“That’s what I’m talking about,” I said to myself as I turned the loose dial on the dashboard. The song brought back memories of rides with Jared back when country music was still country and worth listening to. I’d rather pour bleach in my ears than have to listen to Luke Bryan’s bro-country, which was all that my coach had been playing in the gym this week. I grimaced at the memory and slowed for the stoplight. This was the worst parts of town, and anyone with sense would roll up the windows and lock their doors.
I narrowed my eyes at the boarded windows, graffitied walls, and faint smell of garbage and marijuana in the air. If there were ever a place to avoid, this was it.
Slowly letting off the brake, my Mustang puttered down the road toward Dante’s. Cars were lined along the narrow street, so much so that it was difficult to drive.
The music was pumping out of the small, two story home that was in desperate need of repainting, or at the very least, a good pressure washing. Shutters hung precariously, and on the second floor, there were visible holes in the glass. I bet someone had shot through them. I never understood why drug dealers lived this way—they made a fortune, but they couldn’t bother to live in a half decent suburb. They’d spend fifty thousand on cars but never replaced the ratty sofa from 1992.
“Hey there, beautiful,” a man called as I stepped out of the car and locked it behind me. The radio wasn’t worth the trouble of stealing, but still. She may be a junk car, but she was my piece of junk. “Why don’t you come over here and sit on my lap, and I’ll share this beer,” he said as he held up a silver can of Coors Light.
I said nothing. Personal experience with the DT Coyotes had taught me that it was best to keep my head down. Walking quickly past him, I sighed in relief at the cool air that washed over me as I walked into what might pass as Dante’s living room.
“Come on, honey,” the guy called again.
I turned on my heel and relaxed a little at the sight of Crow, he at least knew I belonged to Easton so maybe he would keep me safe. But then again, Crow had his arm around a young blonde woman who had accompanied him and Dante to Sasha’s place yesterday. The couple was pressed against the faded yellow wall, stained by cigarette smoke and years of neglect.
I grimace at the way she wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her curvy figure against his body. Class really was dead in this part of the world.
“Here, Allie,” Sasha called and drew my attention as she pressed a cold beer in my hand.
The condensation dripped to the floor. “I didn’t know you’re gonna be here tonight,” I said to Sasha.
“I always come to club parties.”
She looked rough, as usual. Her face drawn in hard lines, her body draped in clothes that were too big for her frame. Years of alcohol and drug abuse seem to prematurely age her, and it left me wondering just how old she really was.
“It’s been a long day,” I said and took a sip of the ice-cold beverage. It was disgusting, I’d never been a fan of Budweiser, and neither had Jared, a memory that left me smiling despite the bitter taste in my mouth.
“What’s wrong with your face?” Sasha asked, her brows knit together.
“I was thinking of someone I knew who didn’t like beer very much. They said that it reminded them of fermented, watered-down bread that had been left in a bottle.”
“Yes, well, it’s nobody’s favorite brand, but it’s cheap,” she said before taking a drink. “If you finish enough of them, you’ll be too drunk to care how bad they taste.” Sasha gave me an unnatural harsh grin and her words were slightly stilted. I wondered how many of these she had this evening.
“But you know how I feel about these things,” she said, her voice gruff once more. “I only serve four types of alcohol: beer, vodka, tequila, or whiskey. They can take it or leave it. It’s no skin off my back.”
I wanted to remind her that it was in fact skin off her back. If her customers didn’t like what she served, they could find any number of establishments that were better than Sasha’s. Instead, I decided to keep that factoid to myself and turned my attention toward the room again.
Crow’s bottled blonde had moved from the wall and was straddling him on the couch, grinding herself against him. It would have left a younger version of me blushing, but I found that the more I was exposed to this lifestyle, the less it shocked me.
“Looks like someone’s getting lucky tonight,” Sasha said, and she followed my gaze to Crow. “Doesn’t bother you does it?”
“What’s it matter to me if Crow sleeps with her?” I asked.
“He might be someone worth getting jealous over. Pretty young things like you don’t last long around here. Not without one of them big fellas to protect you,” Sasha said.
I watched as Crow stripped off his hoodie, revealing heavily tattooed, muscled arms.
“I’m with Easy,” I said, and she smirked.
“I heard—or rather, I saw,” she said and pulled out a pack of Camel cigarettes, then slid one between her nineties style lined lips. “You fucking Easy may not mean much to them after a couple beers.”
My body tensed, revolted at the idea of Crow, Spider, or any of the other DT Coyotes’ hands or mouth on me.
“Whoa,” I said and deliberately looked away as the blonde unzipped Crow’s jeans and freed him from his pants. The man was disgusting but I could give him props for having a decent size cock.
“Oh, look at her go,” Sasha said. “You know I’ve been playing with the idea of having ladies upstairs.” She flicked her cigarette to the ground as a wave of nausea came over me.
“Prostitutes, you want to get into dealing in flesh?” I asked, trying to keep my voice even as I focused on the gray carpet beneath my feet. It was tattered around the edges that met with the cracked linoleum floor.
“Oh, not me. No, I got out of the business a long time ago,” she said with a jut of her chin that told me that she was proud of how far she had come in life. “I’m a businesswoman, you know, and I’m thinking it’s time to expand. Blondie might just be my first employee. That is, unless you want to get in on it.” She gave me a long, slow look from my boots to my hair before she reached up and patted my cheek like she was checking for the youthful elasticity of my skin.
“That’s quite an offer,” I said, not wanting to be rude but also having zero interest in prostitution. “But I’m sorta picky about who I sleep with.”
“Suit yourself,” she said. “Well, damn.” She grinned, and I glanced back over, despite myself.
The blonde had tears rolling down her face as she continued to gag on Crow’s cock. She leaned back long enough to take a breath and then dove back down.
“How much do you think we could charge for blow jobs?” Sasha asked.
Thankfully, I didn’t have to answer because Spider had the decency to trip over the peeled linoleum and knock Sasha’s beer from her hand. The can rolled as it hit the floor, spraying the yellowish foamy liquid everywhere.
“You ass,” Sasha said and shoved him hard. He tripped again, landing on his knees, narrowly missing the coffee table.
“Fucking cunt,” Spider yelled back, but he didn’t come over to her and do anything. It was almost like he was afraid of her. It wasn’t the first time that I was curious as to Sasha’s connection with the gang, besides running the bar, of course.
“You think Dante will mind or should I try to clean it up?” I asked out of politeness and nodded at the soaked carpet. I doubted anyone would notice spilled beer.
“Leave it,” Sasha ordered. “I need a fresh beer, you want one?”
“Nah, I’m good,” I assured her.
Sasha burped. “Suit yourself.” She turned on scrawny legs and walked away, her flip flops making a smacking sound as she moved and the crowd of people parted for her.
I turned my attention back to Spider, who seemed drunk or high or both. He popped open a bottle of what looked to be prescription medication, dumped the contents onto the cheap coffee table and began crushi
ng the pills.
“Come on, babe,” he said as he reached next to him and grabbed the hand of a young brunette.
“Do it like this.” He made a neat little pile of a white powder, plugged a single nostril, and snorted. The white puff of powder floated around his face, and he crinkled his nose. “All right, your turn.”
Spider smacked her ass hard, and she leaned forward and inhaled. I felt a little sorry for her, something about her seemed so desperate. I wasn’t sure if she was desperate to fit in with the Coyotes or if she was desperate to get high.
I thought about it a second longer, maybe it was for the drugs because she was stuck with Spider. I wasn’t at all surprised that it would take drugs and alcohol to allow that man to touch someone, just the thought had me revolting.
“Yo, Allie, right?” a tall man with his entire face tattooed hollered at me.
“Yeah, why?”
“Want to play a game?” he asked, holding out a pool cue to me.
I shrugged. “I don’t know how.”
“JB usually plays with me, but I gots no clue where he is. You Easy’s woman, right?”
“Yeah. Who are you?”
“Cipher.”
He had to weigh at least three hundred pounds and be a few inches over six foot. Cipher seemed like such a cute and cuddly name for a man who definitely wasn’t cute nor cuddly.
“Yeah, it’s satire.”
I laughed. “Okay, so I hit the balls into the holes?”
“No worries, I gotcha. You just put your hand like this, your wrist is on the table or on the side if you want. The pole slides through here. You aim, and...” Cipher hit one of the balls and the rest scattered around the table. “I didn’t get a ball into the pocket, so it’s your turn. You hit the white ball and use it to knock other balls into the pockets. If you knock a solid ball in then from that point on, you will only want to hit for solid balls. If you get a stripe in first then you will only want to hit stripes, got it?”
I nodded then leaned down and tried to position my hand like he had told me. “Like this?” I asked.
“Move your thumb down, farther down the stick. Yeah, that’s better.”
I picked a ball to aim for then realized it wasn’t near any of the holes. I moved to the other side and picked a new target, positioning my wrist correctly, or so I thought. Just as I was about to hit the ball, something bumped into me from behind.
“Oops,” the guy from earlier, the one outside said.
I stood up, pulling away from him slightly. “Cipher is teaching me how to play pool.”
The asshole grabbed another cue off the wall. “Why don’t you watch me and Cipher play a game? You can stare at my ass.”
I stepped away from him. “I’m good. I’ll go find Easy or Sasha,” I said and continued moving from the pool table.
“Crow, Spider,” a voice called, and my heart picked up speed. I swallowed hard and fought back the tightness in my throat. I hadn’t expected to react this way to Easton’s voice, and Crow and Spider were too engrossed in the women and the drugs to notice. “Hey, assholes. Dante wants us,” he barked. Spider jumped from the table, and Crow’s head jerked up.
“What did you call us?” Spider asked, a little dazed.
“Assholes, which is what you are,” Easton said, and I had to bite back a laugh. “But I didn’t give you that name. Dante did.”
At that moment, Eaton’s eyes locked on mine. “Sorry,” he mouthed.
I opened my mouth to say something to him, but he looked away, and without another word, he stalked down the hall, his shoulders back, his head held high. Whatever else could be said about him, the badass gangster aesthetic fit him perfectly.
“Gotta go, baby doll,” Crow said as he pushed the blonde away from him and tucked himself back in his pants. “Spider you got something on your upper lip,” he snapped, and Spider quickly wiped the remnants of the powder from his nose.
I wanted to know what was going on. I glanced around and saw other members of the gang, Ice was fucking some girl on the kitchen counter. Thane and another dude were smoking the largest joint I had ever seen, and two others had a girl between them and they were each playing with one of her breasts.
What was so important that Crow and Spider were needed but not all members?
“Where are you going?” Sasha asked from behind me. I hadn’t even realized that I had taken a step toward the hallway.
“Umm, going to the bathroom,” I said without turning toward her and then continued on my way.
The long dark hallway was crowded with bodies pressed against walls. I had no clue that the DT Coyotes had this many members. As I passed one guy, his dick inside a girl’s mouth, he threw his head back and groaned.
I cringed and hurried past him as Megan Thee Stallion boomed over the speaker system.
A light emanated from one of the bedrooms and drew my attention. The voices were low, almost inaudible. I crept closer in to peek between the gaps and my blood ran cold as the barrel of a gun was pointed at the face of one of the members.
“Somebody ran to the cops. Someone...” Dante said as he cocked the gun and pressed it against the forehead of a man whose eyes were shut tight. “Someone betrayed the family,” he snarled.
“It wasn’t me,” the man who I didn’t recognize muttered.
I was sort of in a haze as I tried to take in everything I was seeing. Easton stood next to the unknown man, and like me, Easton’s eyes were focused on the gun Dante held.
“I think we need to recommit to our loyalty,” Dante hissed. “You were the only new member who didn’t get caught. How am I, supposed to trust you?”
“I’m loyal, I swear. Just tell me what you want me to do, and I will. Want to give me another ‘jumping in’? I’ll do it. Just try me.”
“Here, take this.” Dante handed the man a revolver. “It’s got a bullet in the chamber, just one. Put it to your head. Prove your loyalty.”
I covered my mouth but had a feeling that I should be covering my eyes instead.
“God don’t want no Coyotes, he can’t handle us. Afraid that we gonna turn his angels against him,” Dante sneered. “You know that, right?”
The man nodded.
“You believe that, right?”
The man nodded again.
“Good. If you a true Coyote and loyal to us, then you be fine.” Dante paused for several seconds. “Ready?”
My breath came out harder. I wanted to scream, to cry, to demand that Easton run, but I couldn’t. I was paralyzed with fear as Easton’s eyes flicked to the door and then back to the gun. I could feel him looking out his periphery and keeping his gaze locked on me.
“Pull,” Dante ordered.
My entire body tightened, my eyes squeezed shut, and I froze in place as I waited for the sound of the explosion. Instead, all I head was a soft metal on metal as the hammer hit the plate. I released my breath and quickly moved so they couldn’t see me but I could still see them.
“As far as I’m concerned, every one of you betrayed me today, and you will all have to re-earn your spot on the DT Coyotes.”
The man on his knees in front of Dante trembled. Dante seemed larger than everyone else in the room, if only because of the power that he held in this moment.
“You’re clear,” Dante said as he clapped a large hand on the shoulder of the man. “Dry it up, Wrench. You’ll live to cower another day. Who’s next?” Dante asked as he took a step toward Crow, raised the gun high, and held it against the man’s head.
Crow didn’t shy away—he merely held Dante’s gaze as he leaned forward and pressed his forehead hard against the revolver.
Dante smirked in approval and nodded as he placed the sidearm in Crow’s beefy hands. “Your turn, brother.” Dante dragged out the word brother as though it was more of a question than a statement.
Without hesitation, Crow pulled the trigger. It clicked with no bullet in the chamber. My knees trembled as I gripped the wall, clinging to the cold woo
den frame, hoping that this was somehow a dream.
“And you, Easy?” he said as he turned to Easton. “My newest brother.”
My heart stopped in my chest, and I bit my lip hard—hard enough to taste blood as I bit back a cry of horror and pain.
Easton wasn’t looking at me anymore—he stared at the gun extended toward him. Long fingers slowly reached forward and grasped the handle. Every part of my being urged me to leap forward and throw myself between the gun and Easton, to grab the handle and fire again and again until that single bullet finally exited the chamber and pierced the heart of the monster that masqueraded as a man.
Easton held the gun to his head, his hand remained steady, his eyes stayed in place as he pulled the trigger, and the crack of a gunshot vibrated through the air loud enough to mask my cry of terror. I clamped both hands over my mouth and turned away from the room of horrors. Sobs ripped through my chest as a very real part of me tore into two.
“What the hell is this?” Crow’s low voice demanded.
I stiffened, terrified that someone had seen me.
“A blank,” Dante said.
My heart stumbled, and I whirled around and peered around the side of the doorframe. Relief flooded through my body as Easton stood, gun in hand, frowning at the revolver. He was alive.
Spider cackled with laughter as I felt my stomach rumble as if I was going to throw up.
“You safe. Get the next member,” Dante ordered.
Easton stepped into the hallway, but I was already running. I had to get out of here, this was my fault. If it had been a live bullet, Easton’s death would have been my fault.
Kobe
I pulled my car in front of my apartment complex, then shut off the tired engine.
Okay, you’ve got this Kobe. You have to stay strong, this is for Jared, I reminded myself as I climbed out of my car. The hot, humid summer air of Florida was cloying.
I was fully aware that Dante was ruthless—a cold-hearted bastard, cruel to the bone. I just hadn’t expected him to have his members playing Russian roulette. His guys were loyal, they wouldn’t snitch on anyone, hence why there were still no arrests in my brother’s murder, I thought Dante would be just as loyal back.
Kobe, Bad Blood (Blood Roses Book 1) Page 6
