Page 61 of Imbalanced Minds
Chapter Thirty-Two
Cory
“Jones,” Justin barks, answering his phone on speaker.
“You have trouble. Is anyone in Cory’s house?” Gunner sounds ready to tear someone apart and fuck, does it scare me.
“My sister. Iris just called and told us someone’s near the house and she’s freaking the fuck out, man.”
“Where are you now? Has she got anything to protect herself?”
“Cory and I are still heading back from meeting you. She has Cory’s Glock and is hiding in their bedroom walk-in closet upstairs. Cory’s kept her on the phone while we’re driving.”
The more this conversation goes on the more my hands whiten as they grip the steering wheel.
“Good. Tell her I’m on my way with my uncle and his men. This shit is about to turn into a bloodbath if we get involved, bro. Just warnin’ ya.”
“Shit,” I curse under my breath. I let Justin deal with the call so he can take it off speaker and I can keep talking to Iris.
“Baby, you remember Gunner? One of the bouncers we work with? He’s on his way and he’s got men with him to help keep you safe. He knows where you are in the house and will help get you out if we can’t. Don’t move from where you are unless you’re with me or one of them. Okay?”
I get stutters as a reply, but nonetheless, it’s a reply.
Fuck, this is all my fault! I promised her and I’ve let her down.
“Stay on the line. We’re coming.” I try to reassure her again. At this point, I’m the only thing that will keep her from flaking out. I know her well enough to know she’s on the brink of a panic attack.
“Gunner said park around the corner from your place. They’ve got surveillance right around your house and inside. Fuckers must have someone good if they’ve hacked you, man.”
Did I fail to mention I’m a bit of a tech guru? Hence the locked-up office, camera surveillance and the reason why the Jones family have them too. I’d rather be safe than sorry, however, that doesn’t seem to be the case right now.
Justin keeps getting pumped with information and relays it to me. Between that, talking to Iris and driving Jay’s truck, my heads seconds away from exploding.
A quick thought flashes through my mind, and I whip my head in Justin’s direction. With all that is going on, I forget about Natalie. “Where’s Natalie?”
“She’s gone to her parents. Remember, I was sending her on holiday? She’s well away from all this and Gunner passed on they’ve got eyes on her, just in case. It couldn’t have been a better time because, fuck mate, this is not what we need right now.”
I raise an unknowing brow at that last snippet of info, disregarding it just as quickly to answer him. “Shit, they work fast.” I’m at least able to breathe a small sigh knowing she’s safe.
“What else did he say?”
“They’ve got a van full of ammo and a couple of men riding. He’s in the van. Fuck, this shit only happens in movies. How the hell did this all get so crazy?” He asks and I’m wondering the same.
“Here, keep Iris calm. Tell her she’s doing great or whisper something to her.”
“Fuck,” I grunt under my breath. I can’t let Iris know how much this is affecting me too. “Someone’s gonna pay for this. When we get Iris out of there, I’m not responsible for what happens after.” Justin nods. He knows there’s no convincing me otherwise.
We round the corner and hear bikes approaching fast. We jump out of the truck, telling Iris to keep her phone connected and that we’ll see her soon. I’m the third property from the corner and the neighbouring houses are similar to mine. It’ll be easy enough to gain access from the back, with all the land space we have between us.
Gunner jumps out of the van (that has just come screeching to a halt) with a few other guys and introduces his uncle—who just so happens to be the President of Burning Devils MC—his Vice President and a few more. Gunner’s uncle takes over and tells us his plan while loading up on some of the angriest guns I’ve ever seen.
“These two are coming with me around the front. Rusty will go round back with you. Fez has eyes on the inside, so he’ll make sure you’ll get in without being seen. Here’s an earpiece, you’ll receive instructions on how to proceed from him. Don’t go in without our go ahead, got it?”
Choruses of “got it” and “yes, boss” are spoken within us men as we get ready for our next move.
“Got it,” I acknowledge as I take the little earpiece from him and stick it in my ear. It cracks with static before a voice comes through.
“Right, brothers. There are two behind a smashed-up truck in front of the house, one in the bush out front and two by the neighbouring properties at three o’clock of your position. No one’s around the back, so once you get on the property wait at the back door for orders. Pres already ordered the men on bikes to do a drive-by on his command. But as of now, they’re stationed at the opposite end of the block from you. I can only see two inside. They know we’re here, so they’re ready for us. Dumb fucks are so lazy though, they left the back door unguarded. There could be more, but I haven’t seen them. Be ready and stay on guard.” The guy in my ear rattles off more shit, while the other men around me are still loading their guns and getting ready to wreak havoc.