Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5 

Alex didn’t say a word, even as his jaw was shoved hard against the cold wall. If he opened his mouth now, if he let even a fraction of the rage inside him slip out, he might just grab a gun and shoot every damned person in that room.

From across the room, Trout, who’d been leaning casually against the wall, broke the silence. “We’ve been shipping for a long time without issues. Now this new guy shows up, and suddenly the police are sniffing around.”

A tall, lanky man nodded quickly. “Yeah, boss. Can’t be a coincidence, right? Maybe he’s a plant. A spy.”

The rest of the men murmured in agreement, suspicion growing like a storm cloud.

Idiots, Alex thought. They were starting to suspect him, and that was dangerous. If things kept going this way, he'd be kicked out before he had the chance to gather a piece of evidence.

His gaze sharpened, landing on Trout. From the moment he walked into the house, he’d pegged the man as a problem. Always watching him, always lurking. If Alex wanted to succeed here, Trout had to go.

“I could easily say you’re the rat,” Alex said coolly. “After all, I saw you sneaking into the bushes earlier. Didn’t think anyone noticed, did you?”

Trout straightened immediately, fear flickering in his eyes. He thought no one had seen him slip away, but this fool had.

Lucian’s eyes darted between Alex and Trout, reading the tension like a book. “What’s this I’m hearing? And what bush is he talking about?”

“He’s crazy, boss,” Trout said quickly. “He’s the one who tipped off the cops. Said he was just going into the bush to pee.”

Lucian didn’t even hesitate. He shoved Alex harder against the wall, the rough surface biting into his cheek. “Don’t take me for a fool. My patience is wearing thin.”

“I didn’t do anything,” Alex gritted out. His face burned from the scrape. If this man kept going, was he planning to skin him alive?

“Check my phone. I didn’t call anyone.” He said.

Lucian nodded to Trout, who stepped forward and dug into Alex’s pocket. He scrolled through the call log, brow furrowing. Nothing. No calls. No deleted messages either.

Lucian let him go, and Alex stepped back, brushing a hand over his aching face. He couldn’t see it, but he knew it had to be red.

Alex’s voice turned sharp. “Trout knows how the cops found us. Ask him what he was doing in the bush with Skipper’s man, and what they were talking about.”

Let’s see how you like the heat, he thought. You want to accuse me blindly? Payback’s a bitch.

Lucian’s head snapped to Trout. “What were you doing with Skipper’s man?” he was already walking towards him.

“B-boss, I—”

The slap came fast and hard. Trout’s head jerked to the side, his hand flying to his cheek.

“Speak!” Lucian barked. "Or do I have to force the words out?"

Alex stepped forward, pulled something from his pocket, and held it out. Everyone gasped. In his hand was a small packet of drugs.

Lucian snatched it and glared at Trout, who looked like he was about to cry.

“You’re still using?!” he yelled. "How dare you! Lucian was livid. He'd promised him that he would never, now he'd gone behind him.

“Boss, I’m sorry!” Trout fell to his knees, groveling. “I quit, I swear I did. But the urge came back, and—” The words formed a lump in his throat.

Lucian flung the packet to the floor, dragging a hand through his tousled hair. Then, in one smooth motion, he pulled out his gun and pressed it to Trout’s head.

“Trout,” he growled. “Don’t make me do something I’ll regret. You’re on thin ice. One more slip-up, and the cops will find your corpse in a ditch.”

With that, he stormed out. The longer he stayed there, the more his anger rose.

The moment the door slammed shut, Trout launched himself at Alex, grabbing him by the collar.

“I’ll ruin you,” he hissed. “I know you’re hiding something, and I’ll find out what it is.” 

Alex scoffed, pushing him away from him. Not if I take you down first. Whatever he had to do, he had to do it fast.

Later that night, after dinner, everyone retreated to their rooms. Alex laid on his bed, eyes fixed on the ceiling. Cameras were everywhere. He couldn’t talk, couldn’t move suspiciously, couldn’t even breathe wrong. If he so much as touched the cameras, it’d raise alarms.

How could he get Trout kicked out of the house? He tossed and turned in bed.

Lucian seemed to trust him. That meant Trout would need to do something unforgivable, something Lucian wouldn’t tolerate.

He sat up and pulled on a shirt. He needed to go on a walk. A walk always helped to clear his head, and make space for new ideas.

As he moved down the hall, he passed Lucian’s room. The light was on. Voices filtered through the door. Alex stopped and carefully stepped back, positioning himself just out of the camera’s view.

He heard Lucian and Trout. But there was a third voice, one he didn’t recognize.

“Have you separated the goods to send to our suppliers?”

“Yes, father,” Lucian replied.

Father? That must be Torres Romano, the man Alex had read about in the files. He was supposed to be out of the country for some months, why was he back?

“Trout and some of the men will deliver to Don Enzo tonight,” Torres said. “There shouldn’t be any problems, understood?”

Footsteps approached. Alex quickly disappeared down the hall. The door opened, and Lucian and Trout walked out.

They were making a move tonight. He couldn’t rely on backup, not after the last time the inspector failed to show until it was too late.