Chapter Twenty Four
J eter sat next to King in the center of Kendrick’s SUV while his brother drove them back toward his home. They’d filed into one of the SUVs, as the rest of them climbed into the other, leaving the rental truck in the parking lot. If the situation hadn’t been dire, he’d have laughed at the sight of four gigantic men squished into the back with King, him, and Traeger nearly on one another’s lap.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been this close to you, King. Ayesha might get jealous knowing I’m taking her spot,” Traeger joked.
King grunted. “Want me to light your ass up?”
Their president rubbed his hands together. They all were aware that the Prez had a penchant for spanking his ole’ lady’s ass, but she loved it.
Traeger laughed. “Nah, I think you’d enjoy it too much, and then we’d be in trouble. Besides, I am a strictly a pussy man.”
“That could be taken completely out of context, brother,” Viking said.
The man who rarely spoke said in a deep tone. They called him Viking because he wore his hair in a mohawk and had various braids in the mass. He was a big bastard with Norwegian-Scandinavian roots. Many of the women who came to the clubhouse said he reminded them of the guy from True Blood mixed with Thor on steroids. Of course, the man had a shitton of tattoos, so if one added those to the other men, Jeter might agree Viking could pass for a cousin or some shit. The brother happened to be one of the most intelligent men in the Royal MC, with a degree from Harvard Law, yet didn’t like many to know.
“Fuck you and context, asshole. I don’t see you with any pussy on demand,” Traeger said without turning around.
“That’s because I have a running roster. Ain’t no way I’m going to have some woman laying claim to me by saying I’ve made promises I don’t plan to keep. Each and every one knows what I bring to the table. A good time. Sex that blows their mind. Sometimes, if they’re really good, I’ll even send them off with a nice present.” He winked.
“What, like an STD?” Crash asked.
There was an oof that sounded as if Viking elbowed the other man. “Last I checked, you were the one getting antibiotics from Doc, fucker.”
“That’s enough,” King barked.
Jeter let out a sigh as he noticed they were on Kendrick’s street. The half-hour drive took less than twenty as the other man had broken every speed limit to get there, thanks to Keys using his computer hacking to turn every light green.
“I could use a guy like your Keys on my team,” Kendrick said.
King crossed his arms. A grin crossed his harsh features. Jeter knew his brothers would always come through for him. He hoped they made it in time to save his ole’ lady.
“Listen, I haven’t gotten the feed from inside yet, but someone activated the safe room inside my closet.” Kendrick turned his phone toward Jeter.
He breathed a sigh of relief, hoping that meant Tori had made it inside.
“Anything from Andre?” he asked, even though he knew there hadn’t been, or he’d have heard.
The vehicles blocking the drive and entrance decided how they’d move forward. Using the SUVs to hinder the others from leaving, Jeter exited before the car came to a stop. Each of them had reloaded on the ride back, so he nearly ran up the drive. He focused on entering through the kitchen since it was closest to the back stairway.
He punched in the code to get in and ignored the loud blaring of the alarm. Luckily for them, they’d had Keys silence the automatic call to the police, knowing the situation would need a cleaning crew. Whatever happened, they’d take care of it with no law enforcement.
The sight of blood at the foot of the steps sent his nerves on edge. A quick check showed him it wasn’t anyone he knew, so he dismissed the asshole. He jogged up the steps, knowing the sound of his boots would alert others to his presence. As he turned the last landing to Kendrick’s floor, the sound of a woman’s sobs and a man’s harsh curses infiltrated the ringing in his ears.
Jeter shook his head, knowing he wasn’t thinking clearly with thoughts of Tori in danger on his mind.
He brought his P320 out in front of him, holding it steady as he took in the scene. Two men he’d never laid eyes on were in the room. One appeared to be on the phone while another knelt near a woman who was bleeding all over his brother’s Persian rug.
“What the fuck is going on?” he barked, keeping the gun trained on the man with the phone to his ear.
The older man paused his speaking. His dark eyes narrowed. “Who are you?”
Jeter gave him a grin. “I’m asking the questions here, testa di cazzo.”
“I don’t know who you think you’re talking to, but I suggest you lower your weapon. You don’t want to cause a war.” A vein throbbed in Gino Masseria’s temple as his eyes darted toward his son.
Jeter kept both men in sight as he took out the second gun from the back of his jeans, aiming one with his left at Gino and the other at Geovani. “Listen to me closely. I don’t give two shits who the fuck you are or what war you think you can cause. You came into my brother’s home and tried to fuck with what’s mine. For that, you both signed your death warrants.”
“Wait. I only came to get Taysey. I didn’t come to fuck with you.”
“Shut the fuck up, Geovani. Sei un pirla. I should’ve killed you at birth,” Gino snarled.
Kendrick walked in, clapping. “While this is entertaining, and I agree wholeheartedly that your son is an idiot.” –he looked down at Taysey and shook his head—“this entire thing is boring me, and my lovely rug is getting ruined the longer that piece of garbage lies on it. Jeter, if you will allow me to take out the trash.”
“Kendrick, please help me. I’m s...sorry. I love you.” Taysey held her hand up. Tears fell from her eyes. Pain and remorse made her look pitiful.
“Non me ne frega un cazzo what you are or aren’t, Taysey. You’re nothing to me. The two of them set me and my family up, and you went along with them willingly, knowing they were going to kill me. They nearly killed Andre. A man you have known for the past three years and has been nothing but good to you. You knew the rules before stepping onto another’s territory, Masseria. It’s a shame you didn’t leave behind someone to take over yours.”
Jeter walked around Taysey and Geovani, needing to get to the safe room and check on Tori. “Wait until I know Tori is safe before you off the two of them.”
Kendrick grunted. “I only need one of them alive. If one of you so much as blinks wrong, I’ll blow your fucking heads off. My room is in need of being redecorated since a whore chose many pieces in here.”
Jeter figured Taysey had been the one his brother referred to. Although Kendrick acted like he didn’t care about the woman, three years was a long time to be with someone.
A lifetime of caution had him blocking the box as he entered the passcode—the wait to hear the lock disengage felt like an eternity.
The instant he could open the door, he put his hand on the handle. “Tori, it’s me,” he announced.
“Jeter,” she yelled. Her cry felt like a soothing balm to all his nerves.
He opened his arms, taking her shaking form in, with both guns still in both hands. “Shit, hang on.”
“Watch out,” she screamed.
Jeter pushed Tori out of the way, spinning to face the threat. He lifted his weapon, firing off a round. His body jerked with the impact of a shot from a lunging Geovani. Another volley of gunfire ricocheted through the bedroom. He kept his feet beneath him as he fired his pistol into the downed Geovani. The moaning man twitched and then went limp.
He kicked the gun away from the body, bent, and felt for a pulse.
“Jeter, you’ve been shot. Oh shit. We need to get you to the hospital.” Tori moved to kneel in front of him. Her eyes were wide, but she looked beautiful.
“Are you okay?” he asked, looking her over for injuries.
She reached her hand out toward his shoulder. “I’m fine. You are the one who got shot.”
He moved to his feet, pulling her with him. “Tori. You need to focus, Vita Mia. Can you do that for me?”
Her pupils were nearly the size of her entire eyes, freaking him out. If he didn’t get her out of the closet and away from the dead body of her stepbrother, Jeter feared she’d have a full-blown panic attack. However, out in the other room, there could be several more bodies. A quick look at the safe room showed a cozy setup he figured would do the trick, while Kendrick and his team took care of shit outside.
He maneuvered them inside, closed the door, and settled himself in the chair. The wound on his shoulder burned like a bitch, but it wasn’t the first time a bullet had hit him. Luckily, the shot had gone through, barely nicking him.
“Tori, can you see if Kendrick has a first-aid kit around here?”
SHE WORKED TO CLEAN and patch up Jeter, only relaxing once she saw the bullet didn’t hit a vital organ. It burned across his arm, leaving a path that bled more than took skin and tissue. “You’re like a cat with nine freaking lives, Jeter Calderone."
Tori meant her words to come out more playful, but they ended up in a hiccup sob. He was surely going to pack up, fly back to California, and leave her ass in Chicago. What man would want to be with someone who got him shot not once but twice in a matter of days?
“C’mere,” he growled, pulling her down onto his lap.
“I am so very sorry my family has done this.” She didn’t claim them, but dammit, they’d hurt him in the name of the family.
“They are not your family. They are nothing. If you will have me, I’ll be your family.” He pinched her chin between his fingers, holding her face toward his.
She blinked back tears, wondering if she’d heard him correctly. “You still want to be with me?”
“Baby, I told you before, and I’ll say it again. You’re it for me. Vorrei fare l’amore con te for the rest of my life. I’ll do it properly once we can go pick out a ring together.”
Tori nodded, her heart hammering beneath her ribcage. For the first time in all her twenty-two years, she felt as though she wasn’t worthless. Not because a man wanted her but because she wasn’t getting thrown away. While her mother had loved her, she hadn’t loved her enough to protect her when she’d known the demons waited at the door. They had nothing to look forward to and nobody to lean on when times were rough. However, she’d thought going it alone would be for the best. Sometimes in life, everyone needed a shoulder or person to help them get through the bad times. For her, Jeter was willing to accept all her bullshit without judgment. Hell, he didn’t see a flawed girl. He said she was beautiful inside and out, and she would be damned if she didn’t find that same person he saw within herself.
THEY SAT INSIDE THE safe room for a while. Tori listened as Jeter explained what had happened at the warehouse. To say she didn’t feel any sadness at hearing about Rizzo’s death was an understatement. “Does that mean their territory will be up for grabs or that your brother will be at war here and in New York?”
“I don’t believe so. Kendrick has more power than he did, and if I were to guess, there have been calls regarding what Rizzo had tried to pull. If anything, they’ll split his territory up, or my brother will take control. As for New York?” Jeter shrugged and then winced at the pull on his arm.
She opened her mouth to ask more, but the door opened, and Kendrick walked inside. He had changed into a suit and looked freshly showered.
“Well, you two look cozy. Glad I didn’t walk in on the two of you christening my space.” Kendrick flashed a smile. His gaze went to Jeter’s arm. “My physician is here to check your arm out. Don’t give me any fucking shit, either. If nothing else, he’ll do a thorough cleaning and give you some antibiotics.”
“I’m already on a round from the previous wound,” Jeter said.
Tori grimaced at the reminder.
“Well, then he can still look at you. Come on, you two crazy kids. Let’s go so you both can shower and get cleaned up. Besides, your friends are downstairs, and they’re driving me crazy. How the fuck do you put up with them?” Kendrick asked.
Tori smiled at Kendrick’s puzzled expression. She wondered what the other men were like and how they had caused the stoic man to be so off balance.
“Let’s go, Vita Mia, before my brother has an aneurism.”
She and Jeter stepped out of the closet to find the space spotless. Tori did a double-take, marveling at how different it looked from only an hour ago. Money truly could work magic.