Chapter Nineteen
CHAPTER NINETEEN
TALIA STEPPED INTO the clubhouse to find Spec and Curly sitting at a round, four-person table with two cups of coffee in front of them. As she entered, they both moved to stand.
She held up her hand. “Not necessary, gentlemen,” she said as she strode to the table. “Excuse my unprofessional attire. It’s been a night.”
Curly smiled, but it lacked its usual warmth and welcome. He knew she wasn’t there for a social visit. “We don’t give a fuck about formal or professional around here, do we, Spec?”
The enforcer watched her through narrowed eyes. His leg bounced beneath the table as though he was priming his muscles, ready to leap up and defend his president at the first sign of a threat.
“Good to know. May I sit?”
“Sure.” Spec nudged a chair out with his foot. “Coffee?”
“No thanks. Despite being up all night, I’m jittery.”
“Gotta admit, you got me wired as fuck, too,” Spec said. “I just poured this to have something to do with my hands. Can we skip the small talk, and you tell us what the fuck has you texting 911 at six in the morning?”
“Fair enough.” She placed her palms on the table and looked straight into Curly’s eyes. “Before I begin, I feel I must inform you that I am recording this conversation. Should you feel the need to end our discussion in a… let’s say, abrupt manner, you should know the file uploads to a cloud every fifteen seconds.”
“What the fuck.” Spec shot halfway across the table. His hands smacked the table with a loud slap. “Tell me you’re not about to fucking extort us because you’re fucking recording. I’ll—”
Curly lifted a hand. “Brother, don’t finish that sentence,” he said, his voice cracking into the room like a whip.
“Fuck.” Spec sagged back into his seat. He jammed a hand into his hair. “Sorry.”
“No need,” Talia said, though her heart had lodged in her throat. “I promise I pose no threat to you or this family you’ve built. I do, however, have some information that might be difficult to hear. Before I share it, I’d like some assurances from the two of you.”
Spec turned to Curly. “You gonna agree to this shit?”
Curly leaned forward. “Talia, I already know.”
Her mouth opened, but no sound came out. She blinked. He knew? “I-I’m sorry. You know?”
Nodding, Curly rubbed at a nick in the wooden table with his thumb. “I know who your father is. I know he was a defense attorney during my trial, and he took bribes to do a shitty job and overlook police corruption.”
She leaned back. There were few times in her life she’d been truly stunned, and this was one of them. “I… how…”
“What the fuck?” Spec turned to his president. “You hired the daughter of a man who screwed you over?”
Curly ignored his enforcer and kept his gaze on Talia, who felt like she was upside-down on a massive roller-coaster loop. “You underestimated the strength of the background check I did before we hired you.”
She was going to be sick, and they hadn’t even discussed the reason she’d come to talk to them. “Is this about revenge?”
“It better fucking be,” Spec muttered.
“No. I’ve been following your career, and it seems you’ve spent it trying to right your father’s wrongs. You specialize in wrongful arrests and fighting for the underdog.”
He had no idea.
“I do. And you hit the nail on the head. I’m here to pay his penance, but, um… that’s not what I wanted to talk to you about this morning. It’s different and more serious, I’m afraid. But I would love to revisit this with you.”
“Great,” Spec said, rolling his eyes.
Any other time, finding out Curly knew her secret and had hired her anyway would have been an enormous relief. Today, it barely registered. “Like I said, I need your assurances before I begin.”
Curly tilted his head, studying her. “You’re not here to harm one of my men or their ol’ ladies.”
“No. Quite the opposite. And I’m sorry to be so cryptic, but I need you to hear my terms and agree to them before I divulge more.” If it weren’t for the countless hours in a courtroom, her hands would shake, and she’d squirm in her seat. These men had stares that would scare the devil.
Curly’s lips flattened into a thin line. He tugged on a curl—his namesake—as he thought.
“Where’s Pulse?” Spec cut in. “You two have been all chummy lately. I’m assuming he has something to do with all this drama.”
“He’s at his house.”
Spec’s eyes narrowed. “He know you’re here?”
“He does not. And to answer your next question, he would never have agreed to let me come here. I’m guessing he’ll drop me faster than you can say throttle once he finds out I’m here.”
“What are your terms?” Curly asked.
“You agree to hear me out completely. That means no flying out of here in a fit of rage until I have said everything I’ve come to say.”
Curly nodded. “Agreed.”
She looked at Spec. “And you?”
The poor man’s jaw looked one more pound of pressure away from shattering. He spoke through clenched teeth. “Fine. Next?”
Here was the one that would throw them for a loop. She kept her hands flat on the table in front of her. It was the only way to keep them from trembling.
“I want your assurance, your promise, that no matter what I tell you today, no harm will come to Pulse.”
The room fell so quiet she could hear the refrigerator hum from the kitchen.
Spec leaned forward. “Come again?”
This time, she was the one to spear him with a harsh glare. “You heard me fine the first time.”
“Talia, I’m not in the habit of hurting my family,” Curly said. His expression was one of concern and worry as opposed to the suspicion and doubt on Spec’s.
“I know that. It’s why I’m here, helping Pulse with a plan that would be suicide if it weren’t for that fact. But I’m not stupid enough to come here without a backup plan.”
“Fuck.” Spec ran a hand down his face. “What has he done? Please tell me he did not beat that stripper.”
That had her frowning. Of all the ways she’d imagined this going, Spec bringing that up hadn’t crossed her mind. “Of course not. What’s wrong with you?”
“Too much, darlin’. Too fucking much.” His grin had a chill running down her spine. This was a very lethal man, and she was about to give him upsetting news.
Curly thumbed his lip before nodding once. “We agree.”
“I want to hear it from him,” she said as she pointed to Spec.
“Damn, counselor, your balls are bigger than most men’s.” Spec huffed a mocking laugh. “You know, if I didn’t admire that so much, I’d find you fucking annoying.”
She smiled her first genuine smile in hours. “I’ll take that as the compliment I’m assuming it was.”
Spec grunted. “Fine. I agree to your fucking terms. Now talk.”
In the hours she’d spent churning this over and over in her head, she’d decided this was the point to rip off the Band-Aid and tell them straight. She’d had no choice but to drop crumbs until they agreed to her terms, but the longer she pussyfooted, the more she ran the risk of losing their attention and cooperation.
She straightened her spine—the moment of truth.
“Pulse is a former DEA agent. He was single-handedly responsible for taking down the Del Rios Cartel about five years ago.”
Both men stared at her as though she’d sprouted an extra set of tits from her head. She forced herself to remain still and calm under their stunned gazes.
Shocker, Spec reacted first. “I’m sorry,” he said with an ugly laugh. “Can you repeat that? Because it sounded like you said my brother is a former fucking fed. But I know that can’t be true because the Pulse I know is not a stupid motherfucker, and patching in as a fed would be the stupidest fucking thing he could do.”
“Former,” she said.
“What?” Spec spat.
“Former fed.”
He seethed, so she turned her attention back to Curly. As the more reasonable of the two and the one with the power, she needed to appeal to him before his hot-headed enforcer. Unfortunately, his expression was as furious as Spec’s, but at least he kept his temper in check.
So far.
“You promised to hear me out,” she reminded the man. “And you promised not to hurt Pulse.”
“You manipulated us. Fucking lawyers,” Spec muttered.
Only years of experience in interrogation kept her from snapping at the angry enforcer. Like Spec wouldn’t do whatever it took to keep Liv safe? Wouldn’t he beg, borrow, steal, or manipulate whoever he had to if it meant ensuring Liv’s safety?
Not that Pulse was on the same level as Liv. They’d slept together a few times, that’s all, but she cared for the man.
Too much.
A muscle in Curly’s jaw twitched. The man had self-control, she’d give him that. But then, who could survive more than a dozen years of wrongful imprisonment without commendable restraint?
“We’re listening, Talia,” he said in a voice that didn’t match his rigid posture. “Tell us the story.”
Spec huffed an irritated sigh.
Talia recounted everything Pulse had told her about his time with the DEA. The men didn’t interrupt as she detailed his undercover operation with the Del Rios Cartel, his complicated faux relationship with Camila, and the ultimate demise of his career. She clearly emphasized how he’d cut all ties with the DEA and had nothing to do with any federal organization since then. She also highlighted his solitary life and the way the club had saved him from a life of isolation and depression.
“Well, damn, counselor,” Spec said when she finished. “You are one impressive litigator. You almost had me falling for all that shit about him loving this club and how he’d rather die than hurt us. You must be a fucking shark before a judge.”
She tilted her head and gave Spec the stare that humbled the most brutal criminals. “I am, Spec. Thank you for noticing.”
Asshole .
She focused on Curly, who sat resting his chin on his steepled fingers. “Why are you telling us this now?” he asked.
“Ain’t it obvious?” Spec asked. He rocked back on the chair’s hind legs, folding his arms across his chest. “Dear Old Uncle Sam wants him back on the payroll.”
“I’m sorry,” Talia said, letting a bit of her cool facade slip for the first time. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t you work for Uncle Sam for many years?”
“Not the same fucking thing.” He leaned forward, and his chair legs hit the ground with a loud crack. “I defended my country,” he said, stabbing his finger on the table. “He just—”
“He took out one of the deadliest drug cartels in history,” she said, mimicking his pose. Her fingertip ached where she jammed it against the table, but she ignored the discomfort. Spec’s attitude needed to be taken down a few notches, and she was happy to provide the service. “I know this club, and the Del Rios Cartel is exactly the kind of evil your club works to eliminate. You can’t make me believe you think otherwise.”
“This isn’t about the fucking cartel.” Fire shot from Spec’s eyes. “This is about fucking liars.”
“Spec, enough.” Curly’s voice remained calm and steady. “Talia, you’re bringing this to us for a reason. I assume something happened, or Pulse would have probably gone to his grave with this information.”
It became more challenging to keep her attention on Curly with each passing second. Spec’s frequent scoffs and grunts of disbelief had her itching to reach across the table and slap him. “The police orchestrated Pulse’s arrest for the assault on the prostitute at the DEA’s request. They wanted to speak to him without any suspicion by the club. And yes, they asked him to spy on you and report to them, or they’d toss him in jail and out him.”
“I fucking knew—”
“He very firmly told them where they could shove their offer.” She raised her voice over Spec. “I arrived and got him released while I was unaware of any of this. A few nights later, when I was working late, a DEA agent visited me at my office. He threatened me if I couldn’t get Pulse to work with him. That’s the night I was run off the road and injured.”
Finally, Spec’s expression showed an emotion besides anger. Confusion wrinkled his brow. “The DEA’s resorting to thug-level tactics now?”
“Or someone at the DEA is,” Curly said.
Nodding, Talia pointed to him. “Pulse has one contact from his days with the DEA. This guy is not affiliated with any organization or government. He’s independent and loyal to Pulse because Pulse saved his ass years ago. Anyway, due to some covert and, I’m sure, less-than-legal digging, he discovered that a Del Rios family member was able to get hired by and work their way up in the DEA.”
“Oh fuck.” Pieces were beginning to fall into place in Spec’s head.
“Yeah, fuck.”
“Jesus, the fucking feds can’t do a goddamn thing right. So now we have a surviving cartel member with the power of a federal agency behind them out for Pulse’s blood.”
“That’s the working theory, yes. We do not know if this is a widespread operation or if this agent is working alone. Last night, an Officer Newton pulled Pulse over, tased him, and beat him. They made up some bullshit story about him resisting arrest so they could jail him overnight. The DEA is supposed to collect him today and take him to DC. I was able to get him released with the promise that he would return to speak to the DEA today, which obviously will not fucking happen.”
“Jesus Christ,” Spec whispered.
Before he could say anything else, Talia plowed on. “Pulse is worried the DEA or rebirthed cartel will come after the club if they can’t get their hands on him. He planned to come speak to you today and tell you all this information as soon as he woke up.” She shrugged. “I beat him to it.”
“Whoa, boy,” Spec said with a laugh as he slapped his hands together once. “You were right about one thing. That man is going to hate your ass for this stunt. What’d you do, drug ’im?”
She glared at him. “Spec, I say this with all the respect I feel you deserve right now. Shut the fuck up.”
“He—”
“Spec, I need you to put a lid on it for now,” Curly said. He straightened. “I’m not going to lie, Talia, Pulse’s past is going to be an issue for some guys in the club.”
Spec snorted. “Some? Come the fuck on.”
Curly shot him a look that had Spec’s mouth snapping shut.
Wow.
Maybe he could teach her that trick. She had a potent glare, but Curly’s was next level.
“I appreciate you coming to us with this. You’ve taken a great personal risk, which means you feel something for him. I made you a promise that no harm would come to him, and I stick by that.” He glanced at Spec as he spoke. “It will need to be dealt with, but it sounds like our priority needs to be keeping our family safe and getting rid of what’s left of the cartel.”
The relief was so staggering she had to blink back tears.
Fuck.
These men couldn’t see her cry. Not if she was the last woman on Earth.
She cleared her throat. “Thank you. And yes, that’s exactly why Pulse wanted to come to you.”
“But you beat him to it,” Spec said, shaking his head.
She turned her attention to him. “That’s right.” How could a sweet and kind person like Liv put up with this insufferable buffoon?
“The first step is to call a club meeting,” Curly said as he pulled out his phone.
A series of pounding sounds came from outside. It sounded like boots on the steps.
All three of them froze. Talia’s heart sank.
The door flew open with so much force that it slammed against the wall. A rush of warm air flowed into the building.
Talia closed her eyes with a sigh.
Pulse had arrived.