Page 71 of Cold Cruel Hearts (London Mafia Kings)

LONDON WAS NEVER QUIET.

Even when it was approaching midnight and sensible people were tucked up in bed, the city was almost as noisy as it was during the day. Sirens sounded, car alarms blared, drunk groups of people laughed or yelled at each other.

It wasn’t unusual for deliveries—even those of a non-illegal kind—to arrive during the night. It made sense for the drivers to work then since there was less traffic and the amount of time spent caught in traffic was drastically reduced. It meant we didn’t need to worry about looking suspicious.

I worried about Kaja but was pleased Hallie had taken her under her wing for the rest of the day. I shouldn’t have said what I had about wanting her dead. There was no way I could bring myself to kill her. I wasn’t even sure I’d be able to let her go, and I hated myself for that. Jodie had only been dead a matter of months, and here I was, with my head filled with another woman. It had been one thing fucking her, but another caring about her.

She probably wouldn’t let me anywhere near her after what I’d said, and I couldn’t blame her.

Was that the reason why I’d said it? If she left, maybe this gut-wrenching guilt would stop. I was making out to her, and everyone else around me, that I felt nothing for her to the point that I would be willing to kill her if I had to, when that was far from the truth. Instead, my thoughts were crowded with her—not only her beauty and how incredible it felt when I was inside her, but also with admiration for her bravery. She’d killed a man who had tried to take her away from me and had taken such a risk coming to a new country instead of running back to her father. She’d also experienced the loss of her brother and understood my pain. I wished she wasn’t Rasmus’s daughter, but then I would never have met her if she had been born to a different man.

The warehouse was on an industrial estate in Dagenham, East London. The delivery of computer parts intended for the car industry hid a different kind of import. The guns were being brought over from Holland, crossing through Dover, and then driven up to us, where we’d unpack the weapons and send the rest of the delivery on its way to a factory up north. The guns would then be sold on to gangs in different parts of the UK—Sheffield and Manchester—or to private collectors who didn’t want their names on any official documents. They were willing to pay big money for the right weapon.

We were the middlemen, the ones who brought the goods in and then sold them on for a serious profit. The suppliers worked with us because they knew we could be trusted, but there were always other gangs trying to muscle in and buy the product for themselves. So far, the suppliers hadn’t been tempted. Protection was important, as was knowing they were going to get paid.

One thing we couldn’t risk was the chance of these guns ending up in the hands of our enemies which was why it had been concerning to get word that the Gilligans had been spotted around the area. But now we were working with the Wynters, we outnumbered them, and they’d be crazy to try to take us down on our own turf.

I parked my Range Rover around the back of the building. Tam had arrived in his own car—just in case we needed to make a separate getaway. A number of people were already at the warehouse. Marlon and Jayden Wynter were there with a couple of their men, and we’d brought along Murphy and Damon.

I shook Marlon’s hand, and Tam, albeit begrudgingly, did the same. Marlon was Tam’s father-in-law now, as much as Tam hated it, and it was important for all of us that they kept the peace.

Hallie’s younger brother, Jayden, jutted out his jaw in a greeting. “All right?”

“I will be once I know this has all gone smoothly,” I said.

“It will.”

Jay had the overconfidence that came with youth and money. He had recently turned twenty and was a cocky son of a bitch. Tam still didn’t like him, but he’d learned to keep his mouth shut. With Hallie being pregnant, they were all bound by blood now. Jayden was going to be the uncle of Tam’s child, and for the sake of the child, they were all going to have to get along as best they could.

Tam nodded. “As long as everyone plays their part. Has there been any trouble today?”

Jay shook his head. “No one hanging around who shouldn’t be, if that’s what you mean.”

“Good. Have we had any confirmation about the ETA of the delivery yet?”

“It’s running on schedule,” Marlon confirmed.

“What about the pick-up?”

“That, too.”

It was important not to have the goods on site for too long. Keeping large quantities of anything illegal in one place was always risky. It was the time when, if a police raid were to happen, things could get tricky.

“I’m going out for a smoke,” Jayden announced.

“That’ll kill you someday,” Tam said.

He shrugged. “I doubt I’ll live that long anyway.”

He had a point.

The rumbling of a large engine approached from outside, catching all our attention, followed by the hiss of hydraulics and the screech of brakes.

“It’s here,” Marlon announced.

“We need all hands on deck to unload,” Tam called out to Murphy and Damon.

Marlon Wynter smirked. “I’ll oversee you youngsters.”

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