Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 83777 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 419(@200wpm)___ 335(@250wpm)___ 279(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83777 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 419(@200wpm)___ 335(@250wpm)___ 279(@300wpm)
I chuckled, “Today should be all the reminding you need.”
When we walked in, Pookie was already sitting at the table with a shit-eating grin plastered on his round face. His bright orange jumpsuit looked at least two sizes too small, and yet, he’d somehow managed to roll the sleeves up just enough to show off the tattoos on his pudgy forearms. When he saw Goose, his eyes lit up, and he let out a high-pitched squeal.
“Oh, mi amor, you came too!” Pookie sang, dramatically clutching his chest like he was about to faint. “I knew you’d miss me.”
“Ah, hell.” Goose shot me a look, jaw tightening like he was bracing for impact. “You did this shit on purpose, didn’t ya.”
“Oh, cut the crap. You know you love it.”
“Fuck you, brother,” he rasped under his breath, then shifted his scowl into a playful grin as he turned on all the charm he could muster. “Looking good, Pookie. You been working out?”
“Mmm, don’t play with me, boy.” Pookie flipped his hand in the air, “You know I’m thick, but you like it.”
“Yeah, yeah. You right.”
I stifled a laugh as I slid into the chair across from Pookie. Goose sat next to me, leaning back and running his hand through his hair like he was God’s gift to women and to Pookie. Goose gave him a quick once-over as he asked, “How’s life been treating you in here?”
“Not too bad.” Pookie was practically drooling at this point, and Goose was feeding right into him. “Just getting through the grind. You know how it can be.”
“Sure do.” Goose gave him a wink. “But as long as you give as good as you get, it’s all good.”
“Oh, honey. I always give better.” Pookie gave him a wink. “It makes me worth remembering and has them coming back for more.”
“Ain’t nobody gonna forget you, Pook.”
“That’s the plan.”
“We need a favor,” I said, cutting through all the theatrics.
“Okay. That’s what I’m here for.” Pookie’s grin softened, and he leaned forward, resting his chin on his hands so he was looking directly at me. But his eyes still flickered over to Goose every few seconds like he couldn’t help himself. “What can I do for you, papí?”
“There’s a new guy in here.” I leaned in and tried to keep my voice low as I told him, “Brian Maddox. He’s a cop.”
“I saw your little coppy friend when they brought him in. He’s got a snooty face and a bad attitude.” Pookie scowled. “He’s trying to play it tough, but we all know he’s rattled.”
“That’s good,” Goose said, smirking. “We need him scared.”
“You want me to shank him?” Pookie didn’t even try lowering his voice as he told us, “I can get him while he’s on the shitter. Cause, you know, cops are full of shit.”
“Yeah, I get where you’re going, but no shanking. We don’t want him dead.”
As tempting as it might’ve been, I didn’t want to be the one who ultimately put an end to Austin and Chrissy’s father. It was hard enough for them to face him being behind bars. They didn’t deserve having to see him six feet under, too. “No, just the opposite. We need you to keep him breathing.”
“He’s under your protection?”
“To some extent. A good ass-beatin’ from time to time wouldn’t hurt him. But we need him alive.”
“That’s all?”
“I have a feeling it’s not gonna be that easy.”
“No, cops don’t fare well in here, but I’ve got pull. I should be able to keep him going.”
“And if he happens to mention anything about girls or where he might’ve sent ‘em or anything about ‘em, I need to know about it.”
“Okay. I’ll keep an ear out.”
“And he starts bragging about who he was working with, I need to know that, too.”
I knew our chances of finding any of the girls Maddox had trafficked were slim, but I had to try. For Devin and for the club. We’d never confirmed what Maddox had meant when he said we were connected. I had my suspicions. Preacher did, too, but I needed to know for sure. We all did.
“You got it.” Pookie batted his eyelashes at Goose, “But what’s in it for me, handsome?
“What are you asking for?”
“You boys already do plenty.” He ran the tip of his tongue across his bottom lip before adding, “But I could use a couple of cartons of cigarettes, maybe a few extra hours out in the yard, you know I love the sunshine, and I could definitely go for a conjugal visit with my favorite Fury stud.”
“We can work on the cigarettes and time out in the yard, but I wouldn’t hold ya breath on the visit.”
“Worth a try.” He gave me a shrug. “But no matter. I’ll babysit your cop friend.”
“Thanks, man. We’ll owe you.”
“I like the sound of that.”