Trust Fall

ONE - JAMESON

“What the hell do you mean he got away?” I bit out.

This was the second time in less than a week that one of Kane’s idiot men had almost gotten inside my casino. It was bad enough they even made it onto the property, much less halfway down the corridor and practically out onto the gaming floor.

Okay, maybe not quite that far, but it still felt too close for comfort.

The line fell silent.

With the telephone clutched in a death grip pressed against my ear, I gazed up at Ivan. I watched him as he sat there just as casually as could be across from me with a dumbfounded don’t ask me look plastered on his face.

“Answer me,” I demanded with a huff. My words were directed at Chris, Emerald Haze’s general operations manager. Ivan knew I was talking to him, too.

“Yeah, James,” he breathed defeatedly. “I’m here. I don’t—I don’t fucking know how. He ran out and got away from us before we could catch up to him. Leon took a pop at him, but the guy slipped through the woods on the south side.”

“Unbelievable. Did anyone see or hear Leon shoot?”

“Not that I’m aware of. He used his silencer. Again, I’m so sorry. I know we fucked up.”

“You think? I’ve got Kane’s men creeping and crawling around this place like flies on horse shit, and you, of all people, almost welcomed them in with open arms and a cup of tea.”

I’d given all my men one simple order: stop anyone who isn’t supposed to be here in their tracks and stop them at all costs—it didn’t matter where or how.

That’s it.

That’s all they had to do these days. I didn’t think that was too much to ask for.

“Y’all have one job. One. Fucking. Job, Chris. Do I need to start doing this shit myself?” I wouldn’t. But I was getting close to it.

“No,” he sighed. “Again, I’m sorry.”

“Sorry doesn’t fix it. Bullets do.” Even though a bullet was what had gotten me into this clusterfuck in the first place.

As much as I hated death and dying, I’d long accepted that killing was a necessary evil in this business.

Sometimes that meant kill or be killed. We all had enemies in this industry, and unfortunately, my dad’s had been passed down to me.

Kane was only going to hold off for so long before saying fuck it and ripping off the proverbial Band-Aid.

I had less than a week before said ripping occurred.

I massaged my forehead in an attempt to ward off an impending migraine, then let out a slow, deep breath, trying to calm my nerves and collect my thoughts before opening my mouth to speak—an art I’d yet to perfect.

“Is everyone else okay?” I asked because even when my guys messed up, which wasn’t very often, I still cared about them. The last thing I wanted was for anyone else to get hurt or end up dead.

One was already enough.

“Yeah, we’re all good,” Chris reassured. “Everyone’s fine.”

“Good. Don’t let them that close again.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Thank you. Now, get back to work.” I slammed the phone down on the receiver, ending the call.

I already knew everyone thought I was a t-total bitch, but a job like this wasn’t meant for the soft and weak. I’d spent the majority of my life being conditioned for this role—to be callous and coldhearted.

I wasn’t about to let them prove me wrong now.

“James.” Ivan rubbed the back of his neck.

“What?”

“Go easy on our guys. You know we’re all feeling the pressure here, right?”

“There won’t be any more guys left to feel the pressure if my crew lets any more of these assholes get away.

At this point, I want to see bodies stacked up to the goddamned sky.

I don’t even give a shit where we dispose of them anymore.

Throw them out in Kane’s parking lot. Let his patrons use them as speed bumps for all I care. ”

I plopped down onto my executive leather office chair and pulled up the security cameras that covered the exterior perimeter of the property. I did a quick scan of the south side of the property, where the perp had been chased.

Nothing.

The sun was shining, and the grass was brown but still had a smattering of green coloring left to it here and there. Trees had lost most of their leaves.

It was as though he’d never been here.

“These guys are getting entirely too close for my comfort.” They’d mostly stayed away from me until recently. Now, they were popping up left and right. None had gotten as close as the one today, and he’d somehow managed to make it all the way through the front door.

In their defense, it was getting harder and harder to spot these guys. They’d come in through the main entrance, and if not for my keen-eyed surveillance crew or the extensive research IT did on Kane and his circus, we’d be none the wiser as to who they were or their intentions.

But my men? Oh, they knew.

“I agree. That’s why I keep telling you we need help.”

I stared Ivan down through squinted eyes. “No. We do not. We can handle this ourselves.”

“Yes, we do, and no, we cannot. James. You’re—” He paused, scrubbing his hands down his face.

He was clearly just as sick of my shit as everyone else around here.

“You’re in way over your head, and forgive me for what I’m about to say, but you’re hardheaded as fuck.

I know that’s not what you wanna hear, but it’s—”

I held up my hand to stop him. “Save it. I already know what you’re going to say.

You, of all people, know how damn near impossible it is to find someone—anyone—we can trust. You’re not just gonna pull some Joe Blow off the streets of Tunica or Memphis and expect him to do what you or any of us do.

That’s what Kane does, and he’s sloppy for doing it. ”

“I don’t disagree, but please, hear me out.”

I closed my eyes, waiting to hear what he had to say, even though I didn’t want to hear another word about needing help.

“I might know someone.”

“Might? What do you mean you might know someone?” Ivan might know someone? This was news to me.

“Okay, okay.” He waved his hands dismissively. “Relax. I know a guy. Better?”

“No, not at all.” There was a substantial difference between just knowing someone and having them readily available to put their life at risk.

Those were two completely different things.

“Look, Ivan. I’ve got Kane’s men crawling up my ass, the Haunted Hearts Gala coming up this weekend, which means I’ve got less than a week left to either kill or be killed, and you’re sitting here now telling me you know someone who’s readily available at your disposal, who can come in and do your job? ”

“Yes?”

“Your whole-ass job?” I asked flatly because I was not entertained by his proclamation.

“That’s exactly what I’m saying.”

“Christ. And why am I just now finding out about this friend?”

“I have my reasons.”

“Me not ending up dead is a damned good reason to tell me who this person is and why you’ve held out on me.”

“I think now’s a good time to, you know, call him…before it’s too late.”

“Hell, at this point, we might as well put a target on all of our foreheads and walk over to Kane’s place and get this shit over with. ’Cause right now, our margin of error is close to zero. Actually, it is zero.”

“No shit, James. Why do you think I’m sitting here practically begging you to give me a chance? Let me bring my guy in.”

My guy. I couldn’t for the life of me think of a single soul Ivan knew that I didn’t who could easily waltz in here and take over for him. Someone who didn’t need to be trained. I was also very well aware I didn’t have a choice at this point.

I swallowed the lump in my throat. “Do you trust him?”

“With my life.”

I leaned back, matching his posture. “And mine?”

“Yours too, obviously. Look. I’m getting too old for this shit.

I can’t look after you like I used to; you know that.

We’ve played it safe for a long time, but Kane isn’t gonna stop until he gets what he wants, and right now, it’s you.

I couldn’t live with myself if anything ever happened to you.

God knows your dad would come back from his grave and finish me off if I did. ”

A smirk tugged at the corner of my mouth at the sentiment. “Yeah, he probably would.”

“If you let bring him here to essentially take my place for a few days, I’m of better use to you out there than I am in here, ya know?”

Unfortunately, he was right.

“Fine. Tell me more. How long have you known this friend of yours, and why am I just now hearing about him?”

“He’s been…unavailable, we’ll say. But he’s loyal, and I’ve known him practically his entire life.”

I rolled my eyes. “His? Not yours? He already sounds too young.” Not that I had much room to talk. As far as I knew, I was the youngest leader in the industry.

“Well, he’s probably close to your age, if I ventured to guess. Maybe a few years older. I’m no spring chicken, as you can tell. I’m going to have to be replaced eventually. This could be a way to transition someone else into this role.”

“Great. So, a youngish, egotistical, testosterone-fueled prick?”

“Jesus, James.” Ivan tilted his head from side to side, cracking his neck. “You’ve got issues. You know that?” He shook his head. “You need someone younger than me and someone who knows what the fuck he’s doing who can keep up with the demands of the job.”

“You mean my demands?”

“Exactly. I can’t guarantee your safety or mine anymore, and that scares the shit out of me. Look at what happened today.”

I sighed. “I get it. I do. But you know how I feel about outsiders.”

Ivan was one of the very few people I truly trusted. He’d worked for my dad since I was in diapers. There were even pictures floating around somewhere of him feeding me a bottle.

Now, because of some sick twist in fate, he worked directly for me. That alone probably aged him an extra ten years.

“Look how long it took my dad to assemble this team. Why should I trust you to just bring in some guy you’ve been keeping in your back pocket for a rainy day?”

“It’s not like that. I would never withhold valuable information from you.”

“Sure as hell feels like you already did.”

“There’s just some things you’re gonna have to learn on your own about this business. This guy? I know he’s got what it takes. He’s also my last resort. Otherwise, I got nothin’.”

Fuck. “If you can at least guarantee me he isn’t some punk-ass kid who’s going to stand in my way or screw around and get me killed, then he might be worth talking to. But I make no promises.”

He held up his hands. “No worries. I haven’t talked to him in a while. Knowing the nature of his work, I don’t even know if he’s still alive.”

I slouched, sinking further into my chair, feeling like I’d just had my ass beat at this point.

I looked over and studied my laptop screen, scanning the cameras across the parking lot and back loading dock, then down into the wooded area of the south property line one more time. Things seemed normal enough…for now.

“Fine. Find out if he’s alive and willing to work. Get him here so we can chat. The sooner, the better.”

“I’ll call him before lunch and have him here by this afternoon. How’s that sound?”

“Sounds like I hope it’s not already too late.”