"Well?" Priest widened his stance.
"I made the visit with Walker. It's done, and the news will be shared." Whip never wasted a moment. "I'm going after Big."
Curley asked, "When?"
"As soon as I check on my woman." He looked at Paco. "Will you stay here tonight and keep her safe?"
"Absolutely," said Paco.
"Is Aaron and Jerry here?" Rick pulled out the leather strap holding his hair back. "I want them to be here for Tracy."
Whip nodded, approving of his choices. Those two MC brothers had proved their worth to Tracy many times over when Whip and Rick were in prison for separate crimes.
"What's your plan?" asked Priest.
Knowing the celebration over today's changes would wait until he took care of business, he made sure that there would be no mistakes going forward. They couldn't afford to fuck up. He had one chance.
"I made sure the address Paco dug up for Big was the same one Twyla had for him. The house is on a half-acre plot, approximately four hundred feet from the nearest neighbor. I can go in the backway on foot, bypassing the houses on the next road." He looked at Priest. "If I can use the suppressor, I'd feel better about doing the job in that location. I can't guarantee the neighbors won't be home."
"I'll go in with you," added Rick.
He turned to his brother-in-law. "No. I want to make sure you come back to Tracy."
Rick rubbed his whiskered jaw. "I'd feel better making sure someone covers your ass. Tracy will never forgive me if something happens to her brother."
"Nothing is going to happen." He held Rick's gaze. "I have a woman to come back to, a sister who doesn't deserve to lose another family member. I know, brother, that she needs you here."
Rick raised his finger, acknowledging that he'd heard and accepted Whip's decision.
He turned to Priest. "I don't want any cleanup to come in afterward."
"That could get messy for you. If you forget one thing, it's over for you. They won't let you out of prison this time," said Priest.
"It was messy when Cusclan killed my parents." His voice hardened. "I want to leave tonight on Cusclan's doorstep by using their own marked weapon. Let the police trace it back to them. If there are any of them still alive after the news spreads."
He counted on everyone involved, who'd bought an illegal weapon from Cusclan over the last couple of months, to have heard the news by midnight. That gave them time to get rid of the guns or sand out the deliberately made marks.
The only one that will remain is the one Twyla stole. He'd wipe it clean before and after the murder.
When the police find out about the murder, they'd follow the evidence. They won't be looking for Tarkio. They'll go straight to Cusclan—after Tarkio informs their associate at the police department about Cusclan's marked guns.
"All right, let's wrap this up." Priest stepped backward. "No one starts the celebration until Whip gets back."
"One hour." Whip walked toward the door. "Be ready to ride out."
He understood Priest would go with him to where Whip would leave his Harley and go the rest of the way alone on foot. His president would stay out of sight of the house, ready to protect him if things went south.
He opened the door and stepped into the clubhouse. Gazing around the room, he found Twyla standing behind the couch, near where Tracy sat with Curley's old lady and her childhood friend, Faye. She spotted him and rushed to his side.
Catching her, he brought her close, looping his arm around her neck, and put his lips on her ear. "Good?"
"Yes." She looked up at him. "Can we go home?"
"Not yet." He kissed her. "Soon."
She knew something was going down. It was her first complete lockdown. Her frazzled nerves on top of her constant worry that she'd ruined things between her and Tracy set her on edge.
Over her head, he viewed Tracy walking toward the door where she met Rick and instantly climbed up his body to wrap her arms and legs around him.