“He has men and resources. We can use him still.” I stared at Owain and narrowed my eyes. “You know I’m right but you’re still holding some childish grudge against him.”
“I know he’s dangerous, and I don’t keep dangerous things alive for long.”
“Bring him to Hedeon. We’ll discuss it, and if Hedeon wants to kill him, then I’ll do it myself.”
Owain smirked and shook his head. “Not a chance. Clifton’s my kill, one way or another.” He turned and looked at his former friend lying on the ground, curled up in a ball, half-weeping and half groaning with pain. “But fine, you want to bring this to Hedeon, then we will. You can deal with it.”
“Good.” I put the van back into gear and drove slowly back to Owain’s. “We’ll lock him in the basement. In the morning, we’ll figure out what to do with him.”
Owain grunted and kicked at Clifton. “Hear that? You’re lucky she’s here. If it were up to me, you’d be dead right now and I’d never have to think about your pathetic little fucking face again.”
Clifton groaned but said nothing.
I smiled as I drove back to Owain’s. The plan had gone off better than I could’ve imagined. Capturing Clifton alive was a huge boon for us, and I knew we could turn it into a good deal—if only Owain could get over his stupid, petty rivalry.
I parked the van out front of Owain’s house and helped him get Clifton inside. Owain dragged him down the steps and tied him up to a chair nice and tight then leaned down and stared into Clifton’s terrified eyes.
“If you try and run, I’ll kill you. Understood?”
Clifton nodded.
Owain took my hand and lead me back upstairs. We stood in the kitchen and I pressed myself against his chest. He hugged me tight, kissed my hair, and breathed me in. I loved the way he did that, like my smell was his most favorite thing in the world, like the smell of an old book.
“You sure about this?” he asked.
“I’m sure. You trust me, right?”
“I trust you.”
“Good.” I tilted my chin toward him and we kissed, slow and soft. When he pulled back, I squeezed his hand. “Keep an eye on him. I’ll take the van back.”
“You sure?”
“I’m sure.”
I turned and left Owain standing in the kitchen, a huge smile on my face.
I was a part of this now, deep in the crew whether I liked it or not, and if I was going to be a member of a criminal organization then I was going to do my damn best to make it stronger.
When this was all over, we’d come through better than ever.
25
Owain
I kicked Clifton in the back of the knee and send him sprawling down onto the floor. He grunted as his face hit Hedeon’s hardwood floor. The television played a football game and Hedeon stood a few feet away toward his kitchen with his arms crossed over his chest. Leigh lingered behind me, looking lost and awkward. Clifton rolled onto his side and groaned as I kicked him in the ribs twice for good measure.
I wish I could put a bullet in his head, but Hedeon stared down at Clifton like he was a prize cow at the county fair.
“You did good,” he said. “It was smart, keeping him alive.”
“It was Leigh’s idea.” I looked at her and nodded. “I wish I could take credit.”
“Couldn’t have done it without you,” she said.
“I don’t care whose idea it was. I’m just glad he won’t be a problem anymore.”
“Before you talk about killing him, I actually have an idea.” Leigh stepped forward, her hands held up.
Hedeon tilted his head and nodded. “Go ahead.”
“Clifton actually gave me the idea—him or one of his guys. See, the problem with our sales model is, we wait for our customers to come to us. But this is the modern world, and people want their shit delivered.”
Hedeon snorted. “You want to do home delivery for fucking drugs?”
“That’s the idea. The Jackals are already doing it. They have the infrastructure and the knowledge built up, all we need to do is take them over and get them to work for us.” Leigh looked at Clifton and gestured. “Now we have that chance.”
I stared at her and burst out laughing. It was the most absurd, most brazen, most insane—and most brilliant plan I’ve ever heard in my life. No wonder she wanted to keep Clifton alive. I let my laughter spill out as I turned and pulled her into a big hug, lifting her up off her feet. Even Hedeon smiled at that as my effusive laughter became contagious. She struggled in my arms but I held her tight, hugging her and laughing, before I finally got control of myself and put her back down. She grinned at me and fixed her hair.
“I take it you approve.”
“Approve? That fucking brilliant. That’s the best use of this little piece of shit imaginable.”
“One problem though,” Hedeon said. “How do we know we can trust hm.”
I turned to Clifton and walked over. He stared up at me with real fear in his eyes—but something else as well.
Clifton wasn’t a stupid man. He’d always been motivated by profit about all else, and now he saw a chance to save his own skin and make a lot of money in the process. It was a tempting proposition, and I already knew he’d fall for it.
“What do you say, old friend? Think you can reassure my boss here?”
He struggled to his feet. His eyes were blacked out and his lips were both swollen and torn. His clothes were stained with blood and rumpled, and his hands were tied behind his back, but he managed to kneel in front of Hedeon with some semblance of dignity.
“I’ll work for you,” he said, “so long as you give my guys a twenty percent cut.”
Hedeon
