Chapter 20 #2
Before I could say anything, Tav started talking. “He won’t have told Devlin about you. I know Chen enough to know he doesn’t want to bring up anything out of the norm to Devlin, because that would reflect badly on him. So we just have to buy time—”
I sat on the coffee table across from Tav and placed a hand over his clasped ones. “Stop.”
His leg still shook. “They occasionally check my apartment and—”
“Your apartment is empty and unlivable. A pipe burst, flooding it, and your landlord kicked you out until they can repair it.” Tav’s jaw dropped, and his leg stopped shaking.
I kept going. “When Chen calls, you’ll tell him that.
He can follow up with the landlord, but he’ll have the same story.
You’re staying at a hotel until it’s fixed.
” I placed a sticky note on the coffee table and smoothed it.
“This is the hotel and room number where you’re staying.
Your bike is there. One of my men is inside, one that looks as close to you as I could get.
He’ll watch TV loudly. Order takeout. How long until your next check-in?
” He blinked at me, and I snapped my fingers.
“Tav, when is your next check-in after today?”
He jerked. “Uh, they usually give me two weeks to recover after a fight. This one probably longer. Maybe even a month. Then I’m on call.”
Now it was my turn to blink. “On call? For a fight?”
Tav’s leg started shaking again. “No, like, on call for jobs.”
I went very still as my heart thudded in my chest. “What kind of jobs?”
His lips twisted. “Whatever they need. A driver. Intimidation. Sometimes more.”
“So you fight and also have to do jobs for Devlin’s crew?”
Tav looked sick as he said in a low whisper,” Yeah.”
I rubbed my forehead as I processed this. It didn’t necessarily make anything less complicated. Tav would not be fighting or taking any fucked-up jobs for Devlin ever again. But the thought of him having to shake down some debtor or drive a getaway car sickened me. “Okay.”
Tav bit his lip. “What do you mean okay?”
“Ask for four weeks. Tell them you’re throwing up from your concussion, and you have cracked ribs. Lary will back you up. Will Chen go for that?”
“I can try.”
“Try hard.”
“And then what?”
“Then we have four weeks to finish this. I probably only need two weeks, but an insurance policy never hurt.”
“Finish what?”
I leaned closer. “Tav, what aren’t you getting about this? You’re never going back to Devlin.”
He still looked terrified. “I hear you say that, but I don’t understand how you’re accomplishing it. Amara and Holden—”
“Are being watched, and soon they will be placed in a protective custody so tight that the President can’t get to them. Devlin will have no hold over you, and then it’s my turn to—” I cut myself off, still not sure how much I wanted to tell Tav. I didn’t want to overwhelm him.
“Your turn to what?” Tav gripped my hand sharply. “Tell me.”
“Look, this is a lot—”
“I’m not a fucking kid, Con.” A muscle in his jaw ticked. “This is my life. I deserve to know.”
Fine. “Soto is going to make his move against Devlin.”
Tav blanched. “What?”
“No more small hits to disrupt his business. This is personal. And it all ends soon.”
“Are you doing this for me?”
I shook my head. “No, I can say with absolutely honesty that taking out Devlin is for me. A little bit for you. But mostly for me.”
“Jesus,” he whispered.
“That’s not something for you to worry about now. We have to focus. We’re going to call Lary and give him an update on your condition. Then we wait for Chen’s call.”
Tav picked up his phone and rolled it in his hands. “Did your goon fuck up the pipes in my apartment?”
“He’s not my goon for fuck’s sake. His name is Nik.
And yes, he did. He enjoys causing destruction very much.
” Tav made a face, and I gripped his chin.
“It would make me happy if you tried to get along with Nik. You don’t have to be best friends, but he’s one of mine.
He’s loyal, and even though you pulled a knife on him, he’d take a bullet for you. ”
Tav’s gaze held mine for a while until he finally nodded. “All right, fine.”
There was a slight pout to his tone that I let go. I pointed to his phone. “Call Lary.”
Fifteen minutes later, Lary was apprised of Tav’s worsening condition. He took it in stride, but I could hear the worry in his voice, and Tav looked sick about lying to him. But I told him this was for Lary’s safety too.
At ten p.m. exactly, Tav’s phone rang. He took a deep breath, and I saw the moment he let the Husk persona descend over him. He shifted his body away from me and answered the call on speakerphone like we discussed. “Yeah.”
“Husk.” Chen’s voice came over the line. “How’s the head?”
“It’s a bad one.” His voice held little emotion. “I’ve been throwing up. Vision is blurry.”
“How long?” Chen asked. “That fancy doc give you a note so you can go back to school?”
Fuck, I hated this guy.
“Longer than two weeks, Chen,” Tav said. His arms were wrapped around his torso as if hugging himself. I wanted to reach for him, but I didn’t. He had to work to be Husk right now, and I didn’t want to remind him of Tav. “Gonna need longer. That’s what happens when you put me up against Shock.”
“You have three.”
“Four.”
“Three and a half.”
“Four, asshole.”
Chen growled low in his throat, but it wasn’t very menacing. “You’re getting pathetic in your old age, Husk. Might have to tell Devlin we need to put you out of pasture soon.”
Tav didn’t show panic. “Four weeks.”
Chen huffed. “Fine.” There was a pause. “No one took you back to your apartment last night. So where are you, Husk?”
“Pipe burst. I’m at a hotel for now.” He rattled off the name and room number.
Chen repeated it, likely to a member of his crew.
“Can I go now? Your voice is making my head throb.”
“Oh, fuck off. Check in again same time next week.”
The call disconnected. Tav blew out a breath and dropped his head between his shoulders. “Fuck.”
I abandoned the coffee table and sat beside Tav, who immediately leaned into me, putting all his weight against my side, so that I had to brace myself, so I didn’t topple over. I carded my fingers through his hair. “You did so good.”
“So much can go wrong,” he said.
“Yeah,” I said honestly. “But I’ll do anything to make sure it goes right. Anything. Do you believe me?”
He didn’t speak for a long time, but his fingers flexed on my thigh, and he nuzzled my shoulder. Finally he lifted his gaze. “I feel a little crazy, but I do. I think I believe that maybe…” he pulled his bottom lip between his teeth before letting it go. “Maybe you can do anything.”