Retaliate Read online

  Looking away, I think of my options. I could call this in and for once, The Outlaws have been caught in their game and they could go away for life. I glance back, noticing Zeek talking to one of his men, completely oblivious to me being here. If I turn it in, what does that mean for Jillian and the kids? What does that mean for me if I arrest the man I need Intel from?

  Grabbing my radio on my shoulder, I lean toward it.

  “731, there- there is nothing here,” I choke on my words, my stomach knotting with alarm at what the fuck I’m doing.

  “731, copy that.”

  Turning away from the scene I head back to my cruiser, my eyes glossy, as I want to cry. My legs feel like weights, and my hands are trembling. My chest feels cold, and I feel like I may vomit any second with what I just did.

  “Alessandra!” Felix hollers after me. I don’t turn back, I keep my head down and pick up my pace. “Fucking stop!” Felix barks, grabbing my arm and whipping me around to face him.

  His wild eyes search mine as the wind wraps around me like a vise, sending a shiver up my spine. His hair is beautiful and spotted with blood, his hands stained with another’s life.

  “What are you doing here?” he asks gravelly. Swallowing hard I look past him, none of his men looking in our direction.

  “I’m not here,” I mutter through clenched teeth.

  “I just want to make something clear. You weren’t here and you saw nothing—”

  My head whips in his direction.

  “Or what?” I bite out and he steps into my space. His hard stare looking down at me as I glare up at him.

  “You get in that fucking car and call this in, they will kill you, do you understand?” he states so seriously my heart skips a beat.

  “Why do you care?” I tilt my head to the side. If they kill me, he’d be off babysitting duty.

  “Because, they’d send me to do it and I don’t want—” He looks away, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallows. His face is hard, his eyes looking above me.

  “Don’t want to what?” I push.

  “Don’t be stupid,” he mutters before his sight falls onto mine.

  Closing my eyes, I lower my head. “Too late,” I whisper. I’ve already done so much stupid shit that there’s no turning back.

  “We both have issues Alessandra, but if you do something stupid like try and take us down I’ll have to kill you and… that is an issue for me,” he points at himself. I scoff, not sure what he means by that.

  Opening my eyes, Felix’s lips crash against mine, and a buzz of electricity zips through my body as I sway into him. Lost in the world of a convict I almost forget all the death around us until the smell of blood wafts around us mixed with grains of the empty desert. I’m a cop, he’d kill me because that is his code and I need to remind myself of that line. Sinking my teeth into his bottom lip, I bite down hard. He winces and pulls back. Blood drips from his lip as he glares at me with beautifully damaged eyes. His blood stained thumb swiping at his lip I just nailed with my teeth.

  “So you like it rough?” he raises a brow, his voice full of arrogance. Rolling my eyes, I turn to walk away, and he smashes his lips to mine again. Brows furrowed I push him hard, and he chuckles at my reaction. Rage fills my chest, this is all just a fucking game to him.

  “Don’t do something stupid, Alessandra,” he hollers, and I raise my hand and flip him off as I continue my walk over the hill back to my cruiser. My heart jackhammers against my chest, my lips tingling where he kissed me. My panties damp from the desire throbbing deep in my core.

  I don’t know how much longer I can keep my guard up.

  The desire to have his beard between my legs is overpowering my badge.

  Hands sweaty, mouth dry, I walk away from the biggest bust of not only my career but also the station’s.

  Climbing inside Raven looks at me with wide eyes.

  “Well, what was it?”

  “Nothing,” I reply softly, sniffling in the snot threatening to drip from my nose I avoid looking at her. Doing a U-turn in the road I head back to the city, avoiding eye contact with Raven the whole time.

  We have a saying in my line of work. The criminals are the wolves, the citizens the sheep, and us law enforcement, are the sheep dogs.

  My soul was just ripped from my chest by a fucking wolf, and I’ll never be the same again.

  “You have something,” Raven points at my mouth, her brows furrowed. Pulling down my visor I notice blood staining my upper lip. Using the back of my hand I wipe at Felix’s blood. His DNA claiming me, marking me and poisoning me all at the same time.

  “Nothing, my lips are chapped. The desert and all,” I shrug, slamming the visor shut.

  Felix

  “What was that?” Mac asks, noticing Alessandra pull away in her cruiser. The red plastic container containing gasoline in hand. I’m not sure what all he just saw, so I shrug and light a cigarette instead of answering him right away. I don’t know what compelled me to fucking kiss her but the sting in my lip has my dick harder than a brick, and my gut twisted with guilt that I’m betraying my brotherhood.

  “Alessandra,” I growl, wiping at my lip to make sure there’s no more blood.

  “She going to be a problem?” he looks at me with a sideways glance.

  “Nah,” I shake my head, eyeing the dry blood on my fingernails.

  Flicking my cigarette into the wind, I blow smoke into the air. It lands on a trail of gas leading a path around each of the bodies and into the clubhouse.

  “I need you to do some digging for me,” I state, not ask.

  “What’s up?”

  “Look into an officer Brock Lucas. He was killed on the job and I want to know if there was some shady shit going down.”

  “You got it,” Mac pats my back, heading back to the SUV. No doubt hitting up his laptop. He loves shit like this, hacking and finding pieces of crap nobody wants anyone to find. He lives for the personal challenge, and arrogantly admits no firewall will keep him out.

  “We’re done here, let’s get before we’re seen,” Zeek orders, the clubhouse now in full flame.

  Black smoke dances into the sky, the fire hot and killing any of our DNA.

  “Too late,” I whisper, looking in the direction of where Alessandra was last.

  ***

  Sitting at the counter nursing a beer, I scratch at the blood under my nails. Replaying everything that happened today. Will clubs back off knowing we can handle our shit without the mafia? Will Alessandra talk about what she saw?

  “Hey, I got some information on that officer,” Mac says excitedly as he slides up next to me.

  Not sure if Jillian is around I stand and head to the room we have church in, Mac following.

  “First off, there are no birth records for Alessandra Lucas, so I looked into the adoption agencies only to find her dad is not her real dad. Brock’s record with the department has many write-ups as he didn’t follow the rulebook. As for the day he died,” Mac shakes his head. “I couldn’t find shit, not even the name of the suspect that was shot. Someone didn’t want anyone to find this shit man. His partner’s statement doesn’t match what happened at the scene,” Mac explains with a conflicted look.

  “So he wasn’t shot?”

  “I don’t know, his partner is the only one that knows,” Mac continues.

  “So we need to find the partner that disappeared.” I take a sip of my beer.

  “Two steps ahead of you,” Mac says, typing into his computer before turning the screen around. Looks like he’s residing in the ghetto about an hour from here.

  “You up for a little ride?” I ask.

  “We ain’t looking for trouble, man,” Mac shakes his head. “Just information.”

  I laugh, setting my beer down. “Well that’s no fun.” I’m always looking for trouble, the adrenaline rush is what guides me through my darkest days.

  Zeek struts into the chapel with white shit on his shoulder. Mac jumps out of his seat pointing at h
im.

  “What the fuck is that?”

  Zeek looks down, before brushing it off like it’s nothing.

  “Puke… I think,” Zeek mumbles.

  “Looks like bird shit,” I silently laugh.

  “Or like you just jerked off and couldn’t find your load!” Mac raises a brow, keeping a safe distance from Zeek.

  “There is something seriously wrong with you.” I tilt my beer toward Mac.

  “I need to get my hands dirty, go for a ride or something. This domestic shit is starting to get to me,” Zeek groans.

  “Well you’re in the right place because I’m looking for a little trouble,” I smile with a shit-eating grin.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  Felix

  DRIVING TO THE ADDRESS Mac gave us, we end up in the ghetto. It’s a shitty neighborhood for a retired cop.

  We pull up to a house that is missing siding, has a broken window at the very top, and shingles are missing from the roof. There’s a black Buick in the driveway that is chipped and has tape holding plastic over the back window.

  “You sure this is the address?” I ask pulling my helmet off. My hair gets caught in it and I have to untangle it. I swear I should cut this shit, but the chicks seem to love it.

  “Yeah, this is it,” Mac replies confidently.

  Throwing my leg over my seat I notice the neighbors eyeing us suspiciously. They look like crack heads. Skinny, thin dull hair, and dark bags under their eyes. Their house matches Kelly’s in upkeep. I jut my chin at them, and they look away quickly. Respect, it feels good.

  Machete knocks on the front door, and nobody answers. He knocks again and I notice the curtain move in the bay window located at the front of the house.

  “He’s in there,” I state.

  “Kelly?” Zeek shouts. “We need to talk.”

  Suddenly a bullet clips through the front door, snagging Machete in the arm. He hisses, grabbing at the bloody wound.

  Not fucking around, I kick the door open. It slams into Kelly knocking him on his ass, his gun skidding along the dirty floor.

  He reaches for the gun, and I slam my boot into his face as hard as I can. Busting his nose, I can feel the crack beneath my foot.

  Zeek grabs the gun, and Machete stomps into the house and grabs Kelly by the stained shirt before laying a series of punches to his face. His strength more than he knows, he’s about to kill the motherfucker.

  “Easy brother, we still need him alive for information.” I try and hold him back. Machete is a machine that can’t be controlled unless he wants to be controlled.

  Machete breathes heavily, eyeing Kelly like dinner before tossing his limp body to the dirty floor. Machete wipes the blood from his arm, and smears it across Kelly’s face. Kelly cringes, his face painted like something from an Indian movie as it marks under his eyes and forehead.

  Machete growls, holding his arm as he glares at a whimpering Kelly.

  Kelly wipes his face of the blood, scooting to his ass. His eyes are wide with fear, his bottom lip trembling as blood slips from the bridge of his nose down his chin.

  “You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” I imply, tilting my head to the side.

  “You guys. It was you guys who did this to me!” he sobs, and I furrow my brows in confusion.

  “What? Broke your nose?” I shrug. “Because you kind of had that coming with your shitty hospitality.” It smells like body odor and pizza in, the house has no lights and looks trashed.

  “It was your kind that took my partner from me!” He points with a shaky hand. “You took my life!” he continues hysterically.

  Zeek grabs a chair from the table and sits in it casually, and Mac raids the man’s kitchen like he normally does. I swear Mac is a bottomless pit when it comes to eating.

  “Tell us what you know about Alessandra and her father,” Zeek demands with a no bullshit tone.

  Kelly sits up straighter, sniffling in blood, his eyes watering from the pain. His hair is greasy and unruly, his beard outgrown and disgusting. He looks like a bum.

  “What about them?” he replies vaguely.

  Having enough of the games, I raise my gun to his head, the chamber clicking.

  “I’m about three seconds from blowing your fucking brains out if you don’t tell me what I want to know!” I threaten. I can feel Zeek staring at me, knowing he’s not impressed with my impatience or attitude.

  “Okay! Okay!” Kelly raises his hands, his body stiff as I might pull the trigger any moment.

  “Brock found her in this place held underground. There were fifteen kids of all ages and genders. Investigators conveyed the missing children were taken from tourists and used for training purposes. Take a kid, train them to fight and kill,” he explains. “It was The Sin City Outlaws little army if you ask me!” he spits, and I snarl with that inaccurate assumption.

  “What the fuck does that mean?” Zeek sneers.

  “Cross! He was in charge of the whole operation, and everyone knew it!” Kelly informs with a shaky voice.

  I glance at Zeek with wide eyes, this is news to us that Cross was running an underground operation like that. “We found parents to several of the kids, but a few of them didn’t know their names, hell, they didn’t even know their birthdays they were taken so young. Alessandra was one of the ones who didn’t know anything about herself. Told Brock her name was Brown 5.” He begins to laugh hysterically, and it unnerves me. “She didn’t know her name, but knew how to break someone’s neck, and shoot a gun at age five. How ironic,” he snorts.

  “Jesus Christ,” Zeek mumbles, rubbing his chin.

  “Cross was of course cleared of all charges because none of the kids actually saw him, just heard his name. We had one witness, but they went missing, and so Cross walked free, nobody was fucking charged for what happened to those kids!” Kelly begins to cry, his back and forth of emotions telling me he might be high.

  “What happened to Brock?” I ask, biting my inner cheek.

  “Cross found out that Brock adopted one of his prodigies. Brock’s dying wish was that Cross let Alessandra go and Cross said she was tainted goods anyway and ended his life right in front of me before killing one of his own men to cover it up. He was going to kill me but I ran, and I’ve been hiding ever since.” The man looks up at us with sad eyes. Tears slip from his eyes, but I’m unmoved. “I’m a coward,” he wails before grabbing the barrel of my gun and pressing his temple into it. “Just kill me!” he spits through gritted teeth.

  I jerk my gun from his head and grab him by the hair making him look me in the eyes.

  “The Sin City Outlaws were not a part of that charade, I assure you,” I tell him before tossing him back on his ass.

  “You’re going to want to see this, brother,” Mac states to no one in particular from another room, his voice laced with shock. My gut twists, not liking the sound of this.

  “Keep an eye on him,” I tell Machete, and follow Zeek and Mac into the living room. The couch is covered in plastic, and the coffee table is littered with crack and foils.

  On the wall are pictures of Alessandra of all ages, plastered like a collage of a serial killer’s wet dream. Her at the gym, park, with Jillian, and us. It’s stalking to a whole other level.

  “This is some sick shit,” Zeek mutters, pulling one of the photos of Jillian and Alessandra down. They’re laughing together at what looks like a diner.

  Right in the middle of all the photos, is one of a little brown haired girl and man in a cop uniform. Alessandra’s dad I presume. Pulling it from the wall, I stuff it in my cut.

  My spine feels stiff, my stomach sick. Striding into the hallway, I eye Kelly who has obviously gone off the deep end. PTSD, or some shit. My hands flex with an unknown urge I can’t pinpoint. Jealousy? Rage? I don’t like that he has been watching her without her knowing. Some of those photos were of her dressing, and I know she’s not mine but knowing what I do, I feel like I know her more than she knows herself. I have a responsibility to keep
her safe now.

  “Stay away from Alessandra,” I warn him. Head lowered, eyes hooded I silently tell him the pain I will inflict him if he so much as looks her way. He shakes his head, sniffling and rocking back and forth.

  “No, she needs my protection, especially from you! Your kind ruined her life, and mine, remember!” he shouts, a blood vassal protruding from his forehead. “She needs protection from herself,” he mumbles, before pulling at his hair and rocking like a madman.

  Alessandra isn’t as innocent as anyone thinks, she’s a darker breed and I’m wanting to get to know her more and more with every piece to her puzzle I find out.

  “He’s fucking lost it, and a liability,” I tell everyone. Pulling my gun from my holster I point it at him and fire a bullet right into his skull. Blood and brain matter paint the wall behind him as his head falls to his chest.

  “Goddamn it, Felix,” Zeek scorns me.

  “Needed to be done,” I insist, tucking my gun in my pocket. If anyone was a danger to Alessandra it was him, and I’ll be damned if anyone stands in my way of Alessandra. If I want her, I will have her.

  “We need to get out of here, and fast,” Mac insists, looking out the window.

  “Machete, make sure the neighbors are aware they didn’t see shit,” Zeek orders, his tone indicating the bodies will pile up if they say a word. “Clean that blood off his face with bleach too, last thing we need is fucking DNA on the body,” Zeek scorns.

  “I’ll just torch the place.” Machete shrugs like it’s no big deal.

  “Fucking fire bug,” Zeek shakes his head.

  Stepping out of the house I inhale a sharp breath. The smell of the air is mixed of gunpowder and metallic.

  Why did I kill him? Why do I care?

  The questions run through my head like a bad memory.

  Taking one step at a time down the porch I can’t help but want to protect Alessandra now. It was an obligation at first, and now my priority.

  It’s no wonder I’m attracted to Alessandra, she doesn’t have blue blood running through her like she thinks. She’s much darker, and our inner beasts are speaking to one another without us even knowing it. It all makes sense now.