✔Vengeful Valentine

Nineteen: Adam

The windshield wipers scraped against the glass, struggling to push away the pelting snowflakes. Just when I thought the weather was looking up too. Some dirty slush still piled up on the sides of the roads, but it wouldn't be long before snow covered the ground again.

Before heading to work that morning, Chris and I stopped by Harlan's diner. Priscilla arrived before we did, sipping on a mug of coffee at a booth in the back corner. She waved us over when we walked inside, single file. The bell above our heads chimed before we shut the wind outside behind us.

"Are you sure you wanna do this?" detective Bailey asked, fiddling with the condiments. "You won't be able to contact any of your family or friends for so long. And what if this doesn't work? What if they find you?"

"It's better than jail time." Priscilla shrugged. "Besides, it's not like it'll be forever. Those gang members won't be searching for me if they think I'm dead. They'll forget about me eventually once they find their replacement."

"Do you really think this is a good idea?" Chris asked, looking at me expectantly.

"I think it's the best way to keep her safe. You know how those gangs are. Once you're in, they make it damn-near impossible to get out," I replied. "We now know who we're looking for in the Black Vipers, especially the White Dragon."

Detective Bailey gaped. "Wait, what?" He directed his gaze on his sister. "You know who the real White Dragon is?"

Priscilla nodded, fidgeting in her seat.

"It's Annie," I whispered. "The secretary."

"Holy shit." Chris shook his head. "What have you gotten yourself mixed up in?"

"I know I messed up, but I'm gonna do better. I promise," Priscilla insisted. "You don't gotta worry about me. I'll be safe now."

"This is just such a crazy ass idea." Casting a glance around the empty diner, Chris lowered his voice and said, "Not to mention, very illegal."

"Sometimes we break the law for the people we care about," I told him. "Priscilla will be safer this way. They'd easily find her in jail and you don't wanna know what they'd make her do there."

Priscilla scrunched up her nose, cringing. "Yeah, let's not talk about it then."

"Before we do this, I have to ask again. Are you sure none of the Black Vipers put a hit out on Everly?" I questioned, reclining back in my booth. "Anything you might've heard about a drive-by at the aquarium?"

Priscilla shook her head. "I'm sorry, Adam. I haven't. If I had, I would've told ya. You need to look closer at the Voiceless Rebels, especially their leader. I'm sure the police have more leads on his identity than anyone else in New Syracuse do."

Little did she know...

Thank goodness Harlan came around to our table. The last thing I wanted to discuss was the Voiceless Rebels leader. Emmett was a lucky son of a bitch. If I didn't love his sister so much, I'd already have his scrawny ass behind bars, where he belonged. That blond bastard knew how to manipulate people into doing whatever he wanted. He was a cunning businessman, despite being a dopehead too.

Harlan made sure the window blinds were closed and flipped the open sign around to closed. After that, he removed his white apron and joined us at the table.

"Priscilla knows the plan," Harlan said. "It's up to y'all to help make it believable. You know the drill, right, Adam?"

"Sure do." I sipped on my coffee.

"Excuse me, but what exactly is the plan?" Chris questioned. "How are we supposed to make Priscilla's disappearance seem like a murder?"

"Her boss gave her the location for a new dealing," I said. "Harlan's gonna show up early and set the place on fire, make it seem like she blew up. Don't worry, it's in a remote location. He'll scout it out to be sure nobody gets hurt either. Meanwhile, I'm gonna take Priscilla out to my hometown in a nice apartment where nobody would bother to look. I'll take one of Harlan's old cars too. I want you to go back to work like everything is normal, but stay in the cruiser. Try not to run into anyone, or they'll question where I've gone. If you do happen to get stopped, tell them I stopped for an emergency bathroom break. They can chew me out for that if they'd like."

"But there won't be a body," Chris pointed out. "They'll realize that, especially if they've got inside sources with the police."

"Unless their inside source is you, they'll never know," I replied. "The county coroner is Harlan's uncle. He helps us out in these situations. He'll publicly file a report about an unidentified young woman's remains being found in the building. Her name will never be released. The members from the Black Vipers will realize things turned south and–"

"It'll most likely result in another gang war between them and the Voiceless Rebels," Harlan explained.

Rubbing the back of my neck, I sighed. "Yeah, it probably will. It usually does whenever we do this. But if we can save these young women's lives, I don't mind it. They deserve a better life away from the gangs."

"How long have y'all been doing this?" Chris asked, brows furrowed.

"Bout six months or so," I replied. "It all started with a friend of Harlan's daughter. We've done this five more times, now six. From both gangs. I got on board with the idea so fast cause I'd do the same thing for Everly if she ever needed me to."

"I don't know," Chris said. "Are you really sure you wanna do this, Priscilla?"

"Yeah, I am." She reached over to touch her brother's arm. "I'll be fine, don't worry. No more gangs or dealing. It'll be a fresh start for me."

Chris sighed. "Okay, then I'm on board with this too. Let's get started."

After getting everything in place for the dealing that was supposed to go down in about an hour, I checked my phone for any messages from Everly. I hated how I left her after not settling our argument. She just didn't understand how much I worried about her. I saw how those gangs ruined innocent women's lives all the time. I wouldn't let Emmett do that to her. No matter what I had to do, I would always keep Everly safe.

Lying to my girl about working today wasn't something I was proud of doing. I just couldn't tell her about this, not right now. Not while she still worked for the gang. I loved Everly with all my heart, but I wasn't sure I could trust her not to divulge this to her brother. I shouldn't have to sneak around her, but I couldn't let anybody know what Harlan and I did. Chris was the only other person who knew about our operation. I trusted him not to ruin it for us.

We'd been in deep shit if word got out around town about our work. Both with the gangs, who'd be searching for their women, and my sergeant. Davidson let me get away with more crap than he should, but he'd be forced to draw the line here.

"You good?" Chris patted me on the back.

"Never better," I grumbled, slamming the trunk of Harlan's old car after loading it with everything we needed. "Let's get this over with. I'll see ya soon, man."

Chris nodded, bidding goodbye to his sister. "Be safe, y'all."

"I'll see you soon." She hugged Chris tightly. "You be careful out there too."

"Don't worry. I will," he assured her.

"Let's get going." I climbed into the driver's seat as Priscilla climbed in the back.

After I drove Priscilla out into the countryside and into my hometown, I had detective Bailey pick me up and take us to the building Harlan set on fire. Other officers were already on the scene. Even Milada Van was present at the scene of the crime, filming the devastating fire that broke out on live TV. Rumors about it being a meth lab traveled real quick, which made sense on that terrible side of town.

At least Priscilla would be safe. I couldn't say that about Everly though. Not until I found the fucker who hurt her. If it came down to it, I'd get her into hiding too. She just needed to realize the Voiceless Rebels wouldn't always keep her safe, but how could I prove that to her?