20. Void
VOID
The FBI needed the jet back, and we decided it was better to stay in the area than to go back to California only to come back a few days later. While Dax slept, the rest of us talked, trying to figure out the best plan going forward.
“Doesn’t it seem like things are falling into place too easily?
” Picasso asked, joining us once he knew Dax was fast asleep.
“I mean, come on, they just happened to send us the documents hoping we would think of the same plan they were about combining forces? They had to be working on this for far longer than we even knew about Marco.”
Wes leaned back against the bed’s headboard in the room we’d gathered in next to Dax’s.
I hated the setup of this. It was hard to keep an eye on things with us all spread out over four rooms, even if they did connect.
Next time we would just take the penthouse and not worry about drawing attention.
I’d rather know we could control the setting than keep a low profile.
“You make a good point, Picasso, but the only part I want to push back on is that everyone seemed to know Marco was gunning for Dax except us. He’d been building allies around the world and making his moves in such a way it didn’t draw her attention.
Like Betta was saying, our woman has more pull in this criminal world than she understands,” Wes pointed out.
“Hell, even the Wright brothers knew, but they aren’t ones to get drawn into what's going on in the world since they work for the highest bidder. Well, they did. I feel like since they are now apparently engaged to Dax’s best friend and soul sister, they’re team Dax all the way. ”
“Fair, I will admit, as we’ve been dealing with this, it’s clear we were late to the party,” Picasso agreed. “So maybe this is all legit, and I’m just the one being overly guarded.”
Cam shook his head as he waved his glass of whisky at the same time.
“No, it’s wise to be that skeptical. Nothing in a deal like this should be taken at face value.
There is something in the contract they’re trying to hide.
Now I’m not saying it’s something we’ll have an issue with, whatever it might be, but everyone is always looking out for themselves. ”
Eagle shifted through the pages that Tommaso gave us, looking over the contract portion. “This shit is so full of legal bullshit I don’t know how anyone knows what it says. Dax has to have a lawyer on hand we can send it to and will give us an opinion.”
“Yeah, I already emailed it to him,” Wes answered. “He should have an answer for us tomorrow at some point. This guy has helped us on tons of business deals and caught small changes that could have a big impact later on down the line, so I trust if it’s there, he’ll find it.”
Sprocket ran his hands through his hair, scrubbing at his scalp, telling me he was fighting off one of the migraines he got when stressed. It’s one of the only times he can’t stand to have his hair up in his typical messy bun.
“We can’t stay in Boston,” he muttered. “It would be stupid for us to be here like sitting ducks as we try and figure out what to do. Besides, as far as the big bosses know, the deal is off, and Dax isn’t interested in trying to fix it.
If we leave for New York City and hang out with Harper, then it shows we aren’t waiting for them to make an offer.
From what I understand about those guys, no one is going to fuck with us while we are there. ”
“I was going to say even if we wanted to stay, we can’t in this situation,” I voiced. “It's too hard to monitor.”
“Got to agree with you on that, man,” Wes added.
“Alright, it’s settled, I’ll tell the triplets we’re coming, and we’ll leave whenever Dax wakes up.
I don’t think we should wake her up. After that kind of blow and the emotional upheaval that happened today, I say let her sleep till her body is ready. ”
Everyone mumbled their agreement, and Picasso went back to join Cognac, who’d stayed with her. Out of all of us, he was more than happy to go with whatever we decided, not one to feel the need to be involved in all the choices as long as we told him what the plan was.
“I think we need to keep it to two rooms,” I stated. “As well as one of us staying awake to keep an eye on things. I just don’t trust that the big bosses won’t try to pull some crap with how things ended. Not to mention if they get wind of what went down at the fighting ring.”
“Smart call, Void,” Eagle approved. “Who wants the first watch?”
Cam raised a hand. “I didn’t let the doc give me anything too strong for the pain, and I don’t think I’ll get much sleep with the dull throb going on right now. She didn’t need to know that the tip of the blade almost came out the other side. It would have only made her feel worse.”
Having been shot and stabbed a few times in my life, I would take getting stabbed any day, but I knew exactly what he was talking about. Even though the wounds were clean cuts, the way they sliced through the muscle just made your bones hurt with every flex or movement.
I walked over to Sprocket and tapped him on the shoulder. “You want me to do that thing?” He looked up at me with pain clear in his eyes and gave a slight nod. “Sit in the chair so I can get a better angle.”
Cam and Wes watched, expressions curious.
The other guys were used to this weird fix we’d found that helped lessen the pain for Sprocket.
He hadn’t gotten a bad one of these in at least two years, but with everything going on, I’m not surprised one got triggered.
Sprocket had a bad habit of letting things get worse, not wanting to go to the hospital or take pain meds of any kind.
After what I learned about his mom, I couldn’t say I was surprised.
I felt down his neck and shoulders, feeling how tight it all was.
I set my forearm on his shoulder and started to stretch out his neck muscles.
He hissed at the burn I knew this caused, but I had to get him more movement to do the second half of what was needed after working both sides, getting more to give by the time I was done.
Then as soon as I felt Sprocket relax into my hands, I twisted, and a loud crack filled the room.
“Ah fuck,” Sprocket muttered. “It’s one of those things that feels so much better but also hurts like a bitch when it happens.”
Shifting, I got him to relax in the other direction and felt him take a deep breath, then let it out, which was when I made my move.
Another crack, and I started to work the muscle with my forearm, trying to get the muscles to move better.
After the adjustment, it made a huge difference, and I could already tell the pain had lessened some. “That should do it.”
“Thanks, man. I can never trust anyone else to do it,” he admitted. “I’m always afraid they're going to break my neck or something.”
I patted his shoulder and urged him to the bed. “Get some rest. I’m gonna check Dax’s room real quick. Then I’ll take the floor.”
Sprocket didn’t argue. He knew with my back that sometimes the harder surface of the floor was better than a bed that was too soft.
Being a fighter was what I loved, but the way I did it back when I was younger sure was stupid and fucked me up.
I’d let them get their hits in for a while, so the fights weren’t over as fast, but that meant I took a lot more damage than I needed to.
Slipping into the other room, I spotted my little demon curled up in a ball, face hidden in Cognac’s chest, while Picasso guarded her back with his body.
If I hadn’t known to look for the shock of pink hair, I wouldn’t have seen her right away with how nestled in she was.
My little demon had truly gone through hell today, faced her demons, and made it out the other side.
She wasn’t anywhere close to being over whatever had happened to her, but I felt like she might have acknowledged for the first time she wasn’t okay.
The door in her room was locked along with the safety latch, but when I tested the lock, it didn’t hold as snugly as I would have liked.
There was too much give, so it would be easier to just bust in on us.
That made up my mind. I wasn’t going to sleep in the other room, I’d sleep right here in this little hall by the bathroom.
If anyone tried, I would hear it right away.
There was no way they’d be getting past me.
Our woman fought her battles today. It was our turn to keep her safe and protected.
I grabbed a pillow one of them had kicked off the king bed and settled in for the night.
My gun was on my chest, a bullet ready to go in the chamber.
One simple pull of the trigger and they’d be dead before they knew I was there.
As I tried to sleep, my mind raced with all the things that could go wrong in this fight coming up, knowing that all the people who hated us were trying to get their fighters in the mix.
Dax was a fucking animal when she honed in on a fight, and if I let myself get to that point, we would be perfectly matched.
Thing was, if we dove that deep, would we be able to pull ourselves out of it?
When Eagle found me all those years ago, I wasn’t sure I’d ever be able to come back to the surface.
It’s one of the reasons I picked Void for my name.
That’s all I was at that point. A void full of rage, and I allowed people to use that against me.
The drinking and drugs didn’t help matters.
While I could drink some these days, I couldn’t touch another drug, or I’d fall right back into the pit.
Instead, I found other ways to use my skills and ground myself in healthier alternatives.