Page 81 of Wicked Shadows
Jason started with the leather cap on her head and worked his way down to her white slip-on Skechers. He jerked his head up and opened his mouth to object when Silas stopped him.
“That’s a great idea, Liz. Why don’t the two of you work on your makeup while I go check in with Noah.”
“All right, Silas. But you know what happens if you sneak off without me,” Liz warned.
He rolled his eyes, knowing full well what Liz would do. He’d made that mistake once before on a far less important grocery store run on a group trip. When he awoke that night, Liz stood over him with her bright pink nail polish in hand. Not only had she painted his nails, but also his lips. To date, he still hadn’t figured out how she’d pulled that off, and she refused to divulge her own trade secrets.
But removing her as his self-proclaimed spy partner was worth the painted lips and nails he’d endure later. For the time being, his focus had to be on getting Shadow and the others out of the Devil’s clutches. Events had been escalating in severity, ramping up the danger Shadow and Nick faced if their covers were blown and increasing the probability someone would be killed before the sting was finished.
“Noah,” he called out when they entered the suite.
“Back here,” Reaper answered.
Liz escorted Jason to another room so they could begin work on her disguise. Silas breathed a sigh of relief when he joined the other men in their temporary command center.
“I just got here, and she’s already threatening me.”
The others laughed at his misfortune. “We’re just glad she’s taken a liking to you, Silas,” Reaper replied.
“Noah, you’re my brother. You’re supposed to have my back.”
“Brother, you know I’d take a bullet for you. But when it comes to Liz, we’ve all agreed it’s every man for himself,” Reaper replied.
“Bastards,” Silas mumbled under his breath.
“What have you found out, Silas?” Rebel asked.
Silas filled them in on his entire conversation with Jason and what he’d seen. Noah, in turn, brought Silas up to speed on the events of the day. “Jack, Nick’s handler, called and gave us the rundown of Shadow’s interrogation of Spider. He was singing like a songbird, hoping Shadow could save his uncle after he’d double-crossed his club and his family. He has no idea his uncle planned to double-cross him in the end, though.”
Silas listened intently, following the explanation of the first account feeding the second, until both were to be transferred to the third account held by the studio executive Barry Jacobson. It was a good scheme, he had to give Barry that. Mismanage funds, run out of production money, have the girls kidnapped by his nephew’s gang until he could secure more investors or recover money from somewhere else, all while the studio covered for him because losing their insurance policy would shut them down forever.
Barry never considered Shadow’s commitment to Elle, though.
* * *
Shadow returnedto the old clubhouse, per Nick’s request. Since he hadn’t been invited to take Spider’s place as an officer, his presence around the officers’ area would be suspicious. Nick tried to keep Shadow’s interactions with Headbanger and Bone to a minimum. The wrong word uttered regarding Elle would result in all-out war, something Nick wasn’t prepared to initiate just yet. They’d had another disagreement over the phone.
“You have all the info you need on the bank accounts. You said that’s what you were waiting for—to find out who was behind this. Now we know the funds came from the club’s drug and weapons money funneling into the offshore account through shell corporations, and Jacobson is behind the abductions on the lot. There’s no reason to continue this charade. We need to get them out of that clubhouse before Headbanger kills them all out of spite.” Shadow had argued his points until he was blue in the face, but Nick wouldn’t back down.
“I have orders from my superiors. Since Headbanger is openly taunting the police and the feds, they want to tack on extra charges and make sure he never sees the outside of the prison walls again. This isn’t over until we have the all-clear and our teams are in place to ensure everyone’s safety,” Nick shot back.
“While you follow orders and your superiors look to add one more charge to a list already a mile long, those civilians’ lives are in mortal danger. That should be your first priority—not an extra star for the agency. Is there something else you’re not telling me?”
“No. It’ll be over soon. Don’t jump the gun.”
“You’d better hope Headbanger and Bone don’t jump the gun.” Shadow hung up on Nick, angry and frustrated his friend wouldn’t listen to reason.
Shadow killed the engine outside the old clubhouse and sat on his bike, fighting the urge to storm into the old clubhouse and ride off into the sunset with Elle on the back. With an impatient growl, he climbed off and sauntered up the steps to the door. He stepped inside and came face-to-face with Elle.
At least she’s looking at me,Shadow thought.
“Didn’t expect to see you,” Axle said, throwing Shadow’s words back at him.
Shadow grinned knowingly. “I like to keep you guessing.”
Elle huffed and walked out of the room, carrying her meal with her and leaving the others at the table. Shadow glanced over at them, hoping Beth wouldn’t give him away. The expression on her face matched the hatred in her eyes. She wanted to relieve him of his head. When her lips parted and she prepared to speak, he moved quickly out of the kitchen and in the direction Elle had gone.
He heard a chair scrape against the floor, followed by Axle’s command. “Sit down and eat.” The distant sound of the chair sliding across the floor confirmed she’d obeyed.
