Page 65 of Reconciling the Consequences

“I overheard them talking a couple weeks ago. They didn’t know I was there. They were talking about how Vince was framing King to get him locked up. They’re trying to make a deal with Las Serpientes to kill Mac Taylor in prison.”

Kara gasped and shot a look at Taylor.

Taylor clenched his jaw, his eyes narrowed on Marcos. “How do I know you’re speaking the truth. How do I know this isn’t another stunt between our clubs to get another hit on us?”

“I haven’t had anything to do with that. Buckley’s been moving behind my back. The club’s fracturing. The guy he sent to spy here? Buckley did that without a vote. The incident in Alabama? Another of Buckley’s rogue moves. He’s been losing his mind lately.”

Taylor stared him down hard.

“Were you involved in Derrick’s shooting?” Kara’s voice cut through the tense quiet.

Marcos met his sister’s eyes and shook his head. “That was Buckley himself. He and his little group of loyalists. He’s purposely been keeping me in the dark about his dealings. Me and anyone loyal to me.”

“I’ve got to make a call,” Taylor ground out. “Candela, I’ll be in touch.” He walked toward the office.

Kara looked over her shoulder at him, watching as Rockstar and Devil turned to follow but paused, waiting for her. She waved them on, waiting for them to go. When they closed the door to what appeared to be their church, Kara turned back to Marcos. She frowned and moved closer.

“You’re not going to hit me again are you?” Marcos smirked.

She rolled her eyes. “You’d deserve it if I did,” she answered, crossing her arms over her chest.

He nodded slowly. “I would, and more.” He sighed, rubbing his jaw.

She shook her head. “I know you were trying to protect me, brother.” She sighed. “I know you think you were some white knight in my childhood, sending me to private school and paying for everything… and you were. You were my hero when I was a kid, Marcos. I just wish you felt you could have trusted me with the truth.”

Marcos let out a long breath. “We could go back and forth a million different times, and over the years, I’ve questioned myself about telling you. It would have made things a hell of a lot simpler for me when you were older, when there were certain clubs or bars you couldn’t go to.” He paused and ran his hands over his buzzed head, gathering his thoughts. “At the end of the day, li’lManita, I would do it all over again. In a heartbeat. You’re my baby sister, and I would do anything to protect you.”

Kara gave him a watery smile before she wrapped her arms around him and rested her head against his chest. “I love you, big brother.”

“I love you too, li’l sister.”

Johnnycalledchurchthesecond Marcos told him that his father was in danger. Las Serpientes were no joke and were not to be messed with. They were a gang of mercenaries and the lowest of scum. They dealt in heroin and human trafficking. Murder for hire was just another day for them.

The Ravager Knights had already gotten Mac Taylor protection inside Mourningside County Correctional when King had first been picked up—Johnny had reached out to the Bratva for protection and reinforced their trade dealings.

Johnny called the Bratva’s Pakhan Tarazov before church had started and gave him the heads-up on the potential hit. Tarazov had advised him they would continue to do all they could, but with Las Serpientes, it was not always enough. The Serpents had ways of slipping through the cracks that not even the Bratva could manage.

It hadn’t been what Johnny wanted to hear, but he trusted Tarazov enough to see his own hands were tied as well.

During church, Johnny, Derrick, and Kevin brought the club up to speed on what had transpired with Marcos and the division within the Devil’s Psychos. They talked about meeting with Marcos and those loyal to him about maybe working with the Psychos to take down Buckley and the rogue crew members.

Buckley’s working with Vince Carmichael to frame Mac Taylor was unacceptable. He would need to be dealt with. Now that he was actively attacking the Ravager Knights, he would have to be eliminated. They couldn’t allow that level of disrespect to stand.

In the end, they decided to wait. They needed more info, and they needed to see if Marcos and those loyal to him would be willing to help the Knights take out their president.

The next day, Kara was boxing everything up in the dining room at Johnny’s house. The case was officially built, and they had what they needed to hand over to the district attorney. Danvers would bring everything to the DA’s office in the morning.

They had agreed that, for all intents and purposes, Kara shouldn’t go with him to city hall to hand over the case. Kara would need to take over Carmichael and Associates again once her father was arrested. It would be simpler if she aided the case from afar.

District Attorney Lacey Winters wasn’t exactly a friend but an acquaintance that Kara respected—trusted to do her job fully. She was smart and damn good at her job. The county was lucky to have her.

There had been several times over the years that Kara had offered her a job in the private sector, offered to pay her well. But each time Winters had turned her down. She had integrity and a strength that Kara admired. Kara trusted she would take the case they were about to hand her and not fumble it. Vince Carmichael would be behind bars by the end of the week.

The last file on the table was the one Danvers had found regarding Marcos’s true father. She had given Danvers the original but kept a copy for herself and ones for Marcos and Johnny as well. She was out of time. She needed to present her findings to both men.

She would have to start with Johnny. It was his father. All of this revolved around Mac Taylor.

As if he had read her mind, the back door opened, and she heard three sets of keys hit the counter in the laundry room. Three sets of boots slapped the tile floor before they were slowly pulled off.

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