“You always did think you were funnier than you actually are. Look around; nobody’s laughing, you dumb fuck.”

Slot tried to run when Stud got off his bike yet was held immobile by Crash and Razer.

“I made a deal with The Last Riders that, if they helped us find you, they could keep two, and I could take two. That way, everybody’s happy,” Stud explained.

“But there’s five of us,” Slot whined.

“We decided to share one.”

Once Stud’s fist slammed into Slot’s belly, knocking him to his knees, he pulled his pistol out from behind his back, bringing it down on the side of Slot’s head.

“Stud, remember my half,” Shade reminded him as he got off his bike.

“Which half do you want?”

“The part I bury.”

* * *

Shade forced himself out of bed the next morning, going up the steps to the kitchen. The punishment of cleaning the kitchen was a pain in the ass, but it was better than doing seed inventory. He snickered to himself, thinking of the tedious job Winter had drawn.

He opened the door to see the object of his sarcastic humor sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee in front of her.

He poured himself a cup, taking a sip of the coffee to bolster his flagging energy before he moved toward the stove. Opening the oven door, he stared at it for several minutes before closing it.

Shade then went to the kitchen closet, gathering cleaning supplies and filling a bucket with soapy water. He went to the refrigerator, opened the door, and within seconds, he was slamming it shut. Turning green, he hastily moved away to lean on the counter.

With the amount of whiskey he had consumed the previous night about to make an appearance, he decided he was going to call the local appliance store and have them bring a new stove then take the one in the kitchen. There was no way in Hell he was going to clean that mess.

“The punishments are a bitch, aren’t they? I thought mine was bad, but at least I don’t have to clean that oven or the fridge,” Winter remarked conversationally.

Shade looked back and forth between the offending appliances. There was no way you would think the refrigerator could be worse than the oven, but it was. Shade internally debated the price of a new fridge. He could buy one that had a water and ice cube dispenser on the door, and the brothers would thank him.

“I would start with the oven. Give your stomach time to settle. It’s a little early to clean something that smells so bad.” Winter stood up, freshening her coffee as she stared at him.

By that point, he was seriously debating the cost of the appliances against his pride at Winter seeing him act like a pussy. Shade had one weakness other than Lily, and that was vomiting. He hated to vomit. When you vomited, you had no control over your body, and control was everything to Shade.

“Of course, I could help you with your problem.”

He turned to face her, his eyes narrowing in on her innocent expression. The witch had somehow guessed he had a stomach which was a wimp when he had been drinking.

“I could clean the oven, fridge, and pantry for you.”

His eyes went to the pantry door, but he made no move to see what condition it was in. Everyone knew it was a close second to the seeds in punishments. He could buy a new oven and fridge, but he couldn’t buy a new pantry, and the women hated to clean worse than he did. They wouldn’t be bribed into doing it for him. Besides, they would tell Viper on him.

“What do you want?” he asked grimly.

“It’s going to take me at least a couple of hours to scrub that oven down. In case you didn’t know, that’s cheese on the bottom. The fridge is even worse—it smells like Armageddon—and the pantry has an ant infestation,” she told him before taking another sip of coffee.

“What’s your price?” he demanded through clenched teeth.

“I want your vote. Look at it this way; it’s going to take several hours of work to clean this mess up. If we had sex, it would take ten minutes. You’re getting a better deal. Besides, we both know you’re not going to vote me in with sex, anyway.”

Shade stared at her before shrugging. It was a no-brainer for him. “It’s all yours.” He poured himself another cup of coffee, giving her a smug grin. “I’ll have to tell Viper he must be getting old if you think sex lasts ten minutes.”

He went to sit at the table as she opened the refrigerator door. Shade almost dropped the coffee cup as he practically ran without stopping until he was back in his room, dragging in deep breaths of clear air.

Viper’s woman was proving to be as resourceful as he was. Shade didn’t like being the blackmailed; he much preferred being the blackmailer. She was cleaning up a mess he didn’t have the stomach for, for no reason. He had already planned on giving Viper his marker for Winter’s vote, even though she certainly didn’t need it. She had secured five votes on her own, and Razer would have been cajoled by Beth—he was sure—for the sixth she would need.

Shade whistled as he took off his clothes and went to the shower. He was the master of maneuvering people to do what he wanted. Winter needed to be taught by someone who really knew how to play the game.

As soon as he had showered and his stomach had settled down, he would find Viper. They needed to have a talk.

Shade grinned evilly to himself. Winter was going to become a student once again. He was going to teach her not to fuck with him.

Chapter 23

Dressed in workout shorts, Shade found Viper already in the gym finishing up a set. Picking up a couple of hand weights, he started up the treadmill to a steady run.

“Where’s Winter?”

“Upstairs talking to the lawyer from the Teacher’s Union.”

“She still trying to get her job back as principal of the high school?”

Evie had told him the school board had given Winter’s job away while she was recovering from her injuries, citing moral turpitude as the reason. Shade personally thought it was small-town bullshit, she’d have a battle on her hands, trying to fight the hypocrisy of the residents of Treepoint.

He pressed a few buttons so that he ran on an incline.

“Do you have to do that while I’m working out?” Viper grunted, dropping the weights onto the mat.

“Do what?”

“Show off.”

Shade grinned. “I have to stay in shape.”

“Fucker.”

“Who’s her lawyer?”

“Ms. Richards,” Viper mimicked the snooty woman’s tone.

“She’s new in town,” Shade commented.

“You know her?”

“No, just make it my business to know all the lawyers in town. I wouldn’t be much of an enforcer if I didn’t know the best way to protect the brothers if any of them get in trouble.”

Viper nodded in acknowledgement. “I talked to Cash. Winter spoke with Carmen, Jake’s girlfriend, and she’s convinced Jake is innocent.”

Shade had felt something wasn’t right himself.

“The sheriff ran the DNA on the cigar butt I found; it wasn’t a match.”

“Get the sheriff to let you talk to Jake. Take Cash and Razer with you. The three of you together might be enough to get him to confess. If he doesn’t, we’ll look into it further.”