Fuck, Bex hasn’t said anything…
I turn slowly and the girls freeze when they see me standing there. Fear flashes across their faces when they realize what I must have heard.
“You got something you want to say to me?” I ask.
I am met with silence.
The brunette closest to the table drops her gaze immediately. But then whines saying, “We were just talking…”
“No,” I cut in. “You were spreading lies..”
I step closer slamming my hands down on their table. They all jump and I let the enforcer in me show through when I ask, “You think my wife had anything to do with Four getting picked up?”
“No,” the blonde, I think her name is Lacey, says quickly. “We didn’t say that.”
“You implied it.” I reply, staring at her until she drops her eyes to her lap.
I lean down slightly so they can hear every word.
“If youeverimply something like that again, you won’t be sitting in this room. She is my ol’ lady, mywife. You are just the party favour that gets passed around and can easily be replaced.”
Fear replaces curiosity instantly. I straighten and walk away before they can respond. But I know the damage is already done. The rumour exists and rumours spread faster than truth here.
Church gets called fifteen minutes later, boots scraping across the rough floor as the brothers file in. Angel takes the head of the table, his face is carved from stone. I don’t think he has slept much, and you can feel the energy coiling off of him into the space around us.
Four’s empty chair sits to his left.
Cypher sits next to it, laptop open.
“We’ve got nothing on the source yet,” he says. “Whoever fed the task force covered their tracks. I have never seen anything this layered.”
Ledger taps the table once.
“Cartel money diversion isn’t a small accusation and I looked into Four’s accounts, there's nothing out of the ordinary there.”
“No shit,” Axel mutters.
The room shifts. You can hear the leather groan, the chair legs creak, a pin could drop and you'd hear it in this space. Everyone knows what’s at stake. Our Vice President was arrested and it is under federal review. That doesn't just bring heat for Four, it brings it down on the whole club.
And somewhere in the middle of it all… An informant. A snake dressed in a leather cut that we’ve been calling Brother.
Angel folds his arms, saying, “I am hearing that Four was meeting with someone at the hospital.”
My head lifts slightly.
Cypher nods. “That’s the story that’s being pushed.”
I hear the whisper ripple around the room.
Hospital.
Nurse.
Informant.
The rumour from the booth is already working its way through the club. But that also means there are men in this room who think that Four could be guilty. Because that rumour holds no weight unless the source of it is true.
Before I can speak, Razor leans back in his chair.