CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

SOLOMON

By the time Liam arrived at Harry’s, I already downed a few shots to numb the anger I felt over the past twenty-four hours. 

Of course, I wanted to kill the man who killed my woman’s friend, the man who caused her months of torture and pain. And of course I loved her, so I would do it happily. 

But I had to be smart about it. That’s why I reached out to the only cop I would call my friend. 

Liam and I went on a rescue mission together a few years back when his wife got kidnapped. It solidified our bond over the years and also strengthened both of our careers. We both took some hits but he nearly lost his life to save hers. He became a town hero and no rival crew ever fucked with me since then. 

Not until now. 

Liam made a presence when he entered the bar, even though he was off duty. Our heights and builds were similar, although I had more tattoos. His sharp eyes swept back and forth across as he made his way across the room. Always vigilant, always aware. That sense of awareness was what made him a good cop. 

“Solomon,” he greeted me as we clasped arms and gave each other bro hugs with the other arms. 

“Thanks for coming, man,” I muttered, unsure how to express my gratitude. He was going above and beyond his normal duties to help me. 

“Sure, what’s up? You look like a fucking wreck,” he observed. “Whiskey, please,” he asked a waitress who was passing by. 

“Tell me what you know about Antigua,” I said. “The Green King of the North, they call him.” 

“Not much,” he said apologetically. “My dad’s had a pending investigation on him for years but his ship is water tight. We don’t even want to risk sending undercover officers because of the torture stories.” 

“You know anything about that girl on the news last night?” I asked.

“Yeah, a little. I got a buddy on the force in Yountville. Gruesome shit. Rape isn’t even the worst of it according to the coroner. They can’t even share the details on TV.” Liam raised an eyebrow. “You saying that was his work?” 

I nodded. “My girl escaped from him. She knew her.”

“Fuck, man. I’m sorry.” Liam looked at me intently. “You know, she’s probably the best one to give you information if you’re gonna retaliate.” 

“I can’t ask her for that, man,” I sighed. “She’s been through so much, and now she’s grieving and devastated. I wish I could just make it all go away for her.”

“I know what you mean,” Liam nodded sympathetically. “I felt the same way after what Hazel went through. But women are stronger than we give them credit for.” 

“Cheers to that.” 

We clinked our glasses together and drank deeply. 

“You might be surprised,” Liam continued once he drained his whiskey glass. “Letting her help you take him down might give her the closure she needs.” 

“I’ll keep that in mind,” I said, remembering the bloodlust in Natalie’s eyes when she told me to kill him. She’d probably love to pull the trigger herself. “Well if not information, I need to ask  something else of you.”

“Name it, buddy.”

“I’m gonna need some of that sneaky cop technology. And some manpower for back up.” 

Liam lifted an eyebrow once again. “You got a plan?” 

“I think so,” I said. “But I can’t do it alone.” 

“You know I’m there for you,” he answered, leaning forward and lowering his voice. “But I gotta know what you’re gonna do, Sol.” 

In a hushed whisper, I leaned across the table and told him my plan. 

***

Liam and I parted ways two hours later. Dusk was settling over Cloverville and swallowing up the daylight. 

Every cell in my body wanted to go home. To that warm, cozy house and hear Ari shriek, “Daddy’s home!” as I came through the front door. 

To see Natalie's huge blue eyes drink me in and taste her sweet kiss like I needed it to breathe. 

But I couldn't go home to my little family yet. There was still work to be done. 

I drove to our inspection point behind the convenience store off the freeway. The same place I first found Natalie which felt like so long ago. 

I was meeting Eddie and Ivan, my driver and my underboss respectively. They were the last two pieces of the puzzle. If they could look past their old school gangster values, there was a chance this plan might work and we could all come out of this alive. 

I was early as usual so I got out of the car and leaned against the door. I lit a cigarette as I waited, inhaling until the tip of the cancer stick burned a like a miniature orange sun. 

Headlights approached me within a few minutes and my two men approached me with hard expressions on their faces. They knew I was about to ask a lot of them. 

"Fellas," I greeted, clasping arms with each of them.

"What's with the super secret meeting, boss?" Ivan cut right to the chase. 

"It's time we retaliate against Antigua," I said with an exhale of smoke. "Not only for breaking our pact but now he's murdering innocent women." 

"The girl found in Yountville?" Eddie asked. 

I nodded and he let out a long string of curse words in Spanish as he fumbled for his own cigarettes. Even among dirty criminals like us, there was honor. We took lives when necessary, and sometimes that involved women. But never innocent women. We already knew Antigua had no honor. 

"You're sure we're prepared for something like this?" Ivan asked skeptically. 

"With help, yes," I replied. "This is the part you boys aren't gonna like. We're getting help from the cops." 

"Fuck no!"

Eddie and Ivan shot that down in unison. 

"This goes against everything we stand for, boss," Ivan spat. "Even if they do help, how do we know the blues aren't gonna turn right around and arrest us?"

"Because I'm telling you they're not," I said firmly. "I'm telling you to trust my word as you have for years." 

Eddie and Ivan exchanged looks. In all my years as their leader, I had never let them down and they knew it. They chose me to lead this crew because no one had the leadership skills to do it. They were just a rag-tag bunch of dealers with no organization or unity. Not only did I unite us, I made us the wealthiest, stealthiest criminals in this valley. 

"Eddie," I said. "You're gonna go back to Antigua's like you're making a routine pickup. I've already arranged it but they're gonna grill you on why we haven't kept to schedule. I'm gonna tell you exactly what to say and do. Got it?" 

Eddie nodded solemnly. I knew he'd follow me. He was that loyal and assuming my plan worked, he’d be rewarded greatly for his loyalty. 

"Ivan," I said, turning to my ever-skeptical underboss. He followed me closely too but always asked questions. He learned how to see all sides of a situation and make wise decisions based on the information laid out before him.

“If anything happens to me,” I said, my chest tightening just a little. “You’re taking my place. You’re ready.” 

He stared at me thoughtfully for a few moments before nodding slowly in agreement. 

“I’ll make sure your family is taken care of,” he replied, ever a man of duty.

“Good man,” I answered with gratitude. 

“Now that that’s settled,” I said as I flicked my cigarette to the ground and crushed it beneath my shoe. “Here’s what’s going to happen, boys.”