Page 89 of Slaughtered Firefly
Summer's mind was made up; it would take more effort to win a spot back in her heart. That was if I had a spot left.Did it matter?I shook my head, a chuckle falling from my lips. I would let her have this battle. She could use me like that as many times as she pleased, and it still wouldn’t be enough. I knew that now. My little firefly was too greedy to stay away. I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand, standing.
A grim line set firm on her lips as she returned to inspecting the weapons I had laid out on the workbench. Her dress was abandoned in the middle of the floor. She didn’t say a word as I walked towards the rear office to stitch myself up.
58
TIME’S UP
Present day
“Jones, get up here,” Captain Marshals called down as soon as I walked into the station. It felt like ages since I had been here, but it was only a few days. The boys were with their mother, and the woman, Reyna was out of surgery. It’d be a rough recovery, but she’d make it through in one piece. Summer ran as soon as the phone rang. I didn’t give chase, even though that’s what every fiber of my being was screaming at me to do.
Find out who’s been killing our men and end them.I didn’t realize just how complicated things had become. How attached I’d gotten to the situation.
“Yes Cap,” I hollered, dropping the file and my keys on my desk as I climbed the stairs to her office. I knocked on the door, shoving it open. I hadn’t realized the men in the room, and I swallowed thickly.Fuckers followed me.
“Agent Miles and Anders, to what do I owe the pleasure?” I shook their hands, a polite gesture on the outside. On the inside, I was livid. C.O.R.E. shouldn’t have been here. Our base of operations was Los Angeles, where we controlled the city, and yet these two meatheads were here. Someone must have been out of their goddamn mind if they were sending these asshats to retrieve me.
“We thought it time to visit our favorite detective, since it’s been awhile since our last check in,” Miles commented. It was a veiled threat, of course. I was on borrowed time and had yet to make good on my word. C.O.R.E. was getting impatient, and I could only avoidhiscalls for so long. The men in front of me had tight smiles as they turned towards Captain Marshals, giving her the floor to speak.
“Anders was just informing me, there’s a meet up scheduled between the Syndicates and the Obsidians,” she spoke, and I nodded.
“We think there’s a shift in the power balance between the two factions and our sources say that the Obsidian Don will bethere personally,” Miles provided, and I stared blankly at him. It wasn’t that I didn’t trust his sources; I didn’t trust anything the man had to say and was annoyed that we kept him around as long as we did.
“When is this meet up supposed to happen?” I asked.
“Tonight.”
Fuck.
I bangedthe vending machine as I stared at the stuck a bag of chips. “shit,” I muttered, slamming my palm against the side again. I was staring at the bag, contemplating the giant clusterfuck that was soon to unfold.
“You know you could just come back,” Anders suggested as he banged once on the machine, dislodging the snack. He grabbed it out of the machine, holding it up to me. “The door’s always open.”
“And what? Brian would fillet me as soon as I stepped foot in the city, you know that,” I grumbled, snatching the chips from his grasp.
“He cares for you, you’re the son he never had. He just wants what’s best for you and really is it any worse than being a lackey for this crew?” Anders looked around the station, and I sighed.
“You really think there’s a meet up tonight,” I changed the subject, not wanting to deal with the shitshow back in Los Angeles right now.
“Yeah the information’s good, it goes down tonight.”
59
CHURCH
Present day
“Shaw,” Cole gritted from in front of me. My heart raced wildly as I watched the two approach each other. Truth was, this was my first meetup with a rival territory. I had never once been afforded the opportunity to be a frontman. Never taught the way to conduct business. It was another bitter thing taken from me. My gut twisted as everyone stood in silence. The church halls were eerily silent, the matched pace of their shoes the only sound as they met in the middle.
“Cole.” Shaw smirked as both the men gripped hands. Tension filled and fragile, but a necessity for the truce. Churches were always neutral territory. “I see you brought the harlot.” Shaw’s eyes met mine; a sickly sweet smile graced his lips. Cole tensed, and both sides readied to pull weapons.
“That’s my wife,” Cole’s voice darkened as the men still had firmly grasped hands. Anxiety crawled through me as I waited. Clif and Jasper were only a few feet ahead of me, but I saw the dagger’d look from Shaw.
“Oh congratulations, my mistake,” Shaw remarked, like it wasn’t information he already knew. The tension-choked air lightened, if only for a second.
“An honest mistake, I’m sure.” Cole nodded. I wish I could see his face, but with his back turned, I could only watch Shaw’s. My eyes scanned the lineup of their members, some low lackeys I had never met and one delicate-looking redhead.Melody.Seems like my research wasn’t as good as it should have been, and I let myself be fooled.Stupid girl.Melody flipped her auburn locks over her shoulder and waved softly when our eyes met. A large diamond ring glittered in the church lights, and my heart stuttered.No.
“We’ve never heard of the girl, but we are not the only players in town,” Shaw commented. I lost the conversation in the momentary distraction that was Melody.
