Page 96 of Unveiled Wounds

“Of course, I do. They’ll be here in half an hour. We just have to leave him outside the gates. They’ll pick him up and leave the cash.”

“How far out is the cleaning crew?”

“Under twenty minutes, Prez.” Pint responded this time.

“Scrub?” Sabre checked. I wasn’t sure if Scrub had grabbed an earpiece or not.

“Yeah?”

“Gerry’s coming for triage. It’s bad.” Sabre and I walked over to where Gerry lay. “Do you think he’s alive?” he asked me.

“He’s too stubborn to die.” All I had to do was look at my wife to see where she got her obstinacy from.

“You can’t get rid of me,” Gerry mumbled as we stood above him. “Don’t say I didn’t help my girls. Promise me I can see my grandchildren.”

“We’ll see. You need medical help,” I told him.

“I’ll handle it,” Scrub said, listening in. No one doubted he would do his best to keep Gerry alive. Berry picked Gerry up as he was and took him inside the clubhouse.

“I want this place cleaned up within two hours. The women have been in the vault long enough, and truthfully, I want this behind us.”

There was a chorus of agreement coming through the earpiece. This round of cartel bullshit was officially over.

Chapter 36

The Dick Game

Meredith

I had been more concerned with saving my ass when Grace had first brought up hiding in the vault. We wouldn’t have to leave our home, but we’d be safe and out of the way. I don’t know what the fuck I was thinking. It hadn’t seemed like a bad gig until I’d actually seen the vault, and by then, it had been too late. The vault was literally an old, dark, money safe, and I was afraid the must smell would harm Pumpkin. It wasn’t airtight, but we weren’t getting a lot of fresh air, just enough not to suffocate in here.

“This is fun,” I said, sitting on the concrete floor, tucking Pumpkin against me. Grace had brought battery-operated tea lights, flashlights, and extra batteries. We were sitting in the dark, with fake flames, and I wanted to be anywhere but here.

“At least we’re not stuck at some dirty safe house,” Grace commented, straightening her legs.

“No offense, but if we have to be stuck together, I’d rather it be here instead of a safe house. Once this is over, we can go back to our rooms and pretend this shit never happened,” Kittencommented. She brought her fingers up to her face and flicked at each one, picking at her nail polish.

Agreed, even though I could barely see in front of my face. I wasn’t an Old Lady, but there was a divide between the voted women and the club girls. Grace acted like there wasn’t one, but it was times like this that it was too obvious to ignore. Pebbles was the only club girl who didn’t actively cause drama. She floated in and out, smiling and laughing with whomever was available. I had experienced firsthand the wrath of a few others. They had no problem with snide comments when they thought no one was paying attention.

I could have cared less they were club girls. Their choices didn’t affect me. Grizz would never cheat. If he had wanted to, he would have already done it. I didn’t like them because they were mean, seeing other women as competition.

I do the same thing.It was like a slap in the face. Kelly. The chick with her friends that one Friday night. All the times I had passed judgement floated through my mind, small clips when I’d been the mean girl. Pumpkin moved against me, immediately bringing me back to the present.If you want her to be the best version of herself, you’re going to have to teach her how.“I can do that for you,” I whispered against her head, kissing her before sitting back against the wall.

“If you wanted to be an Old Lady, you should have never volunteered as a club girl,” Pebbles scolded Kitten, as she adjusted one of her buns. “I heard the girls for the Knights constantly have to take three or more. No, thanks,” she said, shuddering.

I shuddered, too. It was hot to think about being used like a rag doll by two or three men at a time. It was so good, I was planning on dirty talking it to Grizz. He’d never agree, which made it even more fun. However, I was with Pebbles—it didn’t sound appealing as a daily occurrence.

“Chef’s never going to claim you. He can’t.” It was like Peaches had slapped Pebbles. Her head flung backwards, and I wasn’t the only one glad she didn’t bounce off the side of the vault.

Pebbles and Chef? Didn’t see that coming.

“You’re dead wrong if you think I’m sticking around, waiting for a man. The day that happens is the day I’ll pack my shit and leave. Maybe you should think about your own place here.” Pebbles fixed the other bun for something to do. She sat in front of the candle, and the light bounced off the planes of her face. She hid her pain well. I only recognized it because it was the same loss I held deep for my mother. Pebbles was grieving Chef, and they lived in the same clubhouse.

“I don’t have a problem keeping the men satisfied,” Peaches shot back. I said nothing, preferring to stay out of a club girl battle. This was entertaining, though.

“Wreck’s only fucking you because you probably feel the same as Pretty but with tits.” Pebbles drew first blood.

“What? No, he’s not. I’m his favorite. He always comes to me.” Peaches crossed her arms over her chest, causing her fake tits to push up. If she wasn’t careful, she’d smother herself.