Page 39 of Kane
The guy who scowled had on black jeans and a white shirt with a leather jacket that had to be stifling in the warm apartment. “You know what I think, Ace. Our focus needs to be on what happened to Sucre.”
The guys around him nodded in agreement.
Ace, obviously the boss, shook his head. “We talked about this.”
“You asked me my opinion and this is it.” Jay broke away from the group and paced the room. There wasn’t a lot of space, but it looked way nicer than Kane would have ever expected from the outside. A black leather sofa and chair in the living area to their left. A big flat screen on the wall. And a long glass table to the far right of the room. It had probably been moved to create the empty space where they were standing. In most apartments, it would be the eat-in kitchen.
Something told him no one cooked here; no one shared this space for a family meal.
No. This place was for business, and their visits couldn’t happen often. No dishes anywhere. No garbage cans. And a light sheen of dust reflected off the face of the television.
Jay’s lips pinched. “Sucre didn’t just walk away from us.”
Kane’s stomach turned. They couldn’t know the club took Sucre out.He and Scott were out-numbered. If this went bad, neither one of them would walk out of here alive.
Thankfully, Jay seemed oblivious to his discomfort. “The guy was creepy as fuck, but he never gave us reason to doubt his loyalty. He paid on time. He met his obligations.” Jay got more animated as he went on. “He was ourassociate,and whatever happened to him is a reflection on us.”
Ace shook his head with the sufferance of a father explaining something to his wayward son. “We have no reason to believe he didn’t take his money and move to the Bahamas.” It echoed of an argument made many times before.
“Bullshit, man, and you know it.” The men who had been standing with Jay nodded with his words. “Someone knocked him off, and whoever did it took out his whole crew. Unless you think theyallwent to the Bahamas.”
“Enough.” Ace’s hand sliced through the air. “I told you this already. If we find out someone killed de la Cruz, we’ll handle it. In the meantime, we have a business to run. To make money, we need a distributor. My only question to you now is who it’s going to be.” He turned back to Scott. “Obviously, we’ve had a lot of interest in what’s only been a short period of time. In my opinion, however, your club seems to be one of the most suited for possible success.”
Scott smiled. “We wouldn’t ask for the job if we weren’t up for it.”
The man waved away Scott’s reassurance. “Obviously, your club has made a name for itself in weapons. I understand you work on the up and up, and you know how to be discreet. My only concern is the impact of your plan to diversify.”
There was a reason this guy was in charge. He asked the right question, and it was the one Scott seemed determined to ignore.
His brother tilted his head to the side like he didn’t understand what Ace was saying. Maybe he didn’t.
Kane cleared his throat. “We’re still committed to our original business partners. Loyalty is important to us too.” He gave what was supposed to be a reassuring nod to Jay, who was still pacing in front of the flat screen. “We’ve worked with those partners for over a decade. Our club has grown over the years, and we have enough men to run both operations.”
One of the guys who had been standing by Jay spoke for the first time. His arms were folded tightly in front of him. “Sucre had more than twice as many men.”
No one was looking at Scott anymore. Kane liked it better when he’d been invisible. “Like us, Sucre had diverse interests. But unlike us, he had no other partners. He needed more enforcers to collect on the loans he fronted.” He shrugged and held up his empty palms. “We have no interest in becoming loan sharks. The startup costs are way too high, and policing the returns requires additional manpower and yields unreliable results.”
Ace raised an eyebrow. “Indeed.” He shooed Jay out of the room, and his lieutenant returned a moment later with two big black duffel bags, which he dropped at Kane’s feet.
“H in one bag, coca products in the other.” Ace stepped closer to him, Scott all but forgotten. “You want meth, make your own. Weed and pills, you’ll have to get somewhere else. But I will be your only supplier for the products I carry.”
It wasn’t a question, but he nodded anyway. “My brother has your guns.”
Two of the men sat with Scott at the table to sort out the weapons.
Ace stood two feet from Kane. He spoke softly. “One last thing. No matter how unsavory all this is, it is a business. And I am a businessman.”
There was no doubt in his mind.
“Your brother is not.”
No doubt of that either.
“Before you spoke up, I was prepared to walk away from his proposition. However, you strike me as someone I could work with. This…association between my people and yours is contingent upon your continuing involvement. I assume my caveat is amenable to you.”
He glanced at his brother whose jaw was now clenched shut. Ace had spoken softly, but Scott had clearly heard it all.
It didn’t matter, though. This was the deal; take it or leave it.