Page 79 of Memphis

“Vittorio, stop! She has nothing to do with this!”

“She does now. I’ve given you plenty of time to come up with the money you owe me, and you failed to come through. Maybe she will give you the incentive you need to get the job done.”

“You can’t do this! I’ll get you the money! I just need some time!”

The man’s voice was deep and threatening as he told Antonia’s father, “You have forty-eight hours.”

“Dad. Don’t let him take me.”

“Pat her down and put her in the car.”

I’d heard enough. I tried calling her, and after ringing once, it went straight to voicemail. I was wasting time. I knew Antonia was in trouble, and that was all I needed to know. “I’ve got to get to her.”

“Okay.” Sensing the urgency of the situation, Goose glanced back at Ghost and said, “We need to wrap this shit up.”

“Just tell me what you wanna do, and I’ll make it happen,” Ghost reassured me.

“Let’s get the two in the back to the clubhouse,” I answered. “Grim will get them to talk.”

“And what about these two and the car?”

I glanced around and was relieved we were on a back road with no traffic. “Torch it.”

“You got it.”

Goose and I grabbed the two men and secured them in the back of the SUV while Ghost shoved Hud in the car and doused it with gasoline before setting it on fire. The flames were rolling high as we all loaded up and started back to the clubhouse. On the way, I called Dad and told him about Hud and his buddies, and without skipping a beat, I went right into telling him about the phone call I’d gotten from Antonia.

“Ah, damn. I knew there was something going on with that guy.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Her father ran into some financial trouble.”

“Yeah, I’m aware. I’m not sure why it was any concern of yours.”

“It was my business to know. Your mother was married to him, and you were involved with the daughter.”

“I have a feeling there was more to it than that.”

“We don’t have time for this,” Dad clipped. “The club is under fire, and now, this thing with Antonia. The timing on this shit couldn’t be worse.”

He was right.

The timing definitely sucked.

I’d always lived by the motto that the club always came first and never once questioned it. But that call had me questioningeverything. I felt like I was being pulled in two different directions, and I had no idea which way to go. I wanted to be there for my brothers and help them figure out who was coming down on the club, but at the same time, every fiber in my being was screaming at me to get to Antonia and to save her from this Vittorio asshole.

The thought of her being in danger gutted me, and I knew I had to do everything in my power to get her back. “I’ve gotta go to her, Dad. I’ve gotta help her.”

“I know you do, son.” He let out a sigh, then said, “I’ll get with Shep and have him look into the Vittorio fella.”

“Good deal. We should be there in ten. Hopefully, Grim can get something out of these two, and we can finally figure out what the hell is going on with all this shit.”

As soon aswe pulled up, Rusty and Seven came out, and they helped carry our guests out to one of Grim’s rooms—a place no man would want to be.

As the club’s enforcer, Grim had a gift for extracting information from the toughest of men. We’d all seen what he could do, so I had no doubt he’d get Koda and Max to talk. Even though I was eager to get to Antonia, I needed to make sure these guys were taken care of first.

When we got out to the holding rooms, Seven and several of the others were already standing at the two-way glass, watching as Grim bound Koda’s hands. Sweat was streaming down his face as he tried to pull away from Grim, but his efforts were in vain.

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