Page 133 of Blue

I shoved the gun into the inside pocket of my cut to carry along with the seven-inch fixed blade strapped to my thigh.

Cruz tugged on heavy duty, nitrile gloves before handling his weapon. Once we were armed, we fired up our bikes, and rolled out of the MC.

The sun was just cresting the horizon. The morning was crisp and still quiet. But my head was buzzing. On the ride across town, I thought about what I would say to him. I wasn’t going to relive history. What was the point of confronting him when he wasn’t going to admit to shit or have a fucking ounce of remorse.

I didn’t need an apology. I needed the punishment to fit the crime, and I was going to take back what he stole from me by destroying the evidence.

Our bikes rumbled into the large parking lot. We stayed in tight formation to the left side of the building. There were already a few dozen cars in the section of the lot. The stripes on the ground were painted bright green, marking the area for employees of the telemarketing company in the adjacent building.

Bullet had one of his whores doing surveillance work from the inside of D&W. I wouldn’t be surprisedif she’d fucked the security guard to get the blind spots on the property.

“No cuts.” Rogue took off his leather vest, carefully rolled it, and shoved it into the saddle bag on his bike. He stuffed his gun into the waistband of his jeans, then covered it with his shirt. “This shit can’t come back on the club.”

Bullet did the same, then he pointed his finger at Cruz. “I don’t need to give you a warning, prospect. That you’re here, and that you left a dead dealer in a tub for Blue, is enough to tell me you know that the patch means brotherhood. I already have our prez on my ass over Kodiak. Only, his fuckup was not going to Blade first about Kiss.”

I stuffed my gun into the back of my jeans. “Kodiak’s mistake was calling Kiss a Crawler cunt.” We started toward the building. “If he does it again, he’ll be snorting strychnine off Scarlett’s ass.”

Bullet laughed and took the threat in stride. “Scarlett doesn’t work for me anymore. But you’re right. Brothers don’t talk shit on another brother’s old lady.”

I smirked at Bullet. Kiss was my old lady. One day, I’d marry her. Maybe even put some babies in her belly.

We approached the building. Bullet rested a hand on my shoulder.

“Don’t worry. Kodiak knows he fucked up. Sometimes, it takes more than words to break away from our past.”

No shit. It’s why I had a gun at my back, a knife at my thigh, and why I was choking on my fucking fear.

According to the directory on the wall, the building housed D&W offices.

Bullet produced a keycard for the elevator. “I owe Jinx. She has a date with the security guard for Friday night, but she lifted this.”

Cruz chuckled, and I smiled.

Rogue stayed quiet, leaning against the brass rail inside the elevator.

In the years since I’d been in the building, the place had changed. The walls had gone from light gray to taupe, and the carpeting had been replaced with faux wood laminate.

Cruz stood next to me. Bullet and Rogue were fighters, but there was something about Cruz’s presence that took the edge off my anxiety. He had my back.

The elevator door opened, and we stepped out into the foyer. There were offices both to the left and to the right. Some of the doors were open, with light spilling into the hall.

“Carl’s office was this way.” I led us to the left to the double doors at the end of the hall. Vertical blinds, partially closed, concealed the interior. With his gloved hand, Bullet twisted the knob. The handle clicked.

Once inside, Rogue finished closing the blinds. Cruz immediately crossed the room to the desk.

I’d been in this office a thousand times. The furniture had changed, but the same sick feeling churned in my gut. I could feelhimin the room.

“This is for when you find what we’re looking for.” Rogue pulled a slip of paper from his pocket. “Email addresses for FBI cybercrime, district attorney, state attorney general, and crime tip.”

Cruz slid into Carl’s chair and pivoted to the computer. He hit a couple buttons, and the computer monitor exited sleep mode.

“Leaving his computer on all night is going to shorten the life of his system.” He laughed and hit a couple of keystrokes.

I could smell Carl’s aftershave as I walked the perimeter of the room. The hairs on the back of my neck prickled. Thank fuck Kiss’s scent still lingered in my nose. If I focused, I could recall the taste of her kiss, the feel of her hands, the fucking warmth of her pussy. She was my secret armor against a hard fall from a fucked up life.

Shelves lined one of the walls. I was drawn to the family photos. The first photo was like a punch to the chest, transporting me to the past. I could almost hear my sister’s laughter from the smile on her face.

Jalen and Cara. Married. And they looked happy. Not surprising since they were at the happiest fucking place on the planet.

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