Angel yawned. Her back was sore. Had she fallen asleep in the office chair again? She kept telling Kade they needed to invest in better chairs. Instead of office chairs, she’d been checking out the ones YouTubers used. They sat in front of their computers far longer than the average person. She was betting they had great office chairs.
“Trying to run from me?”
Angel went still at the sound of the voice. The events of the last few days rushed her all at once, and fear overwhelmed her. Had they found her?
“No, I just wanted to step out and make a phone call.”
Wait, that was Jeremy’s voice. Conner. The other voice belonged to Conner. She let out a long sigh of relief then froze again. Should she say something to let them know she was here? Her inner goddess threatened to beat her black and blue if she did.
“Really?” Conner’s voice came closer. “Then where’s your phone?”
“I…” Jeremy cleared his throat. “I was just taking a minute, that’s all.”
Angel sat up a little higher, just enough to be able to see them. If she stayed still, they shouldn’t notice her.
“Do I make you nervous?” Conner stalked closer, his prey only inches from him.
“Did you never learn about personal space?” Jeremy retreated to the railing, but it didn’t deter Conner. He just followed him.
“Not when it comes to what I want.” Sex oozed out of his voice. Shit, he had a better voice than either Kade or Nik. It was enough to make anyone, man or woman, wet. If she wasn’t in love with Kade, it might even have affected her more than it already did. She loved her husband, but damn, Conner had a voice made for sex.
“I don’t want you.” Angel covered her mouth to stop the gasp that tried to escape.
Conner’s laugh slid over Jeremy, and Angel watched his reaction closely. The man visibly shuddered. Go, Conner.
“Look.” Jeremy took a deep breath. “I’m not gay, okay? I’m straight as they come.”
“I get that.” Conner leaned back, his rock-hard abs on display. “It’s hard to come to terms with wanting a man when you’ve never thought of men that way before.”
“What? No!” Jeremy stuttered. “I…will you stop that?” He turned his back on Conner and his very obvious display of his physique. “I’m not coming to terms with anything. I like women.”
Conner took the opportunity to stand behind Jeremy, so close there was barely a centimeter between them. “That’s okay too. I’ll just go see if Allison wants to play.”
Jeremy stood, coming against Conner’s chest in the process. Conner slid an arm around him, holding him in place. “Stay away from Ally.”
“Why?” Angel couldn’t quite see, but she’d guess his mouth was against Jeremy’s ear. “She likes me. I like her. It’s a mutual attraction she isn’t denying.”
“Leave her alone.” Jeremy’s voice was dark, angry.
“Oh, I see.” Conner pulled Jeremy closer to him. “You like her.”
“Yes, so stay the fuck away from her.”
“Hmmm.” Conner’s head dipped closer to Jeremy’s. They were almost the same height, Conner maybe an inch or so taller than Jeremy. “Why don’t we enjoy her together, then?”
“What? No.”
“I think you’d enjoy it.” Conner’s hand slid back and forth against Jeremy’s abdomen. “You don’t want to admit you like me, but you can do whatever you want when we’re together with Allison.”
Jeremy was quiet for a long minute. Angel listened, afraid to move. The sexual tension in the air was so thick, it would have needed something sharper than a knife to cut it.
“Ally’s a good girl.” Jeremy sounded a little out of breath. “She’d never do something like that.”
“Good girls can do very bad things, Agent Bradford. Very bad things. Think about it. I’m going to fuck her with or without you. If you want to join us, all you have to do is tell me. I can enjoy you, you can enjoy me, and we can both enjoy her. It’s up to you. But someone is getting fucked tonight.”
Angel watched, fascinated, as Conner pulled Jeremy’s face to his and kissed him. It wasn’t soft or delicate. It was hard and passionate, full of fire and the promise of so much more. When he released Jeremy and strode back inside, Jeremy caught the railing to keep from stumbling.
Fuck, there was no way she’d be able to resist that if she were single. Now she understood Conner’s appeal. The man was a walking, talking sex machine. Sex oozed out of him. Jeremy was a fool to turn that down, straight or not.
She kept perfectly still until Jeremy went back inside. Why was he in Conner’s room to begin with? She got up and went inside her own suite. The lights were on in the front room, but Kade was nowhere to be found. He might have gone next door to meet with everyone while she slept. That made more sense than Jeremy showing up unannounced on Conner’s doorstep.
She did her business in the bathroom and checked her phone for messages. Nothing. You would think Kade would at least text her or leave a message. He knew how anxious she was about news of Matthew. Pulling off her shirt, which had dried cum on it, she fished around in her overnight bag and pulled on one of Kade’s old t-shirts. It was huge, but comfortable.
A knock sounded on her door. Maybe Jasper heard her moving around and had orders to bring her next door when she woke. That had better be the case, at least, or Kade was going to get an earful.
She opened the door, and indeed, Jasper stood there, but he didn’t look happy. A young blonde girl wearing the hotel staff uniform was behind him, a pleasant smile on her face. Angel frowned. She took a better look and saw the girl had a gun pressed into Jasper’s back. Shit.
“Please, Mrs. Kincaid, if we could come in?” Her question was way too perky. Cheerleader perky. “I really don’t want to have to shoot him.”
That got Angel moving. She stepped aside and allowed them to come into the hotel room. Jasper’s gun was tucked into the waistband of the girl’s skirt. Angel knew he carried a spare tucked away under his pants leg, right above his ankle. It was small but would get the job done.
“Mr. Rivera sent me to invite you to meet your son.” The girl’s name badge read Mandy. It was probably her real name. Angel was betting she worked here and had informed the man who had her son she was here.
The whistle of wind caught her and Jasper both off guard. It wasn’t until Jasper went down that she understood Mandy had shot him in the back. She went to move toward him, but Mandy stopped her. She tossed duct tape in her direction.
“Please cover his mouth and tape his hands and feet together.”
Angel’s gaze flickered between the tape in her hands to Jasper and back to Mandy.
“Hurry up. If you want to meet Mateo, we must go soon. The car won’t wait forever. I will be forced to shoot you if you don’t agree to come. I don’t want to have to do that.”
Angel got down on her knees. “I’m so sorry, Jasper.”
He grunted, his eyes zeroing in on his pant leg where the gun lay hidden. Angel nodded and tore off a piece of the duct tape and placed it over his mouth. She made quick work of his hands and moved to his feet, blocking Mandy’s view as she collected the small gun and slipped it down her bra with one hand while winding the tape around his feet with the other. It wasn’t comfortable, but she managed to get it settled before she stood, grateful she’d changed into the monstrously large shirt.
“Now, I’m going to put the gun away while we walk out into the hall and get on the elevator. I have men waiting at the elevator, so if you think about overpowering me, they will shoot you dead.”
True to her word, men waited at the elevator. Dark haired men who looked like they meant business. She wasted no time in getting into the elevator, afraid Kade or one of the others would come out. She had no doubt they’d murder any one of them. Hell, Angel didn’t know if they meant her harm or not, but she was putting her faith in God that they really would take her to her son. If only to be able to taunt Kade they had his wife and his son. She was banking on Rivera’s need to torture his nemesis more than anything else. He was a sick bastard. This way, if he wanted to torture someone, she’d make sure it was her and not her baby boy.
They got off on the third floor and took the stairs down to the kitchens, where they went out a back exit. A dark SUV waited for them. Angel was hustled inside with Mandy and the two men who had been waiting at the elevators.
“See, that was easy. If you do as you’re told, things won’t be difficult for you.” Mandy smiled sweetly and sent off a text. “I’m sure you’re happy to finally get to meet your little boy.”
Angel made no move to continue the conversation. She wanted to punch the perky cheerleader girl in the face and then bash it into the glass. The girl only shrugged when Angel didn’t speak and buried her nose in her phone. The sound of Candy Crush emitted from it. Of course she’d be playing Candy Crush. It was just the type of game she imagined perky cheerleaders played.
They drove in silence for an hour, and then pulled off onto a dirt road, where a Lincoln Town Car waited.
“Here is where we part ways.” Mandy smiled her perky cheerleader smile. “Good luck to you.”
The door opened, and the taller of the two guards gestured for her to get out. She did so with trepidation. Mandy waved at her, and she turned her back, cringing when the loud crack of the gunshot sounded. She should have guessed Mandy wouldn’t be spared. The cartel left no witnesses behind they couldn’t trust.
Her “escort” opened the door, and she got inside, her attention focused on the man sitting beside her. Tomás Rivera. He smiled, the coldness chilling her soul. She knew who he was. Everyone had known his reputation even before he took over the cartel. He had no conscience, no empathy. He killed for the sheer pleasure of it.
Tomás was not handsome or even remotely cute. He was an ugly son of a bitch whose facial features only added to his reputation of being the most vicious man any cartel had ever known.
“Señora Kincaid.” His voice was mild, but she detected a bite to it. He was trying for pleasant but couldn’t quite pull it off. “It is a pleasure to finally meet you.”
“Mr. Rivera, I’m sorry I can’t say the same of you.”
He chuckled. “Finally, someone who isn’t afraid to speak her mind.”
“Why not?” Angel kept her shaking on the inside. “I’m guessing your plan is to send pieces of me to my husband. Nothing I do or say will change that, so I will speak my mind.”
“Touché, my beauty.” He rubbed his chin. “Mateo has your eyes.”
“Is he…well?” She didn’t want to say whole for fear he’d tell her he’d already begun to butcher the child.
“Of course. Mateo is very fond of his Uncle Tomás. Why would I harm the child?”
“To get back at Kade.” She kept her words very matter-of-fact. “He killed your brother, so why wouldn’t you kill his son?”
“I did take his son from him, that is true.” Tomás shifted so he could better look at Angel. “The plan was to wait until the boy had been fully initiated into the organization as one of our trusted enforcers before we brought Kade’s attention to him, but you forced our hand.”
“I forced your hand?”
“Sí, my beauty. You saw him. There is no denying he’s his father’s son. And I was right, wasn’t I? Kade looked into the boy and discovered who he was. The warrant to test his DNA was proof of that. I was surprised by that little ambush. I assumed your husband would try to take the boy on his own, not enlist the police force to do it.”
“Too many questions if he did it that way.” Angel settled herself against the car seat, preparing herself for anything this man might do to her, including rape. She’d lived through that once, and she could do it again for Matthew if she had to.
“He always was a smart man, your husband.” Tomás’s Mexican accent wasn’t nearly as thick as it should have been. He’d been stateside too long and had picked up the Americans’ distinct lack of an accent so many had.
“Where is my son?” Angel couldn’t stand it one second longer. She needed to know where he was. The question had been on the tip of her tongue the moment she’d seen who waited for her in the car.
“He’s perfectly safe, I assure you. He’s been given the best of care and is a healthy little boy. We all feared he wouldn’t survive those first few weeks, but I think he gets his stubbornness from you. He held on and fought for his life. You wouldn’t even know how sick he was when he was born. I am sorry you weren’t there for him. I did debate collecting you as well. Children do need their mothers, but you had already left Miami. I took it as a sign and let you go. He’s none the worse for wear, growing up without a mother’s touch.”
Angel wouldn’t go that far. She’d seen Matthew, seen the empty, dead look in his eyes. He was by far the worse for wear.
“You’ll see him soon enough. We’re going there now, actually.” The driver started the car on that cue and continued down the dirt road. “I’ve told him I’m bringing him a surprise. He’s very excited.”
What game was this man playing? Did he plan on butchering her little boy in front of her?
He laughed. “What do you think I’m planning? You look ill.”
“I know your reputation.” She couldn’t hide the quiver in her voice this time, thinking of what he had planned.
“But as I said, I am fond of Mateo. I’ve taken him into my home, loved him, and made sure he was well taken care of. Do you think I would really harm a child I’ve grown to love?”
“If it suited your end game, yes.”
“You are refreshing, my beauty.” He grinned, and this time there was no humor in it. “You are right. I would slit the boy’s throat if I had to. I’m hoping that’s not the case, though. As long as your husband comes to me willingly, I will not harm your child more than I have to.”
More than he had to. Angel latched on to those words, her heart in her throat. “What did you do to him?”
“Nothing yet. I thought he’d like to meet his mother before we send a video message to his father. Now, I have email to attend to, and we’ve got a way to go before we reach my compound. Rest, my dear. You are going to need it.”
Angel’s hand shook, but she took comfort from the fact no one had searched her for a weapon. Her secret gun was tucked safely into the crook of her bra, nestled against her breast. She would kill him before she let him harm a hair on her son’s head.
All she could do now was wait.