Guns & Burning Rubber: The Iron Brotherhood series (4 page)

“Watch out with the Hellraisers.  Heard they killed a local cop poking into their secrets.  Keep Cross close.  Don’t go in alone.  -G”

Kara wondered whether she should tell Grazer about her multiple problems with this “bodyguard” that her uncle had assigned to her, but elected to keep her digital mouth shut.  Complaining wouldn’t do her any good, and her well-meaning relative might just take this as a sign that he needed to find someone else to watch over her.

This FBI agent didn’t need a keeper, she insisted to herself.  She was smart, capable, and totally capable of handling any threat that might arise, all on her own.

Poking through the closet, Kara managed to find a set of sheets that, if not totally clean, had at least been washed and folded, tucked away by some well-meaning but overly hopeful maid.  She spread these onto the bed, laid down on top of them, closed her eyes, and tried to fall asleep.

Sleep took longer to come than she would have liked, but eventually, she drifted off into dark unconsciousness.

#

The next morning, it took Kara a minute to remember where she was, as she drifted up from the relaxation of sleep.  She remembered fairly quickly that she was in the house of the Iron Brotherhood, that she was in a bed - but it felt like someone was missing, like the bed was emptier than it ought to feel.

Only a minute later did she remember the row with Cross, how they had split after that not-an-argument, how she had chosen to sleep in one of the guest rooms instead of with the man in his bed. 

It was the right decision to make, she felt, now that she reviewed it in her mind before getting out of bed. 

It was the right decision to make for her case, for not getting too caught up in this lie. 

Yet still, the emotional side of her mind, a side that had spoken up more in the last few days than it had in the years before this, still insisted that Cross’s comforting bulk ought to be next to her in bed.

Seized by a sudden lethargy, Kara almost considered just lying in bed, not climbing out, for several more hours.  After all, she didn’t have to get to the diner to meet Alicia for several hours yet, and going out of the room would only lead to more awkward encounters with the other Iron Brotherhood bikers.

So instead, she lay there, unable to fall back asleep but unwilling to leave - until a gentle but repetitive sound began to invade her consciousness.

It was the soft sound of creaking and squeaking, coming in through the wall.

It wasn’t until the squeaking and creaking began to be accompanied by soft feminine moans that Kara realized what must be happening in the bedroom next to her.  Damn these thin walls!  She tried to ignore the sound as long as she could, but the man had more stamina than she had patience.

Pulling on her riding outfit, Kara marched down through the rest of the house, not even pausing when her nostrils caught the alluring odor of freshly brewed coffee.  She could get coffee at the diner, she told herself. 

Briefly, as she hurried past the living room, Kara caught a glimpse of Cross, sitting inside on one of the couches and deep in conversation with a couple others.  He glanced up when she went past, and she wondered whether he actually saw her, but she didn’t stop.  She didn’t need anything from the man, she told herself.

Outside, she fired up her bike, pulling away from the house.  It didn’t take long for her to make her way to the diner, and she still had a good half hour upon arriving.  Picking out a booth, Kara settled in to wait.

Fortunately, when Alicia arrived, there was no way that Kara could miss her.  Cross never gave her a description, but when a tall, dark-haired, imperiously confident looking woman strolled in with five minutes until noon, Kara had no doubt that this was the woman she was here to meet.

In the moment before Alicia spotted her, Kara sized up this other woman.  Alicia was also tall, and when she stepped forward, Kara heard the click of heels on her knee-high leather boots.  Her cheekbones were high and prominent in her face, giving her a royal look, and the severity was accented by her tightly pulled back jet-black hair.  She wore a form-fitting black leather jacket and looked as though she could confidently handle half a dozen opponents in a fight.

Alicia’s eyes ran over Kara, and she nodded in recognition.  The diner was fairly empty, so it wasn’t hard for her to spot the person most likely to be her contact.  She strode over, heels clicking on the tiled floor, and dropped down into the seat opposite Kara.

“So.”  Alicia’s voice was clipped but sultry, deep for a woman.  She raised an eyebrow as she looked across the table, sizing Kara up.  “You’re Cross’s new flame.”

“And you’re his ex,” Kara guessed, not breaking eye contact.

The woman nodded, but her gaze remained challenging, filled with fire.  “He got to me through one of my friends,” she said.  “I deleted the bastard’s number, but he said that this was important.  ‘Bigger than us,’ he said.  So?”

The woman didn’t sound as though she was on good terms with Cross, but the way she talked about him still gave Kara the impression that there was emotion there.  Alicia, it seemed, had not yet let go of her ex.  That felt dangerous.  But Kara hoped that it wouldn’t cause trouble, and she pressed ahead.

“The Hellraisers are bringing in weapon shipments, and they’re bringing down too much heat,” she said, trying to step away from talk of ex-boyfriends.  “If I can find out where they’re keeping the guns, I can pass the information on, shut them down.  If we don’t stop them, they’ll end up killing everyone else who could be a competitor.”

Alicia nodded, but she didn’t look convinced.  “So you got Cross to call me as an in to the Hellraisers?” she asked.  “Hell, that’s a risky move, using an ex like that.”

“It was the only avenue we had left.”  Kara leaned forward, hoping to impress upon this other woman the seriousness of this meeting.  “You’re the only lead that we have.”

She hoped that this would convince the woman, or at least break that challenging stare.  But Alicia merely leaned back in her chair across the table, crossing her arms as she considered Kara for a long minute.

“Sure, I could help get you in,” she finally remarked, shrugging.  “Girl like you, body like that?  Wouldn’t be hard.  They party just as hard as any other club.”

Kara knew that this woman wasn’t done.  She held her tongue and waited.

Not provoking a response didn’t seem to bother Alicia at all.  “Of course, I have a price,” she continued, and then waited.

“I don’t have money,” Kara said, although she doubted that this woman needed cash.

“I’m not after money.”  Alicia kept on waiting.

“Okay.  Then what’s the price?”

At that question, the damn woman actually smirked!  The grin was crooked on her face, making her look even less trustworthy to Kara.  “Easy,” she said through that slippery smile.  “I want Cross.”

Kara shook her head, more from incomprehension than from rejection.  “What?” she sputtered, caught off guard.  “I thought you hated him!”

“Hated him?  Hell, he’s the best guy I’ve ever managed to get!” Alicia fired back, her eyes narrowing as the grin left her face.  “Man’s a rogue, but hell, no one else ever truly cared like he did.  Plus, he’s next in line for the Iron Brotherhood, and that’s a hell of a good spot to hold.  And I know that he’s still got a torch for me - but he’s too proud, so instead he dallies around with whores like you.”

The words stang, but Kara barely noticed the insult.  “Yeah, but he’s a criminal!  He doesn’t do anything!” she burst out, the words coming out without any conscious thought behind them.

“Bitch, I’m a fucking criminal,” Alicia laughed back.  “And trust me, we belong together.  With him, I’ll practically run the Iron Brotherhood.” 

Alicia raised an eyebrow at Kara.  “Besides, it sounds like maybe you and he aren’t on such good terms right now.  Should be easy to give him up then, especially for getting you in with the Hellraisers.”

Kara knew that she ought to walk away.  Cross wasn’t hers to give away, to throw into the deal - but even more than that, she felt wrong about the whole concept of letting this sharp, prickly woman get her claws into the man.  Cross didn’t belong with someone like Alicia, someone who wanted him as little more than a chess piece, an object to possess.

But she knew that she had no other leads, no other opportunities to find a way into the Hellraisers.

So, casting her eyes down, Kara held out her hand.  She didn’t need any acting to show that she was conflicted about the deal, but she played it up anyway.  “Okay,” she said, her voice sounding small.

Alicia’s grin as she shook the offered hand looked positively reptilian.

CHAPTER 6

After Kara agreed to give up Cross to this evil, manipulative woman in exchange for her help, Alicia seemed to relax, shedding some of the tension she’d directed towards the undercover FBI agent.

“Well, fortunately, you’re actually more attractive than I expected,” she commented, leaning away from the table a little so that she could run her eyes down over Kara’s body.  She didn’t show any hesitation in frankly assessing Kara like this, although Kara couldn’t help feeling a bit like a piece of meat being measured.  “Shouldn’t be too hard to get you into one of the parties, long as you’re willing to sell it.”

“Sell it?” Kara repeated, not wanting to miss any details.  She didn’t trust Alicia as far as she could throw her.  In fact, at that thought, her hands actually itched at the idea of grabbing this woman and twisting her body to hurl her over a shoulder and down to the ground.

“Well, yeah, you know.”  Alicia raised an eyebrow.  “Listen, the only girls who get through the door of the Hellraisers’ clubhouse are whores - or girls willing to party in exchange for booze and drugs, which is essentially the same thing but without cash exchanging hands.  If you don’t come off as one of those two, you’re not getting in.  Simple as that.”

Kara had expected that this would be necessary, but she still wasn’t thrilled to hear it.  “Okay.  I can do that,” she said.  “So when’s the party?”

“When isn’t there a party?” Alicia replied with a shrug.  “Listen, these guys are seriously crazy.  I mean, I think you’re crazy too, for wanting anything to do with them, but at least I see what you mean when you say they need to be taken down a peg.  They’re going wild just about every night.”

“So tonight will work?”  The sooner the better, Kara thought.  The faster she moved, the quicker she’d be able to wrap this case up, getting back to her normal life.

“Oh yeah.  I’ll call up a couple other girls I know, tell the Hellraisers that we’re coming over, and they’ll all be slavering for us to get there.”  Alicia cocked her head slightly to the side, looking at Kara as if trying to measure her up.  “How’s your alcohol tolerance?”

What did that have to do with anything?  Kara shrugged, not sure how to answer.

“Can you handle a few shots, at least?”

Unbidden, Kara felt her stomach lurch slightly at the memory of the last time she’d had a few drinks.  She’d ended up in bed with Cross, she remembered, letting the man kiss her in many different, totally inappropriate places.  That had really been the start of her problem with the man, she reflected.

“Sure, I can handle a few,” she replied, trying to sound more confident than she felt.

“Okay.  Good.  Here, gimme your number, and I’ll text you the address of the Hellraisers’ clubhouse.”  Alicia stood up from her seat, pulling her phone out of a pocket in her jeans that looked far too tight to hold the electronic device.

“Oh, and one more thing,” she added, after Kara had called out her digits for her to take down.  “Before you show up tonight, you better talk to Cross about our deal.”  Alicia gave Kara an exaggerated wink.  “I’ll be swinging by after the party tonight to claim my prize, if you know what I mean.”

Kara felt her mouth drop open.  For a moment, she wrestled with a sudden blindingly hot rage, surging up through her mind and scrambling desperately to take control of her mouth, to tell off this arrogant bitch.  Cross was not some piece to be traded away, bargained off like a commodity!

And like hell if Kara would let him end up in this bitch’s hands!

For a split second, she felt as if this wave of vitriol was going to all come pouring out of her mouth, sinking any chance she had with this case.  But in a Herculean effort, she managed to just barely bite it back, instead putting on a sick, strangled looking smile.  “Of course,” she replied through gritted teeth.

Alicia nodded, her grin making it look as if she knew exactly how torn Kara was feeling, how much this hurt her.  “Great,” she said.

And with that, the woman turned and sauntered away, swinging her pronounced denim-covered hips in a manner that made her look as though she belonged out on a street corner late at night.

For several minutes after Alicia had left, Kara simply sat at that table, staring down at the empty space in front of her.  Her thoughts felt like a twisting maelstrom; no matter how many times she tried to get control of everything and sort out how she felt, everything would just shift and twist, slipping through her grasp like she was trying to grab ribbons of smoke.

This was a good thing, she insisted to herself.  This was the break that she needed in her case, her opportunity to infiltrate the Hellraisers, to confirm that they were the gun smugglers she was after.  All she needed to find was evidence of illegal weaponry, or even just to hear them talking about their illegal pursuits.  With that information, she could call in her reinforcements, close this case.