Page 5 of Hiding In the Dark (The Righteous 4)
The man stilled and comically looked towards the dark water that his toes were inches from touching.
Kes smirked as he pictured the look on his parents’ faces if they knew what their fancy boat was being used for. It was almost worth sending them a picture.
“You’re not really planning on lowering me down, right? You’re not that crazy?”
Kes physically shook his head and blinked as he processed the stupid question. “Just when I thought humanity couldn’t get any stupider, you ask me that. Here I thought you were a smart man Spike, a true opponent.”
“I’m not the fucking idiot not listening. I don’t know who is calling the shots. I’m just like everyone else. I get my orders through text messages. My men work for me and get their orders through text.”
Kes smirked. “I’d watch your tone.” Spike swallowed hard but was smart enough not to talk back. “You were contacted by someone to become the face of the Golden Dragons, but you never met them? Never had any phone conversations? Never even asked whyyou, of all people?”
“I was already in the business of dealing and had a substantial network. When the first message arrived, it said they were impressed and wanted to offer me a deal I couldn’t pass up. That I would be making triple what I was before with only half the headaches. How do you not say yes to that?”
“You do know what they say about deals that look too good to be true?”
A tail smacked the water beside Spike’s feet, and he gave a high-pitched yell and drew his knees up as much as he was able.
“And what of the warehouse and the Ice Man? How did that happen?”
“Some dude approached me at the races and said that I’m making a mistake with Ice Man, and goes into this whole thing about who he really is along with the lawyer. I’m not a stupid man. I knew there had to be more to the story that was being spun about Tyson and Alejandro. I sent some of my men out to find those in Ice Man’s crew and made large cash donations to those that were willing to double-cross him.”
“That simple?”
“Yes, it was that simple. Why the hell do you even give a shit anyway?”
Kes didn’t answer the question. In reality, he didn’t care what happened to anyone most of the time. But his brothers?
“Look, just bring me aboard, and if you want to, hand me over to the cops. Just please, bring me aboard!”
Kes ran his chain and dog tags through his fingers as he thought. “Not quite yet. I have one more question.”
“Fuck, I’ll answer whatever you want, just get me back on the damn boat.” Spike yelped as a more daring predator lifted its head to investigate the dangling feet and nudged his toes with its head. By a quick glimpse, he guessed it was an oceanic whitetip, and by the very alive waters, he could only assume there were a number of them below the churning waves surrounding them.
“No, now answer this for me. Why did you run?”
“I got a text saying shit was going down, and I needed to lay low for a few weeks. I assumed it had to do with the police or with Ice Man since I knew he’d escaped. I’m not the type to hide, but I am the type to listen to my employer.”
Kes straightened to his full height and stared at his prey. “You have not been very helpful, Spike.”
“I can’t tell you something that I don’t know, but I can make you a deal.”
Kes pulled the toothpick he’d been sucking on out of his mouth and flicked it into the water. “What kind of deal?”
“You let me live, and give me my phone and I will set up a text meet and greet or whatever else you want.”
Kes slipped his hand into his pocket and pulled out the cell phone in question. He held up Spike’s phone up from him to see. He almost felt bad when Spike’s face lit up.
“Yes, that phone, let me get the answers you need, let me set something up.” He nodded furiously, like that would somehow superpower Kes into agreeing.
“It’s useless.” He tossed the phone into the water, and Spike yelled and reached for the black piece of electronics before it disappeared.
“What have you done?” His eyes stared at the spot where the phone had gone under the water.
“I already unlocked it and had all the data downloaded, but it appears your employer was done with you. You’d become too much of a liability, and they told you good luck, which is code for watch your back. They will be coming for you.”
“This can’t be happening,” Spike muttered, his voice was soft as his body sagged limply from the chain. His eyes snapped up to meet his own. “You always planned on killing me.”
The corner of Kes’s lip curled up before he put his lips together and whistled the first tune that came to him. He slowly wandered over to the controls for the winch and gripped the handle.
