"Dark, twisted, and absolutely delicious," Brick growls. "We'll lure him to a quiet spot, and then I'll show him the true meaning of being a side dish."
I choke on laughter, nearly doubling over. "You're a sick f**k, but I love it. Next? What about the one with the little... complex?"
I can just about see Brick's mind spin, gears turning as I consider their next victim. "Ah, I know just the thing. We'll invite him to Aria's, pour on the charm, and then we'll introduce him to my 'special' squeeze."
"Oh, no," I whimper. "Please, Brick, not the ball vise again!"
"Oh, yes, my dear friend. And this time, we'll make sure there's no escape. We'll show Tane and his men once and for all that they've picked the wrong crew to mess with."
"Sure," I shrug, "But what about Tane himself? I've got a score to settle with that fucker. We all do. He thinks he can just keep screwing people over and hurting innocent people? Fuck that. He needs the best of the worst… the worst of the best… you know what I mean!"
Brick's eyes gleam, the fire in his eyes sending a chill down my spine. "Don't you worry, my friend. I've been saving the best for last. We're gonna take him down in a way he never saw coming. We'll lure him to Aria's, and we'll make it a night he'll never fucking forget."
I tilt my head, observing the dangerous glint in Brick's eyes. His psychotic creativity energizes me. "Do tell, Brick. I love it when you get... extra creative."
Brick takes a deep breath, his voice taking on a low, sinister cadence. "We'll invite him to the restaurant, maybe even make him think we're ready to back down. I haven't decided whether we'll stayanonymous at this point. Either way, when he least expects it, we'll strike. I've got a little surprise for him, courtesy of my new... friend."
My eyes widen as understanding dawns on me. "You mean..."
Brick grins, his teeth shining in the dim light. "Yes, my friend. We're going to give Tane Brown a taste of his own medicine, literally." He cackles, the sound sending a shiver down my spine.
"Well, I'll be damned," I let out a low whistle. "I never thought I'd say this, but I'm actually starting to look forward to this war."
And with that, we start making our way back from the beach, our footsteps echoing with the promise of destruction and retribution. Tane and his men may have underestimated the Snakes and the Brixtons, but they're about to learn that this island's underbelly has a bite far deadlier than its bark.
"I can't believe you vetoed 'Killer Clownage'," Brick shakes his head. "Or the Terrifying Titty Twister," he says, referring to a plan he randomly blurted out the other day over coffee.
As the sun begins to set over the water, a chill wind picks up, carrying with it the scent of blood and betrayal. Very soon, the tides will turn.
In only a matter of days, Tane Brown will discover that it was one thing to start a war with the Snakes and the Brixtons... but it's an entirely different game to try and finish it.
We have a solid, although unconventional, plan.
And as the bodies pile up, and Tane's grip on power—and his sanity—starts to slip, we'll be ready to make our move.
We'll infiltrate his inner circle and inflict maximum pain before dealing the final blow.
Chapter thirty-five
We're at Aria's again. It's become our new hangout spot while Aria gets the team trained—she has to be there, and we need a place to be, so it works out. To be honest, I much prefer it to the hustle and bustle of any of the other options around here, because they're inevitably full of annoying tourists who flock to the area. For now, this is our quiet reprieve, although of course, it won't permanently be this way.
Rake and Brick enter and everyone turns to stare—Rake, the gangly fucker next to the brick wall that is, well…. Brick. They make a ridiculous fucking pair, and they both seem to be energized by that. I roll my eyes and groan, turning to face Josef and Florian and Dimitri who are sitting just down from me.
"So what do you guys actually do? I just realized we don't know much about you for people who are our partners." I've been suspicious of this lot since we first met, and not being aware of something as simple as their day-to-day activities is creeping me out. When Aidan told us about Dimitri owning a string of sex clubs, I wasn't surprised. Of course that man would have a sex club. "Other than Dimitri's business, which, of course, we now all know about..."
"Damn, Slade. Your voice is dripping with judgement right now," Angel taps me on the shoulder.
"That's not judgement, it's just my regular voice." Which is always dripping with judgement, but I would never admit it.
She smirks. "Oh, so resting Slade face now has a voice equivalent? Gotcha!"
I feel my cheeksredden slightly. She understands me more than most, but it doesn't mean I escape her teasing me about my gruff exterior. It's hard to be a grump, some days.
"Why? You have a problem with sex clubs?" Florian raises an eyebrow at me. "You don't like that kind of thing?"
"No, I just… haven't been to one." I shrug. "It's not something I've really thought about."
"I bet Roman has." Angel rolls her eyes and glances in his direction.