Page 28 of Eagle

“I don’t mind getting my hands dirty, but not if it gets someone hurt,” Ron whisper yelled, and I could imagine that he was in his friend’s face.

“Relax! Relax! She didn’t get hurt. But if she had, it would have been your fault for making us late. We plan our hits when we know that no one is going to be around.”

“Well, you could have fucking called it off ‘til another time!”

“Mitch needed those dogs for this weekend. He’s got a buyer coming in from New Mexico, and we’d already made a commitment to an MC out of New York.”

It sounded as if they’d stolen the dogs to be sold, but for what?

“How many did you get?”

“Ten. You know how much cash that’s gonna put in my pocket? The fact these dogs already have fighting experience was a huge fucking bonus.”

Ohmygod! They were talking about illegal dog fighting! Was my brother that stupid? Mom and Dad would be so disappointed in him. I was disappointed in him. And there was no way I was going to let him continue with this craziness. I quietly closed my door and then rushed to get dressed.

Mac had told me that his club took down dog fighting rings. When I thought about Lola my breath caught when I realized that my brother and his friend could be talking about her rehabilitation center. Had they stolen her dogs? Shit! I had to find out. And then what? Turn Ron in?

My heart was racing as I pulled my bedroom door open and rushed out of the room.

Chapter 12

Leona

“Are you fucking crazy?”

I rarely used the F-bomb, but I was just that mad as I faced my brother and his so-called friend. I barely spared the man a glance as I focused my eyes angrily on Ron. “What has gotten into you? Do you want to go to jail?” I got right into his face. It was clear from his wide-eyed expression that he didn’t know how to respond, and I took advantage of it. “There’s no way I’m going to let you get involved in this! You want to kill Mom and Dad?” I felt like a mother tiger protecting her young.

He defended himself by saying, “I need the money! The Soldiers—”

“Don’t you dare use that excuse! It’s clear by what I heard that this-this—” I searched wildly for the right words and finally settled on the painful truth. “—this illegal endeavor was planned way before that accident!”

“Whoa, man, who wears the fucking pants in this family—”

I turned to Ron’s friend so angrily that he cut himself off and jumped back. “And you! Get the hell out!”

“Wait a minute!”

I swung back to Ron. “No! This ends now because I swear, Ron, I’ll turn you in myself!” It would kill me, but I would do it if it stopped him from continuing down a path of crime. This was not my brother! What else had he been involved in since leaving home? It felt like my heart was going to pound right out of my chest. I was shaking with anger, and I knew it was just a matter of time before the tears would come. “What other crimes have you gotten yourself involved in?”

He shook his head but didn’t respond.

A snort drew my eyes back to his friend. The idiot was smiling, but I wasn’t fooled. There was no humor in his leering eyes. His look reminded me of the Joker from Batman. Another time, and I might have been intimidated by the look in his eye, especially by the way his gaze moved over me. But I was too pissed off to care.

“Get out!” I hissed between my teeth.

“Leona, don’t—”

There was a warning in Ron’s tone, but I ignored him and continued to face his friend. When he didn’t move, I walked over to the door and opened it. “I swear, if you don’t get out now I will call the police.” I purposely kept my words calm and precise, praying that he was smart enough to realize that it wasn’t a hollow threat.

The grin on his face slowly disappeared as his eyes narrowed on me. It was then I began to worry that I’d gone too far. Threatening a man who I didn’t know wasn’t exactly a smart move, but I was counting on Ron to protect me.

“You threatening me, bitch?” He took a step closer to me, the snarl on his face resembling a rabid animal ready to attack.

“Yes.” I couldn’t back down now. “Now get out and don’t come back.”

He made a show of looking me up and down with a sneer that said that he’d like to put me in my place. I kept eye contact with him even though I’d once read that you shouldn’t stare into a predator’s eyes because they would perceive it as a challenge or a threat. But there was no way I was going to show weakness to this asshole. He looked like the kind of person who would attack the second you looked away.

Unexpectedly, he began to walk toward me slowly. The closer he got, the more nervous I felt.