Chapter Seven. #2
“Well,” Cyber stated before racing across the road.
Nobody was in the vicinity, so we didn’t bother holding back.
Cyber froze the cameras, and we ducked down the alley.
Blue was casually gripping the dealer by the throat and had him pinned against a wall.
I narrowed my eyes at his bulging biceps and licked my lips. Damn, Blue, he turned me on constantly.
“You’re being punished for that,” I murmured.
Blue’s eyes glinted in amusement. “I’ll look forward to it.” He bent down, kissed me, and walked off. “I need a milkshake.”
Cyber and I exchanged glances even as she held a gun to the dealer’s head. Blue was giving himself plausible deniability and taking away anything he might let slip. Clever man. I turned to the dealer and grinned. I rammed my fist into his stomach, and he huffed in pain.
“Where are you?” Cyber asked.
“Portsmouth,” the idiot replied.
“Who owns the town?”
“Look, lady, you can’t stop drugs,” he exclaimed. “We’ve got a right to earn money.”
I laughed. “Hear that. He’s got a legal right to peddle that poison here.”
Cyber tutted and pistol-whipped him. “The Royal Harlots own this town. We allow drugs on the outer ring but not in the centre. You’re selling near a fuckin’ school,” she snarled.
“You don’t have the authority…”
Cyber shoved her gun into his mouth. His eyes went wide, and the smell of piss made me step back.
“You were saying?” I asked mildly as I sent for Belladonna. Calmly, I pulled my small baton from my waistband and flicked it open. I smashed his knees, and he hit the ground, sobbing.
Cyber picked up a piece of wood left abandoned in the alley.
She shoved a dirty rag into his mouth and slapped her palm with her makeshift weapon.
“This is Royal Harlot territory. We really have a thing against drugs. Dealers aren’t allowed to sell here, and yet here you are pushing product.
What? We’ve pussies and can’t protect our land? ”
The dealer babbled something, and I cupped my ear. “What was that? We’re stupid and bimbos, and we’re no threat?” I smashed the baton across his back.
“Let’s send his boss a message,” I murmured and got to work.
Blue
I knew what they were doing down that alley; the dealer wouldn’t be walking out either.
Those of us in the stable picked up stuff not meant for our ears, such as how the Harlots stopped drugs from being sold in the town centre.
Once a fortnight, they did a purge and made sure kids could walk the streets without being harassed to buy drugs.
They weren’t na?ve and believed that they could keep drugs out of the town for good.
They allowed them on the outskirts but nowhere else.
If a dealer ventured into town, they were dicing with a beating.
And the Harlots were more than happy to dish it out.
They took no prisoners, and they didn’t forget.
They didn’t even care if people used drugs; they just didn’t like usage around them.
I’d heard whispers that one of the sisters had been drugged and nearly raped, and that was behind their aversion to them.
It wasn’t confirmed, but I believed it. As I sat sipping my milkshake, watching over the bikes, I saw Belladonna and several others pull up.
They waved at me and disappeared. Like other victims, this dealer would have a sudden lapse of memory.
I chuckled and ordered more milkshakes. I knew they’d join me soon.
Nun
Blue seemed pretty pleased with himself, although he’d not said anything. His humour faded when we got back to the clubhouse, and he spotted Priest.
“What is it?” I murmured.
“I don’t like him. Something is off,” Blue replied.
“Sure it’s not jealousy?” I teased, and Blue shook his head.
“Nope. I know where I stand with you; I’m pretty confident in that. Plus, you don’t play mind games. That’s not you. There’s a secret he’s hiding, Nun, and it’s bad. He’s got shifty eyes,” Blue stated.
I stared at Priest. Blue wasn’t wrong. Priest was too cocky, too sure of himself, almost as if he was playing a role. His eyes were cold and constantly alert, and he sized everything up.
“We never asked what he did,” I replied, remembering the suit I’d seen him in. That had been expensive. Since he’d been here, he’d worn jeans and tees with his cut. Blue wasn’t wrong; Priest was more than he proclaimed to be.
“We’re at the club tonight,” I informed Blue, who nodded. I yanked his head down and kissed him hard and walked across to Belladonna.
“You broke his shield?”
“No. It’s tight. You can tell he’s worked at it.”
“We need Cyber to look into his background.”
“Sapphire did that; Cyber’s still searching,” Belladonna replied.
“Really?” I exclaimed quietly. If Cyber had to dig, Priest was definitely hiding something.
“Yup. I’ve got an art thief in the pot.”
I laughed. Trust us to have opened a bet. “Assassin.”
Belladonna made wide eyes at me. “I didn’t think of that.”
“Wait a minute, hey Dagger!” I called as she entered the clubhouse.
“What’s up, bitches?” Dagger asked as she came over.
“Who’s that hitman you bid against?”
“Priest? Asshole. He doesn’t seem to realise he’s second to us,” Dagger complained.
I tilted my head. “You ever seen him?”
“No, I doubt he could identify us either,” she replied.
I exchanged a look with Belladonna. “Fuck,” she muttered and got up and walked off.
“What am I missing?” Dagger demanded.
“Priest,” I murmured, nodding at him.
“Babe, you know how many men use Priest as their name? Hell, the RBMC has a prospect called that.”
“This one has been in and out of the country, and wears expensive suits like he was born in them. Priest has a shield Belladonna can’t break and isn’t what he seems,” I replied.
Dagger relaxed back, her resting bitch gaze on Priest, who turned around and held it.
“Most flinch when they see me,” she murmured.
“Nerves of steel,” I stated.
“Come here,” she called to him.
I sat back. If Dagger were going to call him out, I’d stand by her.
Priest sauntered over, in no rush, but I noted how deliberate his steps were. Despite his casualness, he gave himself away. Priest was ready for trouble.
“Did you really think you’d walk in here and I wouldn’t be aware?” Dagger confronted him.
“I’ve been here a day now,” Priest replied. He looked surprised and confused, but my gut told me otherwise.
Dagger leaned forward. “You’re going with that, Priest?” she asked.
“You’ve lost…” his words broke off as Blade leapt onto his back and locked herself in, holding a knife to his throat. He yanked his head away.
“Don’t bullshit us,” she whispered dangerously.
Priest held his hands up. “I think you’ve got the wrong end of the stick.”
“Have we?” Dagger purred and looked amused. “You’re not an assassin?”
There was nothing. Priest gave little away—not a flicker, a flinch, absolutely zero. But I knew he intended to lie.
“No.”
“Liar,” Blade whispered, and a trickle of blood dripped down his throat.
“Look, I’m just a nomad…”
“No, you are not. It’s a great cover. But you forget, I saw you in a suit that cost over twenty thousand bucks. You drive a top-of-the-range SUV, and your Harley is customised. What do you do that allows you that level of luxury?”
“I play the market,” Priest said, not moving, not flinching. His lack of reaction gave him away even more. Too cool, too calm and collected.
“No alarm, fear, or unease. My twin at your throat and you’re not blinking. You’re good, but that alone raises concerns. Either come clean, or we treat you as an enemy,” Blade murmured.
Priest didn’t hesitate. “I don’t know who—”
“Blind,” Dagger whispered, and Priest stiffened. Now there was a hint of panic. “I can make that permanent.”
“Honestly…” The panic in his voice could almost be real, but I heard the calculation behind it, as did my sisters.
“Punch through his shield, Belladonna. I don’t care if he ends up with brain damage,” Sapphire ordered.
“Warden…”
“Warden can fuck himself if he sent his pet assassin into my club to take me out,” Sapphire retorted.
I sat up. Had that been his goal? Shit. I’d fucked him!
“That wasn’t the plan. I am honestly looking for my cousin,” Priest said, resigned. “Belladonna, I’m dropping my shield.”