“Get me the secure line,” Charming said.
Gator moved quickly, retrieving a satellite phone from a locked cabinet behind the bar.He handed it to Charming with a nod of understanding.
Charming took the phone and stepped toward the back office.“Scratch, Viper -- with me.Everyone else, start gearing up.If Anatoly’s in, we move fast.”
I pushed off from the wall, my beer forgotten.Around me, the clubhouse came alive.The waiting was over.Whatever came next, it would at least be action.
Charming paused at the door to the office, his hand on the knob.He looked back, and this time his eyes found mine directly.
“Rebel,” he said.“You’re with us for this call.”
I felt every eye in the room on me as I crossed the floor.Some curious, some envious, some concerned.I kept my face neutral, though my pulse quickened.Being called into Charming’s inner circle for something this big wasn’t normal for someone who wasn’t an officer and hadn’t been around as long as some of the others.Especially since I didn’t have a special skillset that would make me an asset right now.
The office door closed behind us, sealing in a different kind of tension.Charming sat behind his desk, Scratch and Viper taking positions on either side.I remained standing, back to the wall, watching as Charming punched in a number from memory.
He put the phone on speaker and placed it in the center of the desk.The dial tone seemed to stretch forever before a click, followed by silence.
“Identify,” a heavily accented voice demanded.
“Charming, for Anatoly.Priority one.”
More silence.Then a different voice, deeper, smoother but with the same undercurrent of steel and ice.
“Halden.It has been some time.”
Charming’s jaw tightened at the use of his given name.“Anatoly.I need assistance.”
“Business or family?”
“Both.”Charming’s eyes flicked to each of us before returning to the phone.“One of mine is missing.Three days.We have reason to believe the Morettis have him.”
A long pause.I could almost hear the calculation happening on the other end.
“The Morettis,” Anatoly finally said, “have been making moves that concern my associates.Expanding where they should not.Taking risks that invite attention.”
“Then our interests align,” Charming said.“We need to find Java and shut down whatever the Morettis are planning.”
“You are asking for Bratva involvement in your American motorcycle club business.This is not a small request, Halden.”
“I’m aware of the cost,” Charming replied, and something in his tone made me glance at him sharply.“But Java is one of ours, and he lost enough defending this damn country.”
The silence stretched longer this time.
“You have a location?”Anatoly finally asked.
“We have three potentials.Need manpower and hardware to hit them simultaneously.”
Another pause.“I’ll send Dmitri.He’ll arrive tomorrow.You will provide details then.”
“That’s not soon enough,” Charming pressed.“Java might not have until tomorrow.”
“Then pray he is a strong man,da?Dmitri comes tomorrow.With a team.Equipment.This is the best I can do.”The line went quiet for a moment.“Halden.If your man is already dead, what happens next will be war.Are you prepared for this?”
Charming’s eyes met mine, then moved to Scratch and Viper.In them, I saw the weight of what he was about to commit us to.
“We’re prepared,” he said.
“Then we’ll speak tomorrow.”The line went dead.
