Page 1 of Into the Blue
PART 1
If you've read the prequel novella, Blue Dream, move on to part 2: Into the Blue.
If you have not, Part 1 is not a skippable portion of Blue and Diamond's story. You will be very confused without this information. I promise you won't want to miss the introduction to their dynamic!
Chapter 1
I press my knife against his throat real slow to let him feel the weight of the moment. The steel glints in the dim office’s lighting, but he doesn’t move. It’s either brave or stupid. My money’s on the latter.
“I said,” I murmur at his ear, “you answer to me now.”
His pulse ticks against the blade. He's smart enough not to beg. Would do him no good anyway. Dumber men crack by now, start pleading or pissing themselves. Allen just breathes shallow, eyes locked on my men who stand at the door blocking his exit. He’s not going anywhere until I can ensure I’m getting what I came for.
“From now—until I decide different,” I finish without relieving any of the pressure from my blade. The glove I wear protects me from any blood that might spill, but also from any cuts since it improves my grip just in case whoever moves too much under me. I’m somewhat impressed that Allen isn’t squirming more than this.
He swallows and I feel the motion against the edge of the knife. Still, he says, “I’m n-not your enemy.”
I lean in a fraction. “Then why the fuck were there so many addendums to the contract I sent over?”
He lifts his hands like I don’t have a knife to his neck and the sudden movement could cause a mistake that would cost him dearly. “It wasn’t meant to be a threat.”
“No?” I press the blade in just enough to make his skin tighten. “Then you’re worse than I thought. Weak ass.”
His mouth opens, then closes. I feel the shift when the realization settles in. He didn’t just walk into a meeting to sign the dotted line. He walked into a test.
And he's failing.
I step back slowly, let the tension hang between us like smoke. My knife stays out. I don’t sheathe it. I see the flicker of doubt hit his posture.
“P-please. It’s how Manel would have wanted me to handle it. I was just following the procedure.”
That’s when I inform him, “If this deal falls apart because of you and yourprocedures, I’ll make sure there’s not enough left of you for your own family to recognize.”
Now he’s pale, his ruddy skin absent of all its usual ruddiness. This man, if left to his own devices, would lose this club to any given thug—like me, but they wouldn’t have the kind of direction I do.
This place would be a mockery of what Manel would have wanted. I’m saving it from the ruin it was headed for.
“I’m not signin’ any of ‘em. What I sent over was already good. For you and for me. We straight?” I question, daring him to argue again as I clean under my nails with my knife’s tip.
He clears his throat, hesitation still evident even as I take a seat across from him. “Y-yea.”
Base thumps to a sensual beat just outside the door of the office. It contrasts the heavy feeling of my energy suffocating the space. I have no actual control over its presence, but I know when someone can feel my will and when they can’t. Allen Sheedy certainly can, even from several feet away.
Redd and Marcell are behind me while Benito stands watch right outside. Two more of my men are in the rides we came in. I’m always five deep, if not more. Only an arrogant dick would be cavalier with their life when they move as much weight as I do.If I have no ops, I’m already dead.Everybody has a price on my head. I’ll be damned if I give them the opportunity just by thinking I’m untouchable.
The man in front of me wipes his forehead. If I were Allen, I’d be sweating too. I take my time reading over the original contract a finaltime though Allen continues to fidget with just about anything on his desk.
This isn’t a negotiation.
It’s a leash and he should feel it tightening on him.
I slide the document across the desk to him and place the pen on top, silently telling him to sign. He looks at the papers and then back to me. “And I’ll still be able to get my check at the end of the week? You know, Terrell made a part of my—”
I meet the shifty eyes of this man, smiling though I know it doesn’t read anything like joy. “Don’t like repeatin’ myself much. So, I’ll say this once and only once more. Everythin’ will go as it has before. Only difference bein’—I’m takin’ the bag home, not Terrell LaFayette Jr. Make sense?”
Typically, I’m not a gambling man. Too many factors I can’t control.
But, when my real estate agent told me this property would be the best way to wash a good portion of the money I made, I took a chance. Needed to keep the money clean and there was only one way to do it. Came with the bonus of coming up on the jackass I’d enjoy bossing up on any day of the week.
