Shattered (Dividing Line #5) (30 page)

They pulled on the helmets before stepping outside and raced to the bike. Ryan already had it started before Rachel was even on and when her arms slid around his waist he was off, tearing out of the gates and down the road, expecting to hear the crack of a gunshot or feel a bullet plough into his body, but that never happened.

He took the less obvious route out of the city, sticking to the back streets, doubling back on himself several times to make sure they weren’t being followed.

Finally they could breathe easier when they left the city behind, flying along the country roads, no vehicles behind them.

CHAPTER 30

As the bike approached the safe house the others all ran out clutching guns, refusing to lower them until Ryan and Rachel had pulled off their helmets.

“You’re back, thank God,” said Mikey, hugging Rachel. “What the bloody hell happened? Why did you get nicked? We called your solicitor but by the time she was allowed through early this morning you’d already been released.”

“Get the kettle on, I’m gagging for a decent cuppa. Then we’ll tell you everything,” said Rachel.

While they waited for the kettle to boil they all gathered in the kitchen and listened to Ryan relate the entire saga.

“You two are fucking smart,” said Frankie. “Makes up for the balls-up at Alex’s safe house.”

Rachel’s eyes met her husband’s. “Actually it was all Ryan’s idea, I didn’t do anything, I couldn’t,” she said, still hoping to convince Frankie of her unsuitability for the future he was trying to force on her.

“Don’t be modest Sweetheart. You saw what the enemy had planned and you outmanoeuvred them. Nice one.”

Rachel turned her back on him to make the tea so he wouldn’t see the anger in her eyes.

“Has Dane called yet?” said Ryan.

“No and it’s making me nervous,” replied Jez. “At least he doesn’t know about this place so he can’t lead Alex to us.”

“He’ll call. Now, I really need a shower.”

“Me too,” said Rachel. “I’m sure that blanket in the cell hadn’t been washed after the last prisoner left.”

“Up for another three hour marathon session, are you?” grinned Frankie. “Think of poor Jamesie. He pulled his little pud raw listening to you two going at it.”

“Thank you for that image Frankie,” said Rachel, ascending the stairs clutching her mug of tea. Once safely ensconced in their bedroom she said, “great, now we’ve impressed Frankie. It seems no matter which way we turn there’s something waiting to explode in our faces. On top of that I’m really worried about our other businesses getting hit.”

“What if they weren’t our businesses?” said Ryan.

“Then Alex wouldn’t bother with them,” she replied, cottoning on to his idea.

“Exactly. Strang’s been after our territory for a while. Why don’t we sell to him?”

“But everything we worked for will be gone.”

“And in its place we’ll be paid a fortune that we can use to invest in more businesses down south, miles away from anyone named Maguire.”

“It would certainly send Frankie the message that we’re done with Manchester.”

“Another bonus.”

Rachel took a sip of tea as she thought it over, Mrs Macey’s words ringing in her head. Even though it made her sad to give it all up she knew it was the only thing they could do to stop Alex burning alive more innocent people.

“Gaynor wasn’t our fault,” said Ryan.

“Can you read my thoughts now?”

“No, but I can read you. We were minding our own business down in Devon. Her death is on Alex. Mrs Macey needed to lash out and you were there.”

“I just can’t help imagining what she must be feeling. What if that happened to Leah?”

“Don’t even think it. So, what do you think about selling to Strang?”

“Okay, call him, but he’s not getting the casino. I want to give that to Dee.”

“Give?”

“One day she’ll have to give up work to look after Vince, he’s got emphysema. This way she’ll have a steady income. And don’t forget, she risked a very long prison sentence to save our hides.” She gave a small smile. “Only she would think to throw a block of cocaine off a roof.”

“Alright, agreed. The casino goes to Dolores, everything else to Strang. I’ll call him now. The sooner this is done the better.”

Ryan made the call while Rachel took a shower. By the time she came out wrapped in a towel it was done.

“He agreed,” said Ryan. “I’ve already called our solicitor and instructed her to draw up the documents as soon as possible. He’s arranging to transfer the money as we speak.”

“You already negotiated a price?”

“Yes, slightly less than I would have liked but we need a very quick sale and he’s the only person I know with that amount of cash behind them. But we’ll still make enough money to buy our own island if that’s what we want.”

“That sounds very appealing. Our own private island, just us and the kids.”

“Heaven,” he smiled.

“I think Alex chose to hit the spa for a more personal reason. That business brought us together, it marked the start of our relationship.”

“Another fuck you to us.”

“I’ll be sad to say goodbye to it.”

“Me too Babe, I was always fond of it for that reason, especially the cottage round the back where we made love for the first time.”

“That was one hell of a night,” she smiled dreamily. “We’ve had plenty more since then.”

“And there’ll be plenty more to come. Now please stop distracting me with that skimpy towel, I need to make some more calls. There are a lot of palms that will need greasing to get this sale through in record time.”

Rachel lay back on the bed as he started to dial, the sound of his deep voice soothing. Soon her eyes grew heavy, she’d got no sleep in that prison cell.

The next thing she knew her towel had been pulled open and Ryan - freshly showered and wrapped in his own towel - was kissing her bare breasts.

“Did negotiations go well?” she murmured, running her fingertips through his damp hair.

“Very well. Everything’s in motion. As soon as the deal’s done I’ll have the word put out, then Alex will have no reason to attack any of the businesses.”

He turned his attention to her scars, kissing them one by one. It was important to him that he reassure her they didn’t matter. The ones on her body were small marks, nothing like the one on her neck but she was still self-conscious about them.

“Am I interrupting?” called a voice.

“No Jez,” sighed Ryan. He clambered off the bed to answer the door while Rachel covered herself up. “What is it?”

“Dane’s called. He knows where Jasper White is.”

“Where?”

“At a Lucifer’s Shadow safe house, a crappy rundown shack outside the city limits.”

“I’ll be down in a minute.”

Once the door was closed Rachel leapt off the bed and started pulling on her clothes.

“What are you doing?” he said.

“We’re going after Alex.”

“We are. You’re staying here.”

She finished fastening her bra and stared at him. “I most certainly am not.”

“This will be carnage and I don’t want you to see it.”

“I’m not some weak little woman who can’t stand a bit of blood.”

He grasped her shoulders and pulled her to him. “What I mean is I don’t want you seeing me the way I will have to become to pull this off.”

“I’ve seen you kill before.”

“This won’t be a fair fight, it will be slaughter. Do you know what I intend to do? Set fire to the building and kill them when they run out. We will have to be completely merciless because after what they did last night they have upped the game and we must do the same to survive. This pack of animals needs to be wiped out and there can be no hesitations. I can’t be worrying if you have it in you to pull the trigger.”

“I do.”

“You don’t know what it is to take a life Rachel, to stick a blade in someone or put a bullet in them.”

“You doubt me,” she said, hurt.

“I don’t doubt your courage or your determination but I do fear what the after-effects would be. You’d feel guilty about it, just like you feel guilt over Gaynor, even though that was not your fault. It’s not a criticism, you have a heart and I don’t want you to lose it.”

“You made me a promise.”

“Yes I did Babe and I’m asking you to release me from it just this once because I will have to turn off all emotion to do this and if you see me like that you will never look at me the same way again.”

Rachel sighed and turned her back on him, fighting with her emotions. She didn’t want to be left behind like the little woman, she wanted her vengeance but - annoyingly - she could see his point.

He came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. “Think about when this is all over and our life together, with our children. We don’t want Alex to take that from us too, do we?”

“No,” she whispered, wiping tears from her eyes.

“You’re crying?”

She nodded, keeping her back to him.

“Why?”

“Because I have this horrible rage inside me and the only way to get rid of it is by going after Alex. I feel like I’m going to explode.”

“I fully sympathise but please Rachel, I’m begging you, stay here. Don’t let Alex destroy us.”

She turned in his arms to face him and was surprised by the look on his face, he seemed to be panicking. She’d never seen Ryan this way before, in fact this whole experience was teaching her so much more about him. “Okay, I’ll let you out of your promise, just this once though.”

His hands went into her hair and he ground his mouth against hers so hard she staggered back a few steps, but he caught her and pulled her against him. “Thank you, thank you, thank you,” he whispered into her hair.

“Just this once, remember. Don’t ask it of me again.”

“I won’t.”

“Can I at least sit in on the planning?”

“Yes, of course. I love you.”

“Love you too.”

“And that’s why I’ve asked this of you, because I don’t want that to change. So we’re okay?”

“Course we are you silly bugger. We could also use this to convince Frankie that I’ve lost my nerve.”

“I’m not sure he’ll believe it after the way you went after Alex, but it’s certainly worth a try.”

After dressing they went downstairs and everyone sat down together in the living room to plan the attack.

Listening to all the men discuss killing on such a scale made Rachel really understand what Ryan meant. The plan was brutal and chilling, nothing less than Lucifer’s Shadow deserved after the atrocities they’d committed but all the same it still turned her stomach.

“Declan, I want you and your brothers to stay here with Rachel,” said Ryan.

“She’s not coming?” said Frankie.

“This isn’t for me,” she replied.

“What the fuck is this?” he scowled. “I’ve seen you hack off a woman’s hand, torture people, taser them and beat the living shit out of them. Burning out a bunch of leather-wearing long haired ponces should be no problem for you. So why is it now?”

“Frankie, I’ve been living the quiet life in Devon for the past year where the most dangerous thing that happens is carving the Sunday roast. I’ve been out of the game too long.”

He got to his feet and looked from her to Ryan. “Just what the fuck is this? One minute you’re tearing after a loonie with a gun, the next you come over all fucking girlie and delicate. You know your problem Sweetheart, you need to catch a grip of yourself.”

“I’m sure all you big tough men can handle it without me.”

“We don’t need a woman, they just get in the way,” said Paul. When Frankie stared at him, aghast at the interruption, he hung his head. “Sorry Frankie.”

“Don’t forget my empty Tupperware box you fucking fanny merchant.” He looked back at Rachel. “You’re coming with us.”

“No Frankie, I’m not.”

When he took a step towards her Ryan put himself between them.

“Rachel is staying here and that’s the end of it. We’ve got enough bodies to do this.”

Frankie’s glare was feral. “You know, I’m getting sick of conceding all the time. It’s not in my nature and it makes me extremely pissed off.”

“You’re on our patch, you do this our way, just as we would if we were in Glasgow,” said Ryan. “You don’t like it you can go home and let us finish this.”

“No fucking way, I want my pound of flesh,” Frankie roared.

“That’s how it is. Take it or leave it.”

Frankie did some hasty calculations in his head. He knew he was here as a guest and he was seriously outnumbered. Not only that, he had to think of business when this was finished and Rachel and Ryan were the future of that.

“This is the last concession I’m making. We’re going to have to work together in the future so we have to keep this civilised but I’m warning you, I will not back down again. Do you fucking get it?” he yelled in Ryan’s face.

“Yes Frankie, I do. Shall we get moving?”

The thought of the massacre ahead soothed Frankie’s rage and his lips twisted into a macabre smile. “Oh yeah, looking forward to it Pal. Jamesie, Paul, get your fucking gear together,” he bellowed, but he was full of excitement now, not anger.

A concerned Battler and Bruiser approached Ryan. “If you don’t want us to stay with her because of our fuck-ups in the past, I can assure you it won’t happen again.”

“That’s not it at all Battler,” he replied. “Declan and his brothers aren’t ready for this and we can’t afford any hesitations. I need your skills and expertise. She’ll be safe here with them, no one knows our location.”