Chapter 14
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
I woke up to the sound of a car horn blasting outside.
My eyes half-opened, blurry with sleep, and I blinked from the little light coming through the kitchen window.
Groaning, I turned away, feeling the firm couch pillow against my face, smelling a hint of Leslie.
Curled up with a blanket draped over me, I laid there, my mind returning to last night.
Judging by how quiet it was, Leslie must be somewhere sleeping.
I remembered in the early morning waking up and feeling his warmth against me, his heavy hand on my side.
I couldn’t guess how long he’d stayed after I fell asleep.
Feeling groggy, I slowly sat up, looking around the semi-dark room. The fuzzy beginnings of a headache stirred between my eyes and my mouth felt like cotton. Before I tried to force myself up to get a drink from the kitchen, I noticed a note next to me, sitting on top of the blanket.
Food in the fridge. Come find me when you’re ready.
I folded the note and set it aside. Getting up, I flinched, hissing in pain. I should’ve taken it easier yesterday.
Hunched forward, I padded over to the kitchen and took out a bag of food and a bottle of water. I devoured the chicken wrap and small salad and emptied the bottle. By the time I was finished, the hint of a headache was gone.
Leaving Lez’s apartment, I carefully made my way downstairs.
Even as I heard commotion coming from the garage, I didn’t search for him right away.
I’d gotten a good look at myself in his bathroom mirror and knew I needed to get over to Dom’s first, badly needing a shower, a good mouthwash, and a new pair of clothes.
Thankfully, I didn’t run into anyone in the club and Dom’s apartment was still unlocked.
When I gathered some fresh clothes, I found my phone charging in the bedroom and nearly jumped when I saw it was four in the afternoon.
I had a few text messages, one from my mother which thankfully had only been sent an hour ago.
I responded quickly that I was still unwell but would call her later.
I took a long hot shower before changing into a pair of shorts and shirt with the sleeves hanging over my shoulders.
I strapped on my leg braces and slipped on a pair of tennis shoes, grabbed my bag with my phone, and headed downstairs.
As I snuck back through the club, I ran into the bouncer from last night.
“Lookin’ for Leslie?” they asked. When I nodded, he pointed outside. “Garage.”
I turned toward the thrum of music. An old cargo van was sitting out front, blocking the garage door. As I got closer, I heard the back of the van shut.
Leslie appeared from one side, keys in hand, cigarette hanging from his mouth. When he saw me approaching, he flicked the cigarette away and smiled. “Sleep well, cupcake?”
I smirked at him. “As well as one can on a couch,” I said.
“You were out cold for a while.”
“I think I have you to thank for that.”
He let out a breathy laugh that tickled my insides. “Call me the sandman ’cause I’ll put you to sleep in more ways than one.” He opened the driver door. “Alright, let’s roll.”
“Where are we going?”
“Got some errands to run.”
“In this?” I gestured to the van.
“Yeah. I got some inventory to drop off.”
I crossed my arms. “What sort of inventory?”
He gave me a sly look. “I’m betting you can guess well enough.”
“Maybe.”
He closed the door. “Come on, I’ll show you.”
I followed him to the back. He swung open the doors and stepped back so I could see.
“A bunch of boxes...” A strong pungent scent hit me, making me crinkle my nose. “Oh, is that…”
“You guessed it.” Leslie opened one of the boxes and inside were canisters of weed all labeled accordingly. “We promised Micheal we would try to be good citizens. But we still have business to run. This strain is rare and in demand, so we grow and stock it for several dispensaries and dealers.”
“Let me guess though, no license to grow and distribute.”
“Oh no, we got the license.”
“Color me surprised.”
“For the weed anyway,” Lez said, closing up the box. “Can’t say the same for these.” He slid over a different box and opened it. Inside were bags of stringy gray and brown looking sprouts. It took me a second to realize what they were.
“You’re growing shrooms? Really?”
Leslie closed up the box. “It sells well if you can believe it.”
“Honestly, I can.”
He closed the doors and stepped around me. “It helps pay for some of the expenses at least.”
“I’m curious you and Dom don’t dip your hands in…stronger stuff,” I said, following him back to the front.
“Like cocaine? Yeah, we did that for a short time…obviously not a Micheal friendly drug and shit brings too much drama. Mafias got a big hold on that industry now anyway.” He slid into the driver and started the van.
I went around the front and got in, placing my bag between us.
“Shouldn’t take us too long,” he said, putting the car in drive.
As he started to roll out of the courtyard, I looked over my shoulder at all the boxes. “Is this the same inventory Dom mentioned was in the building that got shot at?” I asked.
“This batch was already out of there before the attack. But, yes, that’s where we grow,” Lez answered as he turned down the street. I noticed he had the same GPS system that Dom had in his car, plugged into a tablet.
“Have you heard from your brother at all? I haven’t heard back.”
“Yeah, texted me earlier today. He’s still going through the damage.”
“Was it them? Was it the Serpents?”
Lez side-eyed me before returning his focus to the road. “Pretty sure.”
“Shit,” I cursed under my breath.
“Hey, relax. Dom’s got it under control. We got them on camera, including the license plate of one of their cars. Dom’s tracing it as we speak.”
“So we might have another lead?”
“You got it. Once we find the owner of the car, we’ll make him talk.”
“Aren’t you scared your brother might get hurt?”
He took a moment to respond. “Sure, I worry about him like any brother would. But I also trust him. I know he can handle himself.”
I sank in the seat. I wish that made me feel better, but it didn’t.
Lez reached over and tapped on the tablet. “Anything you wanna listen to?”
I shook my head. “How long do you think this will take?”
“Why? Got somewhere to be?”
I gave him an annoyed look. “No. Just curious.”
He smirked as he turned a corner. “Job should be done by sundown.”
We made our way across the outskirts of the city.
The shop owners always met Lez in the back, taking their boxes into their warehouses after handing him an impressive wad of money.
The shrooms were delivered to more discreet places, one being a run-down autoshop in Brightmoor where a man was waiting in a red pickup truck.
Lez always talked to the owners while I sat listening to some obscure hip hop in the car, watching them.
Must be nice not having to worry about a nine to five when your sole job was distributing drugs.
“It’s more than just selling, it’s creating connections,” Lez explained as we drove to the last location. The sun had nearly set, orange and red filling up the sky. The temperature was finally starting to cool down if only a little.
“I get it,” I said as we drove by several locked-up businesses and a few abandoned homes. “It benefits the gang.”
“And stretches out our territory. It’s all about power moves. Kinda like—”
“A game?”
He grinned. “Yeah, but on hard mode. You fuck up once, you don’t come back.”
“You honestly find that fun?”
“Yes.”
He pulled into the last location and hopped out before I could decide how exactly I’d respond to that. He dropped off the last box and collected his cash, saying something to the owner, making him laugh.
“Done right at sundown, what did I tell you?” he said as he slid back into the driver and shut the door. “Gives us plenty of time.”
I glanced at him, suspiciously. “Time for what?”
His gaze caught mine as he put the car into gear. “You hungry?”
Admittedly, the wrap from earlier had hardly kept me full. “I could eat,” I said.
“Good.” He headed north. As we traveled into a more populated area, he stopped next to a park filled with food trucks. “Don’t know what you like so figure you can pick. It’s on me.”
“Oh, I can pay, I still owe you for the wrap—”
“Don’t worry about it.” He parked at the end of the street, turning the car off.
“I owe your brother too, really, you don’t have to—”
“Too bad.” He got out. He bent his head to look back at me. “You coming or what?”
I sat there for a moment, the smell of fried food hitting me, making my mouth water. “Alright, I won’t fight.”
“That’s the spirit.”
“Creep,” I said, opening my side and scooting out.
I heard him chuckle as I shut the door. We walked over to the trucks where I had my pick of everything from loaded fries to tacos.
I went through a few options before picking a Greek food truck and ordering a gyro.
Lez, to my not so utter shock, practically ordered half the menu.
As we waited, I saw the place was packed with college students.
Lez grabbed our order and returned to the van.
“I got a better location for us to fill up,” he said as he put the bag of food between us.
I didn’t ask where exactly as he made his way south toward the clubhouse.
I assumed he was taking us back there when he turned down a side street and slowed.
As we came upon a line of cars turning toward a gated entrance, he maneuvered into one of their lanes.
“Uh, Leslie, where…” I stopped when I saw a lit-up sign next to the gate that said Drive-in. Beyond the sign was a movie screen just visible above a row of trees. “They still have these?” I said, a little stunned.
“One of the last in the state.” He pulled up to the gate and handed the tenant a hundred-dollar bill. “Two for the double-feature.”