Attest (Centrifuge Duet Book 2)(30)
And, like I’ve said from the start, if it comes to a choice between Xander or my kids, my kids win hands down.
NINETEEN
Xander
The crunch of tyres on the gravel track that is the only way to get to the shack heralds the arrival of our first guests. The unfamiliar car doesn’t provide any clues to the identity of the occupants. It’s the van with the blacked-out windows that follows close behind gives them away.
My Aryan brothers are here. They bring my bargaining chip and a little extra something to sweeten the pot.
“Casper,” I greet Mark-Lee’s Lieutenant like we’re old friends.
He salutes me, Hitler-style, and it makes my skin crawl. But I don’t scratch the itch. Nope, like a good solider, I return the gesture with gusto. I feel Amber’s eyes burning a hot track over the back of my head. It makes me feel worse, but deals have been made that have permanently stained my soul. The layers of filth that coat me are thick and eternal. There’s no escaping that fact.
It was her decision to ignore the past two years. One that I’m certain she is regretting right about now.
I know because I spent most of yesterday fighting with my own remorse. When Harry told me that Jax killed Seb for double crossing him, I felt immense relief. One, because being dead meant he could never come between me and Amber, and two, it proved that she had been mine the entire time. Of course, the guilt had then set in for doubting her and I’d felt like a piece of shit for being happy that another person she loved was dead.
“Where do you want him?” Casper seems on edge and eager to get the hell out of here.
“We have two more guests to arrive. I need you to keep him secure until I say so.”
“Have it your way.” Casper clicks his fingers at the guys standing next to the black van. They open the side door and pull Jax out. He’s tossed to the ground in a bloody, moaning heap. Three heavy bags are thrown next to him. They get back in the van and the engine roars to life. It completes a three point turn on the narrow road, before revving hard to make it up the hill that leads back to the main highway.
The sound of the over-taxed engine is deafening in the silence of the morning. It drowns out my cursing as Casper heads for his own vehicle with me hot on his heels.
“What the fuck? We had a deal.” I protest again, louder this time.
Casper stops short. He points toward the hills. “Our deal didn’t include working with preppers.”
It takes me a second to realise what he means. He uses that hesitation to get into his car and drive away. I stare after him, jamming my hands in my hair when it clicks. He’s talking about the doomsday preppers that have the shack surrounded.
I spent a few hours last night with them hashing out a back-up plan in case Harry or Belinda decided to ambush us. Didn’t realise that the Aryan Circle has an issue with them. It makes sense, though. Both groups are as paranoid and crazy as the other.
Understanding his position is a cold comfort because my ignorance has just cost me half my army.
Here’s hoping it’s not a fatal error on my behalf.
“What do we do with him?” Amber asks from behind me. Turning to look at her, I see that she’s pointing at the crumpled lump on the ground that’s supposed to be Jax.
“Leave him there, I guess.” I shrug, not really caring about his condition. As long as he has a heartbeat when B gets here, I’m good.
Amber sends a pointed look in my direction. Looking everywhere but at her, I try to pretend I don’t see it. She gets the better of me, so I walk over to him and nudge him with the toe of my boot. It elicits a pain-stricken moan. That’s enough confirmation for me. I give Amber a thumbs up, and she stops glaring at me.
A dark-grey truck appears over the hill. A cherry-red sportscar struggles to follow it. I hasten to grab the three bags and run them back to the shack before they arrive. No one needs to know about my secret weapon until I’m good and ready.
Harry emerges from his truck first. He opens Belinda’s door for her and helps her out of her vehicle. Amber giggles at the sight of her outfit and I join in. Apparently, she didn’t get the memo about the remoteness of our meeting spot. Her spindly high heels and tight dress are as practical here as an ejection seat would be in a helicopter.
“Harry. Belinda,” I incline my head as I greet them.
Belinda ignores me. She shoots a glare filled with hot hostility at Amber, then makes her way to Jax with tentative steps. Watching her walk on the gravelled surface in heels is akin to viewing a newborn lamb take its first steps. If I had time for jokes, I can think of a few off the top of my head that would piss her right off.
“How you doin’?” Harry asks Amber.
“As well as can be expected,” she replies. The coolness that has been present in her manner toward me all morning is evident when she addresses Harry. It would seem that I’m not the only person she’s doubting today.
You see, I know what Amber is thinking. She’s worried that I’m going to let her down by not holding up my end of her plan. Little does she know, but I have taken her recipe for revenge and added to it. Question is, is she going to be happy with what I’ve cooked up? She seemed abnormally concerned about Jax, and I’d figured she’d want him to hurt the most.
“Let’s get this over and done with, shall we?” I raise my voice so that Belinda can hear me. “We need your old files, B. Once we have them, you take him and leave.”