44. Chapter 44
“Fuckin’ sonofabitch,” I shout as I plow Moliter in his face. He screams as his cheekbone cracks under my fist. He’s tied to the chair of honor, naked except for his underwear.
I hit him again. “Could’ve forgiven you for tossing my girl’s apartment and terrorizing her friends. I could’ve forgiven you for gettin’ me arrested. Could’ve even forgiven you for T-boning my truck. But you took my girl and that I can’t fuckin’ get over.”
He’s crying. “I know. I know. I’m so sorry.”
I hit him so hard his head snaps back. “That ain’t gonna cut it.”
I go to hit him again, but Hangman and Joker wrestle me away from him. “Enough, brother,” Joker says softly. “Can’t kill him yet. You’ll get your chance.”
He’s right. I take a deep breath and pace down the hall of the chamber to cool off, then when I’m back in control, I return.
Moliter looks like shit. His face is pulp, his torso a mess of bruises, one ear is barely hanging on, his hands and feet are crushed. He knows he isn’t coming back from this.
Hangman steps up to him, tossing an awl back and forth between his hands. “Who was doin’ your dealing, asshole?” he snarls. “Tell me, I’ll finish this now. Don’t and I’ll keep you alive until you do.”
Moliter lets out a sob but doesn’t answer. I see hope in his eyes. If we keep him alive, he thinks maybe he can get out of this somehow.
“We got Lorraine. She’s fucking dead if you keep your mouth shut. You tell us who’s dealing for you and we’ll let her go. Even buy her a bus ticket out of state.”
Blood dribbles out of the gap where Moliter’s teeth used to be. “I know you won’t hurt her. You guys don’t do that to women.”
Joker exchanges a glance with me. Lorraine’s gonna be late for the bus. Red and Eight took her for a walk in the desert. They came back alone.
Hangman’s hands still, the awl clutched in his fist. “You don’t know a fuckin’ thing about me, you prick. You deal coke on my territory, go on a murdering spree to get the missing kilo back. I should rip off both your ears.”
Moliter takes a huge gulp of air. “I swear, I got nothing to tell you.”
“Fuckin’ cunt!” Hangman bellows as he slams the awl into Moliter’s thigh.
Moliter howls as blood spurts like a geyser.
“Fuck,” Joker says. “You hit a fuckin’ artery.”
Hangman ignores him. “You heard Joker. You’re gonna die. You don’t wanna take Lorraine down with you, you better fuckin’ start talking.”
“Shit. Shit. Shit. Don’t hurt her. No one was working with us. I swear.” Moliter chokes, his face losin’ color. “We got the coke from the cartel, hired locals to peddle it.”
Hangman swings the awl across Moliter’s neck, half-severing his head from his body. Needless to say, Moliter is no longer polluting the planet.
“Now what?” Joker asks. “Burn him?”
Hangman shakes his head. “Wrap his body in plastic and dump him in the middle of Reno. It’ll send a message to every prick who thinks they can fuck with the Jury.”
“And the coke?” I ask.
Hangman grimaces. “Let’s drop it in Crip’s mailbox and point the cops his way. The fuckin’ Blackbeards got off easy for blowin’ up the vet’s clinic, and they’ve been too fucking quiet. Rather have them in my face, then planning shit behind our backs.”
He heads towards the hatch of the chamber. “Get it done. Church is in an hour.”
I sigh as Joker and I get to work. It’s late, I’m tired and all I want to do is find X and fuck the tension out of me. I think of her curvy body, her sweet, tight pussy. See myself sinking into it to the hilt.
Joker interrupts my fantasy. “Focus, asshole.”
It takes us almost an hour to get Moliter ready for his last ride, then we lock up the chamber and head inside. Someone else can dump him and the coke. Won’t be a shortage of volunteers.
There’s beer in a cooler and in everyone’s hands as we enter church. Red uncaps a couple and hands them to me and Joker. “To a job well done,” Joker says as he clinks my bottle and guzzles half of it.
I follow suit. Killing is thirsty work.
Hangman comes storming in, grabs a bottle out of the cooler and twists the cap off. “Cheers, you fuckers!” he says with a grin as he raises his bottle in the air, then takes a long drink.
He drops in his chair and massages the back of his neck. “Didn’t see the passarounds tonight. Any hangin’ around?”
“Roxy’s tucked upstairs,” Rider says as he grins.
“Good. Need her in my office after we’re done here.”
Rider’s face falls. “I got to her first.”
I suppress a grin. Rider’s from the Vegas Hell’s Jury chapter, on loan to us. He should know by now that Hangman gets what Hangman wants.
“Too fuckin’ bad,” Hangman snarls at him. “She can’t see well anyway, so she won’t be able to find your tiny dick in the dark.”
Rider opens his mouth to retort, but Red punches him the arm. “Saw Charity hanging around with a magnifying glass. She’ll do you fine.”
Laughter ripples around the room.
“So what do we gotta talk about that’s so important?” Rocky grumbles. “It’s already fuckin’ four in the morning, and I still got shopping to do before I go home.”
“You need a new bra?” Hash says with a grin.
Rocky salutes him with his middle finger. “Pickles, those goldfish crackers and a whole bunch of other weird shit for Jess. Her tastebuds are whacked.”
“As long as she still swallows,” Trigger snickers.
Rocky gets red in the face. “Shut the fuck up!”
King hands out another round of beer as Joker brings us to order. “Good job tonight with Moliter and his crew. Moliter’s gonna make a pit stop in Reno on his way to the morgue. Gotta send a message to anyone else thinkin’ of peddling on our territory without Jury approval.”
“Where’s the coke?” Trigger asks.
“Gonna give Crip another birthday present for blowing up your girl’s clinic.” The last birthday present we gave the Blackbeard’s president was the head of one of his associates. I grimace when I think about it. Trig and I forgot about the fucker when we put him in the chamber. It wasn’t a happy ending for him.
“That’s gonna piss him off,” Fender says.
“Jesus,” Hangman sneers. “I didn’t think of that.”
“That’s sarcasm,” Hash says to Fender. “In case you weren’t sure.”
Fender glares at him.
“I let Crip off easy for blowing up the clinic,” Hangman says, “because there was too much other shit going on, but the beards have been too quiet considerin’ the vet gave pretty boy a face full of buckshot.” Pretty boy. Mad Max. Blackbeard VP. Cocksucker.
Trigger smiles smugly at the balls on his woman.
“We’re better havin’ them where we can see them so we know what the fuck they’re up to,” Joker adds. He looks down at his notes. “Movin’ along.” He jerks his chin towards Fender. “Fines?”
Fender shuffles a few papers like he’s looking for the list, but that’s just for dramatic effect.
“Just one,” he says, squinting at the print. “Reaper. For $56k.”
I choke on my beer. “What the hell?”
“Weird amount,” Trigger observes.
A few of the guys are looking just as confused as me.
Joker grins through his bushy beard. “Don’t know the exact amount yet, but we figure that’ll be the cost of repairs for Belmonte’s shop.”
I stare at him, then move my attention to Hangman. “I don’t need the Jury cleaning up after me. I’ll fucking pay it directly to Paulie myself.”
“Nope.” Hangman replies. “The Jury’s gonna pay.”
I’m bewildered. “If the Jury’s gonna pay, then why do I have to pay you back?”
Hangman smirks. “You’re part of the Jury, ain’t you?”
“That doesn’t fucking make sense.”
“It does if you think about it,” Red says.
“No!” I snarl. “It don’t fuckin’ make sense no matter how you think about.”
Joker grins. “You pay, you get the credit. We pay, the Jury gets the credit. Makes us look good.”
I rub my face. “I was gonna pay!”
Hangman grins maliciously. “Yeah, you fucking are.”