Jimmy Marker was also there.
This meant things were not as bad as I thought.
They were worse.
I didn’t call my welcome back, glad-you-survived-all-that-unadulterated-nookie to Luke.
I just cut my eyes through the men, got a bunch of chin lifts (seriously?), moved to a weight bench and sat my ass on it.
Lee watched me do it and turned to the team.
“Brief,” he began, his voice terse, indicating things weren’t worse, they were worse. “You all know the case Ally’s on and you all know about the payments, the players already uncovered and the note Meena gave to Ally last night.”
No one nodded. They all just kept their eyes on Lee.
After looking around, I followed suit.
“Brody found the trail,” Lee went on. “Cyrus Gibbons’s cellmate in Nebraska has links to Steiner and the crew here. This morning, Darius tailed Steiner and Bobby tailed Gibbons to a crew meet. There are five of them. Darius was able to get into position without bein’ seen to listen in. Their gig is, they got a man on each of Smithie’s women, and therefore his kids.”
Oh my God.
I closed my eyes.
“Gibbons is on Smithie,” Lee continued and I opened my eyes. “The girls don’t pay, givin’ their tip takes, they put the hurt on all of Smithie’s family. They talk, they put the hurt on all of them. They don’t give Gibbons what he wants during his private dances, he puts the hurt on Smithie.”
Seeing as my head was suddenly about to explode at Lee’s words, I had to let some of the pressure out.
Therefore, I couldn’t stop myself from hissing, “You’re shitting me.”
Lee looked at me. “Ally—”
“He’s raping them at Smithies?” I snapped.
“Forced blowjobs, same thing,” Lee answered, his voice tight.
I surged from my seat, shouting, “You’ve got to be shitting me!”
“Ally, cool it,” Hank said quietly.
“You cool it. You haven’t spent your nights working alongside a bunch of girls who’re being violated!” I shot back.
“This isn’t going on for another day, Ally,” Lee stated. “We’re takin’ them down tonight, all those fuckers. And you got your part in that. I get you’re pissed. I get why. We’re all pissed. But we got a job to do. You need to shift that anger to focus, ‘cause you’re a go tonight.”
I was a go?
What the hell did that mean?
“What?” I asked.
“We have to take them down simultaneously so they don’t have the opportunity to talk, see or hear the others were taken out and do something about it, namely put one of Smithie’s women or kids in danger. At the club tonight, Steiner will be Darius’s. Gibbons, yours.”
“I’m on Gibbons,” Darius stated and I knew why. He was the greater danger.
Lee looked to him.
“They’re steerin’ clear of Lottie because of her connection with Eddie and likely the rest of us. This means they know the connection, so he’ll know you. You enter when Ally’s dancin’ and Gibbons has eyes on her. Steiner will either have eyes on her or the crowd. You go for Steiner. Ally makes Gibbons part of the act and she goes for him.” Lee looked at me. “It sucks and it makes me wanna vomit sayin’ this, but you dance for him. You do it smart. You’ll have backup, Ally. Luke and Mace are on you. But you gotta disarm him and not get shot doin’ it.”
Holy shit!
Lee looked like he’d eaten something rotten when he asked, “Can you keep him occupied to do that?”
I stared at him. I looked to Hank to see a muscle jerk in his cheek. I looked through the men.
They all had eyes on me.
I looked back at Lee and sat my ass down again, saying, “Absolutely.”
Lee nodded.
“While he’s eyes to you, Darius takes Steiner out, Mace and Luke will get into position,” he went on. “You just have to get your hand on his gun. Shoulder holster. His left side. Once you got it, you get the fuck outta the way. Mace and Luke will move in.”
I nodded.
His voice dropped lower when he said, “You got the feel, Ally. You demonstrated that at Lincoln’s. If it hits you it’s goin’ bad, he looks like he’s goin’ for his gun, you get the fuck out. Mace and Luke will roll in. But I want his ass jacked by a dancer. I want him disarmed and unmanned by a woman and I want that to have an audience. You with me?”
Oh, fuck yeah.
I was with him.
