Page 7 of Treachery

Locust gave as he got, knowing Frost could fuck his shit up without blinking, but he didn’t care.

“Not a problem, Prez. If Nadia has the money, I’ll get it, but if she doesn’t, once this is over, I plan to keep her.” Leaning back in the chair, Locust admitted, “Got to say, though, Prez, I don’t think she has it. I think Ratchet took it and snorted it or shoved it up his veins or blew it at the casino. Redtube said the asshole was a regular at Seneca in Erie, but he hasn’t been back there in over a year.”

Frost grunted. “Has she had any contact with her brother?”

“One text, eight months ago, and it was a request for cash. There was a PayPal transaction right after; she sent him $2,000.”

“So he texted, asking for money—maybe some of the money he stole and left with her—and she sent it to him,” Frost surmised, and Locust nodded, knowing it was a possibility, but also hating it.

“Most likely, yeah,” Locust agreed. “But there hasn’t been any contact since then—no calls, texts, emails, or visits. As much as I’ve been hanging around her, I would have seen signs of him. As tweaked as he is, he wouldn’t be slick enough to hide from me if he came ‘round.”

Frost nodded, knowing Locust was always sharp, vigilant, looking for trouble. As the club enforcer, he had to be aware of everything going on all at once. Sometimes it was exhausting asfuck, but when it came to Nadia, it was downright debilitating. With her, he always had to be “on”, making sure he didn’t slip, that his persona of the charming biker never dropped. But, fuck, he just wanted to be himself with her, show her who he really was, and see if she could still love him. Therealhim, the him that busted faces, snapped bones, and didn’t give a fuck which laws he broke to get the job done.

“Right,” Frost grunted, his lips thinning in obvious displeasure; he wanted that money yesterday. “Keep me informed—and try not to let her pussy get you in trouble.”

Locust growled, but he snapped his mouth shut against the cascade of words he knew would get his ass beat. Yeah, he was a big, brawny motherfucker who could handle his shit, but Frost was US trained Marine Spec Ops. The man could kill any one of the brothers with his bare hands.

Standing, Locust gave his prez a chin lift, turned, and stormed from the office.

He had a woman to track down.

FOUR

Nadia groanedas another text dinged through.

God, why hadn’t she blocked his number?

Because you’re a glutton for punishment, and miss him with every breath.

Ugh, she was pathetic.

Ignoring anotherdingfrom her cell in the passenger seat, Nadia hit the turn signal and waited for the Nissan to pass, before she pulled onto the short drive that led to the gate at the Unchained compound.

From the passenger seat, her phone rang the opening notes for “Sweet But Psycho” by Ava Max, and she winced. It was the ringtone for her best friend and co-worker, Vicki. Nadia had been avoiding Vicki, knowing that as soon as Vicki put her eyes on Nadia, she’d know something happened. Then, her friend would wait a couple ofminutesbefore crowing, “I told you so!” Because from the moment Nadia had introduced her bestie to Locust, Vicki hadn’t liked him. She’d said there was something off about him, that he seemed like he was hiding something. That he wasn’tgenuine. Nadia had laughed it off, telling Vicki that Locust had nothing to hide, but he was a biker, so he gaveoff those “sorts of vibes,” that she was mistaking his edginess for something more sinister.

Ugh, how wrong Nadia had been…and howrightVicki had been—right from the beginning.

Too bad I didn’t listen to Vicki….

Swallowing down her nausea, she ignored the incoming call, and stopped her car next to the small metal shack that served as a guard house for whoever was on gate duty that day.

Today, it was Tony Dos, who Nadia had only met once, when she attended a barbeque at Horde’s house. That had been quite the memorable barbeque, and it had been her introduction to Locust’s friends.

Shaking her head at those memories, and hating that she was still thinking of him and his brothers fondly, she forced a smile at Tony Dos, and put down her window.

“Afternoon, you here for Locust?” Tony Dos asked, a grin on his face.

Was that grin real or as forced as hers was? Hell, she couldn’t tell; they’d all been lying to her, acting like she was actually welcome, that she was actually someone special to Locust. All along, though, she’d been a target, a mark for their enforcer to use and then dispose of.

“Actually,” she said, her voice cracking from the strain of beating back her tears, “I’m here to see Frost. Is he available?”

At the furrowing of his brows, she knew she’d confused him. Instead of asking her questions, though, he pulled out his cell and texted someone. A minute later, his cell pinged.

“Right,” Tony Dos grunted, “he’s in his office. Park in front, then go right across the main room. His office is the first door down that hallway.”

Yeah, she remembered where it was, because she’d walked past it on her way to the kitchen that morning her world had been blown to pieces.

Nodding her thanks, she pulled through the now open gates, and parked.

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