Page 113 of The Loves We Lost
“You thinking what I’m thinking?” Halo says.
“If you’re thinking the Righteous Brotherhood, then yes.”
We make our way back to the front of the building and wait. The investigation takes hours. When it finally ends, everyone else is released as Spark is handcuffed and lowered into the back of a police vehicle. Iris is being consoled by Rae in the doorway to the club. And Vex is talking to a female agent in a sharp suit.
“Why are they taking Spark?” I ask as King walks towards us.
“Assault on an officer. He and Iris stayed over last night because their air-con broke and needs repair. An agent shoved Iris into the dresser, and Spark lost his shit.”
“Fuck,” I say.
King grabs Clutch’s cigarettes from his cut pocket, takes one out, and lights it.
“Help yourself, why don’t you?” Clutch says.
“Tell Rae and I’ll kill you. Anyway, we’ll get Spark off. The agent shoved a pregnant woman who has nothing to do with the club beyond being married to one of us. Spark’s a decorated veteran. He’ll be fine.”
“What happened to you?” Halo asks Clutch, as blood continues to drip down his face.
“He’s the reason Spark isn’t going away for murder,” King says. “He managed to get his arms around Spark’s waist and tug him away before he could do any real damage but took Spark’s elbow to his eye for his trouble.”
Clutch shrugs. “Better that than Spark going away for killing a fed.”
“Jesus,” I say. I look around and lean real close to King so I can keep my volume down. “We think we know what’s going on. Heard two of the agents talking about how this tip-off was about some stolen Kalashnikovs.”
King shakes his head. “Makes no fucking sense though. Why would they ...”
A team of FBI agents walks by, and one of them tips his head as if this has been a cordial visit. “Hills.”
King snarls. “Get the fuck off my property.”
When the last of the vans pulls off the lot with Spark, but no evidence of anything illegal, King calls church.
“What did you overhear, Bates?” King asks once we’re all seated and Switch has stitched up the gash over Clutch’s eye.
“We heard two of them talk about how this wasn’t a long-planned raid but a response to a tip about some Kalashnikovs.”
“The Brotherhood?” Niro asks.
“Must be, right?” Leaning forward, I rest my elbows on the desk. “Remember the call we got from Collins. He knew we took their shit.
“It makes no sense though,” King says. “I mean, if I thought the Brotherhood had stolen something of ours, I’d fucking golook for it. I’d want it back. I wouldn’t tip off the feds so that they could go look for it, which ends with neither of us having it.”
“Unless the Brotherhood has someone in the feds,” Clutch says. “Like, what if there was a shady count of evidence. Someone who could arrange an exchange of hands before admitting to evidence, etc. That’s quite a financial gain for the right person.”
“Wouldn’t put it past some of those cops to actually be a member of the Brotherhood,” Vex says.
I nod in agreement.
“Did you activate all the cameras?” I ask Vex.
He nods. “Yeah, I got everything that happened inside from the moment they stepped onto the property.”
Vex installed a discrete camera system inside the clubhouse. You wouldn’t know if you weren’t looking. They’re activated from his phone, and the default is for them to be off. Fuck knows we don’t want half the shit we do in the clubhouse known. But they’re for moments like this, when we want to catch everything that happens on a raid.
It was Camelot’s idea after an incident during a previous ATF raid, where an agent tried to claim he was assaulted as a reason for shooting a brother. It’s our evidence if we ever need it.
“Let’s start watching through it, see what they say,” King says. “Clutch, work with Vex on it. Fortunately, Spark’s gut feeling to move the weapons quick was the right one. There was nothing here for them to find. I’m gonna check in with the lawyer about getting Spark out.”
