Page 22 of I Stop Somewhere Waiting For You

MAV

The sun’s high in the sky as we stand in the middle of Corlies Park. I glance at my watch.

11:57 AM.

Nicky should be rolling up any second. Bent’s at my right, with T and Finn flanking us from behind.

“You were with her this morning.” Bentley speaks low so only I can hear.

My jaw tics in annoyance, and I can feel the tendons in my forearms tighten as I flex.

“Don’t try to deny it, Mav. I followed you out to Dutchess. You’re gonna get yourself killed.”

“Bentley,” I say calmly as I see Nicky’s Wrangler come into view in the distance, “I want you to listen very carefully to what I’m about to say, because this is the only time you will get this warning. The next time you get the urge to follow me without my permission or decide to set foot anywhere near her unless I explicitly instruct you to, I want you to think of one line that sums up how you would like people to remember you. And my one kindness to you will be engraving it on your fucking tombstone after I put you six feet under.” My head turns to face him. “Acknowledge, soldier.”

Bentley glares at me, his posture rigid. “Heard.” He spits the word as though it’s laced with poison.

I can tell he’s pissed and, to be honest, I’m not enjoying this any more than he is. Bent’s mom practically raised me alongside him, considering my parents weren’t worth the shit you’d step in. But he forgets his place, and as my second-in-command, that just can’t happen. Bent’s interactions with me set the tone for the other soldiers, and I can’t have people stepping out of line.

My gaze swivels back straight ahead just as Nicky rolls up. He hops out, his entourage hot on his tail.

“Mav.” He nods as he approaches, and I lift my chin to him in acknowledgment. “I appreciate you coming today. I had an incident occur over in my territory and I’m just doing due diligence.”

I’m not trying to be here all day, so I decide to take everyone by surprise and get straight to the point. “You wanna know if I nabbed that kid Saturday night. Trent. I did.”

JP and Tommy reach for their guns, but Nicky holds up his hand, instructing them to stop.

None of my guys even flinch. Even with Bent pissed at me, we’re so in-fucking-sync he knows when and when not to pull his piece. Nicky better tighten up his crew.

“That’s a problem for me, Mav. Care to explain and maybe I won’t put a bullet in you?”

“Kid was a piece of shit, Nick. Assaulted someone I care about. A girl.” I see something resembling compassion pass over Nicky’s face. It’s brief, disappearing as quickly as it surfaced, but it damn near has me coming unhinged. Because that one fleeting look was all it took to confirm my worst fear.

Compassion stems from understanding. I see it all over his face. Nicky’s gonna let this slide because even though he doesn’t know who I did it for, he understands why I did it… because he’s been in this position before. I inhale deep as I finally allow myself to acknowledge what I’ve suspected for some time now. Some piece of shit raped J. Some disgusting fuck raped his baby sister, and he did to them what I did to Trent – put him in the ground.

“You should have come to me, Mav.”

“You’re right.” I nod. “I wasn’t thinking straight. I reacted. I’m prepared to pay reparations.”

Nicky’s jaw clenches. He glances off in the distance, before returning his gaze to me. “Five grand,” he spits as he points at me, “for playing in my sandbox without an invite.”

“Done.” I gesture to T, who pulls an envelope from inside his jacket and crosses midline to hand it to Rico. Once T’s positioned behind me again, I look to Nicky. “We good?”

“Yeah, we’re good. Don’t pull this shit again, Mav.”

I acknowledge him with a firm nod before we turn toward the truck.

“Yo, Mav!” Nicky calls out and I spin to be met with a softening expression. “I would have given him to you.”

I offer up a halfhearted tight-lipped smile. “I appreciate it, Nick.”

He nods as we stare at each other for a beat while something unspoken passes between us. After a few seconds, he makes a twirling gesture with his finger and his crew piles back inside the Jeep. I watch them drive off, and for the first time ever, I feel respect toward Nicky C.

I toss the keys to Bent as I slide inside the passenger seat.

Carmine’s seventy-two hours are up today, and that stubborn old fuck doesn’t know how to fail, so I know I will have answers in hand soon.

And I have never been so terrified of what I will find.

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