Page 36 of Intent to Kill
Adam rolled his eyes. “Dan, reckon you can put some feelers out—subtle feelers—see if any of the old fishies want to bite?”
“Well, fuck, I mean, sure, but that’s a risky task,” Dan said.
“We just need to grab their attention. Let those who are hiding know that someone else is rising,” Adam said. He joined the rest of them around the table, resting his hands on the back of one of the wooden chairs.
“I... might know how we could make some noise,” Mercedes said. She grimaced, like it physically hurt her to help him.
“I’m all ears,” Adam said.
“Tia,” Mercedes said. “Let’s go after Tia.”
“Jesus Christ, baby.” Adam straightened, his eyes wide. “That’s a fucking bold move.”
“I know. But with Tia, we get people, we get her. Done.”
“What?” Carlos frowned. “What am I missing?”
“Tia, the one I used to work with at the Neptune Club,” Mercedes reminded him.
“I know that,” Carlos said. “You were a bartender, she was a stripper, I’ve met Tia.”
Adam and Dan chuckled, but Mercedes silenced them with a scowl.
“Hon, she wasnota stripper. That was a front. She’s a prostitute, and now she’s club manager,” Mercedes explained.
“Club manager? She—sheleadsthe prostitutes…like, a madam?”
Adam smiled, there was Carlos catching up just in time. Yep, Adam had called it, it was a fucking bold move. And he was more than ready for it.
“You know, getting Tia on our side means we have to secure the Neptune Club, too.” Adam stood to face her, their toes nearly touching.
“So?” Mercedes scowled.
“Pretty bold for someone who has done nothing but warn us of how stupid the plan is.”
“Let’s face it, you’d have to have a plan in order for to me to mock it.”
“Eh,” Adam shrugged. “We figure it out as we go. You know I like to think on my feet, baby. Take my time, make it last.”
“Oh, I don’t recall anything you ever did lasting a long time,” Mercedes said.
“Liar,” he smiled. She was a dirty little liar, if passion had its own magazine, they’d have been the centerfold. Every. Single. Month.
“Urghkkk,” Dan wretched. “Enough sexual innuendos.”
She was cruder and crueler, sure, but Adam couldn’t help but feel like it was old times all over again. When they were together, the air was so formidable with heat and electricity that it left very little room for anyone else to breathe.
“I want Tia,” Mercedes said. “She’s done a lot for me, I want her off Dorian’s books, on ours, and getting the protection that she and the girls deserve.”
“I couldn’t agree more,” Adam said.
“Better,” Paul rewarded, like they were children who needed a chaperone and got a treat for using their nice words. “But we still need the Neptune Club.”
“Get Tia first,” Adam said. “If she’s in, we will find a way to take back that club. After all, it’s meant to be mine anyway.”
* * *
The first pins of early morning light were just filtering through the sky when Adam, Dan, and Carlos arrived on Ridge City Bridge. Approaching slowly, Adam rested his hands on the railing, looking out across the small gravel parking lot under the bridge where a deal was about to take place.
