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“Sounds that way.” Hawk crossed his arms over his chest.
“Is it a Widow?” Ritz asked.
“No.” Hawk met Bear’s stare briefly before glancing around the table. “Word around the club is this is cartel related.”
My eyebrows drew together. “The cartel?”
“Dammit,” Gunner cursed. “Why the fuck would they be targeting us?”
“Because of your past,” Hawk answered suspiciously.
“You think the cartel grabbed Jane, and that has something to do with our past?” I asked.
Hawk crossed his hands over his stomach. “It’s no secret you have a history with the cartel. I get that was before Bear was runnin’ the show, but that history still exists. They know how clubs work and how much money runs in and out of them.”
“They grabbed Jane for some kind of ransom?” I glanced back and forth between Bear and Hawk. “That doesn’t make sense. We’re missing something. The cartels have more access to money, especially fast money, than we do, so why go beyond their walls? Why take that chance?”
Hawk looked at Bear but only began speaking after Bear jerked up his chin. “Rumor is a few years ago, your club set up a local gang with deep ties to the cartel to go head-to-head with the Widows.” Hawk leaned forward. “Problem was the cartel was already in bed with the Widows and knew another group was pulling those strings. They figured out the only people who benefited were the Sinners. If you got the Widows and the local gang to go head-to-head, you could take them both out. That would also cut cartel ties in this area, which would clean up your town.” He shrugged. “I would’ve probably done the same in your shoes. But in doing that, you lit a fire that’s been smoldering for about two years.” He frowned. “My guess is it finally ignited.”
“Who was in bed with the gang?” Bear asked.
Hawk studied him, and I had my doubts he would answer, but he finally did. “Snap.”
I ran my hand over my beard, not all that surprised to hear the most recent president of the Widows local club was involved in drugs. He’d been arrested not too long ago for possession and intent to transport, but I was surprised at how much further up the food chain it went when Hawk continued talking. “But he was following orders from the top.”
“Fuck.” Gunner dropped his head. “My father. Before he died, he was the national president of the Widows, and he was in bed with the cartel for years. I knew that. Hell I used that against him so I could leave the Widows and come here to join the Sinners, but I had no idea the local gang was involved with the cartel.”
“Few did. That was a secret the cartel wanted to keep so they could stay local. Truth is there’s more than one good port in North Carolina for deliveries, and they didn’t want to lose that. The local gang handled the deliveries once the boats docked and shared some of the cartel’s profit. Snap’s job was to make sure the gang stayed under the radar.”
“What’d Snap get out of it?” Ritz asked.
“Money,” Hawk answered bluntly. “But he got greedy, and after he was caught movin’ the drugs and was arrested, the protection the gang needed was gone, not to mention the cops were put on high alert.”
“So why the fuck aren’t they going after the Widows?” Bull asked the obvious. “Their member screwed up and got caught.”
“Word is the cartel blames the Sinners for putting them on anyone’s radar. They started paying attention after they figured out you were pitting the gang against the Widows and noticed you were playin’ nice with the local cops.”
“That was two years ago,” I pointed out. “What’s changed since then?”
“Since Snap’s arrest, the ports haven’t been as easy to access. Cops have been all over that shit. They figured out easily that’s where the exchange was being made. Cartel can’t bring in as much product, so they’re losing money.”
“Got rid of two dirty Widows who were pulling strings with the cartel and the local gang, and we’re still dealing with their bullshit,” Bull growled.
I agreed with Bull, but it didn’t make sense how Jane factored in. “So Jane’s just a means to an end?”
“She’s an heiress.” Hawk studied me carefully. “Did a little digging into her family, and the amount of money they have makes today’s billionaires seem poor.”
“Where the fuck did they get all their money?” Ritz asked.
“Oil,” Hawk said. “Grandfathers on both sides of her family were oil tycoons in Texas. Left Texas and took their wealth with them.”
My head snapped toward Bear when he started talking. “Talked to Kyle. He was able to tap into some calls made to Jane’s father demanding money for her return.”
“So he’ll pay it.” Bull crossed his arms over his chest. “We got nothin’ to do with it.”
Bear slid his attention from Bull to me, and I knew what he was going to say before he did. “That call came in late last night. He refused to pay it, and as of this morning, according to Kyle, he’s made no move to contact the police. Only made a few calls to his private security.”
I slammed my hand on the table and stood, but I wasn’t the first to speak.
