The Wrath Walker (The Wrath Series Book 1) by Matthew Newson (moboreader txt) 📕

THROUGH THE streets of Black Castle as fast as I could in my beat-up old car. It looked like a piece of junk with the dents and faded blue paint, but it ran well, and that’s all that mattered to me. As I proceeded from the lower end of the city toward the well-to-do suburbs where Ron lived, I kept an eye on all my mirrors just in case I was being tailed. It made perfect sense if the Riccis were after Ron and me, since I was Ron’s partner when he helped the Amaras dismantle the Ricci’s criminal empire in the city. The few low-level Riccis and upper-level guys who escaped arrest or being gunned down in the street wised up and left town before the Amaras finished them all off.

I encountered little traffic as I went down the long winding streets of the back roads I decided to take, but it was a weeknight and after rush hour. The last visible rays of sunlight were almost extinguished by the night sky as I entered the neighborhood where Ron lived. I was sickened by how he was able to live in a place that was way nicer than he deserved when I had to live like a bum. I circled Ron’s street several times and made sure I wasn’t walking into an ambush, but I still parked my car several houses away from his after I felt comfortable enough to walk on foot and knock. Even as I approached his house, I had my hand on my gun in my jacket pocket just in case I was greeted by Ron or anyone else with a gun.

The closer I got to his house, I noticed how immaculate Ron’s front yard looked with full, lush green grass neatly manicured, which coupled well with the bushes that ran along the front. Anyone could tell Ron had spent a pretty penny on landscaping, and I could see he hadn’t changed in his views of not keeping a low profile. He was always vain and enjoyed showing off for others.  It was kind of funny seeing how I never learned to switch off my brain from noticing every little detail, or maybe it was all due to my total and utter contempt for the man. I knocked on the door, and I could hear Ron as he tried to quietly check the peephole. He slowly cracked the door open to ensure it was only me on his doorstep.

“Is it just you out there, kid?”

“Yes, but if you don’t let me in, I’m going to kill you myself you piece of trash.” I was risking a lot to be there. If anyone from my past saw me with Ron, they would all think that I was really in on everything he had been doing back then.

Ron opened the door just enough to let me inside, and then he immediately shut and locked it. I hadn’t been to his house since he got out of prison, and it was still decorated way nicer than it should have been for someone of such low moral character. The walls were textured a light orange peel and painted the color of agreeable gray. There were paintings hung on the walls as well as various scenes of nature since Ron fancied himself an outdoorsman. The massive couch and eighty-five-inch flat screen TV that adorned the wall was all new, along with the dining room furniture and kitchen appliances. He had done a lot of updating to his home since he got out of prison, and I didn’t have to think too hard to figure out how he got the money for all of those wonderful things.

I was disgusted by everything I saw, and I couldn’t hold back from letting him know. “Well Ron, I guess crime really does pay.”

Ron turned from looking out the peephole and walked into the kitchen and stood by the large island countertop of black and gray marble. “Not now with all of that, kid. I get that you hate me.”

He still looked the same for the most part. His haired had grayed only slightly more since last time I had seen him, and he still appeared to be in good shape. “Oh, I more than hate you, Ron. Nice track suit, by the way. I mean, could you look any more like a gangster? Do you and the Amaras go clothes shopping together? Do the stores give you guys a group discount?”

“Enough, Brandon, I get it, alright!” Ron pounded his fist on the countertop. “Have you said all you need to say so we can move on to business, or have you been storing up cheap one-liners since last we saw each other? Look, I know there’s someone out there trying to kill me. Like I said, if they’re gunning for me, then they will be coming for you too sooner or later.”

“Well, if someone is out to kill me it’s all because of you.” I glared back at him.

“Get off it already, kid.”

“No! I lost everything because of you. My career, Lizzie, and now I live in a dump while you live in the lap of luxury. I should shoot you myself and save the Riccis the trouble. Who knows? Maybe they’ll reward me for doing them a favor, and I will be able to live in a place like this.”

“Maybe you should, kid, but everything that happened back then isn’t all my fault. If you were half as good at being a detective as you thought yourself to be, then you would have seen what I was doing all along. I didn’t have to call you about this, you know. I could have grabbed my bugout bag and disappeared into the wind, but instead I gave you a heads up as to the danger we are in.”

The part about how I should have known what Ron had been doing when we were partners stung because it was true. However, I wasn’t going to