Phoenix Rising Rock Band: The Series

by Kathryn C. Kelly

  If it is, I need to decide how best to kill Sean, and find another buyer to take Sloane out. Who knows? Maybe, even now, I can strike an arrangement with the hired gun myself. Pay Sean to get the fuck away from me.

  I don’t really like the arrogant fuck.

  “If you want my new girl to go undamaged, I require a fee to reserve your number one spot.”

  He wants money from me?

  It’s one thing to want to help, but to hand over money on her behalf when I don’t fucking know if she even exists. And, even if she does, I know fuck-all about her.

  “What’s her name? How old is she? Has she been checked for diseases?”

  Sean grins at me. “Names aren’t important.”

  “You think not? This bitch might be a figment of your imagination to jack me.”

  “You’re calling my honesty into question?” His friendliness disappears in an instant.

  Enough of this bullshit. “I didn’t come up here to make a fucking deal and acquire a woman,” I say, as cold as he is. “I don’t piss my money in the wind on unseen merchandise. I’m not giving you my fucking money. I am telling you not to fuck with her, until I make my decision.”

  Vince and the other motherfucker close the distance, standing so close to me, I smell their sweat. The fuckheads reveal the heat holstered at their side.

  “Call off your guard dogs,” I demand. “Or else.”

  “Or else what?” Vince questions. “There’s one of you and three of us.”

  Neither of them will hesitate to shoot the fuck out of me. “True,” I agree, then shrug. “Do it, then throw my body in the mountains.”

  The surprise widening Vince’s eyes makes me grin. But I have a fucking trump card.

  “Just one more thing to answer to Outlaw for. The other being the women you rough up. We all know he won’t take too kindly to that.”

  “No fucking way he’ll find out,” Vince sneers. “He’s an ignorant piece-of-shit.”

  “Vince!” Sean yells, giving me an uncomfortable side-eye.

  “Is that any way to talk about the man who keeps us in business?” I ask with mock lightness.

  “He’s uneducated trash.”

  “Enough, Vince! Back off.” Sean whispers to Vince, then brushes off his jacket. “I can handle this.”

  Vince scowls at me, but follows the nameless one back to the other side of the room.

  Sean adjusts his collar and gives me a level look. “If you ignore Vince’s lack of discretion regarding Outlaw, I’ll ignore the fact that you called Ghost to connect us.” He holds out his hand.

  Fair enough. An even bargain. We both have goods to blackmail each other. Or to make sure the other one is permanently silenced.

  I shake the proffered hand, then Sean steps back.

  “We’ve gotten too far off the subject of the meeting. Forget my offer. Because of our business deal, and the price of it, I thought you deserved a few perks.”

  “She won’t be a perk if she’s beaten.”

  “I’ll deliver undamaged goods to you. After I have her and break her in, she’ll be available for three thousand a night. My woman likes her, so I’ll go a little easier on her.”

  It sounds as if he won’t allow me to see her anytime soon. If ever. “I’m coming tomorrow to meet her, then I’ll tell you if I want her or not.”

  Sean shakes his head. “Can’t. She says she won’t be available for three days.”

  “That’s why we wanted to, shall we say, encourage her to cooperate,” Gloria tells me.

  Her words surprise me and I lift a brow. “What do you have to do with this?”

  “Sean doesn’t run the girls, per se,” Gloria inserts. “I give the orders, but Sean has his guys carry them out. It’s much easier if the women think I’m their bestie.” She smiles, but a light in her eyes tells me she isn’t quite right in the head.

  I stand, wanting to get away from them. The thought to search for Raine crosses my mind. I want to dismiss it. She can’t have gotten far yet. If I don’t look for her tonight, she’ll be lost to me forever. Denver is a big city.

  Fuck! Raine’s a headache I don’t need. But she fucked me so good. Or, maybe, the way she responded to me while my cock was in her…

  Perhaps, the very thing that infuriated me—her unfiltered opinions—is what has me so interested in fucking her again and concerned for her safety.

  “Anything else?” I growl, annoyed that I can’t escape Raine. For the entire day, she’s been in my head.

  Sean buttons the third button on his jacket. “Nothing but the time we’re supposed to meet.”

  “Two in the afternoon.”

  After handing Sean the piece of paper with the address, I take my leave. Downstairs, as I open the door, I almost run into a motherfucker who’s limping in.

  “Watch where the fuck you’re going,” I demand as my eyes adjust to the darkening skies and the flickering street lamps.

  The first thing that registers are the tattoos on his head and battered face. His eyes widen. They are brown, similar in color to Raine’s.

  We recognize each other at the same time. I’m staring into the face of a dead man. Or a motherfucker who’s supposed to be rotting in an undisclosed location, never to be found again.

  I didn’t know his name the night I met him and Raine, nor did he know mine. His black eye, cut lip, and bandaged nose are stark reminders of my fist showing him who’s boss. His arm in a sling makes him look worse for the wear, partly from the ass beating I gave him, but also from whatever else he’s gone through since then.

  Swallowing, he stumbles back. Fury rises in me. I grab his throat and drag his ass back inside the building.

  “Has Raine seen you?” I demand, slamming him against the nearest wall and pinning him there.

  “She found you?” he whispers, a slight tremble in his voice.

  “Yeah, motherfucker,” I growl. “And we found a crime scene. Or what we thought was one.”

  Regret flickers across his face. “Don’t tell Raine I’m alive.”

  I knee him in the stomach. “Why the fuck not?”

  Sweat beads his tattooed head. “Because…” His voice trails off and he clenches his teeth, before glancing away. “She deserves better than me.”

  I knee him again and he faces me. “You’re fucking right she does. Do you know how heartbroken she is?”

  “She’ll get over it. She should have a better life, with someone other than Chambers. When she left to find you, I saw my opportunity. I couldn’t make a move on the asshole with her near. If he overpowered me, Raine would end up dead.”

  I press my forearm against his throat.

  He gags, but I don’t lighten up until he starts to turn purple. “Raine’s lost without you.”

  Hostility gleams in his eyes, then disappears before he answers. “Whenever she leaves you, she’ll find her way to friends we know. They’ll give her a good job and a place to live.”

  “Where and doing what?”

  He glowers at me. “Does it matter? She’ll be taken care of, and away from Chambers. She would’ve gotten herself killed because she never knew when to back down. As much bitterness as I felt toward her, she’s still my responsibility.”

  “Bitterness?” I echo with incredulity. “From what I’ve observed, all she’s ever done is love you.”

  “Of course, she does. Every time our stepfather wanted to molest her, I took her place and I fucking hate her for that.”

  “Did she ask you to take her place?”

  “Fuck no. But, sometimes, Raine brought the shit on herself—me—because she didn’t know when to shut the fuck up,” he snarls, then his shoulders sag. “Once upon a time, I loved her. Maybe, deep down, I still do. But she’s nothing but a fucking obligation. A burden.”

  Instead of pounding his head against the wall, I stand stock still, my blood freezing. Montana sounds like me and the way I feel…felt…feel…fuck whatever…about Sloane.

  My feelings for him a
re so complex. Much more than bullets to the head could ever fully shatter.

  Raine, on the other hand, has only ever worshiped and trusted her brother. She sold pussy for him. Trusted his advice about birth control. Did whatever the fuck he asked of her…And this motherfucker has the nerve to resent her?

  “What the fuck am I missing, motherfucker? You got her involved with Chambers.”

  “I just told you why I dislike her, asshole.”

  “You were a grown ass man,” I begin.

  “You think?” he yells. “The moment I turned eighteen, I flew the coop.”

  “Intending to leave Raine to her fate?”

  “So what? For years, I did the best I could!” he flares, his good hand flailing like a flappy bird. “And what about Chambers? Working for him was a step up and more money. She became one of his favorite fucks.” He glares at me. “Kind of like I was with our stepfather. Unlike with him, Chambers gave me more perks because of Raine. I took care of her. I allowed her to run away with me, when I could’ve left her with our mom and stepfather. She was obligated to take care of me, too.”

  “Obligated?” I snarl. “The fuck she was. I can’t believe she fell for that. The Raine I met wouldn’t have.”

  “Are you fucking kidding me? Do you think I’m stupid enough to tell Raine how I feel?” He snorts. “She would’ve stabbed me. But I coaxed her instead of berated her. She adores me.”

  “If it ever dawns on her how you really feel and what you’ve really done to her, she’ll stab you,” I chortle with glee. “Listening to your story makes me realize you’re a hypocrite and a pussy.”

  “What friends are you expecting her to go to? I want the address.”

  “You already have it. You’re here, aren’t you?”

  Motherfucking sonofabitch. I knew Sean was talking about Raine.

  If I was furious before, I’m enraged now. “You’ve handed her over to Sean?”

  “Who…Sean…What? No! Of course not! Are you crazy? Gloria’s a vicious bitch. Raine would end up with her tongue cut out of her head.”

  “I had some business with him. He offered to make me a deal for a new girl, but she hasn’t accepted and he wants to send Vince after her.” Fuck my forearm. I use my hands to squeeze the fuck out of his neck. “Is. It. Raine?” Each word is punctuated by a shake of his worthless body.

  “No!” he manages. “No, I swear.”

  I don’t believe him, but he’s not budging. With one, last look to gauge his honesty. Coughing and sputtering, he holds his throat.

  “I just told you Gloria’s crazy,” he rasps. “Why would I subject my little sister to her?”

  “For money and because you don’t like Raine,” I snarl. “You sound like the type of motherfucker who’d sell out his fucking mama.”

  “Well, yeah, I would sell her out. She deserves it. My mother’s fucking crazy, too.”

  His hoarseness satisfies me with that. Now that I’m no longer choking him, he refuses to meet my eye.

  “How do you know I met Sean?”

  “His is the only apartment in this dumpy building. I’d have to be a dumbass not to put two and two together.”

  “If not because of Raine, what business do you have with him?”

  “It’s not your fucking concern.”

  “I’m fast losing patience with you.”

  “As if I care.”

  Balling my fists, I ready myself to knock the fuck out of him.

  He raises his hand in surrender. “All right. Don’t hit me again. In the span of a couple of days, I’ve been beaten and shot.”

  “I don’t give a fuck. Why are you meeting Sean?”

  “He has a job for me to carry out.”

  A premonition slithers down my spine, and I stare at him. “Let me guess. You were supposed to meet the man paying you to do a hit.”

  He starts, then stares at me before his lips tighten and his eyes narrow. “You?”

  Let him figure it out. I return to the subject of Raine. “How well does she know Sean and Gloria?”

  “Not well.”

  He might be lying, but I have no way of knowing. “You haven’t once asked me about her well-being?”

  “Is she still with you?” he asks sullenly.

  “No,” I state, without going into details. Nor does he ask for any.

  “It figures. Raine took your money and left, huh?” Even with his face fucked up from the beat down I gave him and the choking I administered tonight, Montana preens. “I taught her well. Sorry, dude. That’s the breaks.”

  He’s lucky I’m not a cold-blooded killer, or else I’d fuck him up.

  “You know what that means, asshole?”

  “That she took you for a ride, then got to keep the money because Chambers wasn’t around to take it?”

  The words, though untrue, poisons the open wound I still carry around. It pisses me off on one hand. He’s right. All women see dollar signs when they look at me. On the other hand, I’m not sure of Raine’s game. She didn’t touch a single dollar of the money I flung at her this morning. If she had, I’d be done with her.

  “Where the fuck is Chambers?” I demand, pushing aside thoughts of Raine.

  Montana shrugs.

  “Did you kill him?”

  “No.”

  His answer comes too quick for me to believe him.

  “If he’s not dead and you’re not a fucking ghost, who the fuck bled out in the diner?”

  He clenches his jaw.

  He knows what went down, might’ve even been involved. Right now, I don’t care.

  “Do you intend to leave Raine to fend for herself?” I demand.

  “She won’t be fending for herself,” he says coolly. “She will contact her friends.”

  “Friends who aren’t Sean and Gloria?”

  “That’s right. Anything else?”

  What more can I say? I’m the one who pushed her back on the streets. Usually, I don’t suffer regrets, but this is one time that I do.

  I’m through playing this fucking game with myself. Unlike Georgiana, Raine isn’t from a wealthy family. And Dietrech made me believe she was a helpless woman, who needed my protection. No matter what else Raine is, what other games she’s playing, Raine does need the protection I can offer.

  I’m not looking to marry her or permanently shack-up with her. Soon, I’ll have to leave the country.

  While I’m here, she can keep me entertained and I can keep her safe. Once I find her. “Take me to her usual hangouts.”

  He shakes his head. “Her thinking I’m dead is best for all concerned. She can have a better life.”

  Without a doubt.

  “Are you sure you know why you’re being such a dick to your sister?”

  “I’ll give you directions to some of her favorite spots,” he huffs. “If you find her, good. If not, that’s the breaks.”

  I pull out my cell phone and open my notepad app to jot down streets. “Talk.”

  He gives me directions to a nearby park, an underpass where she sleeps and, most distressing of all, the restaurant dumpster where she finds her favorite meals.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Since leaving Sean and Gloria’s house, I’ve done nothing but walk and cry for my brother, trying to wrap my head around the fact that I’ll never see him again, hear his laughter, or force myself to chuckle at his lame jokes.

  I halt. Should I call Momma? Montana’s her son. She deserves to know he’s dead. But would she even want to hear from me? With this news, I’m sure she would.

  Or, maybe not. She allowed her husband to mistreat us. If Montana hadn’t been there, I would’ve suffered a much worse fate. That’s why, no matter what, I’ll always love my brother and…

  I halt my thoughts. This isn’t about Montana, this is about Mom. All mothers deserve to know their child is no longer alive.

  When I return to Sean, should I call my mother?

  Yes, she deserves to know.

  No, she really wouldn’t
care.

  Damn it.

  Each time I decide against calling her, I think of reasons why I should.

  Grief clouds my headspace.

  Just in case I lose my mind a little more and do call her soon, I pick up whatever loose change I find. Sometimes, a clerk at a convenience store allows me to use the phone for fifty cents. Once, an asshole charged me two dollars because I refused to fuck him for free.

  After hours of roaming, I find myself at my favorite dumpster, in the open alley of a restaurant I’ve vowed to visit when I’m on my feet. I didn’t know this place existed until I started dumpster diving. Once or twice since I’ve been homeless, I’ve cupped my hands together and stared in the window at the diners enjoying their meals.

  One day, I’ll eat at this hamburger joint.

  Montana swore…I shake my head, trying to clear the memories. I’m so fucking confused right now, I don’t know up from down. This entire day can have a redo, starting with the decision to go to Gloria.

  Or should I say starting with Kiln and shutting the fuck up with my opinions, so I wouldn’t find myself back in this predicament? No. The asshole is too used to people jumping at his commands and walking on fucking eggshells around him.

  Fuck him. Someone needed to talk some sense into his thick head.

  Sighing, I lean against the dumpster, then lift my head to the vast sky. Purple-black stretches for miles, embedded with silver stars, and a slivered moon. It’s so pretty.

  Footsteps echo in the quiet night, snapping me out of my contemplation. Stepping forward, I look in both directions. The alley’s a straight shoot, but most of it is dark, with the exception of the area I’m in. A moment passes. I hear nothing more. It’s only my imagination, running wild.

  The hair on my arms stand on end, and goosebumps travel down my spine. Sean comes to mind. The nerve I had in not jumping at his offer.

  Things go his way or…suffer. Turning Gloria down was one thing. Asking Sean to wait quite another.

  In spite of the risks and my resulting unease, I can’t sell myself right now. Montana hasn’t been dead a good day yet. And the memory of sex with Kiln is just beneath the surface, rubbing me raw. Taunting me with the knowledge that I won’t ever find that type of pleasure on the streets.