I hate it when he does that. Strips shit down to its barest form. I nod. “Da. Something like that. She’s determined to fight me every chance she gets.”
Sitting astride our bikes, I roll back a few feet so the pillar to my left catches the brunt force of the wind coming in through the spaces where windows used to be along the east side.
“Have they reached out? The brothers I mean.”
Rage fishes his phone out of his front pocket and flips it around for me to see. “Felt the message come through on the ride over. Seems they want to meet.”
“Ok. Set it up as soon as possible. The more we give them a reason to stay put the easier it will be on us. They can’t buy arms if they leave and there is no way they will let those girls out of their sight until they are paid for.”
“Smart.”
“Hold them off a couple of days. Give me some time to work with Nova.”
“Got it.” Rage punches out a message and I watch him hit send. “But are you really considering the whole partnership angle? Ever consider just going to the authorities and washing our hands of this?”
That brings my mind back to the evidence I have on my phone. I like to have all my bases covered even if I don’t end up using half the information available to me. I’m more of a hands-on kind of guy who likes having control of every aspect of his business. Bringing the authorities in on something they have no business in isn’t the right move when it would shine a spotlight on our less-than-aboveboard endeavors. “Not yet,” I say matter-of-factly. “Leave them as a last resort.”
Rage tilts his head to the side and waits for me to elaborate in my own time.
“We’ve been at this for two years and we’ve only just started to scratch the surface.”
“Think they would do any better with all their red tape?”
“Probably not,” Rage concedes.
“We’re one step closer to having the Volkov brothers where we want them.” I pull out my phone and bring up the recording I took of the night of the auction. Phones were not exactly allowed but no one had enough balls to ask the god of war if he wanted to hand over his phone. Not something I call myself, but the name settled after I took New York City as mine a few years back. The reputation stuck.
“There’s something else you need to know. Take a listen.” I place my phone on the bike and I hit play while we wait and Rage’s face turns more incredulous the longer the oldest Volkov speaks.
He gestures to my phone. “Again, why not go to the authorities and just walk. Get back to just living life?” He rubs at the back of his neck, the creases overtop his brows grow deeper. Years of addiction show when he drops his guard and reveals the man behind the mask he wears for the rest of the crew. But when it’s just us, the man who lives with a daily struggle comes to the surface.
I understand my friend’s irritation with this whole situation. The more stressed he is the more he’s tempted to fall back on old habits to help him handle his stress levels. People judge him for his weakness, but they know nothing of the man’s past either.
I clasp a hand on his shoulder. “We’ve got this, brother.” A look of doubt crosses his face but I double down and make sure he’s really listening to what I say.
“There’s no one who can do this for us. The Volkovs need to be stopped before it’s too late. The Savages are all that stand in the way of them raping this city and leaving it in ruin. We let the badges in on this shit. We’re better off taking out the trash alone.”
“Even if they blame us for shit we’re not doing.”
“Part of being the gatekeepers. Any other way and we might as well turn in our cuts and ride off into the sunset. I don’t think you like the idea of letting them win. You know sure as I do, those men will devour this city, our territory, and the innocent inside the city the second we step away.”
“You’re right. Damn, I know you are…it’s just.”
I look on as his fingers grip the handles of his bike. He’s torn. I get it. He knows his limits and fears pushing himself too far. But he’s stronger than he knows. I just need to remind my brother of that from time to time.
“I fear we won’t be enough to stop them and we won’t be able to save all those women. We should have laid waste to them the second they dared step into our territory.”
“At first they were good business. We all agreed,” I point out.
He nods.
“And then someone injected millions and made them powerful overnight.”
“But not smarter,” I add. It’s on the tip of my tongue to ask him if he wants to take the back seat on this mission; I guess it is. Fuck. I don’t know anymore. More like a calling really. We all have our reasons for being part of the Savages. Justice is the main driving force. But who puts labels on wiping the board of the douchebags of the world?
“True.” He scrubs both hands over his face and I see my old friend come back. “So why didn’t you share this with the crew?” he continues, his voice strong and in control.
I say nothing, just sit there for a minute weighing my answers. I’ve never lied to Rage and I don’t have any plans on starting now.