9. Xander
Xander
“How do you stop yourself from shooting every last one of them?” I asked Vik softly, watching two dumb-as-fuck assholes come to blows near the dartboard.
Vik had already warned them once, so no one was surprised when, with a grunt and jerk of his head, a few of the other men grabbed them, tossing them out the door with more force than necessary.
Half-hearted cheers broke out, but I had a feeling it was because the dartboard was now open rather than about the fight, seeing as it was the third one that night, and it was barely midnight.
“By reminding myself I have to clean up the blood and pay the increase in premium if my insurance gets wind of another shooting on my property,” Vik replied under his breath.
“I have stuff that gets the blood out without a trace,” Shade said from where he sat at the bar, clearly overhearing our conversation. I blinked, then remembered he owned a crime scene cleanup business.
“How did you get into that line of business, anyway?” I asked, curiosity overriding my mouth as Vik moved down the bar. Another part of the “who is Xander” puzzle was falling into place. Apparently, I was a bit nosy. Or just cared about those around you.
Shade smirked. “Let’s just say you do what you’re good at,” he said before taking a sip of his drink.
“Tell me, have you ever cleaned up a scene you caused?” I wanted to know.
He didn’t answer, but his grin widened and he winked.
I chuckled, not able to help myself from liking the man. “How the hell are you at the top of law enforcement’s list when they have to know the entire MC is a suspect in at least half the crime that goes on around here?”
He shrugged. “Suspect, not prove. On paper, I’m as white as snow and so are the rest of us.
In fact, you’re the only one left here in Texas that has anything hardcore on their rap sheet, you killer, you.
” The fact remained that while my conviction for manslaughter had been overturned, my record still stated that I’d killed a man.
It was an added hassle, but if anyone from my past suspected I was somehow connected to Demitri Melnikoff, they could easily pull my DNA from several government databases—DNA that would match Xander Hawkings but not DM.
I didn’t want to know how much it had cost to arrange that—especially considering the genome editing hadn’t changed anything significant.
Still, it was another layer of protection and insurance just in case someone came sniffing.
The time in prison also explained why I hadn’t been around before.
And the exoneration ensured I wouldn’t cause more than a hard look with Andrie’s government contacts if—when—she and I officially had a relationship strong enough for her to have to disclose to her superiors.
It had to have been a bitch to create my new identity, especially since I’ve be connected to a woman who required special security clearances.
Now, it was my turn to smirk. “Jealous? At least I have proof I’m someone they won’t want to mess with.” I pointed a thumb to the crowd.
Savage, walking up at the tail end of our exchange, chuckled. “I see you’re getting to know us,” he teased, slapping Shade on the back as he took a seat next to him.
Shade looked like he wanted to pout at my words, but then he grinned. “Yeah, but the major players all know better. After all, the good ones never get caught.”
I tipped my beer at him before taking my own sip.
Shade wasn’t wrong. I’d never been caught or even officially questioned in Russia despite all my crimes.
I’d have to try for the same here. After all, Alex couldn’t afford for her security clearances to be put in jeopardy because of me.
Too many of her clients were Special Forces or black ops.
My “past” would cause enough issues as it were.
That was also something to think about as I gave serious consideration to what my new day job would be.
Vik came up beside me. “Feel like letting off some steam?” he asked, his voice low.
I raised an eyebrow, wondering what was brewing that I’d missed.
“There’s a surveillance van in the back parking lot. Cameras just caught it, so they either just arrived or were farther down and couldn’t get a good view from where they were.”
Savage grinned. “Hell, yeah. It’s been a while since the local PD tried pinning you down for anything. You think it’s a raid or just a watch-and-see?”
“Just surveillance. They don’t have enough for a warrant,” Vik said with certainty.
“What are they looking for?” I asked.
Savage snorted. “Anything illegal. It pisses them off that this place is at the epicenter of the absolute worst part of the city and the home-away-from-home for the Iron Wraiths, but other than a few stabbings and the odd parking lot quarrel gone wrong, they haven’t been able to get anything on us.
No drug or weapons deals, no shakedowns, and none of the fights have ever been started by an MC member.
We haven’t been responsible for any of the serious bodily harm or deaths that have happened here either.
They know it’s happening right under their noses, but they can’t figure out how we’re making deals and keeping our position as top dogs when we never seem to do anything but throw darts, play pool, and drink. ”
“Other than a few building code violations, they don’t have anything on the property or the business,” Shade added.
“Hell, Vik’s even won some fancy award for one of his handcrafted beers.
Fuck, for all we know, they aren’t even here for us this time.
It’s not like every son of a bitch here isn’t pedigreed with a rap sheet as long as they are tall,” he said, motioning to the room at large.
Vik shot him the bird but didn’t comment, just continued to wipe down the counter.
“So, what did you have in mind for getting rid of them?” I asked, going back to Vik’s original question.
He glanced at Savage, who shared a look with Shade, the two of them with matching grins on their faces before turning to me. “What’s your stance on rodent control?”
An hour later, I was in the middle of the craziest—and most fun—scheme I’d ever been a part of, watching three men burst out of the back of the undercover van, screaming as if they were on fire.
A pack of super-sized rats Savage had called nutria were pouring out of the vehicle behind them. The lone woman in the van stood there, glaring at the other officers, ignoring the vermin scurrying around her feet. “You wusses! And you gave me shit about being a woman. Who’s acting like a girl now?”
Savage hooted from where the three of us were gathered around a motorcycle in the parking lot. We’d been pretending to work on it, none of us wanting to miss the show.
Turning her attention to us, she pointed at Savage. “Don’t you think for one moment I don’t know you did this,” she snapped.
Savage gave her a shit-eating grin. “How could we be behind anything? We’ve been here all night—likely before you—and why would we want to play a prank on …
Right as Rain Plumbing? Who the hell came up with that?
” he asked, reading the detail on the side of the van.
“After all, you four are only here to fix a blocked toilet or sewer or something. That doesn’t have anything to do with us.
Besides, between the two of us, who do you think would have a better reason to attract rodents? ”
“Now, Savage, that’s not fair,” Shade said, still grinning. “Just because rats are known to live in shit down in the sewers, doesn’t mean those hard-working men and woman are attracting them.”
The dirty blonde, looking mad enough to spit, was about to retort when I spoke up. “Do you need some help, ma’am? We’d better make sure they’re all out of there, especially since it’s clear those men with you are certainly not up to the task.”
Her eyes widened, and I knew she didn’t want us to see the surveillance equipment barely hidden behind the flapping doors.
She knew as well as we did that we were onto them, but without proof, she wouldn’t be in as much trouble with her bosses as she would if we got a full view of the inside of the truck.
“Oh, no. I’m fine. We’re fine. Aren’t we, y’all?” she said, trying to muster up some sweetness as the three of us stepped forward.
“Nonsense,” Savage waved a hand at the men still nervously eyeing the van from several feet away. “A true Texan gentleman would never leave anyone that’s obviously needing assistance—man or woman.”
Her mouth snapped shut, and I knew she’d been prepared to go off on him for gender equality as a way to get rid of us.
“Unless, of course,” Shade said innocently. “There’s something y’all are trying to hide. After all, a plumbing van, parked just outside the restaurant lot in the middle of the night in this part of town doesn’t really seem legit.”
I rubbed my jaw, as if thinking. “And shouldn’t they be wearing overalls or something?” I asked, getting into the action.
The woman muttered under her breath something about her boss and an electric company, but when she spoke, it was only another reassurance that everything was fine. And after a look that could have killed the men with her on the spot, they quickly stepped back to the van.
“You’d better get that inspected by a pest control company before bringing it out on the roads again,” Savage couldn’t seem to help but get the last dig in. “After all, you wouldn’t want to be responsible for bringing rodents into a client’s home. Especially if they carry some sort of disease.”
Shade nodded. “Talk about a PR nightmare. Imagine if one of those motherfuckers has rabies and bites someone.”
One of the men froze from where he’d been half-in, half-out of the van, giving the area around him a fearful look.
“You’ve got to be shitting me,” I heard the woman say under her breath, then plastered on that fake as plastic smile again. “You’re absolutely right. We’d better get this vehicle back right away so the boss can get it looked at.”
Savage raised a hand in a wave. “Y’all have a good night now. And be careful driving. This isn’t exactly a safe neighborhood this time of night. Or during the day.”
Shade looked over at me, keeping his voice loud enough for the group to overhear but not so loud as to make it obvious he was doing it on purpose. “Considering the crime rate around here, we really should organize a neighborhood watch. You know, keep a better eye on what’s going on around us.”
The dismay on the officers’ faces was priceless, and it was all I could do to keep a straight face.
“You need to bring that up to Grimm. I’m sure he’d agree it’s our civic duty to help the police in their efforts to cut down on crime.”
Before we could say more, the officers got into the van and sped off.
Exhaust was still heavy in the air as the two other men broke out in laughter.
Even I chuckled, feeling lighter than I could ever remember.
My entire life, I’d known one wrong move, one wrong action, could result in my death.
After Alex’s kidnapping, I’d felt the weight of the universe on my shoulders.
Alex’s future, her very life, had changed in the most horrible of ways, and Viktor had had to leave everything he’d known because of me.
Everything had been my fault, and it had been illustrated to me that every word, tone, and movement needed to be carefully chosen and thought-out.
If anyone had ever told me I’d one day be laughing with strangers who were rapidly becoming friends about a childish prank, I’d never have believed it.
As if reading my mind, Savage clasped me on my shoulder. “Come on. That should keep them out of our hair for a while, and the night’s still young. With any luck, Vik will let you toss the next group of drunk assholes out through the window instead of the door.”