Vengeance: The Program Book 4

by N. M. Catalano

  If what we believe is happening to be true, Gwendolyn could be the one that’s in the most danger. If she is the last stock holder that’s refusing to sell, we have no doubt that the powers behind this whole shit storm would do anything to take what they want. One little woman and an old lady don’t mean shit to them. Hell, they’d put a bullet in Mrs. Merriweather’s head, throw her in the river for the crocodiles to feed on. Then they’d make Gwen sign the paperwork before they sold her to some sick fuck in the middle east, successfully eliminating all of their problems. Then the party could really get started in the mill. They’d have that laboratory up and running, shipping all of their merchandise up and down the river and no one would be the wiser. Guns, women, drugs, maybe even toxic warfare. That mill is a bad guys wet dream. The skies the limit when you’ve got no one to answer to out here in Smalltown, U.S.A.

  News flash. They’ve got us to answer to. We are their worst nightmare. We are hell and death and annihilation. We will rain down destruction on them. Vengeance is a reward best given not with hate, but love, a love that burns with fury. Vengeance is served only once. It’s complete and God help the man it’s coming for.

  They fucked with us, they took what was ours. They think we’re soldiers. We’re not. We’re brothers. We were born from pain and torture, they forged us together with it, melded us into one thinking, breathing, feeling machine. We are their creation. One unit, one being, one focus. Us. Only us. And everything that belongs to us. That is what they neglected to consider. We are one. What unites us is something stronger, it’s a bond that’s unbreakable, created with blood and fury. That’s the life force that bled through our veins and infected us when this unity was born.

  We’re not letting them get away with a fucking thing.

  Especially not Gwendolyn.

  Because vengeance is coming. It’s mad as fucking hell.

  This is what’s burning through me when I walk into the tattoo shop. I’m late. I didn’t get any sleep last night as usual. And after what happened with Gwendolyn in her kitchen, I had to reconsider my plan and how I would deal with her. I went home and showered, loving and hating her scent all over my body, the memory of her mouth and hands on me, and her taste still fresh on my tongue.

  She is my weakness. I cannot afford to be weak. Not for any of us.

  Today, it’s me, Gringo and Rock. Snake is next door at the coffee shop, Raven’s with him. She’s been our receptionist since they got back. It’s good to have her here. She scares the shit out of some customers, and others she leaves in awe.

  The broad is bad as hell.

  I yank out a chair and sit my big ass down. “Tell me you’ve got something.”

  Rock glares at me, lifting only his eyes from whatever he’s reading. If looks could kill, I’d be dead from what I’m getting from Gringo.

  I’m such an ass.

  I’m upset because I had the woman I’m crazy for right where I want her, even though I don’t. Gringo doesn’t even know where the woman he loves is, let alone if she’s safe, the odds of that being a million to one.

  What a dick I am.

  I take a deep breath, get my shit together, and start again. “Is there anything new?” I can’t even meet Gringo’s gaze.

  Rock sits back in his chair and stares at me.

  I’m a grown man and under normal circumstances I can fuck whomever I please. Whenever I please, wherever I please. However, these are no ordinary circumstances. And quite possibly, Gwendolyn might very well be in the most dangerous position of all of us.

  This turned from being a retrieval to something huge. We’re just not sure yet. Not until we get back information, information I sure as hell hope has come in.

  Rock knows something happened between Gwen and me. He can read it just as if I’d come in dragging her behind me naked, which is a very attractive scenario. And stupid. We can’t risk putting her in any more danger, I can’t risk it. Giving whomever we’re dealing with another upper hand over us could be the worst thing I could do. That’s the kind of leverage that could be detrimental to everyone involved, and not just us four, but for the women.

  Gringo puts his laptop on Rock’s desk and snaps it open. He’s a fucking tech genius, he can hack into any server, break through any firewall, and find shit people don’t want found. Most of the time. He hasn’t gotten lucky with Dominic Fellini, or Sasha. “What Mrs. M. said was correct, it’s all here in the public records. The mill technically became public, but it seems, according to what human resources I could investigate, only to its employees.” His head is in the game, but he’s emotionless and robotic.

  My heart seizes. The information he’s just relayed, and how he delivered it, guts me.

  “What about John Merriweather’s shares?” I don’t even want to know. That fact makes me feel like shit.

  If the shares are still in Gwen’s grandmother’s name, then she’d be the one they’re after. Does it make me a complete piece of shit hoping Gwen would not be in as much danger? In reality, that wouldn’t matter because they’d only be passed to Gwendolyn upon her grandmother’s death unless she signed the ownership over beforehand.

  The old lady would never sign them over.

  The whole situation sucks no matter how you look at it.

  “According to the department of deeds, his share was put into an estate when the mill closed.” I’m staring at Gringo’s computer willing it to give me what I want to hear. Gringo’s eyes meet mine. They’re filled with rage. “As of last year, nothing has changed.”

  Fuck. Fuck. FUCK.

  “That doesn’t mean anything,” Rock states quietly. “The old lady said she signed over everything. We’re going to take that at face value and presume she did, including the mill shares.”

  An explosion erupts inside me as I sit motionless in my chair.

  “What now?” I ask.

  I’m not sure what I want that to be. I could take Gwen and her grandmother somewhere they can’t find us. I can persuade them to sell, to remove that which could be their death sentence. Or do I want Rock to say we’re going in and blowing the fucking place up?

  “Nothing. We don’t do anything about that. Not right now. What you can do, since you’re playing house, is see if you can get them to tell you whether or not they’ve been approached with an offer to sell. Look for any paperwork you can get your hands on. Listen to any messages they might have on an answering machine.” Rock leans forward. “Hell, steal their fucking mail.”

  I grit my teeth. All of that is exactly what I need to do.

  None of that is what I WANT to do. My fury want’s blood. It wants bodies. It’s wants vengeance. Violent, deadly vengeance.

  I sit back in my seat and fold my arms across my chest and silently imagine all of those things.

  “We need to stay focused,” Rock cuts a glare at me. “We’re getting information. Information that will allow us to prepare the best way to finish this. Permanently.”

  Goddamn it, he’s right. Unfortunately.

  “What about the translations?” Gringo questions. He’s calm, cold, and calculated.

  I don’t know how he fucking does it.

  Rock lets out a slow breath. “Nothing yet.”

  Gringo’s hands curl into tight fists.

  This shit is killing him. A man can only take so much.

  “Don’t you think we’ve been patient enough?” Gringo’s question is low and icy.

  Rock studies Gringo as I watch the exchange between them. Is Gringo acting on emotion or skill? Is it his need for revenge or his tactical training? Is it because he wants blood as much as we all do, maybe more so?

  I believe it’s all of that. And more.

  “Yes,” Rock finally replies.

  I think we all let out a collective breath.

  Rock continues, “We’ve got the photos we took of the crates in the mill. Send them off to someone we can trust. Someone who can keep it…off the regular channels.”

  Gringo nods slowly. “It’
s going to take a little time. This can’t be done electronically. They should be delivered by hand, but…”

  “No one’s leaving,” I finish.

  “Damn right,” Rock states coldly.

  There’s one thing I want to bring up. Although, I’m not sure how they’re going to react. They might feel the same way I do.

  “I think we need to get back inside the mill,” I put it out there.

  Both Rock and Gringo turn their attention to me.

  “He’s right,” Gringo agrees with a grin. It’s a look I’ve seen many times in the past just before we began an assignment, full of the promise of what might happen.

  “I know,” Rock agrees as well. “There’s only one problem with that.”

  “We didn’t get the order,” I smirk.

  Rock grins. “No.” Then his expression turns to stone. “We’ll need all four of us to go back inside.”

  Fuck. He’s right. That leaves no one here. Summer, Raven, Gwendolyn, and Mrs. Merriweather would be left vulnerable. The day we went to the mill is the day Sasha disappeared.

  They’ve got eyes on us. We all know we’re being watched. There are men out there with their only purpose being to complete the mission, no matter the price.

  “Hawk,” Gringo states quietly.

  The same man we met at the expo. Another member of The Program, one of those men who does whatever it takes to complete his mission. A man we call Reaper. He was contracted to retrieve Summer and eliminate any obstacles that would interfere with that. To eliminate us. He chose not to.

  That was then. This is now.

  Rock nods once. “He’s the only one. However, this time he won’t be enough.” His brows furrow in frustration. “The thing is, we have no idea where he stands with his assignment.”

  The assignment being Summer. That never went away.

  The truth, no matter how necessary, sometimes is the hardest thing to accept.

  The truth of our situation is we are only four men, very powerful men, who need to be in two places at the same time. The truth is also, by choosing the necessary option that will lead us to the end of this fucked-up situation, it will leave our most prized possessions in danger.

  It can’t be avoided.

  One of the foremost rules of war is to succeed with as little casualties as possible.

  The option we know we must choose sets up everyone we care about as casualties.

  This is the challenge we’re facing. Stay here and protect the people we love, or get the answers we need and leave them defenseless? This is bigger than only Summer and a bunch of power hungry perverts. More and more, we’re beginning to believe everything is connected.

  We need answers. We need to find a way to get them without putting anyone in danger.

  We need back up.

  Rock drums his fingertips against his desktop. Gringo’s face is transfixed to his laptop’s screen.

  “I’ll call the Steel Brothers.” Both of them look at me, their expressions hard.

  We were all thinking it, but I was the one who verbalized it.

  “The president said it would be war,” Rock states flatly.

  He did.

  “Only if we seek retribution for his vice president shooting Snake and trying to take Summer.”

  “How can you be sure? They’re one of the most dangerous motorcycle clubs on this continent. They sure as hell didn’t get that reputation by being amicable,” Gringo spits out.

  “Prez said his guy acted as a lone wolf. You told me he ordered the execution of his own man,” I state the fact.

  He doesn’t trust them. None of us do, honestly. Gringo has a reason to, though. Some of the Steel Brothers were watching Sasha’s house while he was at the Ink & Arms expo. We don’t know if they were on duty the night Sasha saw someone outside her home in the middle of the night. They didn’t report seeing anything. Now that she’s missing, we’re not sure they’re not a part of the whole situation. The Vice President was.

  “That doesn’t mean anything, you know that as well as I do. He would have shot him between the eyes himself if it meant saving whatever deal they have going on with more powerful people.” Rock and his damn logic.

  “And if you remember, I told you Raven gutted the guy. One of his own didn’t kill him,” Gringo adds.

  He’s right, she did. Cut him open from one end to the other, then from side to side just for shits and giggles to make sure he was dead.

  A total bad ass. I’m so glad she’s one of us.

  None of this is getting us any closer to where we need to be.

  I slam my fist down on the desk. Everything on top jumps, but not Rock and Gringo.

  “There isn’t anyone else, goddamn it! We can’t call anyone in from The Program, and anyone that’s connected who’s worth a fuck has probably taken a contract on us and Summer as well. I’m open to ideas, but if you’ve got nothing, we have no other goddamn choice!” I snarl.

  The three of us glare at each other. Rock’s expression’s is contained fury. Gringo looks like the devil himself.

  Finally, Rock nods once, giving his acceptance. Gringo turns his attention back to searching for anything on his computer. If I know him, he’s looking in the places he’s most comfortable. The dark web, a peek at the pleasures of hell and damnation, a place he feels right at home.

  “In the meantime, we’ll send the drones back into the mill. Get some eyes in there and look for anything new.” Rock has agreed.

  We all stand. Our meeting is finished. I’m sure Snake will be updated once I get back to the coffee shop and he can leave.

  It’s time to go home. Correction, it’s time to go to Gwen’s.

  It’s time to face my own private hell.

  CHAPTER 16

  Gwendolyn

  Every time the door opens, my eyes jump to see if Bull’s come in.

  Each time it’s not him, I get angrier, sadder, and more confused.

  “Hey, Summer, you want me to turn the sign off and lock the door?” It’s Raven.

  The girl is high strung, and a tad on the controlling side. If I didn’t know her, she’d scare the ever living hell out of me.

  Covered in tattoos from her neck, down her fishnet encased legs, right to her thigh-high stiletto boots, she’s tough, quick, and one of the nicest people I know. Just don’t cross her. I’ve watched her put a man in his place who was twice her size. He crawled away with his tail between his legs. I loved her from that moment.

  Raven is Snake’s other half, and they’re perfect for each other. Where Snake is calm and laid back, Raven is intense and nothing but energy. His yin to her yang. Together they are complete. Just like Summer and Rock. Just like Gringo and Sasha.

  Just like Bull and I were last night.

  Heaviness bears down on me once again remembering everything. Every touch, every word, each and every look in his eyes. It ends the same way with his mocking statement and the cold, disdainful stare he gave me.

  I feel so stupid.

  “Chin up, buttercup,” Raven’s joined us behind the counter to get things put away for the night. She’s like a freak of nature, an object constantly in motion. While on the other hand, Snake can sit completely still for hours, which is exactly what he’s been doing tonight. “He’ll be here any minute now.” She gives me a sly grin.

  I roll my eyes, disgusted with myself. “Am I that obvious?”

  She shrugs a shoulder. “Yeah, you are,” then she turns away to find something else to occupy herself with.

  Summer shakes her head. “What she means,” she glares at Raven, “is that you have been a bit preoccupied all day. Isn’t that right, Raven?” Summer stares at her wide eyed as if saying, ‘don’t be rude!’

  It’s too late. But that’s Raven. She doesn’t pull any punches, and she doesn’t mean any harm. She’s just being honest. Because I totally am obvious.

  Raven leans a hip against the counter. “That’s one way of putting it. But I’d say,” she narrows her eyes and s
tudies me. “She got laid last night, and it didn’t end well.”

  A wave of heat engulfs me completely dousing me in morbid embarrassment.

  Summer shoves Raven’s arm. “Don’t say that!” Summer glances at me and drops her tone noticing my horrified expression. “At least not like that.”

  I throw up my hands. “Why not? That’s pretty much what happened. I feel like such a fool.” I cover my face with my hands wishing the ground would just open up and end my misery. No doubt there’ll be a whole lot more because it’s almost time to go home. With Bull.

  Ugh!

  Summer wraps an arm around me. “Stop it. It’s not like that.” She rubs my arm trying to comfort me.

  I drop my hands and look from Raven to Summer. “It was exactly like that.” I glance toward Nan to see if she’s listening. Even when she’s not, she’s always listening. “Except we really didn’t have…you know…,” I drop my tone to a whisper, “sex.”

  Raven shrugs nonchalantly, “So you two didn’t fuck?”

  A fresh wave of crimson washes over me, but my body gets tingly all over. Her words make the memories of last night burst back to life. “No. Not really.”

  “So you didn’t get the dick.” Raven continues.

  Oh, God, she’s worse than Nan!

  “Would you stop,” Summer cuts in. But I can tell she wants to laugh.

  I look back and forth between them. They’re both smirking and staring at me. I break into a grin. Their mouths curve into a full blown smile. I begin to chuckle, it just happens. That starts a wave with the three of us, my giggles are contagious. We all burst into laughter.

  “NO.” I glance around the dining room once I can speak. I whisper, “I did not get the dick. Can you believe him?!” I huff out.

  They wipe the tears from their eyes.

  “You should have just asked for it. I did,” Summer’s still trying to gain composure.

  That surprises me. “You did? I thought Rock would be all over you.”

  A smile curves her mouth. “He was,” she blushes, “in his own way. But he told me the same thing Bull probably told you.”