Page 75 of Silver Linings

Gunner’s eyes drifted to the picture of the bastard who had tried to take Lily on the board in front of him. There was nothing in his eyes. No remorse. No regret. Nothing. Images of Cole putting his hands on Lily flooded his mind. She swore he hadn’t hurt her, but Gunner had seen the fear in her eyes when she had to tell a deputy all the details of what had happened.

“But he isn’t a fucking local, so where the fuck does that leave us, Max? He told Lily that his boss wasn’t happy with him for not kidnapping her the first time. Who the fuck could he be talking about if not them?”

“I don’t have that answer for you, Gunner, but I do have information on the next step we’re taking against the Santoros.”

“Fill us in.” Hawk’s normal flippant attitude was nowhere to be found.

“My team in Dallas is setting up a raid on one of the suspected warehouses where we believe the Santoros are moving women through. We want to coordinate the raid to be the most effective it can be at identifying any players outside of Antonio and the family members we are already watching.”

“What do you need us to do?”

“Have you heard of the Chaos Knights Motorcycle Club?”

The men sat silent.

“Right, well, their club is mainly on the outskirts of Dallas, and law enforcement has been watching them on suspected distribution of this new hyper potent drug called Xyn. They’ve had twenty-five overdose calls in the last week for it, but haven’t been able to pinpoint the manufacturers or the main distributors.”

“You think the Santoros are involved?”

“We’ve seen a few lower level family members in the area the MC claims is their territory and things between them have seemed…friendly.”

“Okay, so the Santoros are going to jump on this Xyn and push it? Is that what you’re thinking?”

“Maybe. Maybe not. What really got our interest in the Chaos Knights was their recent change of leadership. Their old president died two months ago in a shootout. The new president is apparently putting out feelers for a new venture.”

“Let me guess,” Hawk said. “They’re jumping on the chance to work with the Santoros trafficking women?”

“That’s what we’re hearing,” Max confirmed.

“So, what? You split your team between the MC and the warehouse and we divide ourselves up to help?”

“No. We’ll be executing the raid at the warehouse, but your task isn’t to apprehend anyone.”

“Boring,” Hawk mumbled.

“Yeah, it probably will be, but it’s still important we get this part taken care of, too. Gage, can you bring up that picture I sent you?”

“Sure.” Gage projected a satellite picture of what looked to be a small compound on the wall behind Max.

“The FBI has two agents undercover with the Chaos Knights. According to one agent, their next Xyn drop is in three nights. It’s going to take place outside Dallas in a remote hideout the MC owns.”

“So, we’re what? Glorified photographers?”

Max nodded. “This is what we need, and my team can’t be in two places at once. We suspect someone from the Santoro family will be there to watch the drop and see if the MC is worth working with. You guys get this evidence, I’ll see if I can get you onto the take down team for the Santoros when the time comes.”

“Hey sweet girl. How about you give your mama a break and come see your dad? I missed you today.”

“She missed you too,” Lily said as she placed the baby in Gunner’s arms.

“What did you guys get up to while you were in town?”

“Oh.” Shit! Had Stone said something to him? She’d spent all afternoon feeling like an idiot after she got home from seeing Sloane’s office. Honestly, she already loved the idea of working so much that she didn’t want her little dizzy spell to prime Gunner for saying no. “A little of this and a little of that. Sage needed a couple of new bodysuits. I hope it’s okay that I bought some of the next two sizes for her. I used the card you gave me.”

“Of course it is, Lil. Get her whatever she needs.”

“Thank you. You know, I was nervous at first about fitting in here, but Silver Springs is so charming and the people are so sweet.” Lily handed the warm bottle to Gunner. “She’s probably going to be fussing in a few minutes for that. Figured we’d get ahead of the crying.”

“Smart.” Gunner’s eyes closed slightly as he looked Lily up and down. The sight was unnerving and her stomach rolled. “So, why did I hear from Sloane today that you were interested in the receptionist’s job at her practice?”

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