Chapter 39
CHAPTER
THIRTY-NINE
Brew
He could’ve used a panic room, but instead, he decided to keep entertaining two very young-looking girls who screamed and ran across the room when I kicked the door in.
The fucker didn’t even flinch.
Is this really how it’s gonna go down?
I point a gun at him. “Hands where I can see them, asshole,” I growl.
“What the fuck is this? I… I called the gate, they said it was a power outage… I came down…”
He came down before we stormed the gate. The meatheads working for him smoothed it over as Ridgely yelled at them to get the generator running.
“Yeah, you called NOLA Rebels MC,” Haze informs him. “And we’re the devils in disguise.”
A look of horror crosses his face as he realizes what’s going on. Cocky fuck. His men were all just arrested, one hundred percent of his “stock” seized, and this motherfucker is in bed having the time of his life? He really is that fucking pathetic?
I guess he let his ego get in the way.
“Who the fuck are you, and why are you in my house?” he demands.
“Name’s Brew, been lookin’ for you for a long time. You took out a friend of mine. Valencia Ramirez, several years ago.”
A puzzled look comes across his face. “If you want money…”
I shoot him in the bicep. He screeches, grabbing his wrist as blood pours out of him. This is gonna be a bloodbath, but I want him to suffer first. “Hands where I can see them!” I shout.
He holds his arms up, still clutching the bicep oozing with blood.
It paints the sheets white, knowing this will be the last time he ever gets to hurt anyone.
I take it back; it does bring me peace. I can’t risk taking him back to the yard in case the cops get wind.
If they arrest us, I’ll never see Erica again.
I don’t want to do this here, but I’ve no choice.
This isn’t about me, it’s about justice for an innocent woman.
“You don’t even remember her, do you?” I walk around the bed. Several of my brothers behind me hold their weapons at him, he ain’t going nowhere.
“I— I don’t know what you’re talking about, but we can negotiate.”
I laugh without humor. “Negotiate? Is that what you said before you took her out to the desert and buried her after you were done abusing her?” I shake my head. “She had a life ahead of her, the world at her feet, and you took it out from under her in the blink of an eye.”
“I have children,” he starts.
I glance around. “Where are they now?”
“They d-don’t, they don’t live with me.”
“Then why should I care?”
“You’ve got it all wrong. I’ve never abused anyone. Those girls wanted to do what they did, as if they had a better life before,” he sneers. “I was doing them a favor, and you know it. Those girls from the slums? I gave them a place to land, a future, they had no hope before I came along.”
“That’s how all you bastards think, isn’t it?” I toss back. “You think you’re doing somethin’ for the greater good because you hand out women and children on a silver platter all in the name of humanity, you’re really fuckin’ delusional.”
“What life would they lead otherwise?” he argues. “They would’ve just been forgotten about, swallowed up by society, another slip through the cracks. We give them a place to live, food, money—”
“Yeah, I’ll bet you pay them a king’s ransom,” Bane mutters from somewhere in the back.
I slowly start to clap. “By stealin’ their innocence, bravo.”
“If you let me live, you’ll have riches like you never dreamed,” he tells me. “I can give you everything.”
I shake my head. “You’ll never have what I have, it can’t be bought with money.
” I thumb behind me. “Every man in this room behind me has my back, that’s a real brotherhood.
You wanna know how we even found you? Evans.
Your bud. You think the cops in New Orleans are still coverin’ shit up for you?
There’s a new Chief of Police in town, and she’s cleanin’ out the trash, startin’ with corrupt cops in all divisions. ”
“You think you can win this war by taking me out?” he laughs. “You’re fighting a losing battle. This? It’s just the beginning. You can’t stop it.”
“You fuckin’ piece of shit,” I hear Logan mutter.
I smirk. “Maybe I can’t stop it, but I’ll die tryin’. I tuck my gun into the back of my jeans and lunge at him. He can’t fight back because he’s a weak, pathetic piece of shit, but I pound his fucking face over and over and over again until he’s not moving. Then I yank him up so his eyes meet mine.
“I dare you to say her name.”
“P-please, take what you want…”
“I’m so glad we agree on somethin’,” I pull my knife out and slice him across the throat. “That I will take what I want, when I want, asshole. See you in Hell.”
He gurgles, clutching his throat as blood spurts everywhere.
Somewhere in the distance, we hear cop cars.
“Gotta split,” Cash tells me as I stare down at Ridgely, his eyes wide as I plunge the knife into his heart. “Boys are ready to torch the joint.”
“This is for Valencia, motherfucker.” I pull out my knife and find satisfaction in seeing the life drain out of his eyes.
He’s gone.
Finally, this is over.
Haze and Logan come and stand beside me. “He was a pussy,” Haze says. “Didn’t even put up a fight.”
“Gotta split,” Logan mutters. “Like Cash said. Ain’t nobody gonna go down for this.”
I nod, taking a moment to calm the beating of my heart.
It’s time.
The demons of the past will go up in flames tonight, sending a message.
Nobody is gonna fuck with New Orleans from here on in. I’ll make sure of it.
I turn to my brothers. “It’s time to go home.”
“I’m so happy to hear you’re okay,” Erica says, the relief in her voice present.
“Of course I’m okay, told you I would be.”
“I know, but when you boys all go off together, anything could happen.”
“Safety in numbers.”
“We love the cabin, Brew. Bronco said we could stay tonight. He and Amber are coming down.”
I frown. “Who’s there now?”
“Chains and Rodeo.”
“They better not be anywhere near your bedroom.”
“They’re takin’ the front porch until Bronco and Amber get back, and anyway, Steven is back in jail, we’ve nothing to worry about.”
“I get that, but I’d prefer to be the one under the same roof as you.”
“And you will be in a few hours’ time.”
“It’s over,” I say. “It’s finished.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
She doesn’t ask how. She doesn’t ask where. She accepts it.
“I’m done chasin’ ghosts.”
“Brew, you were never doing that. What you did? This incredible thing. It’s honorable. You can come home knowing that we’re waiting for you. I’ll be here, and I love you.”
“I love you, too. Keep that bed warm for me.”
“I’ve never wanted anything more.”
“Hold that thought, Sparky. I’m comin’.”
We hang up and I stare at my phone as the boys rev their engines. We stopped for gas, but I had to call my girl.
Haze gives me a chin lift. “You good?”
I look up at him. “Better than I could have asked for.”
He gives me a knowing look. “Know it was faster than you would’ve liked, but we couldn’t risk it.”
I nod. “Just wanted him gone. Breathin’ the same air, it just didn’t feel right.”
“The Grid will crumble, mark my words.”
“You takin’ up the plight?”
He shrugs. “Good enough cause. The message will spread like wildfire. The Rebels MC. The Nomad Brothers. We won’t stand for this shit.”
“Never thought I’d ever hear you make sense.”
He flips me the bird. “Let’s ride.”
I grin. “Ride or die, brother.”