“Vix, hey, can I have a moment?” Tobias asked just as one of this night’s fights had ended. Before the fights, Chiara had told everyone to be careful and, surprisingly, people took it well, but maybe that was because they believed they were safe here and it was hard for them to imagine anyone destroying this place after so many years.
Tobias was one of the more recent members, and I’d almost denied him entry, because he also belonged to a small gang named The Vicious Cobras. But he promised no one would know he was coming here and that he wouldn’t be giving us any trouble, and since his gang usually stayed at the other end of the city because they didn’t want to piss off the big guys, I figured that could work out. My decision had turned out not to be a mistake, because so far we hadn’t had any problems.
“Come with me,” I said, and Tobias and I started toward my office. Seth was right behind us too, but I indicated for him to stay in front of my office, which didn’t seem to please him, because his lip was curled a little.
“What’s up?” I asked as soon as we were seated. Tobias had a fight coming up tomorrow, so maybe he wanted to postpone it or something. He was a tall, bulky dark-haired guy with brown eyes. “Everything okay?”
“I heard about your problem with the Wolves, and I think we can help.”
“We?” I arched an eyebrow at him.
“Yeah, I’m good friends with the new leader of The Vicious Cobras. We can help protect this place.” Tobias flashed me a smile.
“No, I can’t. The last thing we need is another gang here. Then Rubio could really start a war with us.” Not that turning this place into a spot for gang fights would be beneficial for anyone. It would probably have the same effect as handing the club over to Rubio. People would be afraid and wouldn’t trust this place any longer.
“But no one would know about it.” Tobias twirled a button of his black jacket between his fingers.
“Yeah, of course they wouldn’t.” I directed my gaze to the cobra tattoo on his neck.
He placed his hand over the tattoo. “I come here without a problem, and my guys would hide their tattoos too. It would be just a few of them. To monitor the area. Nothing more. Come on, Vix. You need protection. A bodyguard won’t cut it. Don’t you care about this place at all?”
“I do. That’s exactly why I’m reluctant to let your guys in here. You’re just one man and you’re pretty good at sneaking around, but if a gang’s members start walking around this place, don’t you think that could get us both in trouble? What if Rubio’s men go after yours?”
“I’m telling you. Just the closest and most trusted ones would be here. No one else. No one would know they’re here, and there are plenty of rooftops around. We can monitor the situation and no one will know.”
“Are you sure about that?” I gave him a long look, wondering what to do. It wouldn’t be such a bad idea to have guards, especially since it would be difficult for me to find someone I could trust and who’d be willing to take such a risk as to protect the club, considering it was a target of one of the biggest gangs around here.
“Yeah, I’m confident.” Tobias’ eyes were intent on mine. “Trust me. We can try it out. On the first sign of trouble, we leave. Okay?”
I nodded. “I suppose you want something in return.”
He shook his head. “Just that this club keeps going as it is.”
“Then we have a deal.” I extended my hand to him and he shook it. There had to be something else Tobias’ people wanted, though. Maybe watching over the club was an excuse to be in the area and monitor some other gang’s activity, but right now I didn’t care.
I trusted Tobias wouldn’t do anything to harm this club, because considering the number of times he’d been here... Actually, he was earning pretty good money fighting here, so maybe that was why he wanted this place to remain as it was. He definitely wouldn’t be permitted to enter Rubio’s club with that tattoo on his neck.
“But remember,” I said as he got to his feet. “No one can know your guys are here, and I don’t want you telling other members anything.” There was no need to cause panic just yet, and the presence of more gang members would certainly cause unrest. They barely tolerated Tobias, and there were still members who didn’t want to show up on the days Tobias was here or who refused to fight him.
“Yeah, sure.” He offered me a wide smile as he opened the door.
“Don’t close the door behind you,” I said before he could do it.
Seth was right across from the door and glaring at Tobias, who gave him a quick look but then just proceeded down the hallway. My bodyguard’s piercing eyes met mine again, and a shiver ran down my spine. The look he was giving me was so intense that I didn’t know what to think.
Did he disprove of me dealing with a gang member? Surely, he must’ve recognized the tattoo on Tobias’ neck. Would the news about my meeting with Tobias get to Rubio? Seth couldn’t have heard what we’d been talking about. Pushing himself off the wall, he strode straight into my office.
“Do you need anything?” I rose to my feet and gave him a questioning look.
“What was that guy doing here?” he asked. “He’s a...”
“Member of a gang? Yeah, I know.” A small smile tugged at my lips, and Seth frowned. “Why? What do you care?”
“Those people are dangerous. You never know what they’re planning,” he said.
“I didn’t ask for your advice. You’re here to protect me, not counsel me.”
He opened his mouth to say something, but then seemed to think better of it because he clamped it shut. Still, he approached me, getting so close to me that I fought the urge to back away.
“You should be careful. Two gangs circling around...” He bent his head so he could whisper into my ear. “It’s not good.” I didn’t know if it was my office’s dim lighting, but his eyes were of the most beautiful color I’d ever seen. So deep blue like the sea, and I could easily get lost in them if I wasn’t careful enough.
“I already told you. I didn’t ask for your opinion.” Luckily, my voice was steady.
He narrowed his gaze, cocking his head at me. “You’re planning something, aren’t you?”
“What are you talking about?” I snorted.
“You’re teaming up with the Cobras to go against the Wolves.”
I snorted. “That’s ridiculous.”
“Is it?”
“None of your business.” I sidestepped him and headed for the door, my knees feeling a little weak. God, what was it about him that was so...? I didn’t even know how to explain it. His proximity unnerved me, and it wasn’t all because he might be a spy. All his questions, though, were definitely weird.
“It is my business if we get caught in the crossfire. I can’t protect you if I don’t know what I’m up against.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll let you know if I’m worried about something like that happening.” I was in the hallway and able to breathe normally again, but Seth came after me. “I’m just going to the bathroom. Don’t follow me in there.”
On my way, I called for Chiara, who immediately came with me. Once she and I were in the bathroom and I’d made sure no one was in there, I took her to the farthest corner.
“Something wrong? What did Tobias want?” she asked quietly, her eyes searching mine.
“He offered help, and I accepted. A few of his guys will monitor the area and alert us if Rubio’s men show up. And don’t worry, no one will know about it. They’ll hide their tattoos and stay in the shadows. It’s not like they’re all well-known all over the city.”
“That’s good news,” she said.
“Yeah, but Seth knows something’s up. He just questioned me about teaming up with the Cobras against the Wolves,” I whispered.
“What did you tell him? Why was he even asking?” Her brow furrowed.
“Apparently, he thinks we’re going to war and he wants to know about it so he can protect me better.” I might have believed him if he’d told me he’d quit in that case. Who was a fool enough to risk their life like that? Most regular bodyguards wouldn’t want to get involved with gangs. “I don’t believe him. I think he’s mad because he doesn’t know what I agreed to and what Tobias was doing in my office. He’s probably reporting everything he sees and hears to Rubio.”
“Do you think Rubio will figure out the Cobras are here and attack them or turn another gang against them for crossing through their area without their permission?” Chiara scratched her chin, her eyes flashing with concern.
“I don’t know. Maybe not. I can say Tobias and I were just discussing a fight. He has one tomorrow. Seth doesn’t have to know the truth.”
Chiara lifted her head up. “Wait, we can use this to check if Seth’s really Rubio’s spy and figure out how they’re communicating with each other.”
“How?” I glanced at the door to make sure it was still closed.
“Think about it. Why don’t we feed fake info to Seth and see if Rubio will act on it? Seth already thinks you’re up to something, so why not reveal we’re teaming up with the Cobras to attack the Wolves? If they’re ready and know exactly what we planned, then Seth’s definitely a spy and we should kick him out of here by any means necessary. Hell, just accuse him of being a gang member and your dad will fire him and won’t believe his word, right?”
“Well, yeah.” My father hated gangs, especially drug dealers. My mother had supposedly run off with one. “But we can’t start a war. What if Rubio sends his men to fight the Cobras in their area, even though they had no part in this. I can see plenty of ways this could backfire.”
“Then don’t mention the Cobras. Say you’re planning to deal with Rubio yourself, with my help, and maybe a few others. I’m sure Mark would be thrilled to fake this, or maybe some other club member who we trust. And we can all come up with a plan to protect ourselves until Rubio realizes he was tricked.”
“I don’t know about that. I thought having Seth here would help us figure out Rubio’s plan, but I don’t know anymore. Maybe I should slip drugs into his jacket or into his drink and tell my father about it.” My father wouldn’t want to hear a word from Seth after that, especially not about the club, but he might send someone to check it out and verify the info, and I’d get a new bodyguard who’d be a problem for me. “But that would just create more trouble.”
“Look, Rubio’s not afraid of us, and he’s not afraid of the Cobras. You know how many men he has. I don’t think he cares if we’re planning something, but he’d enjoy thwarting our plan and thinking he won, so why not use the opportunity to expose Seth? Then we’d know for sure, and we could find other ways to use him or just get rid of him.”
“Don’t we already know he’s a spy? I mean, he’s way too nosy, and the way he’s looking at me...” I shook my head.
“We need to be sure. As you said, getting rid of him unnecessarily might create more trouble, and that’s the last thing we need now. Just set him up. We can come up with a plan so that Rubio won’t retaliate against anyone.”
“Fine. I’ll think about it, but we’re not doing anything that could put anyone’s life in danger. And we certainly don’t want Rubio to hurry up with his plans to take over.”
“Yeah. Rumor has it Rubio has a contender in the south. If we’re lucky, he’ll go to war with those guys and won’t have time to pay attention to us or our club.”
I’d never expected a gang war would be beneficial. “I know, but those rumors have been out there for a while and everyone seems happy with their areas. They mostly stay out of each other’s business.”
“Well, I have another idea.” Chiara laughed. “We can set some gang up and force Rubio to go to war with them so he’d leave us alone.”
“Right.” My lips pulled up into a smile. Those were some really nice dreams, but I didn’t know how this whole thing would end. If only Rubio would find something to distract himself with... but I had a feeling he wanted things he couldn’t have, and my club was one of those things. He wouldn’t give up easily.