Page 43 of Outlaws' Single Mom
Hellfire tugs his long hair back, making sure the leather strap is holding it in place. “You boys haveanything to add? I assume it was you they saw near her apartment.”
We look at each other again, this time a little sheepishly. I nod. “Yeah, Georgia worked for Sergei. She was living over his shop with her boyfriend, who we’re pretty sure is an errand boy. We went over with Dakota the other day so she could see what needed doing with her sister’s apartment.”
“Did you piss him off enough for him to go whining to the cops?”
Stiff snorts. “He acted shifty, we let him know it was in his best interest to stay clear until Dakota’s done with the place.”
“Peacefully?”
“He was hardly bleeding and walked away on his own two feet,” I say with a shrug. “I think we were pretty reasonable, all considering.”
Stiff nods.
“So there’s nothing else tying us to this mess?”
“We might have confiscated a gun that may or may not match the one your little cop friend was talking about,” Lash admits. “It seemed like the sort of thingthat would cause trouble for Dakota if the cops snooped around Georgia’s apartment and found it.”
“Fucking great. At least tell me you didn’t gun down Russ or whatever the fuck his name was.” The steel in his voice warns that having kept something like that from him would jeopardize our chances of leaving the parking lot alive. He lets us fuck around a hell of a lot, but not for shit like this.
“Of course not. If we put someone in the ground, you’d be the first to know. I think we should go put a little pressure on Sergei. If the piece belongs to the boyfriend, and he works for Sergei…”
Hellfire nods. “Do it. Don’t go in guns blazing, but see if you think there’s anything there. And keep the sister close for now. Encourage her to stay inside the walls until we know she’s not going to get used against us.”
24
STIFF
Well,didn’t think we’d be back here so soon. At least not without Dakota.
In front of us is the pawnshop, looking dreary and gray in the rain. I’m not looking forward to this, but if Sergei’s causing trouble for us? That’s gonna mean trouble for him.
“So what do we do?” Lash shades his eyes with a hand to keep the rain off. “Kick the door in? Draw iron? I feel like making a grand entrance.”
“Easy.” Jackal puts his bike up on its pegs. “This is just an informational chat.”
I squeeze the water out of my beard. “Unless we find out he’s playing outside his league.”
The bell over the door rings as we come in. Sergei is behind the counter with a rangy guy that must be the new hired help. There’s an open briefcase in front of him and a couple of guys in suits who don’t look happy to see us walk in.
“Good afternoon, gentlemen,” Lash says with a heavy undertone of ‘don’t fucking move so we don’t have to shoot you’.
The briefcase slams shut and Sergei puts on a forced smile. “What can I help you with? Is there a problem with the apartment?”
“No. Not today. This is an official visit.” Jackal leans his elbow on the glass sales counter, idly looking at the shabby watches inside. “Wanna do it in private, or out here?”
Sergei’s eyes flit between the three of us. “Let me finish up business here and I’ll be right with you.”
“Sure, sure. We’re in no hurry.” Lash’s voice is dangerously casual as he finds a corner where he can see the whole room. He flicks his cut open, making the grip of his gun sticking out of his belt painfully obvious. “Take your time.”
The new kid looks about to crap his pants. Good. If you’re going to work for someone like Sergei, you should know what you’re getting into. I don’t know how much Georgia knew about her employer, but I hope for his sake, he wasn’t the one that caused her death.
Sergei hands a bulging envelope to one of the suits, who slips it into the pocket on the inside of his jacket. They take their leave, giving all three of us a wide berth on the way out.
“Bye bye!” Lash says mockingly with a wave.
Sergei tells the younger man to lock up, and when he turns to us, his throat bobs visibly as he swallows. “Now, what can I do for you?”
“Seen Jay lately?” Jackal stands right in front of Sergei, hands deceptively loose at his sides.
