Page 36 of Room Six

We take on the business of wiping out our enemy, there will be no turning back.

He returns my phone, and I stare at Magnolia’s face. “If we go to her, bring her into our lives now with Hightower out there with a gun with our name on it she will have a target on her back.”

“We have to erase her from our lives until the job is done. Nothing can trace back to her in case one or all of us die. Pictures, messages, contacts. Nothing.”

We all nod and pull out our phones. I hover a thumb over the delete button. Two taps for each of us and it’s like she never existed.

“Fuck that hurt. She’s gone.”

Rune’s words come out strangled.

“Not forever, brother.”

Rune raises his head and I see tears in his eyes. The man is a fucking rock. He didn’t cry when his mother beat him. He didn’t shed a damn tear when the doctors reset his leg after having a run in with a metal baseball bat. Nor when he took three bullets saving my life.

But the man has tears in his eyes at losing the one person in our pathetic lives who means something to all of us.

I put a hand on his shoulder and squeeze. “Find us a way to watch over her from afar. Even if it’s for only a few seconds to make sure she is okay. Something that auto deletes every two minutes.”

He nods and gets to work. He’s good with his hands and his brain. If you want backdoor access to any security grid mainframe, he’s your guy.

Oliver pulls out a black book from the safe, and we pour over names and contacts. Wars don’t happen in a single night. You work your allies and make sure no one will turn on you when your back is turned. You call in favors and give a few in return.

“I have some friends in Chicago. Harlon, Cassius and Santi. If we need weapons, they will supply.”

I nod. “Get it done. We need men, too. The more guns we have on our side, the faster this ends.”

“They have friends in New York. People who will get their hands dirty for the right causes. They call themselves the Savages.”

I like them already. It’s always good to make new friends.

I look over to find Rune who has a grim look on his face.

“What’s wrong?”

Rune flips his phone around and shows us six squares filling the screen of his phone. Magnolia is in none of them. My heart clenches.

“You put cameras in her apartment and didn’t tell us?”

“Not exactly. I tapped into the feed of what is already there. You’ll never guess the password.” He stands and Oliver takes the phone from him.

“Where is she? What are you showing me? I see an empty apartment.”

“Exactly.”

“Find out where she went and get access to whatever security system they have there. I have a feeling she’s moving to another city but won’t stray far from her job. Call Raja, Rune. Apply whatever pressure you have to for the information we need. He’s our ticket in.”

Rune pulls up the keypad on his phone. “What are we willing to promise him in return for information on Magnolia?”

“Whatever he wants,” I deadpan. “Remember the property we have in Paris. It would make a great place for a new Club Sin. We can sign the deed over tonight.”

“When this wraps up, who’s going to be the one to tell her we violated her privacy?”

That is Oliver.

“We all can while we are on our knees begging for her to take us back.”

Oliver hands me my cell and a list of allies. “Let’s get started.”

---