Page 11 of Grave Curse

“Still, it’s better to have two pairs of eyes on it—”

“No, you were right the first time, Ajax. This doesn’t sound like H’s way of doing things,” I cut in before Ajax’s insecuritieslanded him in a world of hurt with Romeo. I didn’t have time for stupid in-fighting. “I’m not even sure our club’s affiliation with Thirsty’s is commonly known.”

“Our affiliation with The Last Stitch strip joint is well-known, since we took it from that shitty little mobster who kidnapped Loki’s woman a few years back,” Romeo went on, once again consulting the notes on his phone. “The manager at The Last Stitch reported an incident that happened overnight that caught my attention, and I’d like your take on it.”

“Let’s hear it.”

“At around midnight last night, a man came in, walked up to the bartender and asked where the payphone was.”

“Payphone?” Zee muttered almost to himself, looking perplexed. “Shit, what even is that?”

Romeo nodded. “Exactly. Since payphones have gone the way of the dinosaur since the advent of cell phones, the bartender told him he was basically shit out of luck. The man then asked if he could use the bar’s private line. There’s a decrepit old landline in the back, but since patrons aren’t allowed back there, the bartender said no. That was when the man whipped a crowbar out of his coat and began wailing on the bartender, who has a broken arm, wrist and cheekbone for his troubles. The attacker then hopped onstage and went to town on the exotic dancer, who tried to run but got tripped up by her heels according to the reports, and he basically destroyed her. She’s currently undergoing surgery to relieve the pressure in her swelling brain. No one knows if she’ll make it, or what condition she’ll ultimately be in if she does.”

“Motherfucker.” Lasso, Misty’s man, former Montana rodeo star and head fabricator and designer at Ride Or Die, spoke for the first time. The look of profound disgust on his lean, clean-shaven face didn’t surprise me; violence against women was asore point with him. “Please tell me someone got that spineless little bitch.”

“I’d love to tell you that, but I can’t.” Romeo’s mouth twisted as if the words he spoke left a bad taste in his mouth. “There was only one bouncer on duty—the second guy who was supposed to be on-duty never showed, so I’ve got people combing the city looking for his sorry ass. Long story short, the bouncer did get a hold of the asshole with the crowbar. But then he let the fucker go when the guy bit off chunks of his face, including the bouncer’s nose.”

That got my attention. “Holy shit.”

“Yeah, I’d probably let the dude go too, all things considered.” Zee couldn’t seem to get the look of disgust off his face. “Was the bouncer able to give a description of the attacker?”

Romeo nodded, and sent a grim look around the table. “He said his attacker’s teeth were all filed down to make points.”

The news hit the room like a bomb.

“Piranha.” I said what we were all thinking, and watched Ajax pound the table with his fist. “Gotta be. No one else is that fucking weird.”

“I’ve put out alerts to all our business interests throughout Chicago, Detroit, Milwaukee and Indianapolis,” Romeo went on, once again scrolling through his phone. “Everyone needs to assume Hades and his crew are going to hit where we’re vulnerable, which would be our legit business fronts. Hitting us there calls unwanted attention to us and our other endeavors that we need to keep under the table. News of a half-cannibalized face of a security guard and a helpless, comatose stripper could bring a whole host of media attention down on us. If that happens, we’re really going to be hindered when it comes to moving against Hades at a moment’s notice.”

“Standing orders,” I said, shooting Romeo a hard glance. “As of now, double our security for the softest targets we have out there. If something feels off to the people on the ground, they need to report back to you immediately, rather than wait for the shit to hit the fan. Also, I want the security footage of both incidents at Thirsty’s and The Last Stitch before the end of business today. In fact, from now on I’ll want to see whatever footage we’ve got coming in from any suspicious incidents happening on Gravedigger property.”

“Got it,” Romeo said, typing furiously. “Okay, security footage should be hitting your inbox… now.”

That’s what I liked about my second in command. Efficient as hell. “That’ll do for now, my brothers. This church meeting is done and dusted, so get out of here and get to work. Romeo, hang back a sec.”

Romeo lifted his chin at me as everyone headed for the exit. “What’s up?”

I waited until the door closed behind Ashtray’s wheelchair, no doubt heading toward the elevator we’d built just for him. “I thought we had eyes on Ginger.”

Romeo’s brows shot up. “We do.”

“Tell me about it. Tell me about all the ways we’ve got her covered.”

“Did something happen?”

“Tell me, Romeo.”

“Two hi-def cams at Vixen’s Den, one inside the main showroom and one covering the back. A third dedicated cam covers the front of the store, and that cam is on our property. We have a log of everyone coming and going from her shop. At her warehouse, we’ve got motion-sensitive cams on all three points of entry.”

“What do we have on her phones, both work and personal?”

“Nothing.”

I reminded myself that he was good at his job, so I probably shouldn’t murder him. “What do you mean,nothing?”

“You said you wanted her watched, not listened to or spied on. Watching over her and monitoring her safety is what you said you wanted. That’s exactly what we’ve been doing.”

You’ve got to be fucking kidding me. “I want both her phones clonedtoday. I want to be able to track those phones so I know her location with a touch of a button. And I want a tracker on her car so I can see where she is at all times.”

---