Page 26 of Property of Raider
When I open my mouth to tell him I’m all good, that is not what comes out.“Fuck no, I’m not good.”
He doesn’t say a word, just turns and goes back up the hallway to stand beside my office door.Following him, I unlock the door, letting us both in.Terro goes to the fridge I keep stocked with drinks and other stuff.I make my way into the room, and I’m too keyed up to sit in the chair, so I lean against my desk.Terro hands me a beer before taking the seat to my right, in front of my desk.
“Who is this woman?She’s got you so fucking tore up I’m worried you’re on the verge of pulling a Blender and coming fucking unglued,” Terro finally states, always blunt and observant.
“Where the fuck would you like me to fucking start?”I’m pacing the small room now.“Start where she became my best friend?Or how about when I fell so in love with her no one else in the world mattered?Oh, I know!The day I showed up at her parents’ and then at Auntie Lynn’s trying to find her—only to realize she was gone.”
The anger of that day still burns like acid in my stomach.
“That explains why you had us bring her here.What that doesn’t explain is the boy,” Terro wonders.
“Exactly.Where the hell does he come into play?”Throwing my hands up, I start my pacing again.“We never slept together.My eye combination is rare, and it seldom is passed on to a child.Not only that, the kid is my fucking twin!”
“Is there any way at all?”Terro asks.“Is there anyone else?”
I start to shake my head and then freeze with a dawning horror.
“Raider, brother, fucking sit down.You look like you’ve seen a fucking ghost,” Terro snaps, pulling me down into the chair he has just vacated.
I drop my head into my hands, my head spinning.
“So, thereissomeone?”he whispers.
“Shea,” comes out on an exhale.
“Who the fuck is Shea?”Terro asks.
Standing quickly, I snatch my office door open.“Hermes,” I holler out.
Just as I thought would happen, his office door pops open with a look of concern written across his face.“Yes, Prez?”
“Get in here and bring a laptop,” I snap.
Hermes nods quickly before disappearing back into his office.When he reemerges with his laptop, Remedy, Rhino, and Blitz come around the corner with looks of concern.
“Prez, we’ve got an issue at the gate,” Rhino speaks first.
“What’s happened?”I snap, making my way over to them.
“Jose Alfaro is at the gate,” Remedy growls, shifting from side to side oddly keyed up.
“Why is the fucking Alfaro Cartel knocking on our door?”Terro asks the million-dollar question.
“I guess there is only one way to find out.Get Mercy and Anvil,” I start giving orders.“Get all the women inside and out of sight.We don’t know what this asshole could want, but we all know women and coke are his number one sealer.”
Everyone moves to do as I tell them, with the brothers who are left following me out front.We take up a stance just outside the door before letting the prospect know he is good to let our guest through the gate.They roll into the parking lot with three cherry-red Cadillac SUVs, trimmed in gold, with large gaudy wheels and windows so dark there is no way they can see out of them after dark.Mercy and Anvil come around the corner of the bar with AR15s strapped across their chests.
As soon as the three vehicles come to a stop, the doors of the front SUV and back SUV fly open and men file out, creating a barer around the middle one.The doors open and out slides Jose Alfaro.He turns back, holding out his hand.A delicate hand with bright red nails slides into his just before the person follows.The person to slide out of the SUV is none other than the witch herself, Shea Austin.
“Jose, to what do we owe the pleasure?”I drawl, stepping forward with a hand out.
Jose steps forward, taking my hand.“Hola, mi amigo.It’s good to see you.”
“I would like to say the same, but at this hour I’m not sure what I can do for you,” I tell him honestly, not in any mood for whatever bullshit he’s about to go on about.
Jose gives a very insincere laugh.“It seems we may have an issue on our hands.”
“The only issue I’ve run into this evening is that a close friend of the club’s house burned down and she perished in the fire.As well as a brother injuring a prospect for speaking out of line.”I watch his face as I say the things and, like the man has been trained, he gives nothing away.“What issue did you say the Cartel has this fine evening?Maybe we can help in some way.”
