Page 122 of Relentless

Victor sighs. “Razor can’t—”

“Not my problem.” Finally, he cuts the call, plunging us into silence.

Reid takes a left off the freeway and sends me crashing into the door with the speed he takes the turn.

“Dude,” I mutter.

“Focus, J,” he spits impatiently. “If this blows up in our faces, we’re not going to get a warning shot.”

“Well, you sound confident.”

“I am confident,” he states. “There will be shots fired before all this is over, and something tells me Victor will be the first to pull his gun.”

“Then we’d better hope the old man’s shot is off target.”

Reid mutters something in response, but I can’t make it out, although I can guess.

As we cross the border into Harrow Creek, the tension in his shoulders returns, and I decide the best course of action is to keep my mouth shut and let him ruminate on whatever is spinning through his head. I’ve been told a time or two before that he can’t think when I’m rambling shit, so I lock it down and let him do his thing.

It’s not until we’re almost back that a thought flickers through my mind.

“You managed to speak to Knox about any of this Raven shit?” If I thought my question was going to help, then I’m immediately mistaken.

“No. Fucker still won’t take my calls,” he barks, just as pissed off as the last time we spoke about him.

It hasn’t always been just the two of us. Before I came along, Reid already had a BFF in the form of Knox Bowman. I’m pretty sure neither of them was in the market for a stray, but for some reason, I was lucky enough to be taken in by them.

Despite Reid and Knox being friends since they were in diapers, Reid and I immediately connected, or at least I did with him. I then gave him very little choice in being my friend when I started following him around like a puppy. He was just so… solid. Everything about me and my life was not. From as early as I can remember, everything had been crumbling around me. I was pushed from family to family, to group home to group home. My friendship with Reid was the first real, tangible thing I had, and I grabbed onto it with both hands. And to this day, I won’t fucking let go.

If it weren’t for him, I’d be dead now. I know that for a fact. I owe him everything. What little of my sanity I have, and my entire life. I just wish he understood how fucking amazing he is.

Knox was fucking awesome too. The shit the three of us got up to growing up was fucking epic. But a few years ago, some shit went down with his family, his dad—a Hawk—started fucking around on Victor, and Knox was the one who ended up paying the price. He’s now doing a stretch in Iron Marsh and refuses to talk to anyone.

It’s no secret that that place is flooded with Hawks, Ravens, Devils and a handful of other gangs from the state. If anyone’s going to get us intel on the Ravens and whether we should be trusting Richie right now, then it would be Knox.

“Maybe you should try again,” I suggest.

“You think I haven’t been?” he snaps.

“Sorry,” I mutter as he pulls off the road in favor of the track that will lead toward the hidden entrance to his lair. “You reckon he’s fucked her yet?” I muse as the manor looms above.

“You’re a little too concerned with Mav’s underused dick for my liking. You wanna lick it or something.”

“Hell no,” I bark. “I know you won’t admit it, but we need him. And he’s no fucking good to us if he dies of exploding balls.”

Reid turns to me as he waits for the gate to open, his eyes wide and his brows high.

“Seriously?”

“Yep. Google it. The fear is real.”

“Not for you with the number of times a day you jerk off.”

“Nothing wrong with that. At least I’m not an uptight asshole like someone I know.”

“I’m trying to overthrow my father and take over this fucking town. I’m allowed to be a little stressed,” he argues.

“Sure, but sinking balls deep in Alana’s pussy—”

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