Total pages in book: 142
Estimated words: 132031 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 660(@200wpm)___ 528(@250wpm)___ 440(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 132031 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 660(@200wpm)___ 528(@250wpm)___ 440(@300wpm)
“If you can get Dev to the point of listening to you, without killing you, then I believe this information can pull him over to our side,” Shanna said, motioning to the heartbreaking intelligence she had accumulated.
Of course, Cash was emotionally romanticizing his time with Dev, but separating the man from the club sounded like such a better option for Dev. The biker could negotiate the terms of his withdrawal. He’d have the power of the United States government at his back. Clearing his criminal record was a drop in the bucket of what he could ask for and get if he agreed to help them.
Dev had to know he was already one foot into a jail cell. The fact that he’d not gone to prison spoke more to a fraudulent legal system than a lack of criminal activity that could be laid at his feet. And how much longer could that possibly last? At some point, some do-gooder judge wasn’t going to allow themselves to be bought.
Cash’s growing need to protect Dev had so much more merit now.
“Who all knows this information?” Cash asked, nodding down at the darkened pad on the small table.
The question finally had Shanna’s gaze turning serious. “I’m not sure. I only pieced it together when Joe pulled Dev’s medical records.”
Joe nodded proudly. “I buried it after Shanna asked me to, but surely Devilman knows.”
Shanna shook her head. “I don’t think so. It took Dev a few years to settle into bein’ a father, but when he did, he went at it hard. He researched schools and areas for them to live. He put Abi in a private school in Dallas and Mae in a good preschool program. That was before he moved them to Sunnyvale. He’s changed everything about himself. He’s not the same guy who earned that rap sheet. Tena was decent enough in the beginning, but it’s like she and Dev are opposing magnets. One does something, the other goes in the exact opposite direction. She’s got a serious pill problem. All the sex. Whatever happened today was probably for the best if she’s out of the picture.”
Cash not only saw the conflict on Shanna’s face but felt the worry and sorrow in her words.
“You’ve told me why you got into law enforcement, but what made you take a job with the FBI?” Cash asked the question he’d wanted to know since first seeing Shanna. “If it’s too personal, forget I asked.”
“I applied for the bureau a few years ago. It was an entry level position. It took maybe a year for them to trace me to the Disciples. An FBI agent on the inside of the club put two and two together, the DEA approached me. The way the men of the club treat the women is disgusting. I was conditioned to live that life when I grew up. I absolutely refuse to put myself in the club whore circle.”
Cash nodded to the pad. “You believe that’s enough to get Dev on our side?”
“He’ll be mad,” Shanna answered in a complete non-answer.
“When’s he not pissed off?” Joe asked on a snort. A valid point.
“That’s fair but with whatever happened yesterday, between him and my father and mother, and now with Tena this morning, I feel like it can’t be good. We’ve seen they’re all running on a taut string with each other. We also have Keyes to dangle over Dev’s head,” Shanna reminded them. “If Dev was asked to name his family, he’d say my mom, the girls, and Keyes. He’d die for any of them.”
“Those are my thoughts too. He has a soft spot for those four,” Joe reinforced Shanna’s words. “Otherwise, I’d believe he was in fact the devil on earth. He’s so bad.”
“So we’re talking immunity,” Shanna started. “While keeping the idea and offer between us? No one on the outside of our circle will know?”
Cash leaned forward, dropping his elbows on the table, steepling his fingers.
The sitting position caused his ass to give a slight tingle in the best possible way. Since he hadn’t showered yet today, he could still smell the exotic scent that was all Dev on his body.
He had to find the name of the man’s perfectly suited cologne. Cash gave a mental head shake to get back on track.
The options were to either bring Dev into their circle or allow Dev to be busted with the rest of the club.
Due to Cash’s employment and close proximity to Dev, Dev would be considered a rat inside the prison walls.
Everything inside Cash resisted the second option.
His hands hit the table in frustration.
No. The case came first. What benefited the operation?
As hard as it might be to say, nothing had changed.
He was in fact-finding mode. Nothing more. The job was his first priority.
Whatever part Dev played in this mess would be on him. “If the time comes, and it feels right, I’ll approach Dev. If not, then he’ll have to suffer the consequences like everyone else.”