Chapter 7

Iflicked down my kickstand and shut off my bike's engine, then swung my leg over the seat to dismount.

"Think you could stop your brooding long enough to get through this meeting?" Viper quipped, earning himself a dark scowl.

"I didn't think Storm had any other mood than brooding," said a deep, familiar voice.

Viper and I both looked at the warehouse door we'd parked in front of to see a tall, lean man in worn jeans and an old T-shirt that said, "If you're in control, you're not going fast enough."

He lounged against the entrance, his arms crossed over his chest and a smirk on his face. "Kane," I greeted my friend, lifting my chin.

Kane was big for a driver, but he was all toned muscle and stellar reflexes. His body knew exactly how to handle any race car he drove without having to think about it. Most people never guessed that he was a millionaire because they couldn't see beyond his shaggy hair, relaxed style, and easy smile. It was the same reason they never suspected that he was a merciless, lethal motherfucker. And he ran the underground racing world down here like the Mafia ran New York.

But he was as much my brother as Fox or any of the other Iron Rogues. He had helped me keep eyes and ears on Blakely over the years since I didn't fully trust her dad's MC.

"How was the reunion?" he asked, his smirk growing, making me want to break his jaw.

"You owe me a grand," Viper announced, and my gaze whipped around to see him grinning at Kane. "Told you she'd forgive him in less than a day."

Kane sighed and pushed away from the door, then shoved his hands in his pockets. "Can't believe you called it."

"We don't mess around when it comes to our women."

"Yeah, but I personally saw how pissed she was when someone mentioned him over the past two years. I really thought it would take him at least a week—"

"You were making bets on me and Blakely?" I snarled, interrupting their banter. There wasn't a lot of heat behind my irritation, though. It would have made me a fucking hypocrite, considering I'd been in on the betting pools when my other brothers had been going after their old ladies.

Kane shrugged and turned around, walking inside the building without another word. This wasn't unusual behavior for him. When he was done with something, he moved on, and you either went with or were left behind. I couldn't fucking wait for the day when he met his woman because the right one was gonna knock him on his ass.

Viper and I followed Kane, walking into the offices that looked out over an extremely large garage where his employees were working on multiple race cars. We ascended a set of stairs that led us to Kane's office. He walked around his desk and stood facing the window that took up almost the entirety of the back wall. It gave him a view of the entire track below and most of the stadium seating.

"You bring it?" he asked as he pivoted and settled his piercing stare on me, his expression sober.

I pulled a folded sheet of paper from the pocket of my cut and held it up with two fingers before placing it on the desktop.

Kane nodded. "I owe you."

"Bullshit," I grunted.

A year ago, Kane had discovered that someone was pushing drugs at his races. Like my MC, he did his best to keep that shit away from his establishments, but it was impossible to keep them out completely, considering the crowds that attended the events. But this time, it was a date rape drug, and he had zero tolerance for that shit.

He'd immediately called Fox, and we'd all been working hard to identify the supplier. But the dealers were too fucking scared of him to talk. Deviant had written a program to go through all of the security footage for the races and detect certain situations that might be a handoff. However, between the Iron Rogues and Kane's organization, plus the places we owned together, it was a fuck ton of video to get through.

A few times, he caught a buy but wasn't able to identify the players because of angles or crowd obstructions or whatever. Then last week, he finally got us an ID. It was a low-level pusher, but he'd been stupid enough to lead us to his dealer, who led us to the next in the chain, and on and on until we finally found the source.

He was also a rival bookie and rumored to cheat his customers and then hurt their loved ones as "punishment" for crossing him.

Fox sent me and Viper to aid the team Kane put together to go after this guy. We were both former military special forces, and since it was my hometown, I'd be able to come for Blakely. She still had a semester of school left, but I wasn't waiting any longer, so I had irons in the fire to take care of that situation too.

Now, my plans included one more thing before I could take my woman home.

"You don't owe me for helping to wipe out an evil son of a bitch. We're fucking brothers, Kane. I always have your back. But I could use your help with something."

Kane pulled out his chair and sat down. "Go on."

I filled him in on the situation with Blakely's foster brother and parents. When I finished, he still looked relaxed and at ease, like always. But I'd known him long enough to see the slight hardening of his jaw and the ice chips in his eyes.

"You have a plan?" he asked.

I nodded and told him what I'd come up with. He made a couple of suggestions that were devious as hell and a little bit twisted, which was why I'd asked his advice.

"After we handle Comdon, give me twenty-four hours to get everything in place."

"Done," I replied. "Thanks, man."

"Don't thank me," he muttered, raising an eyebrow as his piercing gaze drilled into me. "We're brothers. I always have your back."

"Enough of this mushy shit," Viper snarked. "My trigger finger is getting itchy."

I rolled my eyes and reached out to slap the back of his head. "You know where the armory is. Get ready to head out."

"Tatum should already be there," Kane said, referring to his number two. He was also his younger brother and an arms specialist. Not to mention a world class race car driver.

Tatum had a laid-back attitude and quick smile that hid the fact that he was a little bit psycho, which came in handy when someone needed torturing…or when he was racing.

"New shit arrived this morning," Kane continued. "Since then, he's been locked away playing with his toys."

Viper grinned and spun on his heel, leaving without a comment or backward glance.

Kane pointedat the gate at the back of the property, and I nodded. I looked at Viper and gestured for him to go. He slinked out of the tree line and approached the cinder block wall, coming to a stop just out of sight.

The property was several acres, but Comdon had every entrance and exit patrolled. The wall surrounding the house was at least seven feet tall, and it would have been a decent defense if it didn't have four gates and trees just outside that were high enough for a sniper perch.

Kane's men had scouted the area earlier and reported seeing a fucking army of guards. Comdon was obviously paranoid. Rightly so.

Viper knelt on the ground and set down the duffel he was carrying. After opening it, he dug around until he found the right items. Among Viper's many skills, he was extremely talented in the demolition department. He and Tatum had cooked up a couple of explosives to blow the gate without making a huge ruckus. The charges would blow the hinges, but the explosion would be relatively quiet.

I met Kane's gaze again and jerked my chin toward one of the trees. He signaled to Tatum, who grinned and immediately climbed the tree, somehow doing it without a sound. After settling, he lifted the rifle slung around his back and checked the scope. Then he found a comfortable perch and tapped his thigh twice with two fingers.

A shadow passed by the gate, and Kane glanced at his watch before tapping his thigh twice. Tatum's shoulders moved as he exhaled slowly, and then his finger twitched on the trigger.

The shadow behind the gate hit the ground, and I drew a circle above my head to signal Viper. We had less than five minutes before one of the other guards would radio the dead guy to check in.

Viper stepped out of the shadows and quickly placed his charges, then grabbed his bag and jogged back over to our hiding spot. His thumb pressed on the screen of his phone, and there was a pop pop pop pop before the gate wobbled and fell.

One of Kane's guys ran over and retrieved the radio from the fallen guard. It crackled, and someone spoke in Spanish. Our guy replied in a low, bored grumble so his voice wouldn't be recognized.

Kane motioned for us to step close, then he whispered, "Shoot to kill. I don't want a single one of these fuckers feeding their shit to anyone ever again."

Each of us nodded, then proceeded with the plan we'd devised.

It took less than ten minutes for Viper, Kane, Tatum, and I to get into the house. I didn't know where Comdon had hired his security from, but they were useless. I even managed to sneak all the way up to one and snap his neck.

Tatum rolled his eyes and muttered, "Serves him right for being such a dumb fuck."

When we walked into the house, we split into twos, and while the brothers went up the stairs to search the second floor, Viper and I made our way through the bottom. We didn't find anyone until we reached the kitchen. There were two security guys and three people huddled around a small table.

I caught Viper's eye and tilted my head back toward the hallway. He backed up into the shadows while I plastered myself next to the doorway. A loud crash came from Viper's direction, and just as I'd assumed would happen, the two henchmen came rushing out to see what was going on. Almost simultaneously, they dropped silently to the ground, one with a bullet in the back of his skull and the other with a hole right between the eyes.

The woman and two men at the table were standing when I peeked back into the room. I expected them to look nervous or on guard, but with one glance at their faces, I realized they were all blitzed.

Sighing, I stepped fully into the kitchen and shot the two men in quick succession. Then I hesitated because it went against my nature to harm a woman. "I don't want to kill you," I informed her quietly. "But I will if you make one sound."

She nodded, but the movement must have messed with her equilibrium because she swayed and passed out, crumpling to the floor.

"Fucking hell," I muttered.

"You've got quite a way with the ladies," Kane grunted from right behind me.

I glanced over my shoulder and raised an eyebrow.

"It's done," he said, answering my unspoken question.

"What do you want to do with her?" Viper asked as he strolled into the room.

"I recognize her from Deviant's research," I murmured. "She's his current fuck buddy. Spent three years in prison for drug possession and has only been out for six months. Drop her at the nearest police station"—I gestured to the drug paraphernalia on the table that was clearly packaged for selling—"with some of that shit on her and she'll be charged with a first-degree felony and get at least ten years. Plus whatever they give her for breaking parole."

Tatum had joined us by the time I finished, and he scratched his chin as he spoke in a thoughtful tone. "I can get in touch with Flemming and make sure the charges stick."

"Detective on our payroll," Kane explained.

"Other option is to take her with us and see what she knows," Torin, one of Kane's right-hand men, suggested. "Comdon answered to someone."

Kane's gaze fell on me for a moment before he answered. "Take her to the cabin and let her dry out while I handle something else for the next couple of days."

I nodded my thanks since I knew he was putting off the interrogation to help me.

"I'll call in the cleaners." Tatum pressed on the screen of his phone, then put it to his ear. "Clean up on aisle five," he said before hanging up.

Kane rolled his eyes and swirled his finger in the air. "Move out."

When we arrived back at Kane's building, Viper and I stayed on our bikes. I was more than ready to get back to my girl.

"Shouldn't need more than twenty-four hours," Kane told me, standing next to my motorcycle with his arms crossed over his chest. "But we got some of what we needed at the house, so it might be less."

"Thanks, man," I replied. We shook hands, then he lifted his chin in farewell before pivoting and stalking to the entrance of his warehouse.

It was late when we arrived back at the clubhouse, and I didn't want to wake Blakely, especially since she'd need her energy for what I had planned when she woke up. So I stripped out of my clothes and crawled into the bed, then pulled her into my arms. Taking a deep breath, I filled my lungs with her cinnamon scent and fell into a contented sleep.