Page 46 of Lex

“I love you guys, but I’d rather not sit on anyone’s lap,” Xander announced, hopping into the very back and settling down with the gear.

“Aww, way to hurt my feelings, Hawke,” Chaz teased. “I was really hoping to have your bony ass bouncing around on my lap.”

“Fuck off,” Xander grumbled good-naturedly.

Doors slammed shut as Lex rattled off the address, which Wes then plugged into the nav system. Corey hit the gas, while Brand caught Lex up to speed. “Mitch’s guys used CCTV outside the Avernus and throughout the city to follow the sedan carrying Summer. Cams at Dougherty’s garage confirmed her arrival, along with a man I presume is her ex-husband, as well as two armed men.”

Relief flooded through Lex. They had her location, and he’d battle the fires of hell itself, if that’s what it took to get his forever summer back. “And The Broker?”

“No sighting,” Brand confirmed. “They don’t think he’s in Vegas. Or, if he was, he’s gone. Hell, they don’t even know who he is.”

Lex couldn’t waste time worrying about The Broker. Leave that shit to Mitch Evans. Right now, all Lex could focus on was getting to Summer and making sure she was okay.

“Let me make sure I have this straight.” Wes turned to look at Lex. “Summer’s ex—”

“Scott,” Lex supplied, eyes narrowing and jaw clenched. His dislike—no, absolute contempt for the jerk—must have vibrated right off him and over the others.

“—who we will refer to as Asshole from this point forward,” Wes continued without missing a beat, “was transporting a container from Dougherty to The Broker, who is currently a ghost.”

“Correct,” Lex said. “And can I make a suggestion?”

“Sure thing,” Wes responded.

“From this point forward, let’s refer to him as Fucking Asshole.”

“Roger that. Okay, so Fucking Asshole claims he got hijacked on his way to The Broker,” Wes said. “When the container never arrived and Fucking Asshole went into hiding, The Broker and Dougherty both sent men to Summer’s house, hoping she might know Fucking Asshole’s whereabouts.”

“Exactly. But she had no idea.”

“So, who stole the container?” Corey asked.

“When we had Fucking Asshole on the phone, he mentioned one of the men had a scorpion tattoo on his hand—just like the man who broke into Summer’s house and who was later shot on the street,” Lex informed them. “I think someone is cleaning up loose ends and Dougherty hijacked his own truck.”

Xander let out a low whistle in the back. “Plot twist.”

“How do we know Dougherty is involved?” Brand mused. “Maybe his men went rogue.”

“When Summer and I were at the garage, Dougherty denied ever knowing Lenny Lubicki aka Scorpion. Like he wanted to hide their connection. And then Ace strolled in like nothing was the matter. I don’t think his men went rogue. I think they were following orders. Whatever’s inside that container was too valuable and tempting to merely transport. So Dougherty stole it back and blamed it on Fucking Asshole. He was an easy scapegoat—as long as he was dead. But the idiot got away, and Dougherty needed to silence him before he ran and blabbed to The Broker.”

“And The Broker is too smart to take Dougherty at his word,” Brand deduced, “so he sent his own guys—the men in the suits—to find out the truth.”

Lex nodded. “Poor Summer had thugs coming at her right and left. All because of that Fucking Asshole. The Broker’s men found him and had him lure Summer down to the Avernus lobby. They stunned me, grabbed her, and here we fucking are.”

“I hate to interrupt story time,” Jayson said, “but what’s the plan? We can’t just go storming into the garage.”

“Sure we can,” Chaz said easily. “I mean, when have we ever had a surefire, well-thought-out plan?”

“Summer’s life is on the line,” Lex reminded them. “Storming in with our dicks in our hands isn’t my favorite option.”

“I’ll have my Glock in hand,” Xander corrected, racking the slide on his gun.

“Plan A is to park out of sight and sneak in,” Brand stated.

Lex could envision quite a few possible holes in that plan, and he gritted his teeth. “The junkyard behind the garage is massive,” he told them. “No one will see us if we enter from the rear of the property. But I’m gonna need a Plan B.”

“Roger,” Corey said. “I’ll head directly behind it.”

“Cams?” Brand asked.