Armed & Dangerous (Book 2 Soldiers Series)

Sana Monica California… Desman Reynolds stood beside his mother as they walked the pier. Every year she brought him down to the boardwalk to enjoy the fair. They rode the rides and played the games binging on cotton candy and those mini deep-fried donuts. They usually came alone his father was a busy man. The number two man in the California based criminal syndicate run by his grandfather and one other man. The Soldiers were practically an LA institution. They were both feared and revered by both the seedy underworld and the local population. Young thugs did anything to join while respectable citizens did all they could to avoid them. Both local and federal law enforcement strived to bring them down, but the Soldiers were rooted in the community and spreading. Starting in LA, they made their name coming up in the criminal world quickly as a force to be reckoned with. They overtook the smaller gangs and in twenty years had branched out to other California cities. Their ranks were growing exponentially, and there was talk of moving their troops nationally in such cities as Los Vegas, New York City, and Miami. It looked like they would soon be moving. From where they stood Desman could see his father at the end of the pier talking with two other men in fine suits. Desman couldn’t hear what they were saying, but he was sure it was something business related. At the age of seven, he knew his parents were less than repeatable, but it didn’t faze him as wrong. This was the only life he knew. Like his mother Desman was a legacy. A child of two Soldiers and as a result destined to be a Soldier himself. He was being groomed from the cradle to work with his parents and one-day takeover. Unlike other children, Desman was taught to handle matters himself and at all cost avoid cops. Police were the bad guys. They wanted to destroy him and his family. Wanted to put his parents in prison and put him in a foster home. At a young age, he already knew his rights, and the concept of silence and secrets were ingrained in his day to day life. He watched as one of the men his father was speaking with reached into his suit pocket and removed a thick white envelope and handed it to his father, who accepted the envelope and tucked it inside his jacket. They shook hands and walked away. His father joined them on the boardwalk. He kissed his wife and patted Desman on the head. “So, what do you want to do now?” He asked Desman with that sly smile that came so easy to him. “Can we go on the tilt-a-whirl?” He asked eager to get back to the fun. “Sure, let’s go have some fun,” Darnel said taking his wife by the hand. “What did that man give you?” Desman asked looking up at his father. “I’ll tell you when you’re older.” That was always his answer. When was he going to be old enough to join his father’s ranks? *** Devon Montana… “Keeyah!” She yelled as she kicked the target mitt in her father’s hand as hard as her little body would allow. “Again.” Her father ordered. “Keeyah!” Morgan Perez roundhouse kicked her target again. “Harder.” Her father ordered. “Give it hell.” “Keeyah!” “That a girl.” He smiled proud of her progress then stood up and tossed the mitt to the side of the garage. They had been training for two hours. She was only five, but she was already a black belt is Jung Fu and Taekwondo. Her father spent much of his time training her in hand to hand combat. He often took her out back to his homemade gun range and taught her how to shoot. He was a fanatic about making sure his baby could take care of herself. That she was challenged. Morgan Perez was an unusual child. She was only starting kindergarten this year and already could read at a fifth-grade level. Like her father, Morgan was smarter than the other children her age. She was fast, strong, and gifted. Morgan was a genius and tough as nails. She was like her father in every way, including her nasty temper and antisocial personality. She had a low tolerance for stupidity and compared to her that included most the people she knew. She wasn’t well-liked by the other children nor were many of the adults found of her either. They didn’t appreciate that she was smarter than them. “You did good Peanut.” Her father smiled and held up his hand to high-five her. Morgan hit his hand with hers and squealed when he picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. “Come on let’s see if your mother has dinner ready yet.” He said carrying her into the house. They headed into the small country kitchen where her mother was standing over the stove stirring a pot. Her father dipped his finger into the pot and then his mouth. Her mother sighed and hit him in the chest with the wooden spoon. “Cut that out.” She snapped. “No one want’s your hand in their food.” She lectured. “Bla-bla-bla.” He snickered and kissed her cheek. He then carried Morgan to the table and placed her in her seat next to the highchair where her baby brother sat. Her father took his seat at the head of the table while her mother dished out the stew she had made. “Don’t sass talk me.” She threatened. Her father’s cell phone rang and her he answered it at the table. “Hello.” He went silent for a moment and then looked at his wife who sighed. She knew they would be eating dinner alone. When her father got that look, it meant he had a job. He took a pen and wrote something down and then hung up. “Sorry, babe but it’s time sensitive.” He excused himself taking the bowl she offered and left the room. “It always is.” She sighed. They ate their meal and went about their night. When bedtime came, Morgan snuck off to her father’s office to say good-night. She stood at the doorway watching his fingers fly over the keyboard. He had a state-of-the-art computer system, and he was totally engrossed in what he was doing. Pop-ups were coming up on the screen and were almost immediately removed. Whatever her father chose to do on his computer he always did it fast. She was young, but she still understood her father was a genius hacker. There was no system in the world he couldn’t manipulate to his will, and he got paid well for his skills. She wasn’t entirely sure if everything he did was legal. Her parents were big on secrecy and living off the grid. They moved around a lot. Never staying in one place for more than two years. It made it hard to make a place feel like home, but so long as she was with her family, any place was home. “There you are.” She heard her mother come up behind her. “Come on Peanut, leave Daddy alone he’s busy. Let’s go to bed. Come on.” Morgan followed her mother into her bedroom and climbed up into her bed. Her mother sat on the edge of the bed, tucked her in, and kissed her forehead. “Remember never walk in someone’s shadow; it’s warmer in the sun.” “Good-night Mommy.” “Good-night Peanut.”