Vicious Carousel (Suncoast Society #25)(37)

She grabbed a couple of grocery bags from the car. “I talked to Laura and Gabe last night. Once Betsy’s feeling better, we’re going to take her to a gun range in Pt. Charlotte and teach her how to use one. She needs a concealed carry permit.”

“Isn’t that a little…excessive?”

He knew June and Laura carried. He wasn’t sure if Eliza did, but considering Gabe was an FDLE agent, Laura had literally killed a psycho who was trying to kill her, Eliza was a martial arts expert, Brooke was a former archery champion, and Chelbie had fended off a baseball-bat-wielding attacker with only a sex toy and sarcasm, there were some pretty dangerous and deadly women in their own right among their close group of friends.

June stopped and turned, walking back to him. Despite her tiny frame, he felt the urge to lean back, away from her. How Scrye dealt with her, he had no idea, because the fury now visible in the woman’s eyes scared the piss out of him.

“No,” June calmly and quietly said. “Excessive would be me driving to Tampa and paying cash for a burner cell, having Betsy call him from it to meet her somewhere out in east Manatee County to ‘talk,’ and then emptying a magazine in his brain pan before I stripped his body, dragged him down to the river, and rolled him into the water, his body weighed down with three concrete blocks, after gutting him so decomposition gas didn’t make him float in a few days. That would be excessive.”

She didn’t blink.

Nolan thought he might have pissed himself, just a little.

She widely smiled. “But that would also be illegal, now, wouldn’t it?”

He nodded.

“So we’re going to teach her how to shoot and defend herself. Legally. Shooting is a great equalizer. Once she’s healed, I’m going to start her in my yoga classes to build her flexibility and spirit, and Eliza’s going to go with her to ju-whatsits whatever it is she does. Brooke is going to start teaching her archery, which is a completely impractical means of self-defense when compared to fists or a gun in close quarters, but will be a great confidence builder, as well as give her something to focus on. Between all of us, we have a plan. Tilly is our Tyler Durden of protecting Betsy. Only, you know, without blowing shit up.”

He stared down at her, leaning back even farther as she leaned in closer. “We all like you and Kenny. We don’t have a problem if at some point in the future the three of you hook up. That would be good if it happens in a healthy way.” Thunderclouds darkened her expression. “But if you guys f*ck up, or f*ck her over, or f*ck with her? I’ll make Tilly at her meanest look sweet by comparison.”

Then she smiled, turned, and bounced toward the house with the grocery bags.

He stood there, staring, heart thundering in his chest.

Okay, that time he definitely pissed himself a little.





Nolan had changed into shorts—and had changed his briefs—and was getting dinner started when Kenny arrived home. Betsy sat on the couch, obediently working on her job search as Tilly had assigned. June had already left.

I guess as long as no one’s making soap, we’re okay.

Nolan still liked June, but he wouldn’t deny she had completely flipped the charts in terms of terrifying. Tilly was now squarely tied for second with Eliza, while June had skyrocketed to number one with a bullet on the scary list.

Literally.

He’d had no doubts in his mind that the woman hadn’t just been threatening.

She’d meant every last word.

Kenny walked in, scowling at him as he leaned in to kiss him. “What’s wrong?” Kenny asked.

Nolan was about to tell him nothing, almost ashamed to admit he had left a small dribble on the inside of his briefs, which now resided in the dirty clothes hamper, then he remembered the rest of June’s news and whispered, “Later.”

Kenny went over to say hi to Betsy before he headed back to their bedroom to change. Once Nolan had dinner simmering in the electric skillet, he followed Kenny back to their bedroom, closed the door, and told him what June had told him.

Well, the parts that she said Ed had told her. And about the women banding together to teach Betsy to defend herself.

He left out June’s extremely disconcerting asides, because for starters, he wasn’t even sure if Kenny would believe him, and secondly, he strongly suspected June wasn’t kidding, and he didn’t want Kenny to know anything if Jack turned up dead in a river somewhere.

Shot.

Tied to cinder blocks.

And gutted.

The first rule about protecting Betsy is…

When he finished, Kenny looked murderous. Nolan was wondering why he didn’t look terrified, except he realized he’d left the terrifying part out.

“That f*cker,” Kenny muttered as he stripped off his work clothes. “I see that f*cker, I’m killing him.”

A nervous laugh escaped Nolan. “Yeah, I literally think there’d be a line ahead of you and me, dude.”

“I know. Tilly desperately wants a whack at him.”

One more nervous burp of laughter he couldn’t control. “Yeah, no, not even her.”

He remembered once as a kid, not even ten, if that, getting to go to the base with his dad for something. They’d been stationed out in California, and his father was having lunch with some friends. Because it was a Saturday, it was informal, and there’d been some other family function they’d attended that morning.