Keeping It in the Family (Linstead)

Chapter 64

In the back room at Integrity Auto, Ruby Riot was having a sit down with her Vice President, Sarah Logan. The topic of conversation was the auto shop being broken into a couple of nights back. The office had been trashed, and the petty cash box had been stolen along with a car, a Ford Mustang, that had been in for some minor repairs. The reason for the current conversation was that someone Shayna Baszler knew had advised her that he had been offered the chance to buy the stolen car. He had given the name and address of the guy who had made the offer, which Riot now relayed to Logan, along with the fact that he lived alone.

"Get over there and work him over. If it was him who robbed us, deal with it. If not, find out who did," Riot instructed. "And take the Prospect with you. It's time she showed us she can do something more than tend bar and ride around at the back of the pack."

"You're sure this is the job for her?" Logan asked.

"Would you want her interrogating you?"

"Good point," Logan said. "Okay, I'll take her and we'll get it done."

"Call me when you have, one way or another."

Logan nodded, then left the room. She went straight across to Lynch's, where Victoria Fernandez was working a shift tending bar. "Prospect! Get your ass over here!" she called as soon as she walked in.

Perception told Gonzalez that she wasn't about to be told to unblock a toilet or detail a bike. No, this was something different, something more significant. She obediently walked over to Logan.

"Your shift is over. Got something else for you to do this evening."

"Okay. Whatever you need."

"Of course whatever I need," Logan snapped. "Follow me."

At this point, Gonzalez was used to being spoken to like that. It was part of being a Prospect. She would likely endure that treatment the entire time until she was promoted to a full patch, assuming her undercover assignment lasted that long. She followed Logan out front, to where their bikes were parked. Getting ready to ride, she took her leather gloves out of her jeans pocket and pulled them on. Her helmet was hanging on her bike's handlebars.

"Right," Logan said before going to her own bike. "Got a lead on who robbed the shop. Guy named James Ellsworth sold the car that was stolen to someone who called it in to Baszler. We're going to go and find out if it was him who robbed us. If it wasn't, you're going to get him to tell us who did."

"And if it was him?" Gonzalez asked.

Logan raised an eyebrow at her. "Don't ask questions you know the answers to, Fernandez."

"You want me to kill him?"

"No, I want you to suck his dick and squeeze his balls," Logan said with impatient sarcasm. "Of course I want you to kill him. You got a problem with that? If so, you'd better take that cut off and get the hell out of here fast."

"Don't have a problem. Was just being clear about what we're setting out to do here."

"Then let's go. Follow me."

Within moments, the two women had their bikes fired up. With Logan in the lead, they rode off up the street.

The two bikers cruised to a quiet stop outside of a run down little house in a seedy neighbourhood. It was a good place to be on this kind of mission, Gonzalez thought. A bit of noise or shouting wouldn't be noteworthy to people who lived there, in contrast to more upmarket neighbourhoods where busybodies always had their curtains twitching.

"I want you to take the lead on this. This is where you get your first chance to show us you're worth having in the club," Logan said once they were off their bikes and standing at the bottom of the house's short driveway. "Get us inside, then question him about the car and the robbery. Think you can do that?"