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He just shrugs. “I hate owing people anything. And just giving them money is not enough in this instance.”
I shake my head as I look from him to the guy driving, then back again.
“So you’re here to help me?”
I hate how hopeful I sound.
“We will give it a try,” he smiles at me. “For Hawk,” he adds.
My mouth goes dry, and my heart threatens to jump out of my chest.
“For Hawk,” I repeat.
TWENTY-ONE
Hawk
I watch Ruby until she enters the building. As soon as the doors slide shut behind her, I start my bike and take off. Time is not on my side, and if I don’t make it to the club in time, I might as well not even show up at all. I can’t fuck this up.
Ever since this girl came into my life, I’ve been fucking up left and right. I was supposed to use her as a pawn in Devereaux’s scheme to get to the Steel Lizards. It was all supposed to happen at the strip club. I somehow started seeing her at the apartment she was renting.
I was attracted to her the second I laid eyes on her, but my feelings escalated with each time we came into contact. Guilt started eating at me with each time I used her. She was a good person who got caught in a terrible situation. I shouldn’t have cared at all, but I couldn’t detach myself.
The criminal life is not for everyone. It requires focus and motivation to succeed. Getting distracted will only get you killed. Which is exactly what is about to happen to me tonight.
As I’m getting closer to the clubhouse, I run different scenarios through my head. None of them have a good outcome. I guess it was bound to happen at some point, not like I’ve never had to deal with members who had to be eliminated. I only have two concerns.
The first one is regarding my mother. I would rest easier in the afterlife knowing that she will be taken care of until she finally joins me there.
The second one concerns Ruby Santiago. I will beg if I have to for them to offer her some protection, even if it is from afar.
I pull into the courtyard at the club, nodding in greeting at the prospects standing guard at the gates. They were all laughing when I pulled in, but now, as we make eye contact, they look a bit more subdued.
Making sure to take any important items off the bike, I walk toward the front door. Silence meets my ears instead of the party I thought I’d run into. I check the time to make sure I’m not late.
“You made it with eighteen minutes to spare.”
Prez is standing at the entrance to the hallway leading to the church room.
The corner of my mouth lifts into a smirk. “I thought you’d like that, Prez.”
He turns on his heels and walks over to the bar area, leaving me no choice but to follow him. I take a seat on one of the bar stools and watch him when he walks around the bar.
Without asking me if I wanted anything, he puts a couple of shot glasses on the flat surface of the bar. Next, he grabs a bottle of the most expensive whiskey we have. He fills the shot glasses to the brim before pushing one of them my way.
He lifts his up and toasts. “To your health, Hawk.”
He brings the shot glass to his lips and throws it back, then slaps it down on the wooden surface. He then looks at me expectantly. I’ve never said no to good whiskey, so me not taking the shot is raising his hackles.
Before he has a chance to comment on it or become irritated with me, I grab the glass and throw back the drink. I wipe at my lips with the sleeve of my T-shirt and place the glass back down.
“Again,” Prez encourages. He refills both glasses, and we both drink them in a synchronized move. A third one follows.
Just when I think he is about to get me drunk, he puts the bottle away.
“You’ve always been like a son to me, Hawk,” he tells me. There is no hint of a smile or kindness in the way that he says it.
“Appreciate it, Prez,” I nod.
