Chapter 52
Nash
Profits were through the roof.
The live with Dennison had worked wonders.
We hadn’t been able to keep up with our new popularity.
Nora had been interviewing for every position, from extra servers and bartenders to an additional manager.
The issue…Volatile doubled as my prison and drug distribution hub.
We only had a handful of prospects vetted by Liam, and most either didn’t want or need a job like this.
I glanced at the time. Ellis would be here soon.
I wasn’t sure bringing him into my lair was a good idea, but meeting in the middle of nowhere again seemed just as risky.
Nora was run off her feet, but damn, she was good.
She twirled a bottle of vodka on her arm while she lit six Fireball whisky shots on fire.
The guys waiting were as mesmerized by the drinks as the woman serving them.
Ellis walked in just as I finished the inventory.
Nora had asked me to help her get it done, and I was nothing if not accommodating.
Morrison stopped Ellis to be searched for weapons and listening devices.
I could see Ellis chirping him, but Morrison didn’t even blink.
He was an excellent head of security, and despite the environment, had stayed sober.
It probably helped that he got paid four times what his sheriff salary had been, was twice as appreciated, and had a quarter of the daily pressure.
I smirked as Ellis walked toward me, and ironically, my coach bus filled with the latest shipment of drugs drove past as it headed out of town for Seattle.
It always did the same route and started at the port that Louis let me use in Florida.
The bus then stopped in California and Portland before heading to Seattle. Seamless, beautiful and efficient.
My eyes traveled up and down his navy suit and long coat.
“Could you look any more like a Fed,” I asked as he reached me.
“I could wave my badge and gun around if you want.”
“Hard pass. Follow me,” I yelled over the song.
We walked to the office, and I closed the door after Ellis stepped inside. This room had been soundproofed, but you could still feel the vibrations in the floor.
“I’m not surprised you reached out, Nash,” Ellis said as I placed my tablet on the desk and sat down.
I flipped the hidden switch that locked the door and blocked the room from any recording devices. Even if Morrison had missed something, all Ellis would record was static.
The black leather chair creaked as I moved. I’d designed the office to match the ultra-modern look of the club. White walls, black furniture, and red accents. There was a small version of the neon Volatile sign glowing on the wall, and Nora had found blood-red filing cabinets.
“Oh yeah, and why is that?”
Ellis sat across from me, the smug look on his face firmly in place.
“I assume this has to do with the hacker we picked up. He was doing shady shit for you, and you want him freed, but that won’t happen.”
I smirked. “Yes, I contacted you about Zigzag, but not because he was doing shady shit for me. He is a friend who got the raw end of a deal, and I’m just trying to help him out,” I said.
“Please spare me. You expect me to believe that?”
With a sigh, I leaned forward and placed my hands on the desk.
“Ellis, I really don’t care what you believe. I thought we’d established this during our last chat. I also thought that you’d learned that no matter what, I hold up my end of a bargain and can be trusted.”
“Trusted is not the word I’d use,” he said.
“Then, what word would you use?”
He gave me a lopsided grin that did nothing to warm up his cold features.
“Calculating.”
“Same thing. Look, I’ll cut to the chase. Yuiry Nikitovich or otherwise known as Christov Ivankov is a dangerous asshole and has been using Zigzag to do his dirty work since the day he saved him from court. He’s been using him like a sleeper agent.”
“Did we just get dropped into a spy movie,” Ellis asked, his sarcasm thick.
“Laugh all you want. But when someone has you under their thumb like that, you’ll do things you wouldn’t normally do,” I said.
“Fine, let’s say I believe you. What do you want from me,” Ellis asked.
“I want you to have the charges dropped.”
“Can’t do it. This is his second offense of hacking a government agency. We don’t take that lightly at any time, but he was only fifteen before. He had someone willing to vouch for him and pay to get him out. Now he’s eighteen and has no backing.”
“What if I pay?”
“It doesn’t matter if you pay. He’s not making bail. He’s going to serve time for this no matter what.”
I tapped my fingers along the top of the desk.
“What if Zigzag was able to give you information about a drug ring and it gave you a reason to reduce his sentence?”
Ellis sat back in the chair and was quiet for a few minutes.
“Alright, I’m listening. What kind and how much product are you talking?”
“Cocaine and Molly. I can’t get you quantity, but it’s substantial.” Ellis sighed. “I held up my end of our deal last time, and you got a pat on the ass and a fancy promotion.” I smirked. “This is how this works, Ellis. I help you, and you help me. It’s really quite simple.”
“Yes, but I feel like I’m making a deal with the devil,” he grumbled.
“Better the devil you know than the one you don’t. Come on, Ellis, this is not brain surgery. Zigzag is a decent kid who has kept his nose clean, other than being strong-armed by the man he owed for keeping him out of prison. You really want to ruin his life with a max sentence?”
Ellis stood and paced around my office. He looked totally out of place with his Fed blues.
I was kind of surprised he wasn’t wearing the black sunglasses.
He stopped and stared at the photo of me, Ren, the guys, and Nora on opening night before Owen destroyed everything.
It reminded me of what I’d almost lost, but also what I still had.
“Get me the location of the product, and I can reduce his sentence to five years.” He turned and looked at me, arms crossed. “If you get me the product and someone to lock up, I can do three.”
“Two years and you have a deal,” I said, standing.
“Fuck, you’re annoying,” Ellis said, walking forward and holding out his hand.
“Maybe. This goes without saying, but I want the deal in writing, just leave my name off it and put Zigzag’s name instead.”
I waited to shake his hand until he answered me.
“Fine, I’ll get the paperwork drawn up,” Ellis said, but it seemed painful for him.
“You know, Ellis, your ego and self-righteous attitude will kill your career if you’re not careful.”
He narrowed his eyes at me.
“If you really think the guys you work for are as clean as a whistle, you’d better think again. And I really hope that you never have to come to me for a favor.”
“Oh yeah, and why is that,” he asked with a snarl.
“Because by then it will probably be too late, and I won’t have the time to help you. The game is ever shifting, Ellis, and you’d be wise to remember that not everyone who wears that badge thinks like you.”
He put his hands on his hips.
“Are you trying to tell me that I have dirty cops in my department?”
“I’m telling you that the world is not black and white. And just because you think you’re one of the good guys, doesn’t mean that you are.”
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
“I’m sure one day you’ll figure it out, but I just hope you don’t end up dead in the process. I’ll be in touch with the information for you as soon as you have Zigzag sign the deal and get it back to me. You can see yourself out.”
His mouth moved like he was going to argue, but instead turned and stomped toward the door, all attitude.
“Oh, and, Ellis?”
He looked over his shoulder, hand on the knob.
“If Zigzag asks who is helping him, tell him Ivy Morrison. My name is never mentioned.”
Ellis’s eyebrows drew together in confusion.
“Why Morrison’s daughter?”
I smiled. “I thought that was obvious, but since not…it’s on a need-to-know basis. Goodnight,” I said, dismissing him as I sat and turned on my laptop to get some work done.
I flipped the switch under my desk to unlock the door and ignored him as he stared at me, like that would get him the answers he was after.
“You really are an asshole, Nash,” Ellis growled and left in a huff.
I leaned back and stared at the closed door. I’d been serious about how Ellis would end up dead before he asked for help. I could already see it playing out, and I hoped that it didn’t come to that, even if he was a prick.
Two years…it was a long time, but Zigzag would be out before his twenty-first birthday.
It was the least I could do after playing a part in his fall.
Christov set the ball in motion years ago, but making him help us kicked it over the cliff.
It was just another reminder that it wasn’t always death that could tear us away from those we loved.
I brought up Collier Enterprises’s quarterly reports, but didn’t see the numbers on the screen as I plotted out my next move. Christov would pay, but so would Sabastian, and the best part…Christov would know that this was all his doing.
I was tired of playing his games. It was time the Ivankov family played one of mine.