Page 169 of Sticks and Stones

“It was a skull. They marked their prey so people would know the place where it came from. You know how some druggies dye their product, so people know if it’s safe or the good shit?”

God damn it.

Gene knew what that meant.

Corbin had been branded.

It was crystal clear that had the bikers not believed they killed Corbin that he might have been trafficked. He was young, and that would have solved the problem for them of a cop infiltrating their bar.

It also told Gene that they were working in tandem with whoever was trafficking the people and drugs. If that brand was given to him during his assault, and it was on every victim they found, that meant they were in deep.

Renegade had to know something.

This was looking more and more like they were going to have to head to a bar.

Damn it.

That was the last place he wanted to go if Corbin had burned their cover story.

“We’re glad someone who can finally handle this is now at the helm,” Kip admitted. “Not the newbie cop.”

Oh, that pissed Gene off.

Greyson kicked the man under the table, but someone was already off to the races.

“And you guys thought an inexperienced cop was a good undercover person when you initially passed it off to the detective? Funny…you dropped it so fast, and it doesn’t seem to me like Corbin knew about the drug angle tied to it. He was working on a case regarding flesh peddling. This is a deeper mire, and he was thrown in the deep end with a blindfold on!”

Kip shrugged.

“His boss said he closed cases. He wanted in. We aren’t picky and we had to get this off of our desks to make room for the next Vice operation. As for the drug aspect, I’m sure we mentioned drugs were involved. How else did you grab someone off the street?”

When that rage overwhelmed him, Gene slammed his fists on the table.

The men actually jumped.

Well, not Greyson. He just gave him a warning look that told him to calm the hell down.

Only, it was too late for that.

“In your rush to clear your desk, he got hurt. They broke his arm, his fucking face, and left him for dead. Your rush to move on was detrimental to his existence! His arm was dislocated, and he had to drag himself all the way to the street to get help! This isn’t a joke. So I’m not sure that mocking the newbie, someone who is my friend, is a good idea!”

At his words, they both got quiet.

Then, Kip tried to defuse the situation. There were people in the fast-food joint staring at them, and he and Payton worked undercover.

The last thing they needed was someone IDing them, or seeing them with cops. Both men were wearing badges and guns.

He lowered his voice.

“We didn’t know. I’m sorry. We’re working multiple cases at once, and Corbin said he’d call us in as backup if he found something. When we didn’t hear from him, we assumed he was good.”

Well, that hadn’t happened.

“He went to the bar alone to try and tie up the unanswered questions. He didn’t have the drug angle in his file, so he wasn’t working with the full picture! What happens to UC investigators when they don’t have all of the information?”

Payton’s eyes got huge.

“Why would he go in alone?” he asked. “You always have backup when you’re going undercover!”