Page 7 of Sinful Secrets

Pounding on the door, I yell, “Arturo is growing impatient with your excuses, Bruno. I’ll give you three days to pay up or life is going to get worse for you.”

I leave the laundromat and head next door to the insurance agency. Glancing through the storefront windows, I watch as a couple of guys inside walk toward the backdoor.

“Fuckers.”

I barge through the front door, and the other men immediately stand. I don’t know any of these men.

“Don’t start anything.” I warn with my pistol by my side.

The man closest to me holds his hands up. “Hey, man, we don’t want any trouble. Just take what you want and then leave.”

“What the fuck are you talking about? I’m not here to rob you.”

The man puts his hands down and lets out a shaky sigh. “Then who are you, what do you want, and why do you have a gun?”

“I’m here on behalf of Arturo Marino to collect your dues.”

Do they not know about the dues or are they trying to get out of paying them?

“The business can no longer pay for the Marino’s protection or supplies because the gang robbed us. They took all of our money and product.”

“What the fuck? Did you not have your guns on you, or are you too stupid?”

The guy glances around at his co-workers. “They caught us by surprise.”

“How?” I glare at each man, demanding to know how they could fuck up this badly.

How does a gang catch you by surprise at an office with an entire storefront of windows?

His gaze moves to the floor. “We were trying to make a deal with them to move some of the product.”

“Your product? Or Arturo’s product?” I don’t give a fuck about their own shit, but Arturo’s product is worth twenty grand, and he’s expecting the money.

“Both.”

“Fuck.” Rage fills my veins.

How are these guys so fucking incompetent? Is this what we can expect in the future? Because if so, Arturo and Joey are fucked.

“What gang was responsible?”

Deep in my gut, I know who they are about to say, but I need to hear him say it.

“The Emerald City Reapers.”

I grab my phone and call Joey.

“How is it going?” He asks, sounding out of breath. Ever since Francesca got shot, Joey has been in the gym every day.

“Not good. We’ve got trouble with a new gang. They call themselves the Emerald City Reapers, and they are hitting up all our spots.”

“I will take care of it. You can stop for now until I can get more information.”

“Alright, but call if you need anything.”

“Yeah.” He replies.

“Are you okay?”

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