Christmas with My Enemy (Feuding Hearts Christmas)

Chapter 14

fourteen

BEAST

The hum of the power bike grows louder, and I crack my fists in anticipation. The morning sky is bright, and the air smells humid. It's a perfect time to sort vital issues out.

I rub my palms together, waiting for the footfalls at the door and the subsequent knock. After spending weeks in the luxury cabin, this new lodging, provided by Clyde, feels small and cramped.

I'll definitely go back home after Christmas. Kingz won't make me a hide because I love his daughter.

The footsteps finally came. It's the familiar dragging that I've known for years. I sigh and clench my fist.

Beads of sweat spread over my forehead. A mix of anger and sadness spreads in my gut. The knock finally comes.

Now is the time , I mutter.

Pop's smiling face welcomes me when I open the door. He's in a green sweater and dark pants. His hair is slicked back, the way Darren used to be back in the day. I feel a sharp stab in my chest.

"I brought your laptop," Pop taps the black bag slung on his shoulder. I let him in without saying a word.

Pop looks around the cabin and nods. He looks at me and shrugs. “No bad to stay temporarily, right?”

“Sure,” I grunt.

“Where’s Tati?”

“Over there,” I point over his shoulder.

Pop looks back, sees nothing, and turns back to me, and then I let him have it. A nose breaker, packing all my anger and frustration.

Pop tumbles backward and lands sideways on the couch. The stunned look on his face is priceless. If I'm not so mad, I'll probably burst out laughing at his scrunched-up face.

“What the fuck did you do that for?” Pop presses his nostrils and comes up with blood. He looks even more stunned. Yeah, his uncle just did some damage to his bridgework.

I pull out a pistol and set it against his head.

"Oh, what the hell are you doing?" He looks left and right as if searching for a way out of the situation. I'm more annoyed the more I watch him. How could he do this to me? And why is he acting innocent?

“Tell me the truth.” I put all my anger and bile in that statement. I want him to know how pissed I am for taking me for a fool.

"What are you even talking about?" Pop tries to swipe the gun away, but I grab him by the neck. His eyes pop, and his tongue flips out. I loosen the hold on his neck, but I keep the gun there just so he knows I'm not messing around.

“Why did you tell Kingz my location? Why did you stab me in the back?”

“That’s crazy. I didn’t do anything like that.”

“Oh, you didn’t?”

“Of course, if you can’t trust me who else will you trust?”

“Anyone but you. Because you gave me away.” Saying those words rile up my anger. Why the hell is he denying it?

“Nobody knows the location of the cabin. But out of the blue, he pulled up at my safe spot and started shooting.”

Sweat trickles down Pop’s forehead. “Maybe those guys were tailing me when I was coming here. I didn’t tell anyone anything, I swear.”

“How about this?” I step away from him long enough to grab the photograph I have carefully placed on the couch. I remain careful not to lose my aim on him.

He’s still rubbing his nose, and from his body language, he’s more concerned about his bleeding nose than getting away. The betrayed look on his face stuns me. Is he trying to win an Oscar with this playacting?

I hand him the photograph, and he looks at it. There's no flicker of recognition on his face.

“Who’s this?”

“Tati’s brother.”

“What has that got to do with me?”

“The picture is sitting pretty in the bag you packed for me. You brought it here, and it caused a rift between me and Tati.”

Pop shakes his head. “You’re getting me confused right now. Do you think I ratted you out or Kingz or set this picture in the bag? How dumb can I be to do that when I know I’ll be the only suspect?”

“You didn’t have to bother about that. You thought Kingz would kill me, didn’t you? You probably have an agreement with him.”

Pop's lips twist into a mocking smile. "What agreement?"

“You tell me.”

“There’s no fucking agreement.”

I know he’s not gonna confess easily, “You’ll confess when we get to the club guard room and you have to spill in front of all those boys.”

“You’re making a mistake. A big mistake.”

I ask him to put his hands behind him and then tie up both hands. He constantly shakes his head and bites his lower lip.

“Why did you do it?” I step back in front of him. “How much did Kingz pay you to betray your own blood?”

“How good is Tati’s body that you’re willing to keep your blood under lock?”

I smack Pop across the face, and he spits on my forehead. Wiping the saliva gob with the back of his sleeve, I step back from Pop and ask him to turn around.

Up close, he smells of the same cologne my brother used to wear when he was alive. My eyes sting with tears. Pop shouldn't have been the guy to betray me!

I lead him all the way to a free room in the cabin, and then I lock him up there. As soon as I have locked him up, I walk back to the bedroom and unlock it. Tati jumps at me and holds me tight.

"I was scared something happened to you," she breathes against my chest.

I rub my hands on her back and whisper. "It's fine. I'm safe. But there's some serious business I want to handle right now."

Tati draws back from me, her eyes full of questions. "Can I come with you?"

"No. It's not even safe for you to stay here."

"Wow. So where will I stay."

I cup my hand and cough into it. "I've made an arrangement with my butler. He'll get you somewhere safe."

While Tati is still asking questions, I dial up Clyde, and he answers right away.

"It's time. Bring the bags."

"Right, sir."

I slip my phone into my pocket and begin to reassure Tati again.

"What will you do about him? I mean Pop."

I shrug. "I'll get him to talk. I have to know everything he has spilled to the bad guys."

"Just take it easy with him, okay?"

My eyes narrow. "There's no virtue in showing mercy to traitors."

Tati is about to say something, but a knock sounds on the main door, and I know right away that it's Clyde. I go out to meet him with Tati.

"He's my trusted worker," I tell Tati, then I turn to Clyde. "I need you to take her to Fort Knox. Call me when you get there safely."

Clyde smiles. "I will, sir. I'll do everything to ensure her safety."

"Good."

I wave to Tati as she and Clyde grab bags and walk out the door. Now, I can focus on the business of getting Pop to talk. It's painful to cause my family so much distress, but it doesn't matter.

Pop has to pay for his actions.And it’s time to take the game to Kingz. Like rats, we have nibbled at each other for far too long. The showdown we have managed for so long is about to happen.

Maybe the best crew win.