Sins (Havoc of Sins #3)

Chapter 2

Simon

My prison life had become a game of dodgeball. I constantly had to dodge the monsters who wanted their way with me, and I grew exhausted with all the hiding. I had little protection, and they knew it. I soon found solace in the library. Who would have thought they had one? The library was huge, and they had an entire wing designated just to books on the law. I had to laugh at that one. Given that I was a model inmate, I soon earned the respect of Sprinkles, the manager, who just so happened to be best friends with CM, my cellmate.

I remembered the day I asked the manager why he was called Sprinkles. He just smiled and said he added that extra little touch to those who stood in his gang’s way. The image that passed through me sent goosebumps. I quit asking about nicknames after that.

I eyed CM as he thumbed through a law book and scribbled something down in his notebook. He always had that book tucked in his breast pocket.

“Curiosity will get you killed in here.” He didn’t look up, so he must have felt me watching him. “Go ahead and ask.”

The load of books in my arms was heavy, so I started to stack them as I spoke. “How much time do you have left?” I pushed my glasses farther up my nose. “Here, I mean.”

“I can leave at any time.” He shrugged, and I chuckled, but when he looked up, I saw something flash across his face.

“I guess I could, too, but I don’t want to be shot or thrown into the hole like you were just in last month.”

He closed his notebook, tucked it away, and moved closer. “See this?” He pulled up his sleeve and pointed to a part of his tattoo. “That symbol right there?” I nodded. “That means I’m a recruiter. I pop in and out of prison to check on my men here and the new guys coming in.”

“For your club?” I tried to follow.

“Yes, my club.” He smiled like he thought it was cute I called it a club. “I wasn’t in the hole. I was in west Los Angeles checking on a,” he tilted his head as he thought, “client who got himself into a real bad situation.”

A smile broke out across my face when I realized he was playing me. “You had me there.” I chuckled.

“You don’t believe me?”

“I don’t.” I lowered my voice when a guard came in with his lunch. “It’s impossible.”

He jumped up on the table, and I held my breath, waiting for the guard to snap at him. “Nothing is impossible when you have money. We,” he tapped his tattoo, “have money. Lots of it, in fact.”

“How?” I shook my head and thought how crazy this all sounded. “Who are you, really?”

He pursed his lips and studied my face. “So, are you ready to share who you really are?”

I pulled my glasses off and used a rag to clean them. I needed a moment to think. “Why do I get the impression you knew who I was before I stepped into our cell?”

“He said you were smart.” He grinned.

“Who?”

“Come.” He chin-pointed to the door. “We should talk, but not here.”

I jumped back to the present as Cameron tossed open the door to his office, then I slammed into his back as he stopped short. I bounced off his heavy body, but he didn’t turn around.

“What the fuck happened to you?” he barked at someone I couldn’t see. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Jesse, Grim’s right-hand man, turn swiftly on his heel and head in the opposite direction. That was odd.

The sound of a bullet being pushed into the chamber pulled my attention immediately back to the office.

“Whoa!” Cameron dropped his bag and raised his hands. “What the hell?”

I shimmied around Cameron and saw a badly beaten Sonny sitting in one of the chairs. He had a gun pointed in our direction.

“This, you fat, fucking ass, was meant for you!” he shouted as I slowly closed the door. I didn’t want to give Jesse a reason to head back this way.

I inched between the two of them. I figured Sonny had reached his limit. “Who did this to you?” I tried to be the rational one.

Sonny winced as he stood and pressed his other hand to what I could only imagine were several cracked or broken ribs. “I’m tired of this.” He moved closer to Cameron. “I’ve had enough of your constant bullshit. I’m?—”

“Calm down, Sonny.” Cameron stepped back with his hands out in front of him. He stopped as he hit the wall. “Who did this?” Sonny raised the gun, so it pointed at Cameron’s face. I knew I should stop him, but there was a part of me that liked seeing Cameron nearly soil himself.

“He was looking for you,” Sonny’s voice made my mouth go dry, “but found me instead.”

I moved into Sonny’s line of vision, in fear he’d go too far and really shoot Cameron. “Who are you talking about?”

“Grim Gates.” I watched as that news sank in for Cameron. “I took a beating for you, motherfucker.”

Cameron’s face turned three shades of red as he took a deep breath. “Impossible. He can’t know. There’s no proof.”

“The missing cliff links,” I reminded him.

He swung his gaze over to me. “But those were sent to me. I didn’t take them.”

I shrugged. “Does it matter? Possession is nine-tenths of the law.”

“Hang on, hang on.” Cameron held up a hand as he thought. “Let’s back this up a moment. Why would you think Grim was after me and wasn’t looking for you ?”

“You want to try that sentence again?” Sonny hissed.

“ You went to New Orleans to discover if that inked-up mongrel was involved with my daughter. You were supposed to keep a low profile and report back to me. Instead, you made a mockery of yourself, swinging your hurt ego around when you saw they were together. Then you go and make a big show of your power. Maybe, just maybe,” Cameron’s face twisted into a grin, “he believes it was you behind his brother’s hit.” He paused as Sonny’s face grew red. “No, I don’t think that beating was for me. I think he was looking for me to find you, and you just so happened to be in my office when he came in.”

“Cameron,” I warned. I knew shit was about to hit the fan.

“If Grim Gates believed it was me behind Leo’s death, I can assure you I’d have a sniper laser between my eyes right now.”

If he would only be so lucky.

“If you want to blame me for that,” Cameron pointed at Sonny’s swollen face, “bring me more proof.”

The sound of spit being pulled from halfway down someone’s throat filled the silence, then Sonny spat a bloody ball of mucus at Cameron’s chest.

I closed my eyes in disgust. I totally understood why Sonny was so upset. Cameron was an idiot and incredibly hardheaded. He refused to see anyone’s side of things if he didn’t want to. He was impossible.

Sonny dropped his arm and groaned in pain. As the gun lowered, I let out the breath I held. “We need to get you looked at, Sonny.” I hoped he would let it go for now.

Sonny looked at me, then his face twisted in an ugly scowl as he looked over at Cameron. “Let’s not forget your role in all of this.”