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Story: Reclaimed

“Is there a problem?” the client asked.

Feds always had a tell. They’d tried this scheme before, and once I got them on the phone, it was easy for me to tell whether the client was in the life. Plus, I had aslightadvantage over humans.

My dragon was already perked up, listening intently to the conversation.

“No, no problem,” I said. “Just confirming, since it’s a big order. You said you’re dropping off the cars next week, and all are getting a full paint job with tinted windows to start?”

“Right.”

“Have these vehicles seen any recent trouble?”

“...Trouble?”

“Trouble, brother.”

Anyone in the life would know I meant gunshots or other damage, either in the car, or the people driving them. The client hesitated for a second too long. “No, no trouble. Not a repair job, just a customization.”

Lying. Plain as day. My dragon could sense it like a scent on the wind. This new client was a fed.

“Great,” I said. “Then we’ll have no problem filling this order. Bring the cars in next week at your convenience.”

“Will do,” this ‘Mr. White’ said, and hung up.

I circled the client’s name on the invoice for later reference. No matter how many times they tried to catch me moving weapons, it wouldn’t work. It’d be a cold day in hell before I ended up in prison again. These feds were in for a disappointing sting when they got their cars back with perfect bodywork and zero weapons. I’d tell my guys not to open the cash compartments in the cars.

A knock on the door jerked me out of my ruminations. It swung open before I answered, which meant it could only be one person.

“Yo, Ace,” Hawk shouted over the classic rock filtering in behind him. “Sorry I’m late, that meeting ran long.”

Hawk was two years older than me and my second-in-command. We both had blond hair, but he was clean-shaven where I had a full beard.

As the alpha, I led our clan. Even though he was a beta, Hawk had stepped up and kept everything running while I was locked up. He’d been more than happy to hand the reins back when I got out. I was lucky to have a brother like him on my side.

He closed the door, and the soundproofing cut off the rock music. Hawk looked relieved. “I don’t know how those guys get anything done. It’s ninety-percent karaoke down there.”

“Hey, whatever gets the work done.”

“And makes the money,” Hawk said. “How’d the new invoices look?”

“One’s a fed. The others look good, though.”

Hawk snorted. “They’re never going to give it up, are they?”

“No. Which is why we’re getting out of this.”

“I know you don’t love gunrunning, but it’s a lot safer than moving drugs,” Hawk said.

I grimaced. “You say that, but we don’t really know that for sure.” Before we’d turned to weapons, we’d sold drugs out of the body shop. It was good money, and we had a reliable source for good product across the Mexican border. But when our source was caught, he’d turned us in. The feds had hit me with a distribution charge. The weapons were a cleaner operation than the drugs, but I didn’t like it, and it made my dragon antsy. It felt like only a matter of time until we got caught.

“True. So, you’ll be glad to hear that this meeting went well.” Hawk sat down and slid a file folder across the desk to me. “You remember what you told me the last time I visited you in prison?”

“You told me Mia was pregnant, and I told you we were getting out of this trade. It’s been three years, and we haven’t done it yet. We need to get things moving fast. If something happens, and you miss something in your daughter’s life?—”

Hawk waved a hand before I could go down that spiral again. “And I’m not leaving the clan behind, either. You know that.”

I nodded. We’d had this argument before. I’d tried to get Hawk to move away and leave the crime life behind. But he insisted that if he was out, I was getting out, too.

“The gunrunning has been good to us financially.” He flipped open the folder and tapped his finger on a long list of numbers. “I followed all the instructions you gave me from prison, managed the money to your specifications, all that stuff. It’s grown a lot. And I know I was iffy on this distillery idea, but after talking to these guys, I think you’re right. This is a killer opportunity.”

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