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“DID YOU SEND the text?” I ask Derek while standing at the bar inside of the Airport. I’ve been here way too much in the past couple of months.
“Yeah.” He nods, double-checking his phone. “Should be soon.”
For someone who once hated us, he’s more than willing to help us out now. Derek is the only connection we have to Mitch that Mitch won’t see coming. And since he saw the report and understands what Mitch and Rachel tried to do—and the fact that Alexa’s life is still in danger—he’s out for blood. We’ll make a King of him yet.
I tip back my rum and Coke, looking over at Titan. He stands at the other end of the bar and nods, acknowledging me. I can’t see Grave or Bones right now, but I know they’re here. We split up to cover more ground. This place is too big for one person, and we don’t want to miss anything.
“They’re here!” Derek shouts, holding his phone up to me. “In the basement playing blackjack.”
“Let’s go,” I order before throwing what’s left of my drink back and signaling to Titan. He steps away from the bar. “Respond,” I tell Derek, but he’s already typing away.
We push away from the bar and make our way through the crowd to the elevator. The basement spans the entire airport underneath. The west wing is where their jail is; the east wing is their casino. It’s nothing like Kingdom—it’s illegal and off the books. They don’t even check IDs. Anyone of any age can come down here and try their hand.
We exit the elevator, and I fall back, allowing Derek to get ahead of me. I watch him make his way through the crowd and over to a table. He slaps Mitch on the back and starts up a conversation with him. Sitting beside him is Rachel, sipping on a margarita. They have no idea what is about to hit them.
Derek leans down, whispering something in his ear. Mitch nods a few times, then turns to say something to Rachel before he gets up and walks away with Derek.
They start to walk past me, and I turn my back to them, ducking my head. Once they are out of sight, I turn and make my way over to the table. Rachel sits there playing blackjack. Removing my wallet from my back pocket, I pull out a hundred-dollar bill and toss it down while taking the seat beside her—the one Mitch was just sitting at.
“That was fast …” She trails off, looking over at me. “Cross?” She swallows nervously.
“Rachel.”
Her breathing picks up, and she looks at the dealer wide-eyed, expecting him to help her out. He won’t. They don’t get paid for this kind of shit. That’s what makes this place so dangerous for women like her and Alexa. They will turn a blind eye and walk away.
I reach out and pick up her drink. She has over half left. “Here.” I hold it out to her.
She takes it with a shaky hand. “I don’t know …”
“Shh,” I tell her, pushing her hair behind her ear, and a shiver runs through her. Leaning in, I whisper in her ear, “Drink up. You’re going to need the liquid courage.”
The ice rattles in her cup from her shaking hand holding it, but she does as I say and brings it to her lips. She takes a sip and goes to pull it away, but I put my hand under it, keeping it tilted to her lips. She can’t swallow fast enough, and it drips onto her exposed chest and shirt. “Good girl,” I praise her, and she chokes on it as I pull it away. “Let’s go for a walk.” I grab her arm and yank her from the table.
“Cross … please,” she begs, her heels trying to keep up with me. “I didn’t start that fight. Alexa attacked me.”
I laugh at her. She really has no idea what this is about. Good for her sticking to being innocent. She stays silent as I pull her down the tunnels and to the other wing of the basement. We come to the cells, and Turner stands there.
“What is this?” she asks nervously when she spots him.
“Rachel.” He nods at her. “Cross, the Kings are waiting for you.” Then he opens the door.
She goes to spin out of my hold and run away, but I grab her hair, yanking her to me. She screams out as I bend and throw her over my shoulder. She kicks her legs, and her fists pound my back the best she can, but she’s weak.
I pass the row of cells and come to the next open door. Stepping in, I see Bones, Titan, Grave, and Derek in the larger solitary cell with Mitch kneeling in the center. He has his hands zip-tied behind his back, and he has two more around his neck, but it’s not pulled tight enough to cut off his air. Not yet anyway.
I drop her in the middle, and she falls to the floor next to him. She quickly jumps to her feet, but Bones grips her hair, forcing her to her knees. “Cross …” She cries like I’m going to save her.
“I know what you did,” I tell her, not wanting to waste time. Alexa is over at Emilee and Titan’s right now with the rest of the girls. They are having a girls’ night—whatever that consists of—and I plan on crashing it and taking her home.
“What the fuck, man?” Mitch snaps, still pretending he has no fucking clue.
“No. No. I didn’t do anything,” Rachel rushes out. “It was Mitch …”
“You bitch!” He goes to throw his body into hers, but Derek grabs him by the zip ties around his neck, pulling on it, choking him.
“Look familiar?” I drop a stencil from Tit for Tat in front of her.
She begins to cry. “It wasn’t my idea.”
“You wanted her dead!” Mitch manages to get out, still fighting Derek’s grip. “You told me ... I have proof of that.”
He does. I saw the photos in the report of their text messages. He did his part to throw her under the bus and was very careful with how he worded things. I’m sure, in person, he fed her full of shit. Got her wound up by promising her the world with me once Alexa was out of it.
“It may not have been your idea, but I have footage of you inside Tit for Tat removing those from my safe.” I pulled the footage an hour ago, and sure enough, it was her. Thirty minutes before I got the call about Lucky’s being on fire.
Bones shoves her forward, letting go of her hair, and she buries her face in her hands, now sobbing.
“Did he tell you that you could have me if Alexa was out of the picture?” I ask.
She nods at my question.
I kneel in front of her. Reaching up, I push some hair from her tear-streaked face, and she flinches from my touch. “I was done with you before Alexa came into my life,” I tell her.
Her red-rimmed eyes widen at my words, and I stand to my full height.
“I’m sorry,” she sobs.
“Too late,” I say. Pulling out my Zippo, I flip it open and strike it across my jeans.
“Wait! No!” Mitch chokes out. “I have something … diamonds …”
I flip it closed, putting out the flame. “You what?” Bones is the one who asks.
He swallows and licks his lips. “I know where the diamonds that you’re looking for are.”
I hear Turner step into the cell behind me.
“He’s bluffing,” Derek hisses, yanking on his zip ties and forcing Mitch to look up at the ceiling.
“What is it that you know?” I ask him, nodding to Derek that it’s okay for him to let up.