Page 21

Chapter Seventeen

Matteo

M y phone buzzes in my pocket, the vibrations startling me from my computer screen.

Shark:

Church.

The one word is all we get, and honestly, that’s really all we need.

Glancing toward Globe’s office, I realize that he’s staring right back at me.

I smirk, the last few days replaying in my mind.

Everything has been amazing with Irene since Nero came home, and at this point, I’m just waiting for the other shoe to drop.

I was raised with my brothers at the MC through adulthood, and looking back, I realize my childhood was alright, though it wasn’t great.

That didn’t mean that stuff wasn’t going on, though.

Ma stayed home and waited for Pop to get home.

When he did, if he was in a good mood, then we sat around the table and ate the scraps we could afford.

But when Pop came home from a bad day? You could tell before he even darkened our doorstep that night that his mood wasn’t great.

He would grumble and gripe, take more food than what we rationed because “he worked for it”.

There was always something about him we needed to walk on egg-shells with, but he never hurt us physically.

Just…took our money and gambled it away.

Ma would look at me with a sad smile and sacrifice her meal for me.

She would tell me that one shoe fits snugly while the other one was just a size too big, always waiting for it to fly off the foot of the one wearing it.

It never clicked that she was basically telling me to sleep with one eye open.

Since then, I never fully trusted when the going was good.

Has that led to a bit of self-sabotage? Yes.

But it was easier to end things before they began versus getting attached and then being broken.

Just like my Pop did to Ma, broke her in two before she could warn me…

“You coming?” Globe asks, his hand landing on my shoulder. I follow the line of his arm upward, drinking in each dip and valley of his muscular arm, appreciating the colorful tattoos that are inked in.

I blink a couple of times, pulling myself out of the slight trance. “Yeah, I was just thinking.” I don’t elaborate before standing up. Globe doesn’t let me get far before his hand lands on the back of my neck and swirls me around.

Lips landing solidly on mine, he kisses me like his life depends on it.

Like this might be the last kiss he ever gets from me.

Something inside my brain argues with the logistics, but his kiss captures both mind and body as his tongue swirls with mine.

My arms reach around him, one hand slipping to his delicious ass and the other to grip his back.

He fights for dominance in this kiss, and I fight back.

“Fuck, I can’t get enough of you,” Globe grunts along my lips, his mouth pulling away and sucking down the column of my throat.

“I don’t know what took me so long to realize…

” he’s cut off by the vibrating of his phone.

He groans, sucking in a deep breath and stepping back.

“This isn’t over.” His gaze pins me to my spot, and that’s enough to completely silence my overactive thoughts. For now.

My phone starts buzzing a moment later, and when I reach into my pocket, there’s another text.

Shark:

If you two could keep it in your pants until after, the rest of us would appreciate it.

I grin at Globe, and he shakes his head. Taking my hand in his, he walks us from his office to the place we hold church. Once Globe and I enter, the doors are shut after us.

“Now that everyone is here, we can get started. There have been sightings of Kastiloff in a cage match about three hours from here. I don’t know why he’s sticking so close to home, but that’s not the problem.

He is scouting for more recruits to assist in getting victims into his trade since we have been blowing up operations left and right.

” Shark explains, motioning for Globe to take his seat at the head table.

I sit next to Ghost and Warden, neither of them saying anything to me as I come over.

Globe looks over the reports and boots up the laptop sitting at the head of the table. He works for a few moments before the projector places the map onto the screen.

We have a blue dot to show where we are located in Indianapolis, and then shows the small colored dots around the maps.

“Red is for newborn to two years, purple is three to five, green is six to fifteen, and black is sixteen and up. Last time we saw this map, there was a slew of red splattered across the board. Reports have amped up for purple age ranges. When talking with the females, they indicated that it is possible that they are taking three to five because they are more likely to be manipulated. Infants can be difficult to care for, but three to five still have the ability to manipulate the way they understand things around them.”

My stomach sinks as I think about all the reports I have had to process about these kids. It’s so fucking sad that local law enforcement isn’t taking this shit seriously. Thankfully, that’s why we are here.

“The problem we are having is that Kastiloff isn’t as trusting as he was before.

Something happened, which we can’t get intel on, but he had stopped recruitment until this last cage fight.

He put feelers out for newbies, and those feelers got back to us.

I need someone to go into the matches and try to convince him to take them under his wing,” Shark announces, looking around the room and taking a moment to stop at each and every one of us.

Unfortunately, I can feel there is something he isn’t saying. No one else speaks up or seems to have the same inkling of suspicion, but my gut feeling is suddenly voiced into fruition.

“The officers have spoken in depth about what we wanted to do. We thought for several days and tried to work out any kinks, but we always rounded back to the same conclusion. We decided that it would be best to have a female candidate go into the matches and attempt to obtain information from Kastiloff,” Keres, our VP, announces.

Immediately, there’s an uproar.

“That’s not safe!”

“None of the females are trained!”

“Bylaws prevent female intervention!”

On and on, they shout their concerns at Shark and the team. I look at Globe, his brows drawing together before he leans into Shark. They exchange a few words before Globe nods once.

He’s pissed.

He doesn’t say anything else as everyone prattles on. Shark lets the chaos ensue for a few more moments before slamming his fist onto the tabletop.

“This is not something we are going to put to a vote, not something we are open for discussion on. Because of the necessary circumstances, we are invoking Bylaw zero-three-two-one, subsection G. We have deemed that this passage will be read and sworn for this cause only!” Keres shouts over them, his hulking size suddenly standing abruptly from the table.

“Bylaws state that we can invoke this section if there is a safety or security measure that can only be completed or conducted by a female, and it meets extenuating circumstances. With the numbers rapidly increasing again, we are hereby invoking this right.”

In my years of being here, I have never heard of anyone invoking any necessary bylaw stand-ins like this.

Honestly, I didn’t think they existed. The individual in question has already been confronted and asked, and they have agreed.

They have been prepping for about a week and feel they are able and ready to take on this task. ”

Globe and I lock eyes, unsure if they would ask Irene to do something like this. With her history, I don’t think she would be able to successfully complete this mission. That, and I don’t know if Kastiloff would remember her.

A moment later, the door opens, and another female walks into the room. I know she works at the agency, but I can’t put my finger on her name.

“No!” Cobra shouts, rocketing out of his chair. “Absolutely not, Shark.” My eyes widen as I look between the two. She has a gentle blush on her cheeks, but that’s all I really notice as she walks to the front.

“It is not up for discussion,” Shark snaps, his voice hollow and his eyes empty.

Like a tennis match, we all look between the two men as they posture at one another.

“She will continue to train with you all to learn the ropes and get a better understanding of her assigned tasks. The next match is not for another three months. We ride tomorrow morning to one of the bases that Kastiloff uses to house teens for transport. For now, please welcome Mila into the fold as our first and only female to be allowed into the MC.”

A slow clap starts, then whistling and cheering ensue. Cobra shoves his brothers out of the way, grabs Mila by the waist, tosses her over his shoulder, and exits Church without a look back.