these men could ever use at one time, enough weights for the Jolly Green Giant and Goliath to spot each other, and a mat—the one Crew uses to kick every new recruit’s ass to put him in his place. Jarvis confirmed this since his ass was, in fact, kicked on it.
They haven’t seen our mugs and we’re going to keep it that way.
“Who gave you the wad of cash and what was it for?” I demand even though I know. I’m actually more curious to know if they know who they’re dealing with.
The one on the left has been crying since we pulled him out of the back of Crew’s old truck, which for some reason smells like cows. “I don’t know! Please let me go. I needed the money. I had no idea we were building a bomb!”
“Shut the fuck up, you spineless prick!”
Okay, now we’re getting somewhere. The one on the right is in charge.
“What about you?” Grady’s boot connects with the guy in the middle. “Who paid for the fireworks you shitheads arranged tonight?”
“Fireworks?” the guy on the left asks as his voice cracks.
“You know what we’re talking about,” Crew steps forward and stoops, elbows to his knees. “What’s your name?”
The guy on the right yells, “Shut your fuckin’ mouth!”
“Don’t listen to him.” Crew is calm and cool. “He’s tied up tighter than you—can’t do a thing to you. But do you know who can?”
The kid in front of Crew breathes, “Who?”
“Me,” I interrupt. “The motherfuckers who tied you up like sheep at a rodeo don’t have a dog in this race, but I do. The way I see it, you have choices. Tell me who you’re working for and there’s a chance we’ll dump you in the middle of nowhere. You won’t die, so this is the path I suggest you choose. Or,” I pause and watch them sweat. “You do what your friend over there insists and keep your mouth shut. If you take that road, you’re no good to us, which means we’re not going to take the time to dump you anywhere—we’ll get it done here.”
“Oh shit.” The kid starts crying again.
“Shut your fucking mouth, Jace.”
“Jace.” Crew starts in again. “Now we’re getting somewhere.”
“Please. I only wanted to make some quick money—”
“Tell us who visited you at your camp tonight, Jace.”
He shakes his head. “I don’t know her name. Gary said we didn’t need to know.”
“Gary,” Jarvis belts and gives the one on the right a kick to the gut with some force behind it. Gary groans. “Gary, Gary, Gary. You’ve heard your choices. Tell us what you know.”
“You’ve been quiet.” Asa toes the guy in the middle on the tip of his Air Jordan Classics—a throwback, but still a nice choice. He winces and I sense the fear rolling off him in waves. “Don’t let your friend scare you. We want information on the person who paid you to do what you did tonight. We don’t have time to fuck around—someone needs to speak up.”
“If you open your fuckin’ mouth—”
The kid in the middle talks. “He made me do it.”
Asa tips his head. “How old are you?”
“Sev-seventeen.”
“Seventeen?” Asa whistles and the kid shudders. “I bet you wished you were hanging out at the pool with a bunch of girls rather than being tied up and blindfolded right now, huh?”
“Shit,” I mutter. I do not need a child’s life on my conscience—arsonist or not. I look over at Crew. “Do you have a way to ID them?”
“Dammit!” Gary yells.
Crew stands and crosses his arms, looking to Jarvis. “Get the scanner and print them.”
“Oh fuck, they’re police,” Jace sobs.
“Trust me, kid. You’ll wish we were the police,” I mutter, losing patience with this shit.
“What’s your name?” Asa demands.
Jace’s morals must be kicking in. “Leave Ben alone. He didn’t know what he was getting into. This isn’t his fault.”
I see Asa drag a hand down his face. “You still in high school, Ben?”
“He is!” Jace gives Ben up, proving I only need thirty seconds in a room alone with this guy and I’ll have all the info I need plus his life story and that of his ancestors. “Let him go. This is my fault—seriously, it is!”
“It’s your fault you got involved making a bomb and now could end up in federal prison?” I clip.