“Summer’s receiving calls. Threats. The Links are looking to collect. I only need you there to back me up.”
Except for that.
I groaned. “I thought you were past the Links and moved on from that life. What about Summer? The baby?” Guilt ate at his features as he ran the pad of his thumb over the flint wheel of the lighter, igniting and watching the flame fade away. Over and over. “What do they want?” I finally asked with my hands in the air.
The vein in his neck popped, making the angel wings tattoo come to life. Trav’s eyes moved from where the flame disappeared to me. “They want me to finish the job I was arrested for.”
“How much?” I’d rather pay them off and finally get him out of this mess. There wasn’t an amount I wouldn’t pay for Summer and their baby’s safety. He’d finally got his life in order. How long has he been keeping this from me?
“I’m not asking you for money.” The lighter disappeared inside his fist as he leaned closer. “I’m meeting them at Jack’s. The pub in Ockendon. It’s an hour from here—”
“I know where it is,” I seethed.
“You can stay in the car. I just need someone there in case the conversation goes south.”
“South …” I laughed incredulously, “South. You’re walking in and saying what? Thank you but no thanks, I’m out. You can’t be serious, Trav. What direction are you expecting this to go? East? They’re not going to let you out until you get the job done. And even then, I’d be shocked it would ever be over.” Travis had asked me because he knew I’d never say no, taking advantage of my humanity. However, my main focus was on finding Mia.
Travis answered my turbulent thoughts, “You’re right. I’m sorry for dragging you into this. I don’t know what else to do. I can’t let anything happen to Summer. To the baby. I’m desperate here. It’s like no matter how hard I try, I can’t escape the past … I. Can’t. Run. Fast. Enough.”
In the face of my boundless heart, Travis and I had piled into his banger. Though the hour drive was silent, my head, heart, and soul screamed for Mia. It was painful being this far from her. I understood Travis’s fear, the reason I’d gotten into his car, to begin with. No matter how hard I tried, it was as if the entire world was against the two of us being together, our love tested. I was desperate but had no direction on which way to go. Lost. I was fucking lost.
“You staying?” Travis asked from the driver’s side once we pulled up to the white standalone building. We couldn’t see in through the blacked-out windows to Jack’s, but there were numerous cars out front. Expensive cars. They were here—the Links.
I shook my head, climbed out of the car, and stretched my legs. Travis was my friend, and the hour drive gave me time to think this through. His head popped from over the hood on the other side. “I have a plan, but you have to follow my lead.” I pulled my hood over my head and peered back over at him, resting two hands over the top of the car. “Do you trust me?”
“With my life.”
My hands tapped the hood once, and we took off inside. The bell chimed, acknowledging our presence. Travis stepped around me and nodded his head over to the bar, where a group of three men huddled. I’d been around intimidating men my entire life between the business Oscar was in, and the johns Mum used to bring home.
“Travis, you brought a friend,” the smallest of the three greeted Trav with a grip on the shoulder and nodded in my direction, “How was your time?”
Patrons of the bar eyed our interaction before going back to their day drinking. This was the norm around here in Ockendon—at Jack’s. Five men with tattoos in black at this hour only meant dodgy business. I stood behind Travis with my arms crossed over my chest.
The Links were just that, links made up of petty crimes and drug deals to fund a more prominent trade at the top—a pyramid scheme. If a bottom link snapped, the organization still held strong.
“Have a seat,” a voice stated from a stool behind the other two. “Doris, a round for my friends.” The bartender dropped two glasses over the bar in my peripheral. My eyes stayed glued to the man who radiated arrogance, legs parted, posture relaxed. Most likely packing behind his excessively loose jeans and jacket. “Are you going to introduce me?”
Travis stepped to the side to reveal me, and that’s when his eyes found mine.
Dex Sullivan.
He chuckled and ran a palm down his face. “Baby Oscar, is that you?” Dex stood, and the other two men backed up, giving the king room. He placed both hands on my shoulders and searched my eyes. “It is you,” he grinned, “It’s been a long time, Oliver.”
“Not long enough.”
Dex gripped my chin to get a better look, and I narrowed my eyes. Oscar and Dex were mates growing up, always in competition with one another, racing up the ladder of crime. Oscar put together White Fox, losing his best mate in the process. Because of envy and greed, the two had a falling out. It seemed Dex went to the competition. “I’ve been meaning to thank you for slamming your brother. Tosser deserved it, yeah?” Dex swiped the drink from the bar and shoved it into my chest. “To Oliver!”
“To Oliver!” The regulars shouted in unison.
“Drink up, mate.” Dex flashed a menacing white smile. “Doris, let’s do another. This is a celebration.” He twirled his finger, and my hand gripped the glass before chugging it and slamming it over the bar face down. Travis’s brows snapped together, and I shook my head. It wasn’t the time to explain. Dex and I had more important things to discuss. “Oliver Masters, the boy who spits on fanny before he smashes,” Dexter chuckled, “You know, we call it OJ’ing now. You’re a fucking legend, baby O.”
“Here’s the deal,” I didn’t have time to schmooze, “I’ve come into a situation where I need services.”
Dex pressed his lips together and dropped his head, then peered up at me through humorous eyes. “Just like your brother, Oliver.” He gripped my shoulder, led me to a stool, and shoed the rest of his men away as Travis stayed quiet at my side.
“I’m taking the job for Travis. Show my commitment. But I need some things in return.”
Dex grinned. “We don’t pay in favors, little O.”
“I don’t need the money. I need services. One, Travis is off the hook infinitely. He’s no longer doing the Links bidding. Free and clear, he’s out.”
“You’re going to have to put more on the table if you’re asking for two things and only completing one job.”
“No, you’re missing the point. Travis isn’t working with the Links any longer, period. This job I’m doing is to show you my commitment. The deal is, you find me someone, and if you do, I can get you something you’ve always wanted.” Making a deal with Dex Sullivan was a huge risk. If there were one person equally dirty and hungry for money as Oscar, it would be Dex, who happened to have the connections I needed. And, it seemed as if the dicey and cunning cards rose from Hell and fell at my feet. Perfect timing.
Dex tilted his head. “And what do I want?”