Dom (Graveyard Kings #4)

CHAPTER ONE

DOM

“Go fuck your wife or something. Get her to take that stick out of your ass while you’re at it.” I chuckled to myself when a stream of obscenities spewed from the speaker on my phone.

“I swear to fuck, Dom, if you screw up this deal, I’ll skin you alive,” Rebel promised. “Maybe you shouldn’t go alone. I’m sure it’s not too late to ask Casper or Stray to meet you there.”

I cruised along down the snow covered street in my blacked out Audi, rolling my eyes as I listened to Rebel try to talk me out of handling this deal myself. “What’s the problem? You don’t trust me to secure a deal like this? I can handle it, dude. Stop being such a control freak.”

Rebel didn’t think he had control issues, but I knew better.

Even though he often oversaw any business dealings we got ourselves into, tonight he had dinner with his wife’s family for her mother’s birthday.

Since the guy I was on my way to meet had a pretty tight schedule, this was the only night he was available.

It was one guy and one deal. I had no doubt I could handle it. There may have been five of us running this operation but we didn’t need to hold each other’s hands to get shit done.

“Wanting to make sure things get done properly doesn’t make me a control freak,” Rebel protested.

“Actually, it does. I’ll call you after the meet. Try to un-twist your wife’s panties from your ass crack in the meantime.” Before he could spit another obscenity laden retort, I hit the button to end the call.

Rebel Kane was one of my best friends. The acting leader of the Graveyard Kings, as we’d come to be known. An all-around badass and generally good guy, he had trouble giving up the reins of control to anyone else.

Tonight’s meeting was important. I understood his need for everything to go well. The guy I was about to meet had the ability to take our business to the next level. Our black market activity included a variety of high demand items. Although none paid quite as well as human organs.

We were able to obtain the occasional organ here and there. Usually easy things like kidneys. The man I was about to meet, Morgan Teller, had approached us with a deal that sounded too good to be true. I was going to find out if that was the case.

He claimed to have a prison connection. The ability to supply us with a steady flow of organs from maximum security and death row prisoners. Everything including hearts, which were the hardest to obtain. A partnership like this wouldn’t come without a price. Still, it might be worth it.

Morgan and I were meeting in the parking lot of the local movie theater. He chose the location, wanting to remain public yet able to speak privately. Fine with me. I didn’t mind freezing my ass off in the bitter February cold if it meant securing a solid deal.

My phone began to ring. Seeing Rebel’s name on the screen, I ignored it.

He needed to calm the hell down. I pulled into the movie theater parking lot, finding it especially barren since it was a random weekday evening in Wintervale.

A city big enough to have a theater but just the one.

About a dozen vehicles filled various spots in the lot. I pulled around to the back and parked.

I made sure to back in so I faced the rest of the parking lot, able to see when anyone arrived. My gaze landed on a silver Lexus parked at the end of the next aisle. Was that Noah fucking Cunningham? What the hell was he doing here?

A white SUV pulled up next to me then, stealing my attention. A thirty-something man with longish hair tied back and a grizzly beard got out. He knocked on my window.

When I rolled it down a few inches, he asked, “Are you Dominik Taylor? I’m Morgan Teller.”

Getting out of the car, I stuffed my hands into my hoodie pocket in an effort to keep warm. It also helped that I had a small revolver tucked away in there. Just in case. One couldn’t be too trusting.

“Nice to meet you,” I said, even though I really didn’t give a shit about polite nonsense. Rebel would kick my ass if I didn’t do my best to make the deal happen.

“We need to make this fast. I have somewhere else to be.” Morgan cast an anxious glance over his shoulder as he scanned the parking lot.

“Are you sure you don’t want to go inside out of the cold?” I nodded to the sports pub across the street. “We could grab a beer.”

Ignoring my question, Morgan got right to business. “I can start you guys off with one body a week. Anything you want from it we can have harvested on our end. Drop off to a secure location. Money up front. We want fifty percent of your organ sales.”

He threw a lot at me without too many words. I nodded, mulling over the information.

“Fifty percent is a pretty high ask,” I said. “I’d have to run it by the other guys in my crew.”

“Fifty is more than fair I think considering how much you’ll make with a regular supply.

And we’re doing the removal. Of course, I need your guarantee that if you guys get caught, you’ll never speak my name to the authorities.

” Morgan’s eyes darted around my face. Like he was too nervous to maintain steady eye contact. He was starting to unnerve me.

“Of course not. None of us are rats. We know how this works.” I was willing to tell him anything he wanted to hear. Whatever it took to make the deal happen. “Are you okay, man? You seem jumpy.”

Morgan’s eyes widened. He took a sudden step back, staring at me with suspicion. “I think someone’s been following me. I’m sure it has nothing to do with our arrangement. I’d like to get moving before they find me here.”

In my peripheral view, I saw the door to the silver sedan open. Noah Cunningham stepped out. Dressed all in black with a hood pulled up to hide his dirty blonde hair and most of his face, he made his way toward us. Light on his feet. Making not a sound.

“You better not drag any shit to our door,” I warned Morgan. “We have enough problems of our own. We’re not taking on yours as well.”

“Fair enough.” He shuffled awkwardly from foot to foot. “Do we have a deal?”

As Noah drew closer, I watched him with a combination of confusion and irritation. Was this motherfucker trying to blow my deal? Since he approached from behind Morgan, the guy never saw him coming.

That’s when it clicked. Noah had been the one following Morgan.

Noah and his buddy, Damon Price, were basically thugs for hire.

They’d do anything for a few bucks. If he thought he was going to move in on my potential business partner while I was standing right fucking here, he was going to get his skull smashed in.

“I think so,” I said, trying to keep my gaze from straying to Noah. “I’ll talk to my crew and get back to you. Rebel has your number?”

The closer Noah drew the more annoyed I became.

Catching his eye over Morgan’s shoulder, I gave a subtle shake of my head.

Rather than back off, he pulled a syringe from his hoodie pocket instead.

Holding it up for me to see while grinning like a goddamn lunatic, green eyes gleaming with a devilish light.

Screw this. I wasn’t about to stand by and watch him shoot this guy up with some fucking poison. This idiot was going to ruin everything for us with this deal.

Morgan’s anxious ass was so worked up. He noticed the way my gaze drifted past him and spun around to find Noah advancing. Immediately, Morgan pulled a gun from his pocket, levelling it on Noah who jerked to a stop.

“Back the fuck off.” Morgan’s voice wavered. “I don’t know who you are or what the hell you want, but if you don’t stay away from me, I’ll blow your fucking head off.” To me Morgan demanded, “Did you set this up? Did you bring him here?”

“Fuck no. I don’t associate with this asshole.” No truer words had ever been spoken.

Unfortunately, Morgan wasn’t buying it. “Bullshit. You can tell your crew the deal is off. Not that there ever was one. This is all just a fucking set up. Stay back. Both of you.”

Morgan swung the gun from Noah to me and back again as he inched toward his SUV. Flinging the door open, he leapt inside. He gunned the engine, causing the SUV to slide on the snow and ice as he sped from the parking lot.

As I watched a hell of a good deal drive away my temper went from a simmer to a raging boil. I directed my fury at Noah. “What the fuck was that? Did you come here just to botch my deal? You must have a death wish.”

“Me? You’re the one getting in my way. I’ve been tailing that guy for days waiting for the right moment to grab him.

If you would have kept your mouth shut and let me work, I wouldn’t be out a five thousand dollar payday right now.

” Noah stuck the capped syringe back into his hoodie pocket, withdrawing a pack of cigarettes.

Sticking one in his mouth, he lit up, puffing smoke in my direction.

“Fuck your five thousand,” I snarled. “You just cost me a hell of a lot more than that.”

Noah shrugged. “I guess we both lose then.”

His indifferent attitude pushed me swiftly to my breaking point. I had zero patience when this man was around. He had a way of working my last nerve with his mere presence.

Noah Cunningham and I had a history. We couldn’t be in one another’s presence for long without coming to blows.

I’d never hated anyone the way I hated him.

I was pretty sure it started when him and his buddies formed their little crime for hire group.

Venom. They’d made it a point to mess with me and my friends.

Getting in the way of our business dealings.

Going out of their way to piss us off and make trouble for us.

It had all come to a violent head recently when they made the mistake of targeting Rebel’s wife and Stray’s fiancée. We reduced Venom’s numbers, and now there were only two left. Somehow, that didn’t stop Noah from grinning at me now, oozing self-satisfaction.

“You’re pretty proud of yourself, aren’t you?” Unable to stop myself, I gave him a shove that sent him stumbling back, almost slipping on the icy asphalt.

Noah flung his arms out in an effort to keep his balance while regaining his footing. His grin turned into a glare. “Proud of what? Having my target take off? Losing out on a payoff? You’re not the only one trying to earn out here, Dom.”

“Don’t give me that crap. You saw me with him.

You could’ve waited for him to leave. Instead, you made a point of screwing my deal.

” I gave him another shove, this time grabbing the cigarette from his fingertips as he went down on his ass.

“You never learn, do you? Either you do have a death wish, or you’ll do anything to get my attention. ”

Tucking the cigarette between my lips, I took a lengthy drag. Then I threw the rest of it onto Noah’s lap. He vigorously brushed the smoke aside, shoving to his feet. He didn’t hesitate, not for even a second.

His fist cracked against the side of my face, hard enough to rattle my teeth.

I fell against my car, catching myself on the hood.

Nothing could’ve held me back. I rushed him with a fist raised, faking him out with the right, then going in with the left.

I nailed him in the nose, satisfied when blood gushed forth to drip onto the snow.

“Motherfucker.” Noah swiped a hand through the blood, scowling at the scarlet stain on his fingers. “Your ego is outrageous. I don’t give a fuck about getting your attention. You’re the one who has a sick obsession with me.”

I scoffed. “Jesus, you’re delusional.”

This jackass went out of his way to make me notice him by pulling stunts like this then insisted I was the one with the obsession. This shit had been going on so long, it was a miracle we hadn’t killed one another by now. I felt pretty certain it was only a matter of time.

When he took another step toward me, I pulled the revolver from my hoodie pocket, spinning the cylinder. “There’s only one bullet in this gun. The rest of the chambers are empty. How good do you feel about your odds?”

Unfortunately, right that moment a minivan filled with a family drove by, the mother gawking out the window at us. She hit the gas, speeding away. We didn’t have much time before the cops showed up.

“Guess we’ll have to find out some other time.” Noah shrugged. “There’s no way that woman isn’t calling the cops right now.”

I was truly tempted to shoot out one of his tires so he would still be here when they arrived. Firing off shots at a family venue didn’t feel right. Despite Noah’s cocky expression, I managed to contain myself.

“This isn’t over, asshole,” I said, jerking open my car door. “You cost us a deal worth hundreds of thousands. Possibly millions. You are a fucking dead man.”

As I got into the car, Noah mimed tears rolling down his cheeks. Sarcastic son of a bitch.

Starting the engine, I hit the gas so the back tires would slide on the ice, bringing me dangerously close to where Noah stood. Forcing him to jump back to avoid being struck. I saw him flip me the middle finger in my rearview mirror as I drove away.

I should have run the bastard over.