Chapter 41 Pressure tactics
Ryder's POV
Sage found me in the clubhouse garage the morning after.
I was making some modifications on my bike, trying to keep my hands busy while my mind raced with everything that was happening. When I heard her footsteps, I looked up and saw the exhaustion written all over her face.
"We need to talk," she said.
I wiped my hands on a rag and followed her to a quiet corner where we couldn't be overheard. She told me what happened between her and Jaxon the previous night.
"Are you sure about what you're saying?" I asked.
"One hundred percent. Jaxon is hiding evidence. We need to move faster to figure things out." Her voice was tight.
"Does Jaxon know who killed Vincent?" I asked again.
"I can bet my ass that he does. But he wouldn't tell me. I don't know what to think anymore." Sage rubbed her face.
"We need more information," I said. "Real information."
"From who?"
"Dr. Martinez is still out there somewhere. He knows what really happened to Robert Cordova. He's the key to all of this."
Sage grabbed my arm. "Ryder, what are you planning?"
"Whatever it takes to get answers." I looked at her directly. "I'm done playing nice with people who know the truth and won't share it. I'm going to make him talk."
"How?"
"You don't want to know. I'll make him understand that keeping quiet is more dangerous than talking."
"What if he doesn't cooperate?"
"Leave that to me."
In twenty minutes, Tommy and I were at Dr Martinez’s clinic. The door was locked and I knocked hard. "Martinez, open up. We need to talk."
There was movement inside. Then Martinez's voice, muffled by the door. "Go away. I have nothing to say to you."
"That's not how this works." I tried the doorknob. It was locked. "Open the door or I'll kick it in."
"You have no authority here. This isn't club property."
“Actually, it is.” I was losing my patience.
I stepped back and kicked the door just below the lock. The cheap wood splintered and the door crashed inward. Martinez stood in the middle of the room, his eyes wide with fear and anger.
"Get out!" he shouted. "You can't just break in here!"
I walked in like I owned the place. Tommy followed and closed the broken door behind us as best he could.
"Sit down, doc. We need to have a conversation."
"What do you want from me?" But Martinez's voice shook. "You can threaten me all you want. I'm not talking."
"You think I'm here to threaten you?" I moved closer and he backed up until he hit the wall. "I'm here to ask simple questions. I want you to tell me what you know about Robert Cordova's murder or things are going to get very unpleasant for you."
Martinez laughed. "You think you scare me? Do you know who I am? Your threats are nothing compared to what will happen if I talk."
"Who are you afraid of?"
"People way beyond your reach. People who make the Steel Wolves look like children playing dress-up." Martinez's face was red with anger and fear. "The information you're looking for is buried so deep you'll never find it. And even if you did, you couldn't do anything with it without getting everyone you love killed."
"Try me."
"No." Martinez straightened up, finding some backbone. "Now get out of my clinic before I report you."
I pulled out my phone and dialed Diesel's number. He answered on the second ring.
"Yeah?"
"You there yet?" I asked.
There was rustling on the other end. Then a woman's voice, shaky and scared. "Hello? Who is this? Why are these men at my house?"
"Mrs. Martinez," I said calmly. "I'm sorry to frighten you. We just need to have a conversation with your husband."
"David? What's going on? Help us please! Don't let them hurt us!"
In the background, I heard children crying. Martinez's two daughters, probably terrified by the strange men showing up at their door.
"Please," Mrs. Martinez said. "We haven't done anything wrong. Just leave us alone."
Martinez lunged at me. "You son of a bitch! Leave my family out of this!"
I was ready for him. I sidestepped and my fist connected with his stomach. He fell over, gasping for air. I grabbed his collar and slammed him against the wall.
"Listen very carefully," I said, my voice cold and steady. "Your family is fine right now. My boys are just visiting. But if you don't start talking, if you don't tell us everything you know about Robert Cordova, I will make your wife and daughters disappear. Do you understand me?"
Martinez's face was twisted with anger and fear. "You wouldn't. You wouldn't hurt them."
"I wouldn't. Do you want to bet on that?" I pressed him harder against the wall. "Right now, your family's safety depends entirely on how cooperative you are. So what's it going to be, doc?"
He tried to break free, his fists swinging wildly. One connected with my jaw and pain exploded across my face. But I was stronger and faster. I threw him to the ground and my boot caught him in the ribs.
Martinez cried out, curling into a ball. Blood trickled from his nose where it hit the floor.
"Tommy, help me get him up," I said.
We hauled Martinez to his feet. He was sobbing now, all the fight gone out of him.
"Please," he begged. "Please don't hurt them. They don't know anything. This has nothing to do with them."
"Then cooperate." I grabbed his face and made him look at me. "Tell us everything. No more running, no more hiding, no more lies. You do that, and your family stays safe."
"If I talk, they'll kill me. They'll kill all of us."
"If you don't talk, I'll kill all of you." The words came out flat and certain. "At least if you cooperate, you have a chance. Keep your mouth shut, and I guarantee you won't live to see tomorrow."
Martinez stared at me, searching for any hint that I was bluffing. He wouldn't find it. Right now, with Sage's future hanging in the balance and her father's killer still walking free, I would do whatever it took.
I spoke into the phone. "Is Mrs. Martinez still there?"
"Yeah, she's right here."
"Let her talk to her husband."
Martinez's wife came back on the line. "David? David, what's happening? These men won't leave and the girls are so scared."
"I'm sorry," Martinez whispered. "I'm so sorry. Just do what they say and everything will be okay."
He looked at me with hatred burning in his eyes. "Leave my wife and my girls alone and I'll give you whatever they want." He screamed at me.
I took the phone back. "Stay with them. Make sure they're comfortable."
"Got it." Diesel replied.
I hung up and pulled Martinez toward the door. He was still bleeding, still shaking with fear and rage.
"Where are we going?" he asked.
"You're going to tell everything you know about Vincent's secrets." I shoved him toward Tommy. "And you're going to do it in front of the person it matters most to."
"You're making a mistake," Martinez said. "The people involved in this, they're bigger than you can imagine. Telling you the truth will just get more people killed."
"Then I guess we'll die knowing what really happened." I grabbed his arm and pulled him toward the door. "Move."
"You're going to regret this," he said quietly. "All of you. Vincent kept these secrets for a reason. Opening them up is going to destroy everything he built."
"Vincent's already dead," I said. "How bad could his secrets be?"