Page 73 of Indecent Villain
My eyes shoot to his. “I thought you’d have gotten rid of them straightaway.”
He shook his head. “My main contact is out of town. They’re hidden till he’s back. If you need them in exchange for Kinsley, I can send two of my men to bring them to you.”
I shake my head. “Rossi gets fuck all except for a bullet.”
He nods. “You have any clue as to where Jude put the other shit?”
I quickly shoot Nine a message to check the basement and beneath the desk.
“Nothing more than what Kinsley suggested. She said it might be buried deep in the earth, where no one can find it.”
“Well, if that motherfucker did that, then you’re screwed.” Prez lounges back in his chair and shoves his feet on the table.
Jude was my brother. I should have some idea where the fuck he’d bury something he didn’t want anyone to find. I carefully consider Kinsley’s words. Is there a deeper meaning to what she said?
Both Salem and Prez stare my way.
“Do you think Kinsley was trying to tell me where she is?”
Prez slams the chair legs down and rests his arms on the table. “She didn’t sound buried in the ground.” He shudders.
I roll my shoulders. “I’m making shit more complicated. We stick to what she said. I have Nine checking the basement out now. Jude didn’t like getting his hands dirty. He was never one for shooting shit in the woods. I don’t think he’d have buried anything unless someone else was in on what he was up to.”
My phone beeps, and I read the message from Nine.
“Fuck. It’s not in the basement, but he did find a file on Edge. Everything Maia told us Jude held over Anna.”
Me: Destroy the contents of the file. Nothing left behind.
Nine: Consider it done.
“You know,” Prez says thoughtfully, “I remember hearing scuttlebutt years ago about Rossi having an underground bunker built on his land.”
“Buried deep, where no one can find it.” I look at Salem. “Do you think that’s what Kinsley meant? Was she giving us a clue to her location?”
Salem grins. “Clever girl.”
“We need a fixed location and a plan,” I say. I would much prefer to get on my bike, ride over to Rossi’s place, and put a bullet right between the bastard’s eyes. I turn to Prez, “How sure are you of the bunker?”
“I’m sure.” The large guy gets to his feet, a hand going to his ginger beard. “Let me have a word with Geo. He knows all stuff like that.”
While Prez talks with his guy, I turn to Salem. “They do not walk away. Rossi and Elf. I’m not sure about Veronica. You know how I feel about taking out a woman.” I pause. “All bets are off if she’s hurt Kinsley, though.”
“Do you believe everything Maia told us about Jude and Anna? About him abusing her?”
I let out a long sigh. “Jude always watched others around him. He would stand with a calculating look in his eyes. If I really think about it, I can see him being abusive to get what he wants. After all, he was my mother’s favorite, and she had no honor.”
I pause. “Thing is, I never paid much attention to what went on between them. Looking back, I never saw them argue. Anna was always pleasant.” I rub a hand down my face.
“I never noticed anything either,” Salem offers. “I’m just wondering if Rossi is full of shit.”
“You think he has an ulterior motive?”
“The man has always had more resources than you or Edge. He has contacts no one else can find. He could be using that bullshit as a means to an end. You go in for Kinsley, he kills the both of you, and Edge. That’s his rivals wiped out.”
“That is a damn good theory,” Padre says from the doorway. The bear of a man is followed in by Geo and Prez.
Geo pushes between them and spreads out a hand-drawn map on the table. “I drew this forever ago. There was rumor about a bunker. I found out about it and its location.” He grins and looks at Prez. “Bet you’re glad I decided to stay, huh?”