Page 27 of Reckless Pawn

Houston turned his head toward Izzy's cabin for a few seconds before swinging forward again. "You think she's spying on the club?"

"I think that's something for me to worry about. You've got a different job to focus on."

"If you can't keep her safe, then our deal is off. I'll take her now and you'll never have to see either of us again."

JD didn't respond. He stared into the fierce blue eyes of Malia's son and wondered if there was anything left inside him not hardened by life. Trying to force him to stay away from Izzy might have been a mistake. However, considering the stakes he didn't regret that decision. His gut told him something was about to give.

"Don't be a dick about this, boy. I gave you my word she'd be taken care of and she will. You ain't gotta worry about that fucking shit. But if you don't start showing some faith in this club, we're going to have a serious problem on our hands and you're not gonna like it."

JD took a deep breath, letting that shit sink in. It might kill him to cut loose Malia's son, but he would if it meant that was best for the club. They'd worked too hard and come too far to let one man blow it all up again.

"I didn't come here tonight to argue," Houston said. "Apparently, your idea worked. Mr. Mazzeo was so appreciative of me taking a dive on his fight he invited me to his private suite at the Drake hotel. I'm in. He wants me to work for him."

JD grinned. "About fucking time. Get your ass in here and lets get some of the boys together to discuss what's next. Tel's got some fancy electronic devices you'll need to take back with you."

Houston lunged forward and took the stairs two at a time. "Gotta make it quick, Prez. I'm tired and I gotta get back to Seattle before anyone notices I'm gone."

JD clapped him on the shoulder and squeezed. He could see being this close to Izzy made him twitchy as well. "No problem. We won't keep you long. You look like you could use some beauty sleep anyway."

Satisfied that the matter of Izzy was settled for now he reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone. He tapped out a message to Axel.

Grab Tel and Zook and meet me in my office in three minutes. We've got some business to discuss so don't give me any shit about whatever pussy you're in.

He walked through the door behind Houston, feeling a little more positive than he had five minutes ago. The boy was smart and capable. He just needed a shove in the right direction. And maybe once he got his head on straight he could officially rejoin the club he was meant to rule and maybe even find his way back to the woman eating him up from the inside out.

Ifshe didn't turn on them all…

Chapter Ten

Houston

Houston stared around the table at the four men waiting to hear what he had to say and realized he didn't hate it. In fact, it felt a lot like his Marine Corps briefing sessions, easing the sting of rejection. Obviously, this case was important in more ways than one. Although first and foremost it was about finding the missing college girl they were hired to locate. That thought made a lot of his cuts, bruises, and sore fucking ribs from the fight well worth it.

"There's something else I'm curious about. Something Izzy said earlier," Houston said. "She warned me about her father. Told me that whatever I believed to be true about him likely wasn't. She made it sound like the son of a bitch couldn't be trusted in anything he says. That somehow he knew the truth about everything and would play us all."

"Probably the drugs talking. Frank's a bastard for sure, but he's got a decent rep for keeping his word to a point."

"Yeah, that's what I figured. But I wanted to pass it along in case it becomes a thing. I got a fucked-up kind of vibe off of him. He mentioned the club to me."

That little nugget got JD's full attention. "What exactly did he say? We knew he'd dig into your background, but you haven't been affiliated with the club in a fucking decade."

Houston winced at JD's tone. He sounded pissed and it didn't feel like it had anything to do with Mazzeo. "He doesn't trust in Wrath, that's for sure."

"You think he suspects anything?" Axel asked.

Houston shrugged. "He made the remark about me not being branded. But he's definitely cautious. But after Izzy's warning, I don't have the greatest feeling."

"Man like him doesn't get and stay where he's at if he isn't cautious. But you gotta trust your instincts in this game. You get the feeling he's playing you or us, then get out. We'll find another way in."

Houston knew there wasn't time to start over. The girl they were searching for had been missing for weeks and every day the trail to her grew colder. She hadn't been the only one. There was a pattern of missing college girls from a couple of the big campuses, all believed to be connected and that had played out when they'd found them all in the building adjacent to where Izzy'd been held.

He picked up the evidence Tel—actually fully known as Intel but they just called him Tel for short—laid out on the table. Shit as good as this made Tel a very valuable part of the team. His knack with computers definitely made their jobs easier. He more than earned his nickname. He lived it.

"I'm going back and waiting him out. If I can find out anything that helps in finding the girl then it will all be worth it." At least he hoped so. The way Izzy spoke about her father left him uneasy. It hadn't sounded like the drugs talking at all. "I think we should expect him to feed me some fake bullshit at first. He'll want me to prove I can be trusted before I receive anything sensitive."

"Agreed." They all repeated around the table, nodding their heads.

Axel turned to him. "We're at the ready for whatever you need. You just say the word."

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