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“ W here’s my brother?” I nearly knock Trinity off her heels when I barge into the club.

“Hey, handsome, what's got you all tense?” She places her hand on my bicep and squeezes, “Look at you, growing up all big and strong.” She runs her tongue along her top lip.

“Shoo.” Peyton comes over to my rescue, seeing her off like a dog, and Trinity scowls as she walks over to join Saint and Sasquatch.

“Are you looking for Dev?” Peyton asks with a warm, friendly smile.

“Yeah, is he here?” I scan the room looking for any signs of him and trying to control my rage, showing any aggression in front of Raze’s old lady isn’t gonna make a good impression, and it’s a surefire way to get my ass kicked.

“Not tonight, he’s on the graveyard shift with Vike,” Alicia calls over from where she’s sitting with the rest of the girls.

“Graveyard shift? What graveyard shift? There wasn’t anyone at the gate.” I’ve offered to do gatewatch as a more permanent position so many times, but I’ve only ever been called up when they are desperate.

“The club managed to get an address for that mob who ambushed their run yesterday. Raze is still real touchy about it.” She looks over to the bar where Raze is sitting by himself. He’s got a scary look in his eyes and enough tension in his jaw to warn everyone to stay the fuck away.

“Maybe you should wait for him back at your place,” she suggests.

“I don’t wanna wait at home, Pey. Don’t people get it?

I wanna be part of this.” I look around the room.

“Let's be honest, this is Dev’s real family. I’m just his kid brother, a fuckin’ burden to him.

” I raise my tone higher than I should at her, but all the frustration of Millie’s ultimatum is eating away at me.

I don’t understand why we can’t be like Raze and Peyton, or Wrath and Eden.

Even Ruckus has an old lady now. Millie has never had an issue with me wanting to be a member of the club before.

She always got so excited if I snuck her into one of the club’s beach parties.

None of how she’s been acting lately makes any sense.

“Corey, you know that's not true. Dev’s just trying to protect you. The club has lost a lot of people recently. He doesn’t want to lose you, too.”

“Shouldn’t that be my decision to make?” I question her.

“How would you have felt if someone told you you couldn’t be with Raze?

” I try to get her to see my point because Peyton would be a good person to have on side.

I understand that Millie and Dev are trying to protect me. They think I’m weak, but they’re wrong.

“I get your frustration,” Peyton continues. “What you really need to do is sit down and speak to your brother. Explain to him how you feel.”

“I’ve tried that enough times. I need to speak to Raze again.” I take a deep breath for courage and make my way over to him, ignoring Peyton when she calls after me and warns that now isn’t a good time.

“Not now, kid,” Raze cuts me off before I even open my mouth.

“Prez, I just wanted to–”

“You deaf as well as stupid? I said, now ain’t the fuckin’ time. I’m tryin’ to think straight.” He knocks back whatever it is he’s drinking and growls at me.

“Is there any way I can help?” I ask, refusing to give up.

“Not unless you know how a gang of Irish mobsters, who have come outta thin fuckin’ air, have settled in my town without me knowin’ about it?” he asks sarcastically, lighting himself a smoke.

“I’m sure I could find out. I don’t know if you’ve been told lately, but I’m a fuckin’ genius.” I hit him back with a little sarcasm of my own. I know Dev is always telling everyone around here what a boy wonder I am, might as well use it to my advantage.

“Don’t get fuckin’ smart with me, kid,” he warns. “I ain’t gettin’ involved in you and Dev’s bullshit.” He shakes his head and taps his glass on the bar.

Polly heads over with a bottle of Jack and tops him up, and he thanks her with a tip of his chin.

“But if you just?—”

“I thought I told you to beat it.” He stares at me firmly, and I quickly back away, heading back out the door and onto the yard.

I guess Peyton was right, tonight when Dev comes home, me and him are gonna have a serious talk.

“Leaving already?” Trinity follows me out. “Running back to that pretty little girlfriend of yours, I’ll bet.” Her attempt at a playful giggle goes right through me.

“I’m going home,” I tell her, feeling my frustration building when I think more about what Millie is doing to me.

She’s always told me I should be the person I want to be, not what everyone expects.

I thought she understood me. Me and her may be from different worlds, but she gets the same kinda pressure from her parents that I get from Dev.

“You could stay, bet I could show you something new.” Her hand presses against the front of my jeans. “Everyone around here treats you like a kid. You could show ‘em all that you're a man now.” She creeps her fingers up my torso and spreads them out over my chest.

“I need to find my brother.” I pull away.

“C’mon, baby, Dev’s gonna be watching that old shipping yard all night. Why don’t you let me entertain you while you wait for him?” Her talons grip my shirt and drag me closer, and I swallow a lump in my throat when her other hand slides into the front of my jeans and clasps around my cock.

“Blessed like your brother, I see.” She giggles as her lips get closer to mine, and I let her pump me through her fist a few times while I think about my next move.

“Which shipping yard?” I ask, knowing that there ain’t many shipping yards that Burlusconi doesn't hold some kind of power over around here.

“Sorry, sweetheart, that's classified information.” She laughs at me, and I take hold of her wrist, holding it steady and preventing her from jacking me off.

“Where’s the shipping yard, Trinity?” I try to make my voice sound threatening the way Dev’s does, but it doesn’t come out the same.

“You promise you won’t do anything that gets me into trouble?” She looks up at me with innocent, puppy-dog eyes that are as fake as her tits.

“You got my word. I just wanna speak to my brother,” I assure her.

“Fine.” She lets out a deflated sigh and slides her hand free. “It’s the old Pemberton yard.” She rolls her eyes and takes a cigarette from her back pocket.

“Pemberton’s? Nothing’s run outta there for years; it’s abandoned. I used to play in that yard as a kid.” A plan instantly starts to form in my head, one that’s going to prove to everyone here that I’m not just a kid.

Raze wants information on these Irish assholes; he won’t be able to refuse giving me a shot if I get it for him.

I was only eight years old when me and Dev moved here from Nebraska, and the kids I hung around with at first were always looking to find trouble. We’d break into Pemberton’s and spend hours exploring the old containers and seeing what scrap we could salvage.

“It ain’t a playground anymore.” Trinity lights up her cigarette and exhales the first puff of smoke right into my face. “Don’t tell Dev you heard that from me. I much prefer my guts on the inside.” She smiles.

“I promise,” I assure her before rushing back to my car so I can start putting that plan of mine into action.

The Irish deciding to use the Pemberton yard is a huge advantage to me. Now, all I need is a little help from a friend.

I take out my cell and call Lex as I drive out the gates and head toward home. It’s late, but he still answers on the first ring, and the sound of his computer keyboard clicking in the background assures me that I haven’t woken him up.

“What’s up, Corey?” he asks.

“I need a favor.”

“Everyone's always looking for a favor.” He laughs to himself.

“Yeah, but not everyone got you through senior year by writing up your essays for you,” I remind him.

“Look, if you're asking me to hack the college board's database and change your grades, I–”

“We both know that's not what I need,” I interrupt him. “I was just wondering if you still have that equipment you used to catch your stepmom cheating on your dad?”

“Of course, I do, you never know when it’ll come in useful. You think Millie’s been seeing someone else? Is that why she ende–”

“It’s got nothing to do with Millie. Lex, this is something for the club, but that has to stay between us.” I know there's no way I’m gonna get away with not telling him why I’m asking. Lex is as intuitive as he is skilled.

“The club?!” I know I have his full attention when the persistent clicking of his fingers stops.

“Dude, what's our mission because I’m choosing to accept it?”

“I’m on my way to yours. I’ll explain when I get there.” I shake my head and laugh at him before ending the call.

This is my chance to prove to Dev that I’m strong enough to become a member, and when I’m done doing that, I’m gonna fight for my girl. I’ll show her that I can still give her all those privileges her daddy does when she becomes my old lady.

“You know I can smell that joint from the top of your street,” I tell Lex as I step inside his dad's pool house. The walls are painted black, and lit-up monitors and laptop screens are providing all the light.

“Just a second.” He finishes typing something on his laptop before placing it down and looking up at me.“So. Club business?” He has an enthusiastic look on his face as he takes a drag of his blunt and hands it over to me.

“Apparently, there’s a new Irish crew in town, and the club wants intel,” I explain, catching a glimpse of what's on one of the monitors and leaning in to get a closer look. It looks to me like live security footage from a strip joint.

“Just ignore that.” Lex turns the monitor off and urges me to continue.

“I was thinking that maybe I could use those cameras you had to get the club some eyes behind enemy lines.” I rest my ass back on his desk and wait for him to respond.

“Sounds like a great idea, except for the part where you set the cameras up. I don’t like the sound of us going behind enemy lines, bro.” He takes his blunt back and takes a deep inhale.

“Not us, me. All I need you to do is link the cameras up to my laptop so the club can have a constant live stream of what those fuckers are up to. Just like you did with Marion.”

“Your brother’s okay with this? Sounds kinda dangerous to me.” Lex's frown tells me he ain’t convinced.

“I’m the only person who knows the place well enough. I can be in and out without anyone ever knowing I’ve been there.”

“Corey, this is the shot you’ve been waiting for.” His confusion fades into a smile.

“And I don’t intend to let ‘em down.” I nod proudly.

“I’ll get you what you need.” He stands up from his gaming chair and heads over to the locker, then keying in a code, he pops it open and takes out a belt bag.

“Everything's in there.” He hands it over and retakes his seat. “Each wireless camera has 4K HD quality, a built-in microphone, and a battery life that will last you around four days. Thanks to yours truly being always prepared, they’re fully charged and good to go.”

“Perfect.” I pull one of the cameras out the bag and check it out. “These things are tiny.”

“No expense was spared in catching that money-grabbing slut. Grandma picked up the bill.” He swivels in his chair. “You’ll find some double-sided sticky pads in there to stick them on with.”

“And these pick up sound, too?” I check I heard him right, knowing how useful that would be for the club.

“Hell, yeah, you should have heard all the things Marion wanted to do to Dad’s business partner. Kinda got me off while I was watching.” My eyes automatically go to the massage oil that’s next to the closed-down monitor, and he quickly opens the desk drawer and throws it inside.

“Lex, you need to get out more,” I tell him, shaking my head and zipping the bag back up.

“Once the cameras are in place, press the button on the top. Two blue flashes mean it’s activated. I’ll send the link to your phone, you’ll be able to access the footage from any device you want.”

“Thanks, man, this is awesome.” I slap my palm into his before I make my way to the door.

“You’ll tell Raze I helped?” he calls after me.

“Of course, I will.” I look back.

“Tell him anytime he needs more shit like this…I’m his guy.”

“Sure thing.” I tap the bag and head back to my car, feeling my adrenaline start to pump. There’s no way the club will deny my request to prospect after I’ve got them unrestricted access to the men who tried to fuck up their run.