“You have been busy,” he noted, stroking his chin.
I groaned, my nerves almost shot. “Cris…”
Closing the distance between us, he settled a heavy hand on my shoulder. “I don’t know who he is or his last name.” He tipped my chin up, and I met with eyes so serious I had to remind myself to breathe. “But I can tell you to stop chasing ghosts and start opening up closets. They’re full of skeletons that have been locked up for a long time.”
“What does that even mean?”
“This isn’t about an outsider coming in to take over. This is a vendetta. You want to find the truth? You need to look in your own backyard.”
“How would you know something like that?” I swallowed hard, not sure what I was more afraid of—his silence or his answer.
He didn’t answer, and we stared at each other in silence, the words he said breaking apart and piecing back together in my head
“I don’t—” Still in a daze, my voice trailed off as distant shouting drew my attention toward the closed door. Maybe subconsciously, I knew, and that was why I waited, listening as they grew closer and louder until finally capped off by the sound of bone hitting bone and a muffled grunt.
I should’ve reacted faster.
I should’ve held my ground with Cristiano.
I should’ve done a lot of things.
But I didn’t.
Instead, I stood there like a statue as the door flew open, slamming into the wall behind it and then bouncing back into an open palm.
An open palm attached to an arm wearing a black button up soaked with Johnnie Walker Blue.
“Your ten minutes are up.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Brody
The command may have been directed at Adriana, but my eyes never left the asshole with his hands all over her. Rage tore through me, my hands fisting by my side itching to take another swing. Coming here was risky, if not suicidal. I had a feeling not too many Muñoz men would dare bulldoze their way into this guy’s office, let alone a Carrera.
The man’s gaze shifted from me to Adriana. “Friend of yours?”
Adriana shifted under the weight of his hands, pulling away and crossing her arms over her chest. “Not even close.”
Not even close? Was she serious? Every fiber in my body wanted to yell, “Last night I had my hand buried in your pussy. How’s that for close?”
I scowled, and a clamor in the hallway broke the tension. All three of us turned as one of his men pushed past me, a stream of red blood pouring from his nose, his expression a cross between fury and fear.
“I’m sorry, jefe,” he whined, pointing back at me. “I had him, but he pulled a gun on me, and—”
“It was a finger gun, you pathetic sack of shit!” Pointing my index finger, I cocked my thumb while tucking the other three fingers into my palm, and the guard’s hands flew in the air. I blinked at him a few times before swinging around to face his boss. “Where the hell do you recruit these guys? Walmart?”
His boss crooked a finger over his lips, attempting to hide a smirk. “Let him in.”
The guard reluctantly stepped aside, and I stormed past him, only stopping long enough to kick my heel back and send the door slamming into his face.
“Was that necessary?” Adriana hissed.
The condescension in her voice kicked my temper into overdrive. In three wide steps I stood in front of her, rage vibrating off me in waves. “I said ten minutes. I don’t make idle threats. You should know that by now.”
“Brody—”
The smirking man perked up at the mention of my name, appearing by her side out of nowhere. “Brody Harcourt,” he said, and I wanted to punch that smug look off his face. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”
“Funny, I’ve never heard a damn word about you.”
It took everything I had in me to remain in control. My body felt like a stripped electrical cord, and the more agitated I got, the more it seemed to amuse him.
“Cristiano Vergara,” he said, sticking out his hand.
The infamous Cristiano.
I hated him.
I stared at his offered hand, ignoring it to turn toward Adriana. She’d been gone so long, I’d convinced myself she was being held against her will, enduring all kinds of horrific torture. So, the first thing I did was search her skin for signs of bruising. The tension in my body uncoiled as my hand grazed her flawless cheek. “Are you all right?”
She swallowed hard and nodded, the anger on her face fading. The movement inadvertently caused my thumb to caress her skin. I didn’t want to admit what that small touch did to me. I only wanted to do it again. So, I did, this time brushing the pad of my thumb over her cheekbone.
“Why wouldn’t she be?”
The moment shattered, and my eyes snapped toward Cristiano. “Oh, I don’t know. Maybe because the cartel you’re with tried to kill her? It tends to make people jumpy.”
“It’s not my cartel,” he growled. “And I’d never hurt her.”
I let out a sardonic laugh, my hand falling from her face. “Right. All Adriana has ever been is a cartel play toy. Why should I believe that?”
Adriana charged toward me, holding up a finger. “Back the fuck up! I—”
Cristiano cut her off, pushing her away as he squared his shoulders and bowed up to me. “First of all, you should believe it because you’re in my office and don’t have a choice. Secondly, not that it’s any of your business, but I was protecting her. Something you obviously can’t handle.”
I pushed forward until we were nose to nose. “Step outside. I’ll show you what I can handle.”
Adriana let out a scream, turning both our heads for half a second, but it was all the time she needed. Forcing her way in between us, she pressed a hand against our chests and shoved us apart.
“Dios mío, are you two going to whip out your dicks and have a pissing match soon? I’m not a carnival prize, you know.”
“Stay out of this,” I warned, cracking my knuckles.
Cristiano bared his teeth in response. “This doesn’t concern you.”
“Doesn’t concern me?” She repeated each word with a hard punch to his chest. “I’m so deep in this you couldn’t dig me out with a shovel, motherfucker.”
Both of us backed off at the same time, staring at her like she’d sprouted horns and a tail. Apparently, a well-timed outburst from a deranged ex-communicated cartel queen got shit done.
Who knew?
Cristiano sucked a breath in through his teeth, not moving despite the fact she’d just used him as a punching bag. “I’ve given Marisol all the information I can.” Glancing at her out of the corner of his eye, he gently removed her hand from his chest and took a guarded step toward me. “I’d lay down my life for her, and if this Ignacio asshole were here, I’d rip his throat out and shove it up his ass. No man puts his hands on Marisol and lives.”
“Adriana,” I mumbled, and when he furrowed his eyebrows, I scowled. “Her name is Adriana, and trust me, you’d have to get in line. Between me, Val, and Carlos, you’d have a long wait.”