Chapter 2 #2
I made sure to get to our meeting spot early so I could mentally prepare for my presentation.
It was impossible not to have doubts about whether or not I was doing the right thing by meeting with these men, but I’d done my research.
I knew everything there was to know about our prospective partners.
Now, I just had to convince them that it was in their best interest to go into business together.
I was pleased to see that the place I’d chosen wasn’t crowded.
In fact, there were only two customers, and they were far enough away that I didn’t have to worry about them overhearing anything that was said.
At the same time, their presence offered a level of safety I wouldn’t have if I’d chosen a more remote location.
I hadn’t been waiting long when my guests walked through the front door, and my stomach did an immediate nosedive.
These men were even more intimidating than I was expecting, and it was all I could do to keep myself from rushing out the door.
My knees started shaking, my heart racing, and I started to wonder what I’d gotten myself into.
I watched silently as they started looking around the room, searching for the person who’d invited them there, and it wasn’t long before their attention was drawn over to me.
I didn’t move. I simply waited as one of them started walking over to me.
As he got closer, I quickly realized I knew him.
I still didn’t move. Or speak. I simply sat there until he made his way over to my table.
He stood there for a moment, studying me with an odd expression as he tried to place my face.
His eyes widened as he gasped, “Kiersten?”
“Hey, Menace. It’s nice to see you again.”
I wouldn’t have had a clue who he was if it hadn’t been for my father and his eccentric line of work.
I’d met him and his girlfriend Parker a few months earlier when they’d come to see Dad about a situation they had with Parker.
While I didn’t know all the details, I had a feeling it had something to do with Parker—otherwise, she would’ve never been at the house.
If my father was anything, he was careful and discreet.
He never would’ve taken a chance on her being at the house unless she was directly involved.
Having her there ended up being a blessing for me.
Menace was slightly distracted and left his computer out on the table, which gave me the opportunity to swipe a copy of his hard drive—something I’d done with my father’s computer.
It’s amazing what you can find on someone’s computer, especially when they don’t think someone has the means to hack into it.
I was doing my best to keep my composer calm as Menace looked down at me with utter confusion and asked, “What are you doing here?”
“I’m waiting on you and your brothers.”
“You’re the one who requested the meet?”
Trying my best to hide the anxious feeling building in my stomach, I answered, “I am.”
“Does this have something to do with Billy?”
“No. He has no idea I’m even here.” I motioned my head towards the front of the coffee shop as I said, “It’s getting late. Why don’t you ask Viper to come on over, and we’ll get started?”
“Kiersten, this isn’t some game you’re playing here,” Menace warned. “You’ve called a fucking meet with the Ruthless Sinners. You don’t do that shit without a good reason.”
“I have a good reason, and as soon as you get Viper to join us, I’ll tell you what that reason is.”
Menace studied me for a moment, then turned and walked back over to the group of men. They spoke for a moment; then all eyes were on me as Viper and Menace made their way over to my table. As soon as they sat down, Viper gave me a quick once over, then asked, “You’re Billy’s daughter?”
“I am.”
“Does this have something to do with him?”
“No, sir. This has nothing to do with him or the work he does for you.”
“Then, what the fuck is this all about?”
“I have a business opportunity for you.”
My hurt, anger, and overall resentment over what my father had done stuck with me as I left home and headed off to college. I tried to put it all behind me, but no matter how hard I tried, my father and all of his secrets were always lurking in the back of my mind.
I was in my second year of studying botany and was learning all there was to know about plant life when the topic of marijuana came up in class.
Our professor was discussing how, when used correctly, the drug could be beneficial for cancer patients and for people experiencing chronic pain—a thought that struck deep because of my mother.
The more he talked about the benefits of marijuana, the more intrigued I became.
I began doing my own research and discovered even more benefits to the notorious drug.
I also learned that some states considered marijuana to be legal, but Tennessee and four other major southern states did not.
In fact, they considered it just as illegal as any other illicit drug.
That alone should’ve put an end to my thoughts of marijuana altogether, but it didn’t.
Instead, it made me even more eager to develop a method to grow a stronger, purer form of cannabis—one that could make me a great deal of money and possibly help a few people along the way.
I knew it was a crazy idea. I wasn’t the kind of person who would venture into something illegal like growing and selling marijuana, but if my father could pretend he was someone he wasn’t, so could I.
If I was going to pull off this little charade of mine and create a new method of growing a purer form of cannabis, I would need money and lots of it.
Thankfully, my mother and my grandparents were both very wealthy and had left me with a stealthy trust fund.
I used it to buy a large property half an hour from my college campus.
It was an abandoned religious commune that included several small homes, a large barn, and a school with a gymnasium.
The place was in rough shape, but it didn’t matter.
I planned to renovate the entire property—just like my father had done with our basement.
It took some time, but once I was done, I had a state-of-the-art set up, and I got to work.
After six months of busting my ass, I had my first harvest.