Luckily, nothing ever came of it. A night in the slammer, and I was a free man. That was the first time. Since then I’ve been careful, but occasionally we get pulled in for questioning. It’s rare to spend a night in jail, though. Not when we have the best lawyer money can buy, and more than enough cops and judges on our payroll to make up our own court system. We always know when we’ll be detained ahead of time, so we’re always prepared.
But this time, fuck--this time it could be the real thing for me. The uncertainty surrounding this arrest is different from all the other times, and I don’t like it.
“You’re gonna be fine,” Anthony says, taking a seat on my sofa. He drapes his arms across the back of the grey leather couch, and I wish I were as relaxed as him. I've never been envious of Anthony. He's a few inches shorter than me, and between the two of us, I'm the bigger pussy magnet. But right now I wish I'd been smart like him and and taken a job that didn't have me risking my neck like this.
“He said there’s a good bit of evidence,” I point out. Those are the words I keep hearing. Good bit of evidence.
“What are they gonna charge you with, huh?” He takes a swallow of his whiskey and leans forward, setting his drink down on the glassy surface of the coffee table before answering his own question. “Doing their job for ‘em?” He says it sarcastically with a raised brow.
We got into a tight spot with some business partners, Abram Petrov and his crew. He was a big fucking deal, along with his supposed second-in-command Vadik Mikhailov. They took over international territories like it was nothing. Then he came here and wanted us to deal in the sex trafficking industry. That’s not our thing. Unfortunately, when you tell people 'no' in our line of business, cutting ties takes on a whole new meaning.
“Murder, that one’s legit,” I finally respond. Thirteen dead members of Petrov’s crew were left at the scene, along with twelve women we made certain were safe in the back room. We had a heads-up from Kane about Petrov's plan to murder us, so Petrov and his crew went down easier since they didn’t know our ambush was coming.
Now the cops are trying to pin it all on me. I was the one stupid enough to leave evidence behind. Usually the clean-up crew gets all of it. But this time, they didn’t. It’s not like I was sloppy--I’m never sloppy. Shit just falls through the cracks sometimes. And this time it might fuck me over real good.
“Stop sweating it. They’re just trying to get something from you,” Anthony points out, still trying to reassure me. I should listen to Anthony. My brother’s got great intuition, and he’s always right. “I’ll be there to pick you up when you’re done, waiting right outside.” He picks up his drink again, taking another pull before continuing. “And I bet the ice in my drink won’t even be melted by the time you’re getting into my ride.” He swirls the ice around in the glass for emphasis as he says it.
He keeps my gaze, but I have to break it. I have a sick feeling in my gut. Vince says it’ll be fine, that the judge says some of the evidence is inadmissible. But some is not all, and something deep down is telling me they’re going to get me this time. It was way too big of a scene to clean up. Too much shit on our turf. We’ve been laying low, but it’s going to blow up in our faces. I just know it.
Tilting my head to the left and right, I crack my neck on both sides. I down the remainder of my glass, savoring the sensation of the cold liquid mixed with the hot burn of the whiskey. It slides down my throat and warms my chest. That’s when I hear them. I take a heavy breath and roll out my shoulders, knowing they’ll be hurting once the cuffs are on. Gotta loosen them up now. Somehow, hearing the wail of the sirens get louder as they approach puts me at ease. Maybe it’s just the waiting part that irritates me.
My heartbeat steadies, and my nerves follow suit. It’s just like any other day, I tell myself. I’m used to this. These high-stress situations can’t faze me. I can’t let them see me in any other states but calm and confident. No one ever gets to see me in any other condition than prepared. If they view you otherwise, you give them a chance to think of you as weak. And that's one thing I'm not.
“That’s the brother I know.” Anthony gets up and walks past me to the window, tipping the upper blinds back to get a better view. “Oh, five,” he says as his voice rises sarcastically. “You’re so fucking special.” I chuckle and pat him on the back as I head to the door.
Him being so at ease and having a sense of humor about it all does help. I gotta admit, whenever I’m in this shit, he’s always here for me, before and after. The other guys are at the bar, but I know they’ll be waiting for me there when I get out, too. That’s something the familia is always good for, buying you a drink when you get out.