“All right.” Rock nods at me. “Teller’s got an investment to discuss.”
I sit forward, resting my elbows on the table. “I haven’t been able to get confirmation from Whisper, but it looks like Wolf Knights are completely clear of Slater County.”
“What about your uncle-in-law?” Wrath asks. “You try reaching out to Merlin?”
“No,” I answer with all the slow sarcasm I can muster. “That never occurred to me.”
Wrath smirks.
“I’ve left him a few messages. He’s supposed to be at our wedding.” As much as I hate Charlotte’s uncle, I wouldn’t deny him the chance to attend.
“What’s the investment?” Sparky asks. “We can’t have a grow house way out in Slater. I won’t be able to split my time and give the plants enough love—”
Rock holds up his hands, stopping Sparky’s freak-out in its tracks. “Easy. This is the only grow op we’re running, Sparky.”
“Phew. Okay. Thanks, boss.”
I raise an eyebrow and scan the other brothers at the table, silently asking if I can continue without any other outbursts. “There’s this funeral home in—”
“What the fuck?” Bricks asks with wide, disgusted eyes. “Why would we get involved in that?”
“Simmer down and listen,” Rock snaps.
“They have a crematorium,” I explain. “Grandfathered in, so we don’t have to go through the red tape of getting permits and everything.”
“Uh…” Ravage raises his hand. “Why do we want a crematorium?”
“Probably to burn the bodies of our enemies.” Wrath taps his skull. “Just off the top of my head.”
Rock closes his eyes for a second. Inhales a long, slow breath. When I’m sure his head isn’t about to explode, I continue.
“It’s a good way to wash cash since Crystal Ball is still in decline.” I nod to Dex. Apparently, in the past, I’ve been insensitive about how hard Dex has worked to build our strip club’s business. “I know you’re doing everything you can there, brother.”
Dex shrugs. “Never hurts to diversify. Honestly, this sounds like a great idea. Puts us closer to our support club’s territory, too.”
“Don’t think I’ve ever heard of an MC owning a funeral home.” Stash nods along. “Kinda badass.”
“I’m sure we won’t be the first to think of it, but yeah, it’s not something that will be on the radar of law enforcement,” I agree.
Wrath rubs his hands together. “There’s so much markup in all that death shit. It’s a great idea.”
“And on the rare occasion we need to permanently…dispose of someone, it’ll be a lot easier to turn ’em to ash instead of worrying about chemicals and burial sites,” Z adds.
“Gee, Prez, you’re awful morbid under that pretty-boy exterior,” Rooster quips.
“Careful, Rooster.” Z wags a finger between Rooster and Jigsaw. “I haven’t decided which one of you will run our funeral home if we decide to buy one, too, down the road.”
Rooster shudders. “Hard pass, Prez.”
Jigsaw’s scary face folds into an even scarier frown. “Yeah, I realize you think I’d be a good candidate for that job, but I’m gonna pass too.”
“You’ll do whatever the fuck I ask you to do.” Z’s expression lacks his usual humor. “But it’s a non-issue for now. We’ll see how it goes for Upstate first.”
“So who’s running this place?” Murphy asks.
“The current owner. Nothing will change operations-wise,” I explain.
“I’ll expect my VP to make an appearance once in a while.” Rock nods at Murphy, then to me. “And my treasurer to work the books. But otherwise, we’ll be hands off.”