“I’m sor—” A loud bang sounded and shook me to the core. Meg jumped, and Royal sobbed uncontrollably while I tried to keep my grip on the phone.
I clutched the phone in my hand and tried to figure out what the hel
l was happening. “Grit!” I shouted. “Grit, can you hear me?”
A loud booming voice filled the deafening silence. “Inform Mr. Banachi the deal is off, and I’m coming for what belongs to me.”
The line went dead, and I dropped the phone. I grabbed Royal by the shoulders and gave her a shake. “What happened, Royal? What did they say when you answered the phone?”
“He’s dead, Indy,” she sobbed. “They killed Grit because Marco did something. They said they were fucked over, and now, I was going to pay for it.” She struggled to breathe and gagged. “I don’t know what happened. I don’t know why they killed Grit!”
Meg’s eyes connected with mine. She pulled out her phone and headed out the front door.
“What the fuck is going on?” Frost shouted.
I gathered Royal in my arms and just held her.
Meg gave Frost the quick rundown of what little we knew, then slipped out the door.
Frost couched next to us and laid a hand on my shoulder. “Let me get her, darlin’. You guys don’t need to be on the dirty floor.”
Royal clung to me, her crying uncontrollable, and sobs ripped from her lips. “He didn’t do anything,” she shouted. “Why?!”
Frost managed to pull her from me and gathered her in his arms. I grabbed the phone from the ground and chased behind Frost as he stalked back to the clubhouse.
A black town car with blacked-out windows pulled up to the front door, and Marco jumped out.
“What the fuck did you do?” Frost thundered.
King and the rest of the guys burst out of the clubhouse and stood toe to toe with Marco.
Marco took a deep breath. “I made a mistake.”
*
Chapter Twenty-One
Royal
Why?
Indiana’s Sloppy Joe Recipe
Perfect for your next impromptu MC gathering
6 lbs. lean ground beef
1 small onion, minced
3 cans tomato soup
4 Tbsp yellow mustard
1 ¼ cups brown sugar
1 Tbsp Worcestershire
Salt and pepper to taste