Page 5 of Waging War
Jackie taps the man’s foot. “Wakey, wakey.”
Kenneth jolts awake as if he’s been reborn, and he may as well have been. The last I saw of him, the man was as good as dead.
As if it’s been plucked from my memory, Hazel’s rich honey scent floats into the room like a wraith, her ominous screams not far behind. How could I possibly forget the way I cradled her as she sobbed for her father?
She clawed and fought her way toward his prone, bloody body while I’d held her back in a weak attempt to save her from the horror. I vividly remember her broken nails clutching my dress shirt as she fell apart in my arms, leaving me shredded with guilt as I took her away from him.
I wanted to apologize for what I’d done. If not for me, she wouldn’t have been there to begin with. But I stayed silent then, just as I have the entire time she’s been tucked away.
It’s easier this way. I keep a low profile around Diablo, do as I’m asked while I plot a way to light his empire on fire from the inside out, and don’t think about that tantalizing female.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Kenneth croaks.
If he’s been in the hospital since that night, then it’s been over a month since anyone has seen him. The gang leader looks worse off than I’d imagined, with an oxygen cannula sitting in his nose and an obnoxiously long beard growing around it.
“You’re looking… well,” Jackie croons, taking in Kenneth’s nearly translucent skin.
“Yeah. One collapsed lung and two surgeries later, I’m ready to fucking dance.”
Kenneth has to have been miserable going through all that alone.
Shit.Am I actually feeling bad for the guy?
I tamper down the thought. It’s my job to keep him in line, not feel sorry for him.
Jackie grabs a chair from the far corner, dragging it across the room while Kenneth glares. “I’m here to propose a truce,” Jackie drawls as he takes a seat, crossing his legs and resting his hands on top of his knee.
Unable to keep the shock from my voice, I cut my eyes in his direction. “A truce?”
This asshole knew he was going to drop this little bomb on me. Does this mean he could be turning against Bruce?
Adrenaline surges at the thought, but I’m not entirely ready to trust him. Bruce could have put him up to this. He could be testing me.
“When my family finds you,” Hazel’s father takes a deep breath that ends on a wince, “they’re going to enjoy gutting you alive.” There’s enough conviction in his words to raise the hairs on my arms as he flicks narrowed eyes my way. “You too, traitor.”
I lean in with a dangerous smile that has his good hand gripping the hospital bed. “Believe me, I’m looking forward to it.”
Jackie steals his attention. “Hazel has been living under my watchful eye for quite some time.”
Kenneth’s breath visibly stills in his chest. “She’s going to kill you for this, you know. Hazel’s tougher’n a steel blade. She doesn’t take anyone’s shit, especially not from the likes of men like you.”
“Your threats do us no good here. That gang of yours destroyed my home in retaliation, and I have it on good authority that your VP is behind it all. I should have them all strung up on Diablo’s property like the dogs they are, but killing them will get us nowhere. The only reason you’re still breathing is because of me.”
“You shot me,” Kenneth sputters incredulously.
“I did.” Jackie uncrosses his leg and shrugs. “And I missed intentionally. Which means you would be six feet under if it weren’t for the generosity I’ve granted you and that hoodlum daughter of yours.”
“I don’t do well with games, Mayor. Spit it out. What do you want from me?”
Jackie pulls a burner phone from the pocket inside his coat and places it beside Kenneth’s hand. “I want you to call your VP and tell him he’s to collect you from the rear hospital entrance at ten o’clock tomorrow morning and not a moment sooner.”
The edge in his voice is loud and clear. If he disobeys this order, there are sure to be consequences. Ones that I’ll surely have to deal with.
When Kenneth finally nods, Jackie leans back. “There will always be bad blood between us, Kenny, but Diablo is out of control. He’s bloodthirsty and crazed on power, and with Rhyomine flooding the streets, it’s only gotten worse. I want to wipe his empire out for good so the rest of us can move on with our lives and not have to look over our shoulders every day.”
Jackie points his gaze at me. “Not sure about you, but I’m tired of being someone else’s bitch. The problem is, I can’t do this alone. Diablo has his army, and if this is going to work, then I need my own.”
For a moment, I’m completely stunned. I expected this meeting to end in threats and anger, not a deal to temporarily join forces.
