Chapter 133: Chapter 133: A Step Behind

Delaney went on, “He always made his own choices. He could have been like Carlos but he chose to steal and…kill. The time has come for him to pay for all that he has done. I can’t even feel sorry for my brothers anymore. They chose to follow him and look at what that got them. He’s come to his last stand.”

“And now we have to find and take away his reason for staying in the area,” Zeus grumbled.

“No senor.” Desi’s voice came from behind them.

They all looked over at her.

She stood in the doorway leading to the hall. “You can’t just take away his reason for being here. He would be here anyway and he doesn’t realize that you know why he’s here. He isn’t leaving this place without his payday.”

Leon agreed, “You are right, he would be here anyway looking for that big paycheck, one that he didn’t earn and wouldn’t even think about not taking.”

Desi shrugged. “He took the stories told to him as a child and twisted and turned them round and round in his mind, making himself think the money belonged to him. His brain isn’t working right and his tunnel vision is blinding him to the reality of what’s right and wrong.”

“If you’ve never met the man, how do you know so much about him and his way of thinking?” Calderone asked her.

Desi shook her head. “I have seen this behavior time and time again in other people, other places and I learned the lessons my grandfather taught me. I learned from him to work and think outside the box.”

“Si, Girmondo would have taught you those lessons,” Leon reasoned. “He learned them from his own father and grandfather growing up in New York City. They always watched the people around them and many times they saw trouble before it became trouble.”

Desi nodded. “And he taught me to do the same. That’s why even if we do find his money, he will still come and try to get it back. That’s just how he is.” She walked over and gazed down at the map on the table. She could see the old design and the marks that showed the changes the bikers had made since then. Finally, she looked up at Zeus. “Did you look under the front porch? With the little time he had, he might have stored the bag under the porch, thinking no one would look for it there.”

Zeus frowned and glanced around at his men. Nobody said anything.

Delaney had the audacity to smirk.

Zeus paused at her face and her smirking as he raised a brow.

She rolled her lips and tried to hide her smile.

Oh, he knew what she was smirking about. Yeah, he fucking knew. He had to admit it, at least silently to himself. Women were better at some things than men were. Just look at Marty and Lindy. Always there first as he and his men were a step behind them. He let out a disgusted grunt and suggested, “Maybe we should look under the fucking front porch then. It’s a start. We may not find anything but at least we looked.”

Diabolus and Captain both grabbed flashlights and headed toward the front door. They went out and crawled under the front porch.

Zeus, Leon and Calderone went over to the door.

There was a lot of swearing and noise coming from under the porch and house until both men crawled out from under it. Finally, they stood up and began dusting themselves off then they turned to glare at Desi.

Diabolus looked up at Zeus and shook his head. “There ain’t nothing there but dust and ant hills. Some of those ant hills are red ants. We’re gonna need to hire an exterminator to get rid of them.”

Zeus ran his hands over the back of his head. “We got more trouble than ants, man.” No, he wasn’t glad that Desi had been wrong. This shit was getting old. Looking for treasure almost every fucking day. He narrowed his eyes at Desi and asked, “Any other bright ideas?”

Desi glared right back at him as she stood in the doorway. “As big as this place is, the money could be anywhere. I would ask Alfredo for more ideas.” She shrugged. “Me? I’m a stranger here.”

Zeus grunted and stomped his way back inside the clubhouse.

Diabolus and Captain continued to dust the dirt and grime from their clothing.

“Damn it!” Diabolus swore. “I got bit again.” He was removing his vest while wincing.

Click came over and stood next to Desi at the doorway just as she turned her head to look at something beyond the gates.

A man stood there, staring back. He looked disheveled and blood stained his clothing. He carried a gun in his hand and when he saw her staring at him, he raised his weapon and took aim at her.

Just then, Click pushed Desi to the side, out of the line of fire. Fast on his feet, he stepped through the door and leapt off the porch.

Diabolus and Captain ducked down just in time as he nearly flew over their heads.

With his weapon already out and aimed, Click kept shooting at his intended target until his gun was empty.

The man ducked out of the line of fire and hid behind a large tree.

Diabolus and Captain hustled Desi inside.

Click came in behind them and slammed the door shut.

Everyone in the main room had their weapons out as they waited for return fire.

After a couple of tense minutes, nothing came. They all breathed a sigh of relief.

Zeus turned to look at Desi.

Desi nodded at him. “It was Barrett Raggetti,” she whispered.

Zeus stared at her then he looked at his men. “Get up on the roof and find him, then shoot him but don’t kill him. He’s got crimes to pay for and I want him to pay for the rest of his miserable life. Find him. Hunt that mother fucker down and bring him in.”

Six of his men all grabbed their weapons and headed out.

Leon called his security group and got them hunting Barrett down as well.

Three different times over the next couple of hours, they heard gunshots but they were in the distance and just a few shots each time. No new information came from Leon’s security team, as they didn’t call in that they had got him.

Lunch was served and it was a pretty quiet meal.

Click sat with Desi and the longer time passed the more upset she seemed to be getting. She hadn’t touched her food.

Click finally looked over at Desi and asked, “Are you okay?”

Desi was trembling when she turned to reply to his question, “Did you see the look on his face when he saw me?”

Click paused and remembered the look he’d seen. “Yeah, what is up with that? He looked like he hated you. Why would he hate someone he never even met?”

“I think because I look a lot like my mom,” she whispered.