Page 2 of Cherished Union

“Good,” she tells him. “Next time, don’t be an ass.”

She turns and walks out the door. I should definitely bring her with me more often. Hell, if the men saw her at work today, they’d want her to join the ranks, something I know she wants.

I move to Colin and land a punch in his midriff. “You want to stay alive, then you had better get smart real quick. You have a choice to make. Whose side are you on?”

“Yours,” he squeaks out.

I reach for his arm and twist it back. He roars with pain, tears rushing to his eyes. “Then you had better remember that. You fuck up once more, Colin, then you had better pray that the boss sends someone else after you. I find you, I’m going to fucking gut you.”

He swallows hard. “I won’t. I promise.”

I push him to the floor. His promise means nothing to me. A man like him, he’s bound to fuck up. They always do. I’ll be waiting, ready for when he finally does.

“You did good, Sissy,” I tell her with a smile as we leave the club.

“Thanks,” she replies, handing me the stash of cash.

“I’ll talk to Da. Don’t worry, if anyone can get him to change his mind, it’s you. There’s no reason for you not to join the ranks.”

She grins wider.

Tires squeal, and I see a blacked-out sedan come to a halt.

“Get the fuck down,” I snarl as I reach for my gun.

Jade doesn’t even hesitate. She drops to the ground, her hand reaching for her gun.

The moment the car door opens, I spot the youngest of the Masters children. Jamie Masters is a hot head. He doesn’t take direction and does whatever the fuck he wants. I raise my gun, just as he does the same, but I’m quicker to the trigger. I squeeze it, my gun fires, and the bullet sinks into the bastard's head. His eyes widen as reality sets in.

His gun goes off, but it’s off target, sinking into a vehicle to my right.

“Shit, Hay,” Jade huffs. “What the hell is that bastard doing here?”

I glance up at the building behind me. The office we’ve just come from has the light on, illuminating Colin. That bastard sold us out, and he’s going to pay the price.

Sirens sound, and my gut sinks. These fuckers set us up.

“Give me the gun,” Jade yells at me, pulling my gun from my hands and shoving her own into my palm.

“What the hell are you doing?” I hiss at her, when she begins to wipe my weapon down, cleaning every inch of fingerprints off it, before wrapping her hand around it. “Jade,” I snarl. What the hell is this woman playing at?

“Go,” she tells me, pushing me away. “Look at me,” she gripes. “You get made for this, you’re looking at life, Hayden. You’re finally the underboss, something you’ve worked hard for. Don’t let this one thing destroy all you’ve worked for. Go, find the footage and destroy it, and then find that fucking weasel.”

I grit my teeth. “You’re fucking mental,” I growl. “I’m not doing this.”

I’m not letting her take the blame for this. No fucking way.

“No one has to know what happened here, Hay. All I’ll say is that Jamie pulled up after you left and fired at me, I returned fire, and unfortunately hit him. I’ve got a squeaky-clean record. Please, Hay, let me do this. Find that footage and destroy it.” The pleading in her tone makes me want to tear the world apart.

“Go,” she yells as the sirens get louder. She pushes against me.

I do the one thing I’ll regret for the rest of my life. I take the lifeline she gives me and walk away. I leave with my cell at my ear, calling my tech guy to get those tapes and destroy them.

Had I known that I had sentenced her to the horrors she suffered, I never would have walked away.

CHAPTER1

HAYDEN