Escondido sat at his desk, lost in thought as he impatiently awaited word from Dante on Aurora’s latest machinations. There was nothing he wasn’t aware of when it came to her, no detail of her daily routine with which he was not intimately acquainted. He made it his business to be ‘all up in her business’, as she had vehemently complained during their most recent face-off. He shifted uncomfortably in his chair, pressing down on a particularly stubborn erection as he recalled how enjoyable that confrontation had proven to be. She was his drug of choice, his obsession, and the only woman that could make him lose his damn mind.
“Come in,” he said in response to a light tap on the door. Escondido looked up from the paperwork he’d been paying very little attention to anyway, leaned back in his chair and gestured to the chair in front of his desk.
Dante gave a slight, deferential bow in greeting before lowering his lanky frame into the chair. Crossing one ankle over his other knee, he settled in for what promised to be a lengthy conversation. “Well, once again you’re right.”
Escondido chuckled. “Indeed. Should I be pleased or dismayed?”
“Perhaps if this news didn’t concern your arch rival...”
Escondido shook his head, more than a little amused, definitely frustrated, and certainly intrigued. “I can’t wait to hear this. I swear, sometimes I wonder if the woman has a death wish. She finds the most dangerous situations she possibly can and charges into them with no fear. I, on the other hand, fear that someday her luck will run out.” He chose to ignore the knot that formed in his chest at the thought of such misfortune befalling his queen.
“If it’s any consolation, she does have some of the most capable men in the business working for her. They are utterly devoted to her.”
Escondido grimaced, knowing it to be all too true. “Besotted is more like it. Yes, Dante, they follow her around like puppies. If I didn’t keep her sufficiently distracted with my dick, no doubt they would be lining up, offering to service her like stallions on a stud farm. And yet, they know that if they make a move on her, they’re dead because I’ll kill them – and that if they make one mistake in their duties, she’s dead. I can endeavor to protect her, whether she likes it or not, but even I couldn’t bring her back from the dead.”
Regardless of how flippant Escondido might appear to be about his sexual encounters with Aurora, Dante knew the man was in love with her. They had been childhood friends and through the years the friendship had shifted and become more complicated. It didn’t matter that they’d gone their separate ways early on to build separate empires. What was done couldn’t be undone; the connection the two had forged in their early years couldn’t be severed by time or space. Dante had witnessed it firsthand.
Escondido and Aurora were lovers, of that Dante had no doubt, but above and beyond that was an allegiance to each other that was as absolute as Dante’s own loyalty to the man, and as equally hard fought. Escondido had saved his life years earlier when a street gang had Dante cornered in an alley and almost beat him to death. Escondido had sent Dante on a quick job and when he had lost contact with him, Escondido didn’t just send help – he was the help. He was the fucking cavalry. He slaughtered the men and then carried Dante to his SUV and safety.
Escondido had been steadfast, overseeing Dante’s care as he had languished in a coma for a week. For that alone, Dante knew he owed Escondido his life and his loyalty, and he continued to make good on that obligation, vowing to serve Escondido until his last breath.
“Yes…she does have some of the best in the business working for her.” Escondido looked at Dante directly to convey the seriousness of his next words. “Follow her. Take a team of men with you. Do you have a definitive location?”
“Yes, sir. She has a mole on the inside, a woman named Amata, who is feeding her information.”
“Ah, Amata Chavez,” Escondido said with a slight frown.
“Yes, how did you know?”
Escondido answered the question with a question. “Is she with Amicus, by chance?”
“Yeah, but definitely not by chance. Get this – the guy kidnapped her and her brother Cesar.”
“Oh, what a man won’t do for love, Dante. When you get those two, bring them to me. Amata’s half-Sinaloan; she’ll come in handy for our organization. And so will Cesar.”
“What about Amicus?”
At that, he smiled. “Ah, yes. Bring him too. It shouldn’t be too hard; there’s no way he’ll let her come alone.”
“Couldn’t her allegiance to Aurora pose a problem for you?”
“To the contrary. If I play my cards right, it will work in my favor. It may be just the thing I need to tip the scales of justice our way.”
“Very well. With your permission…” At Escondido’s nod and a slight wave of his hand toward the door, Dante rose from his chair and moved to leave. “I’ll be on my way, then. Aurora is expected to raid their camp in the next 24 hours.”
Escondido leaned his head back and laughed without restraint. “Aurora has never been one to waste time. No, patience is definitely not one of her virtues.” He shifted in his chair once more, unable to stifle his body’s eagerness to feel her beneath him again. “Or mine.”