Page 43 of Griffin
I wanted to tell her she didn’t have to, that I’d do it for her, but I knew better.She’d never forgive me if I kept her from this fight.So instead, I just wrapped her tight, one arm around her shoulders, the other bracing her chin so she had to look at me.
“You stay with me, Veda.You do what I say.You want to get your sister back?You have to make it out, too.”
She swallowed.“I’m not afraid.”
“Good.But I need to know you’ll do what I tell you.Just this once, I need you to obey everything I say without question.”
She smiled, tears tracking down but her mouth hard.“Just this once.And only until we get back.”
“There’s my sassy girl.”I kissed her then, hard and fast because there was no way not to.Then I let her go and watched her walk down the hall, off to put her own mask on and ready herself for battle.Me?I’d been at war since the day I saw her.It was just time to finish it.Tonight.
We moved in three blacked-out vehicles.Knight had long ago made dummy plates to keep us off the radar when necessary, and with the dark tint on the windows, it would be impossible for anyone to see us, especially at night.Tonio and his crew followed.Our rides looked like any other expensive SUVs.Except these had bulletproof glass and the custom black-on-black rims.The third car was for backup.It looked like a beat-up Escape, but the small vehicle had just as much bulletproofing as the SUVs.
Knuckles kept up a steady murmur with Gunnar in the front of the vehicle carrying the Kiss of Death crew, which included him and Gunnar as well as Hawk and me and Veda.We stopped a short distance away to assess the situation in real time.Knuckles and Gunnar continued to talk to each other and Tonio Miles via phone for several minutes, making sure we had no surprises.
The house wasn’t as far out as I’d guessed.It sat on three acres just east of the city, up a tree-lined, paved drive that twisted around, ending at a low stone wall and a steel gate.Hawk pointed.“Cameras go blind here.”Gunnar killed the lights, rolling the Suburban the last two hundred yards down a shallow hill in neutral.
We ditched the vehicles by the tree line with Tonio and his men hanging back.We’d allowed Veda to come because she needed to.This was her sister and my woman would absolutely not be kept out of this fight.But the truth was, we worked better by ourselves.Tonio knew this, but the stakes were too high for the Miles family not to be part of this.
Everyone moved out, quiet except for the rustle of boots in the wet grass.Hawk had the lead, tracking the dark by the red of his filtered flashlight.I went behind him with Veda at my shoulder.Knuckles and Gunnar brought up the rear.
The air was still, humid and thick enough that I could practically taste every breath.From the house, there was nothing, only the faint blue pulse of LED lights from electronics through the front windows.
We made the rear corner without a hitch.Hawk knelt, opened the case he’d brought and pulled out what looked like a plastic toy drone, maybe a foot long.He set it on the ground, flipped a switch, and it zipped up and over the roof silently.On his phone, Hawk watched the drone’s camera.
Hawk whispered, “Marlin’s alone.Guard’s probably in the gatehouse.”
Knuckles nodded, then gestured to Gunnar.“Go,” he mouthed.
Gunnar peeled off, vanishing into the black.He’d take care of the gate and the guard.I focused on the house.
Hawk took us in through the sliding patio door, which he unlocked by spoofing the keypad.The door glided open with only a rasp of sound.We moved through the kitchen, into the living room.Marlin sat in a leather recliner, facing away from us, his face blue-lit by a giant TV screen.
He didn’t hear us until we were six feet away.Then he turned to us, reaching out casually like he’d been expecting the help to bring a late-night snack.He saw us and froze as Knuckles stepped into the light.
“On your knees,” Knuckles said.Marlin went down immediately without a word.
I stepped in, zip-tied his hands.He didn’t even fight.He looked at Veda instead.“You don’t have to do this.I have money.I can --”
She laughed, cold and loud.“Motherfucker, you think this is about money?”
“Shut up, Marlin,” I warned, but he wasn’t listening.He looked at Veda and kept talking.
“I never touched any of the girls.Never even met most of them.They just use my house sometimes, the transporters --”
Veda pulled a knife and pressed it to Judge Marlin’s throat.“Tessa.My sister.Where is she?”
Marlin shook his head, mouth slack.“I don’t know.I don’t know!Iron only brought her here for a short time!Most of the girls stayed here, but a few of the special ones only stayed here a short while.I only --”
“Veda.”The last thing I needed was for Veda to stab this guy in the throat before Tonio got a hold of him.This whole fucked-up situation was serious to the Miles family.They had to maintain their hold on the criminal underworld of Nashville or the power vacuum would destroy the Music City.
Hawk took a step forward, flipped a phone from his pocket, and dialed.“We’ve got him.”
Marlin started to shake.He pissed himself.The smell was immediate, hot and rank.Veda stepped back, and I moved in front of her.For a minute I thought she might just go for it, but she let the knife hang at her side.
Hawk put a hand on her arm, gentle as he could.“Rein it in, little sister.You’ll get your pound of flesh soon enough.”
Surprisingly, Veda nodded at Hawk, not arguing or looking like she’d shank Hawk in Marlin’s place.
