Zeus and Marty walked out to the parking lot just as the construction crew was pulling in. They both headed over to Kenneth’s truck and began talking to him.
“How much fence do you guys have to do?” Zeus asked.
Kenneth shrugged and said, “Not that much, we should be able to get it done before noon tomorrow.”
Marty thought for a moment then asked, “How long would you guys be willing to work tonight to get it done?”
Kenneth stared at her. “Ma’am, that would require overtime and I’ve never made the guys work overtime before.”
“Kenny, we need that wall done as soon as possible.” She looked around at the crew of six men and said, “Can you guys get it done tonight if I offer each man here a 10 grand bonus, plus your regular pay?”
Kenneth blinked at her in surprise. “10k per person for a few more hours? Are you crazy?”
“No, I’m not. We really need that wall and I don’t care what I have to pay to get it. The question is can your men finish it tonight?”
The men looked around at each other and one by one, they all nodded.
“Hell yeah, we can get it done,” one of them said. “We got the lights to finish it after dark if that’s what you want.”
Zeus nodded. “Then git it done, boys.”
Kenneth started the truck again and after he drove away, Zeus looked over at her. “What the fuck, woman?”
Marty shrugged. “You needed the wall done, I got it done.”
“Hell of a bonus you offered them.” He growled.
Marty paused then stared back at him. “You guys are worth it. Lily and Angel are worth it. Like Leon said, with Barrett getting out of prison early, our time just ran out.”
Zeus slowly shook his head.
Placing her hand on his arm, she said, “I’ve had money for years. Never spent it. Now, it can finally do some good, Zeus. If that’s what it takes to keep the girls safe then I will give it.”
He sighed and turned to grasp her face in his hands. He gazed into her eyes. “I see that. I don’t like it much, but…it is needed here.” He kissed her gently, then pulled away. “The girls are lucky to have you. So am I.” He took her hand and they went back inside.
Zeus stepped inside and headed for the tables as he told the group, “The wall will get finished tonight.”
Leon looked over at them and nodded. “I had John get some armored vehicles and more men coming in tomorrow morning. They will be here very early and hopefully be out before we get any more company.”
“Knowing my son,” Alfredo spoke up. “He’ll be thinking he’s got time. He won’t realize we know he got out early. He thinks he can get everything set up and still catch us by surprise.”
Leon shook his head. “What that man thinks is of no concern to me. He’s an idiota. How do you think he landed in prison? Who do you think put him there? The law? Pensa di nuovo.” Think again.
They all stared at him.
Alfredo smiled. “So when he pulled that nonsense on you?” he asked Leon.
Leon gave him a nod. “I put him away. He’s lucky I didn’t put him six feet under.”
Memphis chuckled. “I like your style, Mr. Vincinti.”
He scoffed. “Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.” He straightened his perfect lapels.
Marty, Lindy and Delaney all laughed.
He gave them a nod.
Delaney sat quietly for a while as they watched the monitors and Leon made some calls.
Then she got up and walked down the hall to come to a halt at the end. Wrapping her arms around her belly, she stood there staring out the window.
Memphis followed her down the hall and when he saw her standing there, he asked, “What’s wrong?”
She stared out the window for a moment or so then spoke in a low voice, “All my life my dad treated me like a second class citizen. And do you know why?”
“Why?”
”Because I was a girl, not a boy.” Shaking her head she said, “Why would that make a difference?” She shrugged. “I don’t know but it always did. Did you know my parents were never married? My dad always told my mom that his children would carry his name and he gave his name to the boys but when I was born, he refused to give me his name. According to him, I’m not a real Raggetti. I can’t carry his name when I get married, so I was no use to him. So when my mom walked out on him, they didn’t need a divorce. She wanted to take me with her but he wouldn’t even let her do that. I might not have his name but he wouldn’t let her take me with her either. Instead, I went to social services until my grandpa found me. He fought to take care of me and they almost didn’t let him because he was older than they deemed okay to take on a little kid. But he got me in the long run and I’ve been with him ever since. My brothers all went into the system as well but they never aged out, instead they ran away and started their own family. They called every time they got in trouble and got arrested but grandpa told them they were on their own after he bailed them out three times. They would never listen to him and went off on their own every time. So he drew a line in the sand and he stuck to it. And when they’d call him up to demand money he would tell them no. They didn’t like that and one night they broke in to get some money, grandpa told them to get out. Alijala had hit him and that’s when I showed up with a shotgun in my hand. They didn’t think I’d shoot them. They didn’t know me well enough to think that and when Romano moved in on grandpa again, I showed them I was serious.” She shrugged. “I only had birdshot in the gun but I think they got the message. They all three ran like the cowards they were that night and I’ve been protecting him ever since.”
“But this time is different, isn’t it?” Memphis asked her.
She nodded. “Yep, this time it is different. This time, I won’t have birdshot in the gun and they won’t run.”
Blaze, Hellfire and Captain came down the hall. They opened a door close to them and went upstairs, shutting the door behind them.
Delaney looked over at him and then motioned toward the door.
Memphis shrugged and said, “That leads to the roof. We’re keeping eyes out tonight. We don’t need any more surprises. If they see anything, they can let the others know.”
She nodded then looked out the window again. The noise might be muffled but she could see the workers assembling the fence through the trees. She turned to study him for a moment then she asked, “Is there somewhere we can go that’s private? I have something to ask you and I don’t want everyone else to know about it.”
“What do you have to ask me?” Memphis asked with a curious expression on his face.
“Can we go somewhere private?” she repeated.
Memphis grabbed her hand and got a little shock when he touched her. He frowned and glanced down at their hands then up at her. He led her down the hall and when he opened a door and ushered her inside, he closed it behind them. Leaning against the wooden door he asked, “Is this private enough for you?” he spoke to her in a whisper.
Delaney turned to him and nodded. “It’ll do, it’ll do just fine.”
“So what did you want to ask me?” Memphis cocked his head as if trying to read her.
Delaney paused then came toward him and she didn’t stop until she was inches away from him.
“What the hell are you doing?” he asked, as she got right up close.
Instead of speaking, she showed him what she was doing when she pushed her body up against him. She leaned in close to his lips and pressed her mouth to his.
Lightning hit them both as the kiss deepened and Memphis took over. He cupped her head with his big hands and then crushed his mouth against hers as she groaned. His tongue slipped in through the seam of her lips and the kiss went from one to a hundred in a nanosecond.
Now, it was Memphis’ turn to groan as their tongues parried and thrusted while their combined pleasure mounted. The kiss went on and on until finally, Memphis broke his hold on her. By that time, they both had to gasp for air but as soon as he got a lungful, he went back for another taste of her mouth.
This time, Delaney pulled back and when she did, she just stared at him with awe and wonder. “I think I got my answer.”
“You did?” he asked while looking puzzled. “What the hell was the question?”
“I was wondering if you tasted as good as you looked. I guess you do.”
Memphis growled and wrapped his arms around her back, pulling her close, “You taste a whole hell of a lot better than I do, woman.” He kissed her again. Grabbing her ass, he lifted her up then turned her around and pinned her against the door. She wrapped her legs around his waist, giving Memphis the opening he wanted and he ground his hard cock into her core.
Delaney moaned and rubbed herself against him.
Memphis finally broke the kiss. “I think we’re playing with fire here, sweetness.”
Delaney sighed hard. “I know but I had to find out. I’m sorry.”
Memphis snorted at this answer. “I’m not sorry, not sorry at all.”
Delaney looked up at him. “You’re not?”
Memphis shook his head. “Are you nuts? Hell no, I’m not sorry, in fact I’ve been looking for a way to get you alone. I like you sweetness, I think I like you a lot. You’re bold and brassy, a bit mouthy but I like that too. And now that I’ve tasted you, I might have to hang on to you.”
“I want you too, but I think our time is running out,” she whispered.
“Why do you say that like it’s a death sentence or something?” Memphis wanted to know.
She lowered her legs until her feet touched the floor and moved away from him. “My dad walked out of prison two days early, I figure that means he’s got an insider helping him. What he promised that person is unknown at this time but believe me he’ll let us know soon enough. If Vince got word the gold is real to our other brothers they’ll come for it too. I thought we had two more days to get the gold out of here, but now we no longer have that element of surprise. In fact, I think we’re going to be the ones they try to get the jump on when my dad and brothers get here.”
Memphis smiled. “Or they could be the ones who get jumped. Raggo got close but he forgot one thing, we will defend ourselves. We also have Marty and Lindy, and believe me, they are crack shots.”
Delaney smiled. “I’m not so bad either. Just sayin’.” She shrugged. “I’ve been shooting all my life, just to be able to protect my grandpa. I can handle a rifle.”
Just then, someone pounded on Memphis’ door.
Memphis growled and threw the door open, revealing Grave Digger on the other side.
Grave Digger looked pretty shocked to see them together and then he shook his head. “Zeus needs you two in the main room.”
Memphis grabbed Delaney’s hand to tug her past Grave Digger and down the hall.
When they arrived, everyone was standing behind Click, watching his monitors. “What’s going on?” Memphis asked.
“Kenneth and his boys got the wall finished and we’re waiting for it to come online,” Zeus explained as he raised his head. When he saw his brother holding Delaney’s hand he paused, then shook his head.
“What do you mean coming online?” Memphis asked as they moved over to where the others stood.
“I asked Kenny to make sure the fence was secure and could be used as a deterrent,” Marty replied. “So he put a power line inside it. The fence is electrified. That should give us fair warning.”
Just then, the monitor lit up and they could all see a red line around the property. The hookup was up and running.
Click nodded. “That’s what Mark said we’d see when it was all done.”
Zeus looked satisfied. “We’re up and running.”
Leon agreed. “And not a moment too soon, penso.” He nodded at another screen.
Just then, they saw a man walking up to the fence line out in the back area and he seemed to be listening for something. He got a little too close and then they saw him get thrown away from the fence.
“Oh dear, they found our little secret,” Marty quipped.
They all watched as the man got to his feet and he glared at the fence then kicked a shoe full of dirt at it. It sparked and the guy ran away a few steps then he picked up a stick and threw it at the fence. The wood shattered when it hit the current and the man looked surprised. Finally, he walked away. They saw him join the others standing there and he proceeded to gripe and bitch. They couldn’t hear what was said but they could only imagine.
Marty nodded. “Kenny told me if they find a way to trip the fence there is a backup. So we got that much at least. They won’t get inside without us knowing.”
Click looked up at Zeus. “And if they trip the first defense, we’ll get an alarm and be able to turn on the secondary voltage from here. We also got the cameras all hooked up, so we got eyes all over the place.”
“Now all we are waiting for is the players to show up,” Leon stated. “I like these kinds of games. It will be winner takes all and I never lose.”
The group all looked over at him.
He looked like he had his own surprises in store. “È quello che faccio.” He shrugged his elegantly clad shoulders as he gave them a dazzling smile. “It’s what I do.”
