PART 3.

Part 24. Dealing With The Devil

I can't escape myself

So many times I've lied

But there's still rage inside

Somebody get me through this nightmare

I can't control myself

(from Animal I Have Become Three Days Grace)

Dawn was lighting the sky as Vin went through the final checkpoint leading into the Joker's compound. He'd

watched the undefined skull that marked the turn-off to the dirt road as he'd passed it by. The golden light of a new day had contrasted absurdly with the vivid object of death as he followed the line of gold that ran it's way along the horizon.

Normally he loved the hour of dawn, loved the crispness of the air and the fresh feel of the new day on his face, but he was so tired it was all he could do to ignore the black dots that were dancing in the corner of his sight. Several times his tired eyes had relayed false images to his brain of objects on the road that hadn't been there and it had been a struggle to keep his seat the whole way back, following nothing but the single beam of his headlight. The only thing he found himself thankful for was that the cursed rain was holding off while he rode.

A few minutes later he'd watched the club's gates pass by to the hum of his bike, his tyres now crunching over the gravel drive as he crept slowly up toward the main building. The ground was still sodden after the countless days of rain and drizzle and puddles had crept wider so that the drive was more like passing down a shallow lake, spattering mud and dirt up onto his jeans and boots. The deep ruts and potholes now lay unseen beneath the covering of water so that every other second he would hit one sharply, cursing softly to himself before jerking his bike back on a steady course to the building.

Bar the men at the checkpoint and those that he knew would be on guard duty there were no others in sight at this hour and he wondered if they had been too busy partying the night before to know that more of their brothers were dead. It was a cold band of men that he'd found in Denver, a far cry from home, and now he was alone. He had no-one now to watch his back and that realisation was a daunting one.

Up ahead he could make out the site of the bikes parked to the side of the building. There were less than there were the last time he'd been there and he figured anyone who had ridden up from Texas would most likely have cleared out to try and meet up with Eddie. It was them against the Denver chapter, he was sure they would realise by now. He would know them all, but that didn't help him if they weren't here.

Finally he came to a stop and he slowly eased his aching body to a stand, nearly staggering as he leant his bike onto it's stand, taking a moment to steady himself before letting go of the handlebars. The stillness of the air now that he'd stopped was welcoming and he felt the first ray of warmth reaching him from the rising sun as he took off the gloves he'd worn and tugged down the bandanna that he'd tied over his mouth and nose so that it hung loosely around his neck. Eyeing the building he took a deep breath and pushed himself on. Thoughts of Ivan and the rest of the boys pushed their way to the front of his mind and he tried desperately to clear the fog of exhaustion and emotion from his brain to concentrate on what lay ahead. He wanted to know why they had been killed and he knew the answer lay with Billy, but he also knew he couldn't just go in there demanding answers.

What he also knew was that it was his fault that the men were dead. The price for shutting down the illegal

operations at the underground facility had been their lives – and possibly those of some DEA agents as well. That had been the ultimate thought in his head as he had ridden back in the freezing cold. Never mind that he hadn't been the only one to tip off Larabee's team, that the information he had provided had brought an end to the entire operation, all he could think of then was the cost.

Deep in thought and focused on putting one soggy boot in front of the other, he missed the concealed man before he'd stepped out onto the narrow path ahead of him that ran the length of the building around to the front entrance. It took his mind precious seconds to put a name to the massive frame covered from scalp to wrist in tattoos.

"Taken ta lurkin' in dark corners now?" He stopped before the man and used the wall to support his tired frame.

"Been waitin' on you."

Vin gave Charlie a small smile. "Sugar got you on sentinel duty now?"

Charlie smiled back. "You ain't that important kid."

Vin waited for the man to speak. Loitering around at dawn in the chill air had to have a reason.

"Come back round this way."

The last thing Vin wanted to do was stand out longer in the cold, but he sensed Charlie had something important to say. He hadn't seen the man since he'd first arrived. At that time he'd been with the boys and he had thought something was a little off about the man. He was reassured by the familiar pressure of the gun tucked in the back of his jeans, hoping he was just being paranoid.

They moved back around the building and over to Charlie's own bike, which Vin had missed sitting behind Sugars. Vin eyed the familiar site of the excessive amount of chrome add-ons and Charlie stopped him short before he could say anything.

"Shaddup."

Vin smiled. He'd been ribbing the guy for years about the chrome, he and the rest of the Texan club. Behind his back the bike had labelled him pimp-daddy.

"It's okay, I always thought the pin-stripes balance it out," he couldn't help but put in.

Privately, Vin liked the Softail Deuce, once you stripped away the layers of silver to the beast beneath of course. The 1451 V-Twin had enough power to satisfy even him on the open road.

"I kept the seat stock," Charlie put in and Vin nodded with a smile.

"Yeah cos you couldn't find one big enough for you after market." Small talk over, Vin turned and looked Charlie in the eye. "What's goin' on?"

Charlie glanced around them, even looked up, but there were no rooms above them and stepped in closer.

"Sugar would have met you himself but he's been called in to see Billy. Things've moved faster than we thought they would."

"What things?"

"Things with Eddie.. with Billy. Where did he send you last night? Where's the boys?"

Vin could see he would have to give a little to get a little. He sighed and looked down, unfathomably tired to the point of wanting to just sit down and not move for a week. "Dead." He looked up. "They're dead."

Charlie's shock was clear.

"We were set up." Vin hesitated. He didn't know if he could trust Charlie with his thoughts. Sugar he would have told straight up, he knew where the man's loyalties lied, but Charlie had been acting odd before he'd left.

"You have to tell me what you know. This is too important."

Vin studied his face a long minute. "Where's Sugar now?"

"Billy's office." Charlie shook his head. "Look, I know you've got a lot on your plate right now and you think you can't trust anyone..." he cursed and shook his head again, muttering to himself almost. "I fuck'n told Sugar to give it to you straight weeks ago, instead'a all this cloak an' dagger shit. Ya got a right ta know."

Vin's gaze narrowed to laser precision. Had he been wrong, had Charlie been the one on the up and Sugar was the one playing games? "Know what?"

Charlie took a deep breath. "Look kid. I've known Sugar since before I could walk. His mama practically raised me. Hell not practically, she did. Me an' him? We're brothers, an' not just the Joker kind." He paused a moment, taking another look around to make sure they were still alone. "I know everythin' the guy thinks before he even thinks it, so I know all about you, from the moment you thought it was your decision to come up here and gun for Billy."

Vin was shocked, alarmed and panicked all in one, but he did well to hide his emotions as he blinked back at the all too serious man before him. "What?" He could have kicked himself, but right then, he really had no idea what to say.

"Sugar's been nurturin' you along since you were a kid. You think your secrets are safe from him?"

And again with the Sugar theories.

"I ain't got no secrets, seems like you two do though."

Charlie had had enough of the placid route. He grabbed a handful of Vin's jacket and pulled him up close, getting right in his face.

"Listen to me an' listen good. You think you're alone in what you're tryin' ta do here, but you're not. I'm tellin' you this for your own damn good. Personally, I don't give a shit if you go in and get yourself shot in there, but Sugar does, an' that means somethin' ta me." He shoved Vin back and Vin righted himself, still not sure what the hell Charlie was saying.

"Just get to the damn point."

"The point is, you left Texas with a bee in yer bonnet, gunnin' for Billy. I lied that I knew every secret Sugar had, he never did tell me why you've got it in for the man, but he knew how you followed Billy's every move, paid attention and asked questions when you thought he wasn't noticin'. Whatever that reason is, I don't care and Eddie sure as hell doesn't care."

"Eddie?" Jesus,did everyone know?

"Yeah kid, Eddie. Who do you think sent us here ridin' yer tail? We've sent all the boys out to meet up with Eddie, you're the last one here. You think we're left out here for fun?"

Vin blinked, giving his head a small shake at the same time, truly confused. "Why?" was all he could come up with.

"Cos he wants you to succeed."

Again Vin shook his head, taking it in. "Lemme get this straight. Sugar thinks I have a vendetta against Billy an' Eddie doesn't care what that might be as long as I take Billy out fer him?"

Charlie tilted his head to the side. "Yeah, think that about covers it," he said almost cheerfully. To his surprise, Vin started laughing.

"I miss somethin'?"

Vin laughed softly but passionately. He laughed until he was bent over, holding his flaming ribs and he had to work to get air into his battered lungs. What a night.

"Kid, how hard did you hit your head tonight?" Charlie was actually worried Vin was losing it.

Vin straightened and ran a weary hand over the lengthening stubble of his beard before putting a hand out to steady himself against the wall. It was too absurd.

"Eddie wants me to take out Billy," he said again, slowly, and Charlie nodded. "And when I walk in there, Billy's gonna want me to take out Eddie."

Charlie frowned but nodded. "That's what Sugar thinks you're aiming for, tryin'a get in his pocket. Billy found out you're military-issue, he's gonna wanna use that. But you know that already."

Vin nodded and suddenly the smile left his face. He looked past Charlie's massive shoulders to the large storage shed way back in the dark border at the back of the property.

"What exactly does Sugar want from me?" he asked simply. He didn't bother to question anything any more.

"You took too long, playin' games. When you came out here, we thought you'd get Billy alone and put a hole in his fuckin' head, but you started dickin' around and we don't know why. Maybe you wanted to make sure you did it long and slow, cut him down where he feels it most. Maybe you're overthinkin' it, hell if I know, but you're out of time and Eddie needs us to back him. You go in there and get Sugar an' you both meet me out here."

But Vin wasn't ready to go anywhere just yet. "Why would you think that's why I came here? You guys practically forced me..." he stopped, feeling suddenly very cold. "Holy shit. You did force me!" He wasn't pretending one bit, the realisations were coming fast and hard. Charlie's solemn expression told him he was right. "You set up the whole thing? The FBI bust, my wrap for it? Decker? All of that to push me to get here?"

Charlie folded his arms, letting Vin deal for the moment. The kid had thought he'd been making his own decisions, but Sugar had been steering him along the whole time. He wasn't sure how he was going to react.

"Decker knew you wanted me out, but he didn't know why... that's what he was goin' on about the night he died. He thought you guys were tryin'a get rid of me."

"Sugar knew Decker would be the right tool to convince you to move on. First time he's ever bailed on his job that I can remember."

Vin thought about it all, working out his questions. "This ain't right. Even if this is all true, how could no-one give a damn why I'd want to kill Billy? It goes against everythin' we stand for."

"Billy's gone against everythin' we stand for. An' Sugar has his reasons to trust you, that's enough for Eddie, enough for me."

Vin's already stretched mind was whirling. What did Sugar know about his past? Had he been a fool to think his past was his own when right along someone had been onto him? And if they knew that much, knew that he had served in the military, what else did they know? There was no way they could know he was NTF, or ATF now as it were, and that he could still be alive, no matter how much they wanted Billy dead. He'd joined the department right after he returned, not getting in touch with anyone back in Texas until he was fully trained and a qualified agent. Nobody had known where he'd gone when he'd joined the military, or so he'd thought. At the time he'd said he wanted to see the world. Sugar had wanted him to start fighting professionally but he'd told him it wasn't what he wanted. When he'd moved back to Texas, he'd started training with him again, but this time he didn't resist the push from Sugar to be a part of the club. He'd fought his way in, literally, with Sugar as his trainer, the older man vouching for him when he was voted in.

"I was never gonna go in there and kill him in cold blood, if that's what ya'll were hopin'. If Sugar knows anythin' he should know I'm gonna do this my way."

"The time for your way's gone. Eddie's here, gone to ground but he's here. He's gatherin' all the boys to him, hell, there ain't no-one left back in Texas by now. This is war kid. You were supposed ta be the trojan horse we sent in. He's been waitin' on news that you've done your part before he takes out the rest of the chapter. He's gonna clean out the whole nest, one by one if he has to. They followed Billy, knowing he was heading against Eddie, they all gotta go down. When he's finished, the streets are gonna literally run red, but hey, at least they'll be close to the cemetery."

"Jesus Christ." Ivan hadn't been wrong when he'd said it was going to get bloody. How the hell was he supposed to prevent a battle like this? "But now you want me to ride away with you? Just let it all go?"

Charlie gave a noise that was half laugh, half derision. "You're done kid. You're too damn close to the problem. An' no matter how good you are, you won't be able to take him now, not here, not today. Eddie's got a new plan and we're bringin' you back with us." When Vin stayed stubbornly silent Charlie had had enough of playing it the nice way. His face hardened and he leant his body forward into Vin's space. "I told you Eddie knows about your plan to take down Billy, I didn't say there weren't going to be repercussions for acting out against the club."

Vin's eyes narrowed as he clearly felt the threat. "But if I take care of this Eddies way I get a free pass?"

Charlie just shrugged, leaning back.

Vin pulled in his bottom lip, thinking fast. He needed more information. "He's gonna take them down right there at the funeral? Broad daylight?"

There was the slightest hesitation that Vin picked up on. "Yep. It's a hell of a plan too. In the end, there'll be so much blood and confusion, he'll get away clean. Be lucky if he ain't already back in Texas 'fore they start sortin' out the carnage."

Vin took as deep a breath as his chest would allow, feeling the headache he'd been trying to avoid come back to bounce around the back of his eyes.

"I can't just go out there tomorrow and shoot the man. I'd be dead in a heartbeat. I've paid my dues, I ain't about to get myself shot down for anyone."

"He's not askin' you to. You just need to know that you're a fool if you think the man's gonna embrace you and let you into his fold so you can carve out his heart from the inside. He's a lot of things, but he ain't stupid. The times come for you to step up. You had a plan, you've run out of time. Now you're doin' this Eddie's way. We're not askin' you."

"I had a chance to do that. When I first came out here I went upstairs. Sugar found me talkin' to Billy alone, came stormin' in and sent me on my way before I could do anythin'. Why didn't he let me do it then?"

"Cos there were too many people around. Everyone saw you go up there, he was worried it wasn't the right time."

"And tomorrow is?"

"You'll need to speak to Eddie about that. Sugar just wanted me to talk to you before you go in there and try and make nice with the guy again. He's dangerous, he ain't gonna want you to be his friend. He wants to use you and what he wants from you you can't give. So he'll kill you for failin' him before you get your chance."

"So either way I'm screwed." And he meant it. He really was. What the fuck had he gotten himself into?

They heard a noise and Vin turned around to see one of Billy's guards come from around the front of the building.

"Billy's waiting for you inside."

Vin turned back to Charlie, who just gave him a long look before unfolding his arms and heading away in the opposite direction.

Vin pushed off the wall slowly and followed the guard who, judging by the tired look of him, had scored himself the graveyard shift. He stepped behind him into the large entrance and out of the cold morning air. His mind was troubled, trying to process all that Charlie had told him. So many things made sense now from the time leading up to his coming here, but those realisations only prodded more questions. He steeled himself for whatever conversation lay ahead as he was led to a large, wooden door that opened before he even got there.

His first sight was Jake, who merely looked him over from head to toe before gesturing him inside. Vin said nothing, his expression blank as the guard followed in behind him as he entered, closing the heavy door. His eyes found Sugars, seeing nothing there that gave any clue as to what he'd walked in on, but the man looked furious.

He noticed Billy then, seated calmly behind his desk and studying him intently. He would have noticed him first he was sure, but Jake had been blocking his view. But it was the two seated men facing Billy that caught his full attention at that moment. Here was something that Charlie could have warned him about, but he guessed he wouldn't have thought it would concern him.

Ezra met Vin's glance with a carefully neutral expression of his own, but he was glad to see the biker-slash-ATF agent alive, if not the worse for wear.

"What the hell happened to you this time?" Sugar asked, trying to find a patch of visible skin on Vin that wasn't blackened, bleeding or bruised.

"That's what I want to know." Vin said and right then knew what he had to do, how he would play it.

Billy looked smug and it told him what he needed to know. The bastard had taken the boys out, leaving him alive. There'd been more than one opportunity for the guards to kill him if they'd wanted to, but they hadn't. So why would Billy leave him alive? Because he wanted him alone, left with nothing, vulnerable. And the only reason he would want that is so he could take advantage. So the trick now was to use that to his own advantage. Billy wanted him with no other option, so that whatever he would offer him would look like a lifeline.

"You look like you could use a seat," Billy said, looking at him carefully, assessing his state of mind.

"Did you set it up?" he asked point blank, his voice sounding defeated. He didn't move toward the seat but rather tapped into the anger and loss he felt.

Billy made a kind of tutting noise. "You've obviously been through an ordeal. How about you take a load off now and think about how you want to proceed before you say somethin' you might regret." He pointed to the empty chair.

Vin stayed standing in defiance and was shocked when Jake suddenly grabbed him from behind and pushed him down forcibly into the chair.

"Sit," he was told and when Vin made to get up he was dealt a sickening blow to his injured knee from Jake's boot.

He yelled out sharply with the sudden pain, not able to stop himself falling from the chair as his hands desperately clutched his knee as if trying to hold it together.

"You son of a bitch!" he heard Sugar yell and was surprised when Billy got between him and Jake.

"That's enough," the president said harshly. He didn't want Turner further injured, he wanted him on his side.

"You gonna let him talk to you like that?" Jake argued.

Billy gave Jake a hard look. "You act out again like that you'll have more to worry about than how someone's talking to me." He looked at Vin again, watching the younger man grind his jaw tight as he fought to rise above the pain he was in. "He's not thinking straight right now and this isn't going to get us anywhere."

Jake scoffed at that, pissed off that Billy had reprimanded him in front of Sugar, but knowing the plan he and Billy had set and following it. If he had to play bad cop, he was at least going to enjoy it. He said nothing more as Vin picked himself up with effort, ignoring Billy's hand as he seated himself, breathing hard through his pain.

Vin still clutched his knee as he righted himself, feeling the agony radiate up his leg right up to his head where his skull was pounding in time with his heart. His anger had multiplied with Jake's blow, threatening to unhinge his plan to play the victim. For a second his rage led him to the dangerous thought, 'I could end this right here and now', but Sugar cut in before he could say or do anything else that would land him in trouble.

"What the hell happened?"

Vin turned to him, still breathing through his pain as he shot a fierce look at Jake. Payback was going to be a bitch. "I don't know. One minute we're runnin' around dodgin' the cops, next minute, the guards themselves are trying to take us down – did take some of us down. Cheese, Rizzo, Ivan, Bruce, they're all dead." He faced Billy again and he thought he should get an academy award for the lost tone he injected into his voice. "Was supposed to be easy, a little persuasion you said... now four of my brothers are dead. I came back alone."

Jake scowled at that. "Four of them?"

Something in his tone had Vin rethinking fast. They knew about Ivan making it out with him. Security must have alerted them somehow.

"Yeah, four," he repeated. "Ivan made it out with me, but he was taken out at the roadhouse down the road by a crazy son of a bitch called Guy Royal."

The suspicion left Jake's eyes. "Huh. That's bad luck." He flicked a gaze at Billy and Vin caught it, knowing then that they had set that up too. But they'd missed Ivan, that, at least, he could hold on to. He had decided to keep the Scotsman as a secret weapon, there was no need to let him out of his pocket just yet.

Vin scowled and half rose from the chair again, but Billy put a hand on his shoulder.

"I see you got away from him..."

"Last I saw he was runnin' fer the hills. I didn't have it in me ta give chase, but he's as good as dead next I see him."

"Is this the operation you've been denying exists for the last year?" Sugar asked Billy with much sarcasm.

Billy ignored him and got up to come around his desk to stand before Vin, seating himself on the edge of the solid wood as he spoke calmly. "I don't order those men to do anything except watch the facility. If they acted out of turn, they'll be dealt with. Hell, I'll let you do it yourself. Can you identify them?"

Vin forced his jaw to remain relaxed. He wanted to snap the lying son of a bitch's neck right then and there. Apparently Sugar wouldn't care and between them they could take Jake and the guards, even injured as he was, he had some fight left in him yet. And that gave him pause. What was he waiting for? He could get away with it. Or could he... There was ATF agent sitting right there. An agent that trusted him to do the right thing...

"They're dead? All of them?" Sugar said, moving past the shock of the news.

"Yeah," he said, distracted by his rampant violent thoughts, his voice ever-rough. "Riddled with bullets, all of 'em."

"You've gone too far," Sugar said then in a too calm voice. "You think you can run an operation like this and hide it from the rest of the club? You know you're not going to get away with this."

"I already have," Billy said with a cold look at Sugar. "And you've outstayed your welcome." All pretence was gone now, his voice was deadly. "I'm going to give you this one chance to get the last of you that's left here and ride the fuck out now. Go run back to Eddie, tell the prick I'm ready for him."

Vin looked from Sugar in the silence that followed to the only exit in the room. Billy was laying his cards out on the table. In a room this small, this occupied, no way was that a good thing.

Sugar kept his gaze on Billy, seeing the deadly intent in his eyes. "You go after Eddie an' you won't last a day. So I'll give you this one last chance. Come clean with everything you're doing here, stand the fuck down and let the club decide what happens next to both you and your boys."

Billy actually laughed at that. "Yeah, I can see that happening. And right after you lynch me you'll divvy up the profits I've shed my own blood, sweat and tears to make. No fucking way is anyone getting a cut of that. Eddie's too much of a pussy to put things in place so I did this all on my own, now you can all fuck off back to where you belong. By the time the dust settles we'll be tradin' under our own name."

Sugar shook his head. "That really how you think this is gonna end?" he asked him very calmly. "You think it'll be that easy to get clear? This club made you, you can't ever turn your back on that."

Vin saw anger flash in Billy's eyes. "The club didn't make me. What I've done, what I've achieved I did on my own. I can do whatever the hell I like. You take me on in my own town you know there's going to be blood before this is over," he added, "but it won't be mine." He nodded to Jake. "Think Sugar's ready to leave now. See him and his shadow lurking outside out of here."

Sugar's scowl was fierce. "You're a damn fool."

There was a long pause, the tension in the room palpable before Sugar finally let out a breath. "Fine. I'm out of here. I did what I could, you can't say you weren't warned." He gestured to Vin. "Come on, let's ride."

Assuming Vin would follow he waited for him to get up out of the chair and when Vin didn't move he frowned, but Vin didn't move an inch and when he looked at Sugar the older man could see the determination there. And it scared him.

"Kid," he said carefully, "you're ridin' out with us now, or I'm going to make you."

Jake chuckled and Billy looked more than just smug now. He looked like he'd eaten the canary and Sugar wanted to bounce his fist off the man's face until he was unconscious. Hell, in another minute he would beat him unconscious.

"I'll follow in a bit. Just want to clear a few things up here first."

But Sugar shook his head. "I'm not askin' you."

Billy moved further into the room, placing himself between Sugar and Vin and the guards stepped away from the walls. "I asked Vin to go to last night 'cause I knew he was more than capable of getting the job done. All the time he's been with the club and he knows he's not getting and further in Texas. A few days here and he's already an integral part of my operation. I can use a man like him." He paused for a moment and his smirk was purely for Sugar. "I'd be a fool not to."

Sugar swore. "You're seriously think he's that stupid? You'll take him out in a second once you have no more use for him. You're fuckin' nuts if you think Vin's gonna be your pawn."

Sugar took another long look at Vin, trying to get him to look at him. He knew what the fool kid was doing, but getting himself on Billy's team wasn't going to get him anything but dead. He couldn't work out what the kid was playing at. He knew he wanted Billy dead, had known it for a long, long time. They'd let him head here knowing that he was going to take care of a problem that had been festering for far too long, but things had gone pear shaped the second he'd ridden into the state. Now, he had no idea what the fool kid was planning. He obviously wasn't going for quick and easy. But everything he was doing now was leading to a place he did not think the kid could handle on his own and the last thing he wanted was to leave him alone to these sharks. Before he could speak again Billy surprised him yet again and from the gleam of his eyes, it was clear he was enjoying the fruits of his orchestration.

"Perhaps we can give Sugar another incentive to get going. Bring her in," he ordered the guards suddenly.

The guards turned and left and came back only a moment later with Suzy between them. She protested as they brought her before Billy.

"What the hell's this about?" Her eyes darted around the room and a second later Billy had adjusted his aim and pointed his gun right at her head. He moved in close until his hot breath spoke right into her ear, the gun nuzzling her neck.

"Don't. Speak," he whispered.

The image of Billy whispering in the same way to his mother just before he killed her had Vin's heart pounding anew. He was assailed with images from his past, images he had fought long and hard to press down deep where they could not burn him. He knew, hearing the man now, he knew he was going to do it again. He didn't realise he'd made a noise until he saw that everyone had turned towards him.

Sugar looked at Vin, wondering at the look on the kid's face, but he couldn't worry about that right then. He was going to explode himself.

Billy looked at Sugar, gun still aimed and ready. "You want to tell me what you were doin' sneakin' around in her room?"

Sugar glanced at Jake. All he could do was try and protect the girl now. "We talked. She didn't do anything wrong."

Billy's eyebrows shot up. "How very noble of you." He looked at Sugar. "You must have fucked him good to get such loyalty out of him."

"We didn't do anything," she said in a too soft voice and Vin realised she also believed Billy was about to kill her.

"Then you were conspiring against me, sneaking around behind my back." Almost under his breath he hissed. "And history repeats."

She just shook her head, too afraid to do more. She was too scared to pretend not to be.

"She doesn't deserve this," Sugar said carefully, knowing how volatile the man was. He knew better than anyone else how cold the man could be and he knew he would not hesitate to kill a woman. After all, he'd done it before.

Being the totally erratic man that he was, Billy suddenly turned away from them, completely abandoning the conversation for the moment and leaving them all hanging. He turned and picked up a package from his desk, turning back and pulling out fresh photographs and approaching Mitri, who was eyeing him warily in return. The man had been taking everything in with escalating panic. Like Ezra, he had come to the conclusion that if not before, he now knew too much to be able to walk out of there.

"I can see that your pride is going to prevent you from doing anything sensible, so I'll just take a bit of pleasure now before I kill you. This one in particular, I think, is a good angle of her... your wife I think?"

Mitri stared at the pictures in mute shock. His face could not possibly begin to reflect the horror he felt within as he saw what they had done to his wife and then, just as utter rage and anguish was about to below out from his mouth, there was a sudden double explosion of gunfire in the room that made everyone jump.

Suzy screamed and the fact that she screamed registered to Vin that she was still alive as he followed the aim of Billy's arm. Ezra was splattered in blood and beside him, the space where Mitri Vlahov had been, was abruptly empty. His chair had toppled backwards when Billy's first bullet had smashed into his chest, followed closely by the hit to his face. Double tap. An untidy one, but an execution all the same. Vin realised that Billy was either a crap shot, or he himself was just thinking too clinically, because if he'd been the one shooting, the man would have two holes in his head. And he wouldn't still be taking his last strangled breaths.

Billy threw the pictures down and Vin saw them land face up on Mitri's still choking chest, some clinging to the gushing blood. He glanced at a close shot of a woman's face, ghastly white with wide black eyes staring back, obviously dead. The others were obscured by Ezra's chair. But Billy wasn't finished and aimed his gun then at Ezra.

"Wait," Vin said as calmly as he could over the noise of the dying man's wretched breathing.

They all looked at him and he pointed to Ezra. "What's he done?"

"That's none of your concern." Jake started, but to his surprise, Billy answered.

"He kept bad company. You want to blame someone for tonight, you can blame the dead guy. He's the one called in the cops, trying to put us out of business while he took over the game."

"I know him," Vin went on, knowing he was taking a chance but also knowing that if he didn't, Ezra was going to die.

Billy frowned, glancing at him, his gun still aimed, but paused all the same as he waited for Vin to continue.

"He's the manager from the club."

"And?"

Vin shrugged, trying to be completely calm in spite of the crazed hammering of his heart. A moment ago he'd been ready to kill Billy where he stood, his rage almost overcoming him. Now, he knew if he did that, it wasn't just his own life at stake. Ezra would be dead in another minute if he didn't get his head on straight.

"He saved my skin that night. If it weren't fer him, I'd be a dead man. He backed us up, warned us just in time as the cops came down on us. He's ok, I'll vouch for him."

Ezra's heart was racing, Vin was taking a big chance sticking his neck out like this. Billy was looking at him, still unconvinced as he heard Mitri finally go quiet.

"Check his arm," Vin continued, "he took a bullet meant for Keg. I don't think he knew what that guy was into."

"Didn't help him much," Jake put in, but stepped forward all the same, flipping out a knife he pulled from a pocket and roughly cutting the sleeve of the arm Ezra nodded to. He drew blood but Ezra wasn't complaining if it would help keep him alive a bit longer. There was a bandage revealed underneath.

"We found him at that prick's house," Jake nodded down at Mitri, speaking to Billy. " An' we know it was him that spoke out. Why would he be at his house if he wasn't in with him?"

Vin looked at Mitri, not having met the man before. "I don't know, but he's a good guy. He doesn't deserve ta die like this, not after what he did for us, an' he wouldn't've helped us if he was against us. I owe him." Vin was challenging Billy now. There were codes that Billy could not outright deny, not if his intentions were truly for the preservation of the club,

Billy looked hard at Ezra, who merely stared back, waiting for the verdict. "What were you doing at Mitri's house?"

Ezra kept his voice flat, surprised by how dry his mouth had become. He was on razor thin ice and he knew it.

"He wanted me to drop some paper's off to him, so I did. He is - he was," he reiterated, "my boss," he said simply, like that explained everything. "I had no idea what he was up to." He feigned total confusion as he looked around the room, as if still trying to work out where the hell he was. "I still have no idea what he was up to."

A moment later Ezra almost sighed with relief when Jake let his arm drop at Billy's nod, the president giving him a clear warning.

"You're gonna need a new line of work."

"Well, I do have certain skills I believe you might benefit from..."

Vin blinked at Ezra in disbelief, studying him through the splattering of blood that covered the agent's face. He was trying to get him out of there and there he was trying to use the opportunity to dig himself further in. Was the man crazy? Hadn't this taught him enough? He should be running like hell.

Billy, meanwhile, raised an eyebrow, although he did look slightly amused. "I doubt that." He nodded toward Vin. "You're one lucky son of a bitch, but this brother's word is good enough for me. You can leave." He spoke to the guards again. "Show him the gate, and send a few boys in here to clean up this shit."

"Might I enquire as to some form of transport?"

Vin almost groaned. Talk about pushing your luck.

"Yeah, your feet. Get movin' before I change my mind."

Vin watched Ezra leave, relieved that he'd managed to get the southerner clear of danger for the moment. He'd banked on Billy's eagerness to show him he trusted him to get the man free. He'd done all he could for him and he was sure he was resourceful enough to find his way back to the city, as far as it was.

The door opened a few seconds later and two more soldiers came in, this time they were the biggest guys Vin suspected the Denver chapter had. They moved in behind Sugar who scowled at Billy. This had all been planned.

"This'll never be your club. You're not going to last a minute if you try to take out Eddie." Sugar told Billy with promise in his words.

"Don't need it to be." Billy said with another smug smile. He walked up to stand before Suzy and this time his gun pointed right between her eyes. "But if you don't get the fuck out right now, she won't last another minute."

Sugar looked from Suzy, to Billy, to Vin, his eyes boring into the younger man's before he was shoved towards the door.

"This man's the devil, Turner, you remember that. Any deal you make with the devil's bound ta go up in flames. You stay here now, you're on your own."

Vin's heart picked up its pace again, but he was committed. And he knew that Sugar knew what he was up to, whether the man agreed with his plan or not.

They forced Sugar towards the door but the big man wasn't sitting out without a fight. He swung hard at one of the men before attacking the next, putting them both down despite their size before turning back to Billy, ignoring the gun Jake had trained on him from a safe distance.

"I can walk myself out. You've sealed your fate here today," he warned him.

Billy's smug smile stayed firmly in place as Sugar turned and left without another look back. The two guards picked themselves up slowly and followed him out.

There was a long silence in the room in the wake of Sugar's departure. Vin found himself left alone with Jake, Billy and for some reason that he had yet to determine, Suzy.

"Now," Billy said calmly, "let's start over."

"Is there some reason you want me here?"

Billy looked at Suzy, having forgotten about her for the moment. "Did I say you could speak?"

Suzy scowled, a red tinge flushing high on her cheeks. As she opened her mouth to protest Billy suddenly shouted with rage, moving forward and backhanding her from her chair. "Don't say a fucking word! You're lucky I've let you breathe my air this long."

Vin watched Suzy pick herself up slowly from the floor. She brushed her hair from her eyes and scowled at Billy, looking like she wanted to rip his throat out. He too wondered just why she was there. What had happened between her and Sugar?

The two guards that had left with Sugar returned to stand at the back of the room. Vin kept his arm over his ribs, one long leg bent casually under his chair and the other, bandaged one, straightened before him now as he sat low in the chair with an air of indifference about him – at least that's what he was aiming for. He tried and failed to assess the situation by reading Billy's face.

"Tell me exactly what happened tonight," Billy ordered quietly.

Vin could see that there was an intensity in the man's face that betrayed the softly voiced command. Larabee had done his part, he was certain of it. For all his bravado, Billy must have lost everything. That, at least, gave him some measure of satisfaction. If nothing else, he had that on him. He narrowed his eyes in return.

"If I knew I wouldn't have come here askin' you."

"I'm asking you a question and you throw it back at me?"

Not liking the rest of the people in the room towering over him Vin got to his feet, surprisingly quick considering the effort concealed behind the movement. "It was a fuckin' suicide mission an' now they're all dead, all four of 'em." He injected bitter anger into his voice, his eyes angry and hard. He sensed that Billy would never respect a man who was weak and knew he was right when a slight smile came to the president's lips, fleeting though it was.

A silence fell then while Billy seemed to study the younger man.

"Sit down," Jake said from behind him. "I ain't tellin' you again."

Vin slowly turned his head to look at Jake, piercing the older man with his glare before turning to defer to Billy. When Billy gave a small nod for Vin to sit he did, effectively demonstrating to Jake that while he would tolerate Billy's orders, he wasn't about to obey his second in commands.

Jake took the slap in the face for what it was and as he watched Billy looking at Vin with interest, he knew he was playing his part well. The kid was playing right into their hands.

"You want answers you bottle that temper of yours," Billy advised and Vin felt his father's scrutiny in the momentary silence. This was his chance, he thought yet again - what he had wanted since he was five years old, the chance to take the life that had robbed him of everything he had ever loved. He could reach up and have his hands around his neck in a heartbeat, he could kill him right then and there if he chose to. He had hesitated before, with Ezra in the room. But now... Jake would be on him in a flash but it would be enough time to do what needed to be done...and yet he held back. And he knew then, that he couldn't do it. Not like this. Not in a cold room like this. It was the wrong path. He would offer Billy everything he wanted... and then he would betray him in the worst possible way. And make sure he knew exactly who had done it and why. This wasn't about just killing the man, it was about destroying him. Killing him would be too quick, too easy. He was going to do it right.

Completely oblivious to Vin's inner battle Billy pushed his cigarettes at him across the table, shrugging when they were refused with a curt shake of the head. He took one out and lit it, dragging slowly and letting a long stream out on a sigh as he tossed the packet to Jake over Vin's head.

"I sent you to make sure the cops stayed outside," Billy said.

"You sent me into a fucking battle we had no chance of winning. You said the security out there could handle it," Vin shot back angrily.

Billy knew Vin had done no wrong, he just wanted to push his buttons. "What happened to the rest of your boys?"

"You tell me."

There was a tense silence as everyone waited for Billy to explode at the accusation. Indeed by the hardness of his jaw he appeared to be controlling himself as he asked carefully, "Are you saying you think I had something to do with them getting killed?" Billy was determined to let Jake play the bad guy, wanted Vin to trust him, but the kid was pushing his limits.

Oh I know you did. But he sighed after looking at Billy a long moment, letting him think his weariness was clouding his judgement as he rubbed a hand over his rough jaw. "I don't know what to think."

"Then tell me why you would think I'd kill my own men."

Vin's eyes never left Billy's as he spoke. "Because you don't consider any of us to be your men. All's I know is that those guards picked us off one by one and it weren't no accident. They were on your payroll, so who else's orders would they be followin'?"

Damn Bale for his amateur handling of the situation. Turner was never supposed to see the guards carry out the hits, he was meant to think it had been the cops. "You actually saw them fire on you?"

"I saw them. I saw them fire on Cheese until he was one mass of bleedin' holes." Vin looked down a moment, not acting as he again ran a hand over his weary eyes, overwhelmed for a moment at the senseless loss of life that he had witnessed first hand. He just couldn't believe they had all gone out that way. That Ivan and Cheese had been making plans to start new lives...

Billy almost smiled. In fact, over Vin's head he shared a look with Jake that spoke volumes, and only Suzy saw it. She knew in that moment that Billy had been behind the killings, that he had wanted to do this to Turner. He had just ripped his friends away from him and she knew better than most that everything that Billy did was with purpose. He had wanted to break this man, because he wanted to own him, just like he'd done to her. Whatever Billy wanted, he got, one way or another.

"Why would they do that?" Vin asked then, raising his head to look Billy once more in the eye. "Why would they take the time to take us all out when they had cops bearing down on them from all angles?"

"I have no idea," Billy said, shaking his head. "Eddie's been trying to bring me down any way he can. Perhaps he tipped them off. Perhaps he got to the guards... The only way we'll have any answers is when Bale gets here. In fact, it would be my pleasure to let you get some answers from him, if you're up to it."

Vin frowned at Billy then, marvelling at how easily the man lied. Bale hadn't organised this. He was probably running scared right then for everything having gone wrong tonight. But he played Billy's game.

"You think Eddie tried to take out your men? You think the guards thought we were local?"

Billy shrugged. "I can't think of any other reason for them to open fire on you."

The silence was broken again as Billy moved on, changing the subject swiftly. He rested his cigarette in the already full ashtray and leant forward. "You know as well as I do what's happening here. You heard what I said to Sugar."

"I heard you make some pretty bold claims. Can't see how you think you're going to be able to back 'em up."

At that, Billy only smiled a knowing smile, sitting back and picking up the cigarette for another drag and Vin suddenly found that all of the smoke was getting to him. He needed fresh air… and he needed sleep.

"Let me ask you this… Why did you join the club?"

"All's I want is to lie down and sleep fer a week an' you wanna sit here playin' games?" he said angrily.

"Just answer my question."

Vin sighed and gave the standard response. "Why did I join the club... to be a Joker. I wanted that more than anythin'."

"Yes, but what did that mean to you?"

What did he want to hear...? "Power, respect… freedom."

Billy tapped the desk with each word for emphasis, the sudden volume in his voice unexpected. "Power, respect, freedom!" He pointed at Vin with his smoke. "Exactly! And you rose through the ranks quickly, making sure everyone knew about you, Sugar's protégé… until you got overambitious and fucked up with the FBI…"

"I did time fer that, an' I know my own resumé. What's yer point?"

"How far could you go?" Billy asked him. "You've reached your ceiling with the club, as civilians say. People like Eddie stay around forever an' you're still living under another man's rules…"

"What's yer point?" he said again with more force.

Billy's eyes shaded a moment then, and Vin thought he might have gone too far.

"My point, is that with Eddie gone, you'll have room to grow."

"With Eddie gone? You'll never take him out. He'll see you comin' a mile off."

"Not if we do it right."

After a moment Billy turned over some papers that had been sitting on his desk and Vin tried to look surprised as he flicked his eyes up to Billy's, then turned and looked at Jake.

"I know you can take out Eddie and he'll never hear a sound... tell me, does Sugar know about this little

talent of yours?"

Suzy was trying to get a better look at the images and was able to make out a photo of Vin in a casual position, crouched down and supporting himself by using his rifle as a staff.

Vin had already determined how this conversation was going to go not long after asking Larabee to leak the

information. He didn't bother to deny anything. "So I take out Eddie, then I've got you tellin' me what ta do instead'a him. What's the diff'rence?"

"The difference is that I don't think like Eddie does. I want things to change. When the club started it stood for

something, but now… now it's too bureaucratic. You an' me, we think alike… in a way, you're just like I was back when I started out."

At those words Vin nearly choked on his air. He knew he was being goaded, he knew he was just a tool they were using to further themselves and now, beyond any doubt, he knew that Billy had killed his friends tonight, to isolate him and make him vulnerable. He had handed Billy the information himself about his sharpshooting skills and it had gotten three men killed. He didn't know how he could live with that and he suddenly felt his anger swell.

"How the fuck would you know what I think?" He stood again suddenly, shocking Billy into leaning back ever so slightly in his chair. "You don't know anythin' about me. You expect me to turn on my brothers' just like that? What the hell makes you think I'd align myself with you?" Damn it, get a grip Tanner! He nearly had everything he'd wanted, a place on Billy's team and he was about to blow it because he couldn't reign in his emotions.

But instead of getting angry Billy's smile only widened. "Because you're still here."

Vin just stared back at him until he continued.

"Because I recognise the ambition in you. If you were to help me take Eddie down, you could start your own chapter with whoever wants to stay on. This club's about to have a whole new outlook and you could be living just like me, at the top of the food chain."

For a moment Vin couldn't speak. Just like me... He fought to remind himself that they were on different

wavelengths, that Billy had absolutely no idea what was running through his mind. The man was just trying to

manipulate him, just as he would anyone who could help him get what he wanted. He took a deep breath, holding it a moment until his emotional tide had ebbed. He needed to tell Billy exactly what the man wanted to hear. He needed to do his job.

"What's happened to your boys is done Turner, deal with it. This can't be the first time you've lost someone close to you. People die, we move on."

Billy watched Vin's face then and knew without a doubt it was definitely not the first time he'd lost someone, but the kid's sporadically hostile stare was beginning to unsettle him. Maybe he'd been wrong. He'd wanted to make Turner vulnerable so that he'd welcome an alliance with him, but now he wasn't sure he had succeeded.

"Is that what you do? Just move on when someone dies like they were never here, like nothing happened?"

Billy frowned, getting the feeling this had nothing to do with what had happened to his friends, but Vin managed to get a hold of himself before he pushed him any further. Billy was, after all, offering him the chance to get closer to him, so there was only so far he could play it without taking up the offer.

"I help you do this an' I'll have my own death wish courtesy of the Texan boys."

"What I have in mind, they would never prove you had anything to do with it. Anyone who might have had a clue will be dead."

Vin shook his head. "They won't need proof - and I don't give a fuck about power."

"Really? So you don't want power and you don't like people dying... Tell me, what were you planning for Larabee tonight?"

He wasn't sure where Billy was going with the question. "It's wasn't my plan."

"Still, you were going to kill him, blow him to hell and not look back."

Vin shrugged. "He had it comin'."

Billy's smile only widened, as if Vin had just confirmed what he already knew. He stood then, coming around the desk. "You can help me take this club to a new level. We've suffered a loss tonight, but we'll learn from it and move on. I still have other plans in place to get us through until we can build it back up again."

There was a long silence and Vin tried to appear as if he were wavering.

"I've watched you while you've been here. Sugar knows the potential in you, that's why he's held your reins so tight all these years. You know I'm right." Vin didn't respond and Billy went on as if there had been no pause. "You're loyal to no-one, it's all an act for you…"

"If you believe that, why the hell would you want to trust me?"

"I don't," Billy said simply, smiling once more as he put his cigarette out and automatically reached for another, but then even he seemed to realise his lungs needed a break for he put the packet back down after a moments contemplation. "But I know you'd play your part, to get what you want."

"And you think you know what that is?"

Billy poured himself a drink instead. "Oh I definitely know what that is… I can give you the power you want. Power comes with money, plain and simple and I can give you that beyond your wildest dreams. Everyone has their price Turner. You can take it and go, build up your own empire in another state, I really don't give a fuck what you do with it."

Vin grinned a wolfish grin then. "Why not stay here?"

Billy grinned back, but it didn't reach his eyes. "You try to take me over you'll be dead before you spend a cent."

Vin hiked up a brow in defiance but let it go. "What is it, exactly, you have in mind?"

Billy was doing a lot of smiling and Vin sensed it was an unfamiliar expression on the man's face.

"You know what I want. I want you to take Eddie out for me."

Vin was silent, apparently considering the deal as Billy pushed one of the photographs at him and tapped it lightly to make his point. "You're here because I want this done clean... and we both know you know how to do that."

Vin glanced at the photo, this one showing him with his sniper's rifle resting on his shoulder as he squinted at the camera through a haze of rain. He remembered the day the photo was taken, could almost smell the wet earth and the leaves of the trees surrounding him.

"That was a long time ago."

"You're not old enough for it to be a long time ago," Billy said in a flat tone.

"Another lifetime then."

Billy gave Vin his full attention. "I really don't give a fuck why you hid this from the club. I need you to take out Eddie and I want it done professionally."

"He ain't stupid, he knows what you're up to."

"Even so, I know you can be invisible. It was your job. Eddie's had to lay low far too long. He came here cos he's pissed at me, wants to shut me down, but he won't be able to stay out of the spotlight. He'll want the glory himself. He'll open himself up at the funeral to get to me."

Vin shook his head. Billy knew exactly what Eddie had planned. The two men were knowingly heading into battle, both with their own army of loyal men ready to fight. And Vin was smack in the middle of it. He waited another minute, contemplating before finally looking Billy in the eye. "I do this, I want your backing."

Billy flicked a glance at Jake. "You'll have it."

"I'm serious," Vin said. "The Texas boys find out I'm in with you an' my life's worth shit. Hell, Sugar's already -"

"None of them will be a problem much longer, you don't have to worry about them."

Vin looked at him. "How sure can you be of that?" He wanted details, damn it.

"Soon as Eddie goes down the men are going to be like chooks with their heads cut off. Like any chain of command they'll look to Sugar who's next in rank, then probably Charlie. They'll be the first to go down. After that, it'll be like shooting fish in a barrel. All I need you to do is get to Eddie. Ride out after Sugar, wait for the funeral, if the prick actually turns up, I don't care, but you take him out. Then you can get clear. We'll handle the rest."

Holy shit, Vin thought. Both chapters were going to annihilate the other.

Billy looked at Suzy and Vin wondered anew what her role in this was.

"And to sweeten the deal for you, I have a gift for you."

Vin's gaze went to Suzy's furious glare aimed at Billy, but Billy was toying with her still.

"I know you want payback on Levitz. He's head's gonna be filling every tv screen and every front page later today telling all the ignorant citizens of this town about the raid and how he single-handedly took in the haul of a lifetime. The public will look to him and he'll be in his glory... So we need to make sure we hit back, drive some fear back into them."

"What you got in mind?"

"Soon as the funeral mess is over with I'll lend you a few of my boys, you can take care of him any way you want, just keep it clean, I don't want the cops lockin' you up again before you get your job done."

"I know why I want Levitz taken down, but isn't he on yer books?"

"The stupid prick thinks he's outgrown me," was all he said. "Are you telling me you think the man should get away with what he did to you?" When Vin didn't answer he went on. "Every now and then you have to let your enemy's know you hold the power. We took care of Benning –"

"Why him?" Vin took the opportunity to press.

Billy shrugged. "He was making headway, getting too close. Another few months he would have started to make a dent in our shell."

Vin nodded as if he understood why he had to be taken out of the game. "So you planted those photo's and

everyone bought it," he added. It had been all over the news, after all.

Billy shrugged. "It's been done before, but the public don't seem to remember… Larabee was next on my list, but you boys were going to take care of him. He'll be next."

Billy flicked his packet of cigarettes around the surface of the desk with his thumb and forefinger. He was anxious to close the deal and signalling to Vin that he was getting impatient.

Vin stared at him a moment, letting him see how heavy the decision was on him, before he finally tilted his head a fraction to the side in agreeance.

And then Billy smiled. He knew he had him. And he had his way of getting to Eddie and a professional sniper in his own pocket. He was going to start turning things around and he was going to cut the legs out from under the Texan chapter, with one of their own men. All was definitely not lost here.

"First, I need to take care of some other business, so why don't you go on upstairs and Suzy here can help you relax for a bit."

Suzy made a noise of protest but Billy ignored her.

"You want me to take Eddie out I got some plannin' ta do. I don't even know where the hell Sugar went."

"You can head out when you're rested up. I have men following Sugar, I'll call you when they locate him if you don't work it out first. You call me when you've either got a plan, or executed one with success. I don't hear from you before the funeral I'll be coming to ask you why. You wanna work with me I demand loyalty from my men. You fuck this up I'll come after you myself." He waited for Vin to nod. "Good. Now take Suzie and go and do whatever you need to do to have a good sleep."

Suzy looked at Vin but could see nothing in his expression.

"I'll be fine on my own," he told him, getting up with effort.

"All the same," he turned to Suzy, "honey you be good to my new boy here."

Suzy's eyes spat fury as she looked at Billy, not moving.

"I'll put it in words you understand," Billy said, getting up, moving around the desk and taking hold of her arm in a hard grip that made her wince. "Never forget who owns you. Whatever I want from you you'll give, and we both know I've taught you how to give... Now you'll extend those talents to our new friend here, whatever he needs, you'll do for him, you understand me? Cos if you don't, I'll let the whole chapter ride you, one by one."

"Fuck you."

Billy slapped her, knocking her from the chair and Vin felt blood enter his own mouth as he literally had to bite his cheek to hold himself back.

"Not any more. But you're still my property, so I'm going to make sure I get the mileage out of you." He nodded to Jake who moved in and grabbed her arms, dragging her out of the room. Before she had gone Billy spoke to Vin so that she could hear. "She give's you any trouble you let me know."

"Fuck you Billy," she said again.

Billy shook his head as the sounds of Suzy's protests left the room. He walked Vin to the door. "Women. Just when you think they know their place, they go and stab you right in the back. You can't trust them, you remember that. They'll burn you sooner or later, so you best show them who's boss every minute."

Vin looked at him hard, his eyes burning. "I'll remember that."

A short while later Jake came back into Billy's office and shut the door, taking one of the now unoccupied seats. Billy put his feet up on his desk, relaxing for a moment now that he had taken care of business that morning and put his plans into action. If he was disturbed at giving Suzy to Vin he didn't show it.

"She'll give him hell," Jake said, pouring a drink from the bottle on Billy's desk.

Billy said nothing, lost in thought. "Bale here yet?"

Jake avoided his eyes. "We're still locating him."

Billy's fury escalated - and so did his fear. "You get him in here, now. I want to take care of him myself." The stupid bastard had nearly cost him Turner with his sloppy work in taking out the Texas boys. Turner had been onto them and that was not meant to have happened. That, combined with losing every single asset they had in storage was more than enough to sign his death warrant.

"You think Sugar's dumb enough to head straight to Eddie?" Jake guided the subject off of Bale. He knew the man was hiding out, his boys couldn't find a trace of him anywhere, but he wouldn't tell Billy that until he was sure he was missing. If he was to run to the police...

Billy looked into his own glass, as if it told him his answer. "One way or another, he'll lead us to him. Or maybe the kid'll contact him and he'll welcome him straight back." They had guards following him and more posted in town ready for him to ride through. Even the idiot Levitz was going to use his resources to track him. That was one reason he hadn't killed the man yet, he was still useful for the time being.

"And you think Turner's not going to run straight back to them and tell them your plan?"

Billy thought he knew Vin Turner, he thought he had him exactly where he wanted him, but he also knew you could never really know what somebody might do when they were backed to a wall.

"I think it's a safe bet they know what we're planning... but if he does, he'll go down with them."

But he didn't think he would. He felt like this was just the beginning. If Turner managed to free him of Eddie, he wanted the kid to stick around. He'd be needing someone with skills watching his back and Jake just wasn't enough now that he was heading up even higher in the world. On the other hand, if the kid betrayed him... well, then he wouldn't live long enough to reach his next birthday.