Chapter 11
“Motherfucker!” I double over when Jayce punches me right in the gut. The tips of my fingers brush against the harsh concrete floor when my arms come forward, and my body bends downwards. And the pain I feel? Yeah, it’s unendurable.
“Still distracted, I see,” the asshole muses, which means that he knows.
I groan as I straighten, then press a hand over my stomach as I let go of a slow breath.
“Solo told you,” I say to him.
Instead of answering me, Jayce goes in for another punch, but this time, he connects it straight to my cheekbone.
“Fuck,” I hiss as razor-sharp pain shoots from the side of my face, all the way up to my damn skull.
We’re blowing some steam after our work out at Solo’s underground gym. Now, it’s not a place people come to; it’s just an us thing. Everything in here is for me, the crew, and Solo himself, and this place also happens to be where we usually plan our kills.
The gym is also stocked with weapons we might need to execute these kills, along with files and photos of the people we have taken down so far.
It’s kinda like our sacred ground, and for as long as Solo has owned it, it’s been untouchable by the cops.
No one dares to come near anything that belongs to Christopher Solo and his team, after all – even the new Riverside County sheriff and his deputies.
I touch my cheek, because it stings so fucking bad, and find the skin there to be tender.
The air conditioner in here is all but dead, so there’s literally no way to avoid getting sweaty while working out or boxing.
“Solo did tell me,” Jayce admits. “But what’s fortunate is that he doesn’t know who it is you’re so pussy-whipped over. Because if he did, Ledge, then you’d be a dead fucking man.” He pulls his right arm back and goes in for another punch, but I block it and jab him in the chin.
He grunts a curse, then wipes his mouth with the white strap that’s wrapped around his hand.
“And it’s fortunate that you do?” I say to him.
Jayce grits his teeth and takes a step toward me. “You really think messing with an Adler – let alone Chase fucking Adler’s niece – is going to end well for you? Are you out of your goddamn mind or somethin’?”
“I’m sorry, what?” Varsha cuts in, then looks at me with wide, unbelieving eyes. “You’re fucking that pink-haired Barbie?”
“Ledge,” says Alex. “What the hell, bro?” He’s surprised, which is an expression that’s quite unlike him.
Him and Varsha are sitting on a bench a few feet away from me, enjoying protein bars that they didn’t pay for, and watching me get my ass kicked by Jayce.
I swallow and run a hand over my sweaty face. “I didn’t…” I sigh. “I didn’t fuck her.”
“So what, you just took a whiff of her cunt and wished her goodbye?” Varsha bites out.
“Careful,” I warn her, and watch as shock takes over her features.
“Ledge, come on,” Alex urges. “You can literally have any girl in Riverside – one who’s way prettier than Cignette; one who comes with zero target signs aimed at your back. Have you even thought about that?”
I glare at him. “Fuck pretty,” I tell him.
“We don’t want your head served on a silver platter, asshole,” Jayce says. “We fucking care about you. Unlike Cignette, who won’t give a single shit if you disappear from her life, we can’t lose you.” He swallows. “Because we’ll be damn near aimless without you.”
“So you know her well enough to know what she does, and doesn’t, give a shit about,” I state.
“I don’t,” Jayce seethes, “but neither do you, Ledge. Where the hell’s your commonsense?” He throws a punch at me, but I duck and pivot to the side.
“That woman is known for fucking around with random men,” he adds.
“We saw proof of it yesterday – with Gavin. She doesn’t even care that he’s in a relationship.
Do you really wanna risk your neck for someone like her?
” He goes in for another punch, and I lean back to avoid it.
But, as I move forward again, he uses his other hand to clock me right in the nose.
I taste blood before I actually feel it dripping down my nostrils. I press the back of my wrist over it, and groan when that action results in pain to course through my septum.
Jayce smirks at me, which makes me clench my jaw.
I put my left foot forward and drive a punch in his direction, and it connects – quite perfectly, if I do say so myself – with his mouth.
I grin, then spit blood on the ground, just as Jayce does the same, hissing at the fresh cut on his bottom lip.
“Punch him in the dick, babe!” Alex calls out to Jayce, which makes him chuckle.
“Choke on your damn protein bar, Alex,” I say to him.
“With pleasure,” he chimes, then pretends to deep-throat his half-eaten protein bar.
Varsha rolls her eyes at him, whereas Jayce simply shakes his head.
I’m about to do the same, but end up stumbling when Jayce hits me again.
“Fucking hell, man.” I cup my jaw when it throbs from the impact. “Are you trying to break my face or something?”
He shrugs, then moves again, but I parry his blow with a jab to his stomach.
He coughs, but doesn’t stop to catch his breath. He’s in my personal space so quick, that I have to get out of his way haphazardly in order to avoid getting hit by him again.
Back and forth we go – punch, duck, parry; jab, crouch, evade. But I’m out of breath, and so is Jayce. My body hurts, and I know for a fact that his does, too. So, when he comes at me again, I use what little strength I have to knock him in the face, which results in him to fall to the ground.
He’s on his side, already trying to get up, but I slump onto the floor in front of him. “Don’t even try,” I all but pant, then close my eyes for a brief moment, take a slow breath, and then glance at Alex and Varsha.
The former is staring at his husband in concern, whereas the latter is looking at me with disappointment on her face.
Jayce sits up and brings his knees in front of him. He then places his forearms on them and shoots me a glare.
I mimic his position and wipe my bloody nose again.
“I thought you guys, of all people, would get it – get me.” I push my damp hair away from my forehead.
“It’s not like I go ‘round chasing chicks on a daily. Hell, I wasn’t even looking for any of this, but it just happened, and now I can’t fucking stay away from her. ”
“We’ve got no issue with you chasing chicks, Ledge,” Varsha tells me. “But what we do have a problem with is the fact that the one you’re after, is a walking, talking death trap.”
“And, need I remind you that Chase Adler is one of our clients – a top-tier one, at that. Fucking around with his family will cost you your life,” Jayce adds.
I clench my fists and sneer at him. “My life, or yours?” I regret saying those words the second they leave my mouth, especially when I see the hurt on Jayce’s face.
“Wow.” Alex gives me an incredulous look. “She’s fucking gotten into your head already, and you’ve known her for what, a day?” He scoffs. “Didn’t expect you to fall so damn low, Ledge.”
“Alex.” There’s so much anger in Jayce’s voice as he addresses his husband, that it surprises us all.
“You met her last night, didn’t you?” Varsha asks. “It’s why you refused to hang out with us when I asked you to come over to my place.”
I bite the inside of my cheek. “Technically, it was earlier today,” I say.
Varsha, Alex, and Jayce live in the same building. Where Varsha owns an apartment on the 5th floor, Alex and Jayce own one on the 8th.
Their building’s only a couple blocks away from my loft and Finesse, so we usually hang out and have dinner together. It’s not a dedicated routine or anything, but we make sure to follow it as often as possible.
Until last night – when I was busy getting a taste of Cignette, and my crew had no fucking idea about how much trouble I was knowingly getting myself into just by seeing her.
Jayce raises a brow at me – a silent command for me to elaborate what I’d said to Varsha.
I scratch the back of my head and open my mouth to talk, but nothing comes out.
Dammit.
I glance at Varsha, then Jayce, and then Alex. They’re all looking expectantly at me, like I’m about to recite an ancient folklore or some shit.
We stare.
We blink.
We stare again.
And I’ve perhaps shifted on my ass a few times, but I guess that’s normal, given the environment.
“Well,” Alex’s voice cuts through the brief silence. “We’re waiting, Ledge.”
I swallow.
“She didn’t have her card with her,” I begin, then stop.
“What card?” Jayce asks.
“Her credit card, Jay,” I tell him. “And she didn’t have any cash, either.” I loosen the strap tied around my left hand, and then start to unwrap it. “She said I could come over to her place when I had the time, and collect the money she owed us for the battery.”
“Good God,” Varsha mutters. “So you’re telling me that you went to Miranda’s estate last night?”
“I snuck in, actually,” I clarify. “After the day-shift guards left their station.”
“Fuck,” Jayce whispers. He then closes his eyes and pinches the bridge of his nose. “Christ, Ledge.”
“It wasn’t a big deal, okay?” I say to them. “I’m fine; they didn’t even know I was there.”
“Yay you,” Alex taunts, then scowls at me. “The guards could have killed you in a heartbeat, you fucking idiot,” he adds.
“But they didn’t – because they didn’t see me.” I lift a shoulder. “Are they even that good if they couldn’t even catch me? We’ve only heard of how dangerous they are, but never exactly seen them do anything to prove that.”
“I’m sorry,” Jayce interjects, “but did you want them to catch you? Were you there to witness their skills or something? Are you that desperate to die?”