Adrenaline pumped through my veins as I walked into the wolf den.
I stepped through the doorway, careful to keep my face blank.
“She’s alone,” the criminal behind me said.
“You pat her down?” Dev asked without looking up.
“She’s wearing a tight, slutty dress. Where would she be able to hide a weapon?”
Dev sighed like he was tired. “Get the fuck out.”
Duly chastised, the half-witted criminal slunk from the room and shut the door.
Five men, including Dev, all sat around a card table. Each of them had a scantily clad woman sitting on his lap, but none of them paid their toys any attention. Dev hadn’t even glanced up when I entered the room.
Women were nothing here.
With a quick scan of the table, I realized they were playing Texas Hold ’Em and were at the turn card.
I took a moment to study each man playing. Dev was the only one wearing leather, the other four were all of different nationalities and wore suits. International businessmen?
Criminals for sure, if they were associating with Dev.
I watched them hold their cards and examine them, and when the Asian man shifted in his suit, I recognized his tell and knew he had a stellar hand before the river and there was no bluff about it.
Dev placed a five hundred dollar bet. The Asian man matched it and raised another five hundred.
The other three folded.
The dealer dealt the river card and both men checked after a moment eyeballing each other. Dev gestured with his chin at the Asian man who showed his two cards.
Royal flush.
I couldn’t stop the smirk that fell across my lips when Dev cursed and threw down pocket aces.
Considering the cards on the flop, it was a bad hand, thought strong only by weak-minded men.
“Fuck,” Dev cursed before lifting his eyes to mine. He said nothing, but instead chose to rake his gaze down my body. I forced myself to stand completely still and act like it didn’t feel like a million little insects were crawling across my skin.
He smirked. “Nice cast.”
“What’s the buy-in?” I asked ignoring Dev’s dig. My gaze flitted away from Dev to peer around the room.
One man—the Slavic—stared at me in curiosity, but barked something out in his native tongue. It was grating to my ears.
“You don’t have the kind of cash to buy in to one of my games, darlin’.” He leered, leaning back in his chair, his hand palming the backside of the blonde perched on his lap.
I opened my clutch and tossed out a packet of cocaine.
It landed in the center of the card table with a soft thud.
“What about now?” I asked softly. “Is that enough?”
His eyes darkened. “Everyone out.” He lightly smacked the girl’s butt, making her squeal. She jumped up and sidled around the table and then out the door. Her compatriots followed suit and so did the men who’d been sitting at Dev’s card table.
The door closed with finality.
I took it upon myself to pull out a chair and sit, spine straight, legs crossed.
“You’ve been holding out on me. I knew it.” He reached for the packet of cocaine and then took the next few moments to sample it.
“Does your business partner know about your love of his product?” I asked mildly.
Dev’s eyes were hazy. “How’s your friend? The pretty blonde with the stellar rack? Oh, that’s right.” His smile was cruel. “She’s dead.”
My rage was icy and intense. My blood froze and it was all I could do to control myself. But it wouldn’t do me any favors to let Dev under my skin. I couldn’t let him cloud my judgment with emotion.
“I guess we’re done here.” I placed my hands on the table and stood. “Good luck explaining to your business associates that you nearly recovered their massive shipment of cocaine, only to let it fall through your fingers.”
His hand lashed out to grab my right wrist and squeeze. I felt the bones crunch underneath his relentless grip. “Want me to give you a matching cast for the this arm, you fuckin’ bitch?”
I didn’t answer, and I didn’t wince even as the pain intensified.
“What’s your angle, darlin’? Because I know you didn’t walk in here with a packet of coke to dangle like a carrot in front of my face. You’re up to something.”
“Damn right I am,” I said mildly. “You mind letting go of me?”
He squeezed it one final time and then released me. “What the fuck is this? Why are you here?”
“You brought the cartel to Waco,” I said. “Let’s pretend I give two shits about that. I don’t. What I do care about is you fucking with me and my livelihood and shooting at women and children in a park.” I cocked my head to the side. “You seem awfully calm for a man who owes millions to the Garcia cartel. You’re still alive, which tells me they don’t know that Richie stole the shipment from you. But the window is closing on how long you can bullshit them. Once they realize what’s going on, you’re fucked.”
“So you have it all figured out, do you?” he murmured. “You don’t know shit.”
“No?” I nodded. “Okay.” I turned to leave.
“You want something. What is it?” Dev demanded.
His words made me pause and slowly turn around to face him. “Richie left Dive Bar to me. I want you and your boys to fuck off, and stay out of it.”
“Dive Bar doesn’t exist anymore. Your man had it burned to the ground.”
“I want to rebuild and reopen it. And I do not want the Iron Horsemen attached to it. Clean slate. You will also forfeit your territory on the East side. In exchange, I’ll take you to the warehouse tonight and you can recover your shipment. And hopefully keep your head before Alejandro Garcia removes it.”
I placed my hands on the table and leaned over. “I know who you’re in bed with. I know what they’re capable of doing. Your shipment for my bar and your club stays the fuck out of the East Side of town, that’s the deal.”
“You’ve got to be shitting me,” Dev said with a rusty laugh. “I’m not giving you the East Side. Why don’t I just kill you now and be done with it?”
“Simple. My guys have moved the shipment. I no longer know where it is and won’t find out until I’m safely out of this building and call to confirm you’ve agreed to the deal. Only then do you get an address. You can show up heavy if you don’t trust us. We just want the bar. We don’t want shit to do with the cartels and the bar provides us clean money. Fuck with drug muling if you want, but keep us out of it.
“Besides, I can’t imagine you’re down for what Alejandro will do to you if he finds out you’ve crossed him by involving Richie. He certainly won’t care that Richie is dead. But if you don’t care about yourself, then maybe you care about your club?” I shook my head. “You know they won’t stop at just killing you, right? You know what they do to men who fuck them over. What do you think they do to women of the men who fuck them over?” I cocked my head to the side. “How is Sydney, by the way? She’s a freshman at A&M, isn’t she?”
His jaw tightened but he said nothing, his eyes glittering with suppressed rage. “Why did Colt send his Old Lady to negotiate for him?”