Page 31 of Acid

The door to the diner opens and in walks Jared, looking like the typical Fed in a sharp suit and sunglasses, his face vacant of any expression. He pulls out a chair on the opposite side of Ghost and holds his hand out in greeting. He shakes Ghost’shand before taking his seat. He removes his sunglasses and nods his head in greeting to the rest of us before lifting the right side of his suit jacket and reaching inside it.

Rage jumps from his chair, pulling a gun swiftly from his holster and aims it at Jared’s head. “One more move and I will blow your mother fucking brains out,” Rage growls.

Ghost rolls his eyes and sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Rage, sit your ass down. He is pulling out a file on Eugene.”

Rage doesn’t let up as Jared slowly pulls out the file, holding it up in clear view while holding his other palm up in surrender. Rage gives a brief nod and places his gun back in his holster.

“Your man’s a little jumpy, isn’t he?” Jared states as he opens the file.

“Rage is loyal, and he trusts little to no one outside of our club. We haven’t had many trustworthy alliances, so you’ll have to forgive him for not trusting you—a cop—straight away,” Ghost says, his voice cold, sharp, and to the point.

Jared doesn’t flinch or seem phased by it as he takes out a piece of paper and hands it to Ghost. “Well, this isn’t the first time I’ve helped your club, or a club like yours,” he counters. “However, here is the last known whereabouts of Eugene,” he says, point to the address on the paper. “Here are the men he has, the ones that have stayed loyal to him. There aren’t many, only three. Those men will lay down their life in a heartbeat for Eugene. They are trained and they are fucking dangerous,” he informs us as he pulls something else out, a photograph this time. “This is his wife. Do not be fooled by her good looks. I’ve seen what she can do with a blade. She is loyal to her husband and will stand by him, no matter what,” he says, pointing to the picture of a good looking woman with long black hair and bright green eyes.

“Jesus, she could fuck me to death any day of the week,” Scar snorts, looking at the picture.

“And finally, you have his daughter. She is the only surviving heir to his empire, now that his son is dead.” He points to a black and white photo of a young woman. It’s a bit blurred and we are unable to make out her features. “We don’t know much about her. She is quiet, keeps herself to herself. I’m pretty sure she knows what her father is and what he does. She just doesn’t ever seem to be involved in any way,” Jared finishes. He pauses as he places down one last sheet of paper. “This is a list of all the people Eugene has dealt with, and all of them are dead.” He pauses and sighs. “He wasn’t close with his son, as you well know, but his son would have been expected to take over his father’s crown as it were, when he dies. Now he has no heir.”

“He’s got his daughter,” Hawk points out.

Jared shakes his head. “He sees her as weak, and the mother despises her. There is more to that than what I know, but I’d be surprised if that ever came about.”

“What do you think Eugene’s next move will be?” Ghost asks.

“He will ask for a meet, or he will create an accidental meeting. He will size you up, get a feel for you and your club, and decide if he can use you to his advantage, or if he would be better off killing you,” Jared warns. “He will expect a sacrifice though. If he thinks you and your club are of use, he will except a token, someone to compensate the loss of his son,” Jared adds. His phone beeps and he looks down at it before standing. “Look, I’ve got to go.” He stands and pushes his chair back under the table. “My advice to you is think smart and always play him one step ahead of the game. If that don’t work, I’d patch in someone you hate for when he wants to cash in that life he is owed.” He places his sunglasses on, gives Ghost a brief nod, then leaves.

“We are going to have to warn the women,” Cash states.

“No!” Ghost snaps.

“We will watch them and keep an eye on them, but to them we keep it normal. Until we know what Eugene is planning. We keep our eyes open and wait for Eugene to make his first move, then we will carefully make ours,” Ghost orders.

We all nod, knowing that for a while, we will all have to live looking over our shoulders.

The next day,the women are acting weird, like they are on edge. I’m not the only one that noticed it. Ghost, Cash, and Hawk have all been watching them, wondering what the hell is going on.

“Okay, so Oliver needs to be in bed by 10 at the latest. I’m trying to get him into more of a routine before he starts school next week,” Rhea explains to me. Her cheeks are flushed, and her eyes keep flickering behind me to look at Star.

“Sure, what’s going on?” I press.

Her deep chocolate eyes land on mine. She smiles and shakes her head. “Nothing, nothing at all,” she rushes out, like she is breathless.

I frown as I look around to Star having a similar conversation with Ghost. I raise a brow. “You sure about that?”

She nibbles on her bottom lip. “Uh-huh,” she mumbles.

“Rhea,” I say, a note of warning in my tone.

Without warning, she lunges for me, slamming her mouth down on mine. I hold my arms out straight, my body stiffening as I wonder what the fuck is going in on. That soon changes with the feel of her soft lips on mine, as if my body moves of its own accord. My hand cups her face, while the other threads through her thick brown hair, gripping it tight. My tongue pushes against her lips, making them part. I caress her tongue with mine,resulting in her letting out a small whimper. She doesn’t pull back, nor does she stop it. She kisses me back, her fists gripping my T-shirt.

A throat clearing has her abruptly stopping the kiss.

She looks at me, her eyes wide and her lips swollen. She swallows anxiously, her eyes wide. “Shit,” she breathes. “Got to go, bye,” she quickly says before jumping up and grabbing Star’s hand in hers. All the ol’ ladies practically run out the door.

“What the fuck was that?” Hawk asks, frowning.

I shake my head. “I have no fucking clue.” Not once had Rhea or I ever crossed that friendship line. That kiss. It felt good, too fucking good.

“Bambi, Happ!” Ghost barks. Both prospects appear by his side, waiting for their orders. “Follow them,” he orders.

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