Move the Sun (Signal Bend #1)(87)
He saw her always clamoring—to be strong, to make a home, to claim herself—and he stood back out of her way and let her. He’d wanted to get married right away, not because he was insecure about the firmness of her decision, but because he wanted to be f*cking married to her. But she would only marry him as herself, as Lilli Accardo, not Lilli Carson. It meant they had to elope, and Isaac couldn’t leave Signal Bend right now. Ellis was getting positioned to make a real move, and the Horde, and the town, needed to be ready to repel it if they could.
And that’s what he needed to talk to her about. He needed to tell her everything, bring her all the way in.
He needed her help. Because he was scared.
“I want to tell you what’s going on with the club. It’s big shit. Too big for me. I need you.”
She lifted their linked hands to her lips and kissed his knuckles. “I’m here. I’ll help however I can.”
“I just need some perspective. Show’s got his ideas, and I’ve got mine, but I think we’re both looking at this from too far inside.” She knew about the meth, because she’d done her own research into the club when they’d first gotten together. But now he explained why they did it. He gave her more history of the town, and then he told her about Lawrence Ellis and what it looked like he wanted in Signal Bend.
When he was done, Lilli was quiet, staring out the window into the yard. She wanted chickens, and he wondered if she was imagining them pecking around out there. Other than a few almost-feral cats who fed on mice and voles, he hadn’t had animals on the property since he’d taken it over. But Lilli, who’d never had even a goldfish, was discovering an affinity for animals. Isaac was pretty sure one of the mousers was knocked up, and he feared the house would soon be overrun with kittens. She wanted the chickens, too, and a dog. She wanted horses. She showed no signs of being satisfied with all that, either. He’d resisted at first, a knee-jerk reaction, because he hadn’t wanted to be pinned down by the responsibility animals presented. But that’s what making a home was—setting in stakes. He wanted that now.
And he’d loved to ride horseback. Almost as much fun as a Harley. He wanted to get her a bike of her own, too, though he sure did love having her behind him on his.
For several thoughtful moments, Lilli stroked the long, pink scar on the right side of her neck. It was a habit she’d picked up; Isaac wasn’t sure she even knew she did it, but he noticed every time. She turned back to him. “What happens if Ellis wins?”
Isaac had thought about that a lot, so he had a ready answer. “He builds a full-scale factory in Will Keller’s woods, takes over the meth production, and turns Signal Bend into the worst kind of company town. Northsiders crush the Horde, kill us all, take over the streets. The good people who’ve been hanging on finally give up and leave. The ones who survive and stay are either cooking or tweaking. Probably both.
Ellis takes over the meth pipeline throughout the Midwest. The people trying to control it, be sane about it, get flattened.”
She nodded slowly, considering what he’d said. “I’m going to say this, and I want you to hear it for what it is, okay? Don’t get defensive.” Isaac nodded, knowing that whatever she said, it would be thoughtful. “Meth is nasty shit. Is there a way for you to just get out of it? For the whole town to?”
“I wish there was. I hate it. That’s why we won’t have it in town. We push it through to the cities, let them deal with it.” He really did hate it. He rubbed his hand over his beard in frustration. “There’s nothing else bringing real money in. That nasty shit keeps Tuck’s place open, and Marie’s and every other business in town. The money the cookers and the Horde bring in is all that’s keeping the lights on. The Horde has no love for the law, but this isn’t the kind of shit we’d be doing if we had a choice. Best we can do is move it out of town, keep our people straight.”
She took that at face value and didn’t push him further. He loved her even more for that. She didn’t make judgments; she made observations. She didn’t make pronouncements; she asked questions. “Okay.
Say you win. What prevents Ellis from doing the same thing fifty miles down the road and crushing you anyway?”
“He’s gunning for us partly because the Northsiders beef with us, and they put him on our scent. But Signal Bend is in a special situation. We’re a good distance from the highway, and we are very remote from the nearest police station. Hell, we’re just remote. Nobody even passes through Signal Bend to get somewhere else.” He laughed bitterly. “It’s a f*ckin’ brilliant move. We are uniquely qualified for less-than-legal activities. And Will’s property has unique qualifications of its own. Anyway, fifty miles in either direction is still Horde turf. We run the whole corridor, St. Louis to Tulsa. We’d have to fight him at any point.”
“Doesn’t seem like the Horde is big enough to manage so much.”
Isaac nodded. Indeed. This shit was too big for the Horde, too big for him. “And there we have our problem. We’re not. When things are smooth, it’s not a big deal. But we’re not strong enough to take on a guy with this kind of reach. We have friends who can help us, but they have their own issues. We’ll get some manpower, and we got some guns at a discount, but the favors I’m calling in aren’t going as far as they need to.” The problem explained, Isaac leaned in, taking Lilli’s ponytail in his hand and sifting it through his fingers. “Any ideas, soldier girl?”