RUN.
Run.
Run.
Tears stream down my face as I bolt out the front door barefoot and down the gravel drive. Rocks bite into my flesh as I run as fast as my legs can carry me.
They wanted me to kill him.
And they got what they wanted.
What about what I want?
I sob and swipe at my tears to clear my vision. It doesn’t matter what I want. If I got what I wanted, I wouldn’t be soaked in my husband’s blood and running without a backward glance. My ankle rolls, and I nearly stumble face first into the rocks but I quickly recover.
Don’t look back.
Don’t look back.
I do look back, though. The house, giant and imposing—a castle to a fire-breathing dragon queen—mocks me. It practically hisses its hate at me. I’m a traitor.
Pop!
The sound of a gun behind me scares the shit out of me. It wouldn’t be the first gunfight I’ve been in, but I don’t have Diego and Jorge trying to protect me this time. This fight has Jorge firing at me rather than with me.
Pop! Pop!
The gravel near my feet kicks up as a bullet ricochets. I scream and run harder. The property is huge and it feels like the run down the driveway is the longest mile I’ve ever run. My lungs are seized up in pain and my calves scream from exertion.
Don’t stop.
If you stop, you’ll lose.
If you stop, everything you worked so hard for will be gone in a poof of smoke.
“Get back here, you bitch!” Jorge bellows from behind me. He’s getting closer because now I can hear his grunts as he runs. With him wearing shoes, he’ll catch up to me soon.
The sound of a car engine blares to life and then a car squeals from its spot on the road ahead, heading right for me. I wave my hand, hoping it’s Oscar. The last thing I need is to run right into the arms of yet another monster. The monsters I know are the ones I’ll keep.
“Stop!” Jorge roars from behind me as he gains speed.
The car slows to a stop at the end of the driveway and the passenger door gets flung open. Just like he promised, Oscar waits behind the wheel. A bullet whizzes past me and pings the metal of the car.
So close.
A few more feet.
I dive into the seat and Oscar wastes no time peeling away even before I manage to close the door. When I turn to look at him, he’s grinning. His palm slides over my shirt and he cups my breast. Diego’s blood has soaked through my clothes.
“You did it, baby,” he says, pride in his voice. “We’re getting you the fuck out of here.”
I start to cry and he pulls me as close as he can to him with the console between us. My heart is hammering in my chest and the sense of loss is crushing.
I can’t do this.
But I already am.
Of all the villains in my life, Oscar is the easiest to handle. I’ve known him since I was five. I can interpret his every expression. Every lie he tells, I can sense. For these reasons, he’ll be both the hardest and the easiest man to beat. I’ll know how to hurt him but in turn it’ll hurt me because of the past we shared.
“Where are we going?” I question as the trees whiz by in the darkness.
His hand settles on my thigh and he squeezes. “Buenaventura.”
“I thought Diego took over there.”
He grins at me. “Diego has been distracted. I think he took on more than he can handle. Esteban and I rounded up some men. We were easily able to take it back over. Some of the men turned on him to spare their lives and fed Diego false information. Others, we’ve needed to torture to get what we want. But it’s ours and it’s only the beginning.”
I frown as I frantically try to figure out what this means for me. I’d expected to encounter Oscar and Esteban. Not an entire branch of the cartel. I’m about to ask more questions when Oscar’s phone rings.
“Yeah?”
I can’t hear what he’s saying but I recognize Esteban’s deep voice on the other end.
“I have her. It’s done.” Oscar pauses to give me a chaste kiss. “We should be there by breakfast.”
They hang up and he lets out a sigh. “We can’t let him know about us at first.”
I refrain from rolling my eyes. There will never be an “us,” buddy. “Okay,” I breathe and then let fear filter into my voice. The fear is real. With Esteban, there’s no faking the emotion. “I’m scared he’s going to hurt me. I don’t want him to drug me again.”
Oscar lets out a growl. “I’ll do my best to not let that happen.”
We drive several hours through the night without stopping. Eventually, Oscar pulls off onto a side road. Dawn has breached the horizon, but it’s still fairly dark out due to a storm that’s rolling in.
“I have to take a piss,” he tells me as he climbs out.
I get out as well. My fingers go to my earrings and I rub them. They’re so beautiful and important. The ring Diego gave me no longer resides on my finger, which makes my chest ache. It is sitting on the end table in the room he and I shared. Safe. Unlike me.
Breathe.
You’ve got this.
You knew it would be hard.
I’m jolted from my thoughts when Oscar hugs me from behind. A chill races down my spine as he gropes my breasts.
“All these years and we’re just now getting together,” he murmurs as he kisses my shoulder. “How stupid were we to wait this whole time?”
I let out a gasp when one of his palms slides to cup me between my legs. I know what needs to happen. What will happen. It just doesn’t make it any easier.
“We better fuck now before we get there. Esteban is going to make things difficult for us until we carry out our plan,” he tells me as he starts working to unfasten my jeans.
I grip his wrist to stop him. Distract him. Delay the inevitable. “What is our plan?”
He works my jeans down over my hips and rubs at my pussy. “We kill him.”
“I know, but how,” I demand, a little too harshly and out of character. I soften my words and lean against him as he massages me. “I want us to think of something before we get there.”
His finger pushes into my dry opening, drawing a whimper from me. “I’ll stab him in the back.”
How appropriate…
“When?”
He works his finger in and out of me as if he’s actually bringing me pleasure and not discomfort. “Next time he’s balls deep inside you. That’ll be when he least expects it.”
“Maybe we should go then,” I suggest, my teeth gritted in pain every time the edge of his fingernail scratches inside of me. “Get it out of the way.”
“Soon,” he assures me. “Your pussy is dry, baby.”
I shudder. “It’s been a long night.”
He eases his finger out of me, and I let out a sigh of relief until he pushes me down over the hot hood of the car.
“Oscar,” I start, disgust overwhelming me to the point I might throw up. “Maybe we should do this later.” His belt jangles behind me, and I hear the tear of a foil. “Ozzy,” I whimper. “Ozzy, why don’t we—” Pain burns through me as he enters me dry from behind. Hot tears leak from the corners of my eyes as I clutch the hood. “Ahhh!”
“I know, baby,” he coos as he thrusts into me hard and pets my hair. “Feels so good for me, too.”
A sob catches in my throat, but I refuse to let it escape. My mind drifts to Diego.
“Mi diablita, these are bad men. They’ll rape you,” he hisses. Despite his horror-filled words, he’s cupping my face in a gentle way that makes my heart flutter.
“It wouldn’t be the first time,” I clip out.
His expressive light brown eyes seem to flicker with his pain. “I don’t know if I can allow this.”
I lean forward and kiss his soft mouth. “It’s the only way.”
He rolls me over to my back on the bed and he starts pressing kisses all over my face. “I can’t part with you.”
I swallow, fighting stupid tears. “You can.”
“What if they hurt you?”
“I’m stronger than you think.”
He pushes his thick cock into my body, that is always wet for him, and makes love to me slow and sweet. Once he’s come deep inside of me, his mouth finds my ear. “I want to trust in you, mi reina.”
“You must,” I whisper. “You absolutely must.”
“Fuuuuck,” Oscar groans, dragging me to the present. He pulls out and gives my ass a squeeze. I remain bent over the car as he ties off the condom and tosses it in the woods. “Plenty more of that in our future.”
I pull myself up into a standing position and jerk my jeans back into place before hopping back in the front seat. He doesn’t seem bothered at all by the fact that I was an unwilling participant. As he starts up the car, he fishes a couple of pills from his pocket. “Need something to take the edge off?”
“I told you, I don’t want any drugs,” I hiss.
He frowns and takes one. “I’m not going to hurt you. Not like him. I love you, Vee.”
Too late, asshole.
All I want to do is curl up in a ball. But I need this guy with me…not against me. I lean against him and let my fatigue take over. He wraps an arm around me and strokes my hair as we drive. I want to stay awake but I’m too overcome with emotion.
I gladly run to Diego in my dreams.
“Like this,” Diego tells me as he grips my wrist and guides the knife to his chest. “Plunge hard so it doesn’t fall out. If it comes out, I’ll bleed out.”
I wince at his words. Hard. Got it. “Is this necessary?”
“You know how those motherfuckers are about their authenticity. They want authenticity, we’ll give it to them.”
“But…” I trail off, my throat squeezing with emotion. “What if it slips? What if Tatiana isn’t right? What if we mess up?” I toss the knife onto the desk with a grumble.
His thumb drags along my jawline and he grins at me. Stupid fucker isn’t scared of anything. Not even death. “If we mess up, I’ll see you in hell, mi diablita.”
I huff and roll my eyes before wriggling away from him. He grabs my hips and pushes me against the edge of his desk. His strong hands spread my knees apart, and he slides my dress up my thighs. A moan escapes me when he rubs my clit through my panties. He glares at me while he brings me pleasure. “I’m more worried about what happens to you afterward. What happens to me is nothing. What happens to you is everything.”
I soften at his words and clutch his face. He kisses me hard as his finger rubs me between my legs. My panties are soaked with his assault, but I don’t stop him. Pleasure with Diego comes so often that I’ve become greedy for it. Downright addicted.
“Just tell me no at any time and we’ll find another way,” he murmurs against my mouth. “I know this was your idea, but it’s okay to change your mind.”
An orgasm seizes me, and I shudder until my muscles feel as though they are jelly. When I come down from my high, I regard him sadly. “V is for vengeance. I want to make them pay and this way gets me right where I need to be.”
He nips at my lip and grins. “So we give the girl what she wants. Anyone ever tell you you’re spoiled?”
I laugh and tug his tie so he remains close. “You’re the one who spoils me.”
“And I’m about to spoil you with my mouth,” he growls.
“Wake up,” Oscar bellows.
I jolt upright and squint against the bright morning sun. We’re parked in front of the shipyard. Shipping containers are stacked at least ten high for as far left and far right as the eye can see. Beyond the long strip of metal containers are the barges that ship cocaine, among other products, from Buenaventura to San Diego via the Pacific.
As a girl, we visited their shipyard often. But after my stay in one of the metal tombs for months back home in the States, I can’t help but feel overly apprehensive about being near them again.
“Let’s go,” Oscar says as he climbs out.
I follow after him and squint against the sun. “I’m scared.”
He gently grabs my elbow and leans into me. “There are eyes everywhere, baby. Just play it cool. I’m scared too, but we’ll get through this.”
I let him guide me across the gravel parking lot to the gate in the chain-link fence that stands wide open. A man with an assault rifle stands at the gate but nods at us to go on through. I shiver and try to stick close to Oscar.
“Where are we going?” I squeak out.
He points to the shipyard office. “Esteban wants to ask you some questions.”
Terror climbs its way up through my throat at having to see him once again. Not that long ago, he had such a strong hold on my life. That won’t happen again. I’m not his for the taking. At least not permanently.
I belong to someone else.
My heart skitters in my chest. So many what-ifs scream at me from the back of my mind but I refuse to give thought to any of them. Those what-ifs will knock me off my game. I can’t afford that distraction.
I’m still trying to push those thoughts away when the cold air from the office billows out around me as Oscar opens the door. It’s dark inside. I’m shivering but it has nothing to do with the temperature. It has everything to do with the beast that lives and breathes inside. The snarling beast who I will soon make my prey.
“Roja.”