CHAPTER 215 Two Deliveries
*Sebastian*
I slouched in a battered Kia that stank of greasy lo mein, parked in the shadows across from New Salem High’s front entrance, waiting for Joy and Liam to arrive. The comms buzzed with chatter as the plan unfolded. Pete had fucked up, calling Big Mike to square his debts with him, thinking he could outmaneuver us.
Big Mike rang me while I had Randall’s throat under my grip in the hospital’s basement garage—a damp, flickering hellhole reeking of antiseptic and engine fluid. The wedding, Pete, the Blue Rogues, Lorenzo and De Luca’s injuries had us stretched thin, so Randall was no one’s babysitting priority. At the wedding earlier, Dina imformed me his wife had given birth the night before at the crumbling hospital right outside of Mandan. I knew he’d bolt the second the doctors discharged his wife and newborn daughter. And I was right.
My phone buzzed as I pinned Randall against the cold concrete wall, his pulse hammering under my fingers. “What?” I growled.
“Dom, this is bad,” Big Mike’s voice wobbled. “Pete McDowell’s on my ass. Wants us to snatch Virtue. Says it’ll wipe our slate clean.”
“Pete’s still playing that card, huh?” I said, my voice low, venomous. “Thinks he can trade people like poker chips. What’s he offering you, Mike? A pat on the head and a bone?”
Big Mike hesitated, his breath heavy. “Just my debt cleared, Dom. And maybe a cut of whatever he’s running. I didn’t ask for details. You know how he is.”
*Classic Pete*. *Always calling on people who owe him to do his dirty work*.
“Hold that thought. Gotta take out the trash first,” I said, hanging up and pocketing the phone. I yanked my .45 from its holster, the barrel kissing Randall’s temple. “Shame your little girl’s gonna grow up without a daddy.”
Randall’s eyes bulged, sweat beading on his forehead. “Alright! Alright! I’ll talk, Dom, I swear! The lab’s underground, beneath the Hillcrest clubhouse. Please, don’t kill me, man, I got a kid now!”
“Was that so hard?” I hissed, easing off but keeping the gun steady. “You’re gonna keep your mouth shut, Randall. You breathe my name to anyone—*anyone*—and I’ll carve you up while you’re spooning your wife in bed. You won’t even hear me coming.”
“I won’t say shit, Dom, I swear on my daughter!” he whimpered, hands shaking.
“Good,” I said, cracking the pistol across the back of his skull. He crumpled like a marionette with cut strings.
*Back to Big Mike*.
I dialed his number. “Pete wants you to deliver Virtue. What did he tell you to do?”
“Wait for her at the side entrance. She’ll get a message or some shit,” Big Mike said. “ Look Dom, I know she’s your friend. I know you’ll gut me if I touch her. How about you front me the cash to settle with Pete? Clean slate, no blood. Everyone can walk away happy."
I smirked. “You're thinking small, Mike. Do what Pete says, and I’ll fork over some money. You clear your debt and pocket some extra cash. Whaddaya say?”
“I-I don’t get it, Dom,” Big Mike stammered. “Virtue’s your friend. You know Pete’s a twisted fuck. Likes ‘em screaming when he—”
“The less you know, the better,” I snapped, cutting him off. “Deliver Virtue, get paid. But if you tip Pete off, I’ll string you up in the Biker Lounge like a piñata."
“A-Alright, I’m in,” Big Mike choked out, his bravado crumbling. “I ain’t stupid, Dom. I’ll do it. Just… don’t fuck me over, alright?”
“I won't,” I said, my grin widening. “I have one more favor for you to do, though. Pull it off, and I’ll double your cut.”
“What’s the favor?” Big Mike’s voice perked up, his greed edging out his fear.
“Make it two deliveries instead of one.”
“Two?” Big Mike paused, gears turning. “Who’s the second? You gotta give me more than that, Dom. I’m sticking my neck out here.”
“You’ll know when it’s time,” I said, voice cold as steel. “Just make sure you and a friend are at the side entrance later tonight. And Mike? Don’t get curious. Curious gets you dead.”
My thoughts shattered as a black BMW purred into the school lot, sleek as a panther, stopping at the main entrance. Liam and Joy stepped out, fingers laced, Joy playing her part like an Oscar contender. My jaw tightened. Even though I knew it was a charade, it didn't make it any easier.
As they vanished into the school, a woman glided from the bushes—dressed in black, a cocktail hat perched like a raven on her head, its veil draping her eyes in mystery. She wasn't a student nor was she a teacher. That hat screamed trouble as well as money.
She eased the door open, glanced inside, then glided through the narrow gap with effortless grace.
“Dina,” I muttered into the comms, “got a woman in black, cocktail hat with a veil, tailing the newlyweds through the main entrance. Who is she?"
“That’s the woman Miss JT suspects poisoned Lorenzo at her wedding,” Dina shot back, her keyboard clattering like a machine gun. “Veil’s blocking her face—facial rec’s got nothing.”
“Track her,” I ordered. “She’s on the newlyweds like a shadow. I want to know every move she makes."
“Copy, Domenico. I’ll pull the school’s cams, see if I can get a better angle,” Dina said, her voice all business.
A sharp rap on the passenger window snapped my head around. I exhaled when I saw Kiki, cool as ice. She slid in, her black trench coat mirroring Joy’s, draped over a dress dark as sin. She placed a small black cosmetic case on her lap as she settled in beside me.
“Where should I wait?” Kiki asked.
“Bathroom near the west entrance of the school,” I said. “Strut in like you belong. You’re dressed the part. And Kiki—keep your eyes peeled for our lady in the cocktail hat. She’s trouble, and I don’t like surprises.”
“Got it,” Kiki said, a faint smirk tugging at her lips. “You sure you don’t want me to take her out if she gets too close?”
“Not yet,” I said, meeting her gaze. “I don't know who she is, but my gut says she's in league with Pete. We touch her, and it'll alert Pete. Just stick to the plan, and we all walk away clean.”
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