Page 102 of Rest In Pieces

I ease myself out of bed, careful not to wake her, and head to the bathroom to wash my face and brush my teeth, but I can still faintly taste her when I lick my lips. It’s three a.m., and I’m wide awake. I have to be up in a couple hours to check how tight a client’s security is before heading back to set later, so I figure there’s no better time to get it done than now.

I pull on a pair of jeans and my boots, a long-sleeved Henley, and my cut before grabbing my cell phone and gun. I head to my office so I don’t disturb Amity.

It seems like the party is finally dying down as I pass a few brothers heading to their rooms. I open the door to my office and settle down in front of my computer. I log in and start workingwhen my cell phone dings. I frown as I check my phone and see a message from Monica. I open it and curse.

I’m scared. It feels like someone’s watching me. Someone keeps knocking on my door, but when I look, there is nobody there.

I text the prospect who’s on her tonight, but don’t get an answer. I give it a few minutes and try again, but still no reply. I call him, but when it goes straight to voicemail, I have no choice but to ride out and check it out myself, especially if there’s a chance the prospect is hurt.

I get up and head into the main area. I look around to see who’s still here. I spot Hannibal first. He’s in the corner watching Kiki dance.

I walk over to him. “You drink tonight?” He doesn’t usually drink much, but with Havoc out and here, he might’ve made an exception.

“Had a beer earlier, switched to water hours ago. What do you need?”

“Got a text from Monica. She’s spooked, and I can’t get hold of Hoops. I’m gonna ride over there, but I don’t know what I’m walking into.”

“I’ll ride out with you.” He stands up, shooing Kiki away as he grabs his phone from the table and shoves it into his pocket.

I head out with him on my heels, glad I left my keys in my pocket earlier. We don’t say anything as we get to our bikes and put on our helmets. What I like about Hannibal is that he doesn’t feel the need to make small talk to fill the silence.

The roads are quiet, so it only takes us thirty minutes to get to the hotel. When I pull in, I see Hoops’ bike but no Hoops. I signal for Hannibal to go around the building from the left while I take the right. He pulls out his gun and nods. I pull my own gun and head in the opposite direction.

I’m on the far side when I see someone moving behind the bushes. “Hands where I can see them, motherfucker, or I’ll shoot your fucking dick off.”

“G? That you?”

“What the fuck, Hoops? You don’t answer your fucking phone anymore?” I snarl as I stomp over to him just as Hannibal rounds the corner.

“It died. I was on bar duty at the party and forgot to check it. I wasn’t about to leave my post to find somewhere to charge it.”

I sigh and put my gun away. We need a few more prospects, especially now that Hicks is gone. Hoops and Dice are pulling double shifts on everything. Even though prospecting’s supposed to be hard, it shouldn’t stretch them so thin that they make rookie mistakes like this.

“What are you doing over here anyway?”

“Heard banging. Came to check it out. Found the trash cans knocked over.” He points to the two trash cans lying on the ground like someone knocked them over in a hurry to get away.

“You see anything or anyone?”

“No, nothing. Why?”

“Monica texted me. She’s spooked.”

“Shit, why didn’t she signal me from the window?” he asks, irritated.

“Maybe she was worried someone else out here would see her,” Hannibal suggests.

“Either way, I need to check on her. Go back to your post, Hoops.”

I head up the stairs to the top floor and look for the right room. When I find it, I thump on the door, feeling Hannibal behind me. “Open up, Monica. It’s me, G.”

A few seconds later, the door swings open, and a barely dressed Monica throws herself into my arms. I keep my handsoff her and glance over at Hannibal, who’s smirking at me. Asshole.

“Let’s go inside, okay?”

She pulls back but still grips my arm. Her eyes flick to Hannibal, and she visibly shies away from him. “Please, come in.” She drags me inside, making Hannibal chuckle quietly as he closes the door behind us.

“Why don’t you take a seat and tell us what happened?”

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