the streets is done whether he likes it or not. Gus is going to make sure of it.”
“Olivia will be relieved to hear that. Thanks for telling me,” I told him as I headed for the door. Just before I left, I turned to him and said, “Funny how quickly things can change. Sam deserves a better life. I really hope he gets it.”
Shortly after I finished up with Crow, the brothers met for church. Gus went over everything Crow had uncovered and we strategized our plans for tonight. Gus told us in church he’d talked to Cotton and assured him that there was no need to send any brothers from back home, because whoever was fucking with Olivia and the kids would be dead before they’d even have the time to get here. It felt good, knowing these brothers had my back. It didn’t matter that they were our charter club; we were all Satan’s Fury.
After we were done, Gus and I followed Bic and Crow to the warehouse. It was time for Rick to make another call to the fuckhead he was working for. Bic unlocked the door and we stepped inside. The small room reminded me of a jail cell. There was a cot in one corner and a sink and urinal in the other, and it reeked of piss and body odor. Rick was sitting at the end of the cot in his shirt soaked through with blood. His hair was greasy with sweat and grime, and he could barely keep his eyes open. Gus walked over to the sink and filled a glass with water, then poured it over Rick’s head.
Rick sputtered and coughed as he pulled himself from his stupor, and when he looked like he actually knew we were standing there, Gus told him, “It’s time to make another call.”
“I think I’m dying,” Rick muttered.
“You’re not dying, asshole, but you will be if you fuck this up,” Bic growled.
Gus stepped closer as he handed Rick his cell phone and said, “Make the call. Our man is tracking the call, so keep him on the line as long as you can. Do exactly what we’ve told you and I’ll see about getting those wounds looked at.”
“Okay,” Rick mumbled as he took the phone in his hand.
“Fuck it up and I’ll end you,” Bic warned.
Rick dialed the number and waited for it to start ringing. He cleared his throat and then, several seconds later, he said, “Hey, man. What’s your status?” He paused for a moment and then said, “Yeah. It’s cool. I just checked. She’s at the diner and the kids are upstairs in the apartment. They should all be home by the time you arrive.” He nodded silently before saying, “Yeah, got it. It’ll be a few hours before you get here, so I’ll keep an eye on ‘em and let you know if they make a move.” He paused, trying to buy Crow a little more time, and then said, “Okay. Where? … Fine. I was just wondering how long it will take you to get to her place. I doubt they’ll go anywhere, but I will let you know if they do. Just give me a call when you get close and I’ll let you know where they are.” After another brief pause, he ended the call and handed the phone to Gus.
The second Crow gave me the nod that he’d gotten the information he needed, I asked Rick, “Where is he?”
“He’s just leaving his house. He got a direct flight to Memphis and should be here by 7:00 pm. He said he’s gotta make a stop somewhere and then he’s heading straight to the apartment.”
“What kind of stop?”
“He didn’t say. I tried asking him, but he just said he had to make a stop,” Rick repeated.
Gus looked over at Rick. “Hold tight. I’ll get Mack in here to stitch you up.”
“I’d appreciate it,” Rick told him. There was hope in his voice as he asked, “Are you going to let me out of here?”
“That depends on you, Rick,” Gus told him. “You do what we tell ya, and you’ll be free to go when this is over. If not, then Bic gets to have a little fun with you.”
As promised, Gus sent Mack in to tend to Rick’s wounds while Crow worked his magic on finding our guy’s exact location. Murph and I headed to the back to help Bic inspect all the artillery. Once all the weapons and ammo