She stares at me for a long shitty minute before changing the subject. “I saw Cara yesterday.”
I work my jaw. “And?”
Her eyes flash with displeasure. “And you fucked her, which she took great pleasure in telling me. You could have waited longer than four months.”
“Didn’t you just tell me you have a date next week?” This is the last fucking thing I wanna get into, but I know Lynette, and she won’t let it go until she’s said everything she wants to say. And where I’m concerned, she always has a lot to say.
“That’s different and you know it.”
“How the fuck is it different?”
“God, you’re a prick. You were probably fucking those sluts the whole time we were together. I mean, you barely touched me for the last six months, so you had to be getting it somewhere.”
From the minute I moved Lynette into my place when she was eight months pregnant to when we broke up four months ago, I didn’t lay a hand on another woman. And it took me three months after that to fuck Cara. But this is shit she won’t hear, no matter how many times I tell her. She needs to place me in the asshole category to get through her days, so I don’t bother letting her know that I tried like fuck to make our relationship work. Or that I found solace from my fuck up in a bottle rather than a pussy. Instead, I say, “I’ve gotta get back to the clubhouse. I’ll see you on Tuesday.”
I ignore the tirade of angry shit she spews at me as I walk down the hallway, and am thankful that when I reach Noah’s room, he can’t hear any of it. Pulling him into my arms, I kiss him goodbye and say, “You be good for Mummy, yeah? I’ll see you in a couple of days.”
His little fingers squish my face as he kisses me back.
I wrap him in a hug. “I love you, Noah.”
“Love you, Daddy.”
It fucking kills me every time I have to leave him, but with the way Lynette and I were going, I knew his home would become toxic, so I did the best thing I could for him. Shitty situations have shitty options.
“I met with Zero yesterday,” King says during church after I return from Lynette’s. “He told me Black Deeds was approached by Zenith last week. They want to align with the club against Storm.” He looks around the room. “In Sydney as well as Melbourne.”
Fuck, that’s some significant fucking news right there. Zenith caused a lot of problems for Storm when we first set up in Melbourne four years ago. Winter fought a long and bloody battle with them for two years, and while it settled, the tension never really eased. Two weeks ago, they came at Storm in Melbourne full force, killing five club members in the process. We, however, killed eight of theirs because Winter was ready for them. King sent reinforcements down from here, which is why we held a funeral for Knuckles this morning; he died in the second wave of shit Zenith showed up with. That they want to set up in Sydney changes the game again.
“Zero isn’t interested in aligning with them,” King continues. “He’ll take our back if it comes to that. And he thinks it will. When he spoke to them, they were determined they’ll eventually move into Sydney.”
Winter steps next to King, his face hard fucking stone. “The last time we dealt with these motherfuckers, they were well equipped and got the upper hand because we were still setting up in Melbourne and not as well equipped.” His jaw clenches. “This time, we’re ready; I’ve spent years making damn sure we would be.” His eyes meet ours as he takes a moment to survey the room. “We’re increasing our weapon supply from today. Carry two guns and two knives, minimum, at all times. Keep spares close. When you shoot, shoot to slow down, not kill. I want these assholes brought in so Axe and I can interrogate them.” He pauses again. “This war will be bloody. Brutal. We’re going to provoke the fuck out of them, which means they’re gonna be looking for revenge. That’s what you need to be ready for, because I can’t predict if they’ll just strike in Melbourne or if they’ll bring that shit here, too.”
Hyde and Nitro take over after that, discussing strategy and letting us know they’ve got some weapons here for us today but to collect extras from the storage warehouse.
By the time church is finished, the energy in the club is blazing with fierce and violent determination. We’re pissed that so many members have lost their lives, and intent on wiping these motherfuckers out.
King pulls me aside as everyone files out of the room. “I need you on something tonight.”
“What?” I ask as Winter joins us.
“The three of us are gonna check out a lead Zero gave me. Might be a connection to Zenith. I’ve got Hyde, Kick, and Nitro checking out another one.”
“They’re our only leads?” I ask.
Winter nods. “For now. Axe and Zane are digging deep on this. I’m hoping they’ll have something for us tomorrow.”
“When are you heading back to Melbourne?” I ask him.
“I fly back tomorrow night. We’re launching stage one of the attack once I get back.”
“Which is?”
“A cyberattack led by Zane and Griff. We’ll hit them where it hurts most: financially. These guys fund themselves mostly by Internet fraud. We’ve been working on this for almost a year because they’re smart and hid their tracks well, but we’ve finally figured out what they’re up to and a way to cut them off at the knees. After that, it should just be a matter of time until we deplete their weapons and their cash.”
I eye King. “What time tonight?”
“Get ready now. We’re gonna take care of some other stuff first. We’ll leave in about an hour.”