Page 81 of Wanted By a King

What the actual fuck is going on with my buddy? Seriously. He’s been acting like a jealous bitch for a while now. Since Zoe, if I really think about it.

“Because it was my fucking idea,” I snap, and Gunner’s brows shoot high.

“Yep. After Rusty Hunt’s threat, Gray came up with a diversion. And it worked like a fucking charm.”

Rocco chuckles, slapping me on the shoulder, and I can’t help but grin.

“It was fucking beautiful.”

“A diversion?” Slasher asks. “So, we were the decoy?”

When I nod, Slayer jumps in. “So where’s the shipment?”

Rocco grins, “Being delivered by our treasurer as we speak.”

“What?” Gunner snaps, his brows shooting high. “Tex had the shipment and delivered it?”

“That’s right.” I nod, but Slasher sits forward in his seat, looking confused.

“What the fuck did we load into the van off the boat?”

“Corn starch.” I smirk.

Slasher starts laughing, back handing his brother’s chest with a loud slap. “Fucking corn starch. That shit is flammable.”

Rocco nods. “Yeah, it is. Helped make the most of Doug’s fertilizer bomb.”

His phone rings, distracting us all, and Rocco answers it on speaker.

“Tell me something good, Tex.”

“Trade is done. Money is in the new account.”

Everyone around the table grins. All but Gunner.

“Good work, my man. We’ll see you back here in a couple of hours.”

“Okay, Prez. Later.” Tex hangs up, and Rocco flops back in his chair, looking relaxed for the first time in days.

“Fuck yeah. It’s only a small win. But it feels fucking good.”

We all nod. All accept Gunner. Again.

“We have a new account?” Gunner asks, and Rocco sighs.

“Yes. We couldn’t exactly use the other one, and this new account, well, let’s just say, it’s not a typical bank account.”

Or a bank account at all, I want to say, but I keep that to myself. No one but me, Rocco and our treasurer, Tex, needs to know about where the money is.

Even though it’s a win, Rocco is right. It’s only a small win. We are merely a logistics service with guns, so the coin we received today will only last a week. Which means we need to get another plan in place for next week.

I love how Zoe has rallied the Cruz Cunts to start their own side hustle with the goal to support us for once, but the reality of that is they can’t access their earnings immediately. And to be fair, I hope they are successful and, in the end, when we are back on our feet, they can keep one hundred percent of the profits.

We just have to live long enough to see that happen.

Rocco ends our debrief by standing up and declaring the meeting over before walking out and stealing a bottle of Jack from behind the bar, only to disappear into his office. No one pulls him up for going against the new drink rule. Not when they can see the pain he’s trying to mask.

I feel like crap as I watch my friend lock himself away. Despite our small win, it means nothing with Cara gone.

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