘We’ll watch her and make sure she gets settled in. And make sure her husband hasn’t followed her,’ I sign with a shrug, turning to look out the window.
“And then, I can pay him a visit to remind him how to treat women,” Arrow hums.
Something tugs my eyes through the mass of people like a target, calling to me from below.
Down there, hundreds of elites gyrate, drink our liquor, and party their lives away. My eyes scan more of the crowd, stopping when my heart soars into my throat.
The moment my eyes connect with the woman who has had my heart in a vise since I learned she was promised to us. Journey. The girl I’ve been protecting and feeding for years now. Lightning soars through my body. The hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. The girl with moss-green eyes and a story to tell—secrets to unravel—dances before me.
My lips roll together when I stand outside the door of Journey’s trailer. A habit. Something I promised myself I wouldn’t continue, but I can’t stop. Not now. She needs me to continue bringing food and water so she can live. As the sun begins to peek over the horizon, illuminating the world around me, I listen for any sort of noise inside Journey’s home. Again. The TV blasts some news story about the rising crime in Briar Cove, blaming the gangs surrounding the area.
Typical.
They always blame the gangs and the mafia ruling the city. Granted, we do bring crime into the area, we also help to clean the streets. There’s more to us than meets the eye. But the public will never know.
