I hate leaving her like that, sprawled naked in that huge king-size bed. But I wasn’t lying when I told her I had business to attend to. Even her dirty mouth couldn’t keep me from meeting with Guzman and his men.
As I make my way through the Casa de la Belladona, a safe house my men and I use when we visit the town, I find my man, Manuel. He’s been keeping this home at its best for years now, and I know that I can trust him to keep his mouth shut. “Manuel,” I shout towards him, as he finishes speaking to two of the groundsmen. “I need you to head to town now and purchase a robe and a dress for the woman I am with. Knock and then leave it outside her doorway. She’ll be wanting it soon.”
“Yes, señor. Certainly.” Manuel’s eyes grow in anticipation as I begin counting the money out of my wallet. He knows he can keep whatever is left over, and there is always plenty for him. It’s payment for him keeping quiet. He has seen a lot, more than even I can really fathom. But his loyalty has never been questioned.
But as I am handing him the cash, a thought comes over me. “Manuel, I need you to also pick up some groceries.”
“Some groceries? My wife is here to cook dinner, señor.”
“Yes, and I will pay her for her time, plus a few extra hours if she could come by tomorrow morning to clean. But please have her leave the food she has purchased for us. After I come back from my meeting, you are dismissed. Just leave the guards outside with instructions that they are not to let anyone out or in besides me after seven tonight.” He nods enthusiastically and takes the large roll of money, slipping the bills between each of his fingers as he turns towards the servants’ corridors.
I go the opposite way, through the front gate towards where the men have brought my motorcycle. I hitch back on and head towards the back alleyways where men are smoking and women are drying clothing. They all turn and head indoors when I pass. No one dares to cross my path or be ahead of me as I pass.
Around here, I am known as El Corazo, or the Armor. They started calling me that after I first fought it out with the drug lord, Henrique and his men. We managed to only lose two that night. Henrique was not as lucky. With him out of power, I appointed Guzman, a local businessman to take his place. Guzman was surprisingly more of a snake than Henrique. Legends of his iron grip over this town has not escaped me, especially since it always comes with the threat that El Corazo would return if anyone disobeyed Guzman’s commands.
A year after I took over the Apaches and Guzman was put into power, he started branching off and selling to other MCs along the border. I should have cracked down, but the goods he was sending through to my men were as pure as gold. Compared to the other dealers I have in place, nothing quite matches the supply and demand for Guzman’s string of narcos.
So I let him double-cross me and do business with the Aztecs, the Johnnys, and the Valpos—all with the understanding that only I get the best stuff. And that when I want answers or intel, he gives me what I want. When he told my man, Rafael, that he would only talk to me, it signaled that something was amiss. There were bigger forces at work here.
I pull into Guzman’s hideout, a heavily guarded old fort from the early 1900s. Ladies dressed in black and red lace saunter around the henchmen, distracting them enough so that I practically walk in. It’s not till I’m halfway up the stairs when I’m caught. This time, it’s by my own man. Rafael smiles, as he reaches out a hand for a quick embrace. “Brother, it’s about time. They were expecting you hours ago. And they’re not so patient today.”
I follow him the rest of the way through the open-air terrace and down the sandy-colored stairwells. “Do you know what’s going on here?” I ask, as we get to the doorway of the old great hall. “Why the fuck does he need me here?”
“Your guess is as good as mine. I heard from one of his seconds that he wants to renegotiate the contract. But his head of security says he has info that you need to hear. Either way, no one is talking to me.”
Rafael has always been my head spy. Fourth in command for the Apaches. He may not be my right-hand-man, but I trust him more than any other. Not only is he great at the business side, he can also read people better than anyone I know. It makes him invaluable when I am dealing with assholes like Guzman.
“Where are the rest of our boys?” I whisper. It’s not a secret that I sent Rafael with backup; it’s common sense in our line of work. But that still doesn’t mean we’re giving their location away.
“I sent them to the bar across the street. They came in a gunner van to keep a low profile.” Guzman touches his nose, a signal that he is alert and aware of the situation. I nod back and then open the double doors with a bang.
The sound echoes the hallway as a dozen men stop what they are doing and turn towards me. All of them are hunched over a map while a man in a chair remains seated at the head of the table. When he sees me, he raises his arms out and shouts, “Apache! I was wondering when you were coming.”
I say gruffly under my breath as I shake his hand, “I don’t see why I needed to. You could have told my man.”
“Ah, but where is the fun in that? When it comes to business, I prefer to deal with the man in charge.” He claps his hands and the men quickly pick up the map and head back out the door we came in through. Rafael stares up at me, and I, too, motion for him to leave. With the room cleared, Guzman points at a nearby chair that I pull up to his round table.
“What do you want? Is this about Rafael’s question about the girl?”
“I’m afraid yes and no. I’m still working on that girl’s case. I know something, but I want to be sure. I should have some news for you tomorrow. Tonight, I want to talk business.”
“I didn’t come here to talk business, Guzman.”
“You’ll want to hear this though. It seems as though the Aztecs are no longer wanting my services.”
“What?” I am in complete disbelief. Even if they were not getting the quality stuff we had in our arsenal, they were still getting premium quality goods at a reasonable price.
“Yes, I was just as shocked as you. It seems that Abe and his men are now doing business in Carlitto with a new kingpin by the name of Jerrico. I sent my men down there last week to raid, but they came back empty. So I have to ask, if Jerrico doesn’t exist and the Aztecs are not working with my supply, what are they planning on doing?”
I don’t have an answer for him. Abe has always been off the rail. Ever since I kicked him out of the Apaches for the killing of one of our enforcers, he has been on the warpath against me. He started the Aztecs, drew out new territory that we hadn’t covered yet, and did business with our enemies. All of this in a quest for vengeance.
Guzman, noticing my furrowed brow, continues, “So that’s where the girl comes back in. Rumor has it that Abe is gunning for you. The attack on the girl is an attempt to rally his troops and when you’re least expecting it, he plans on hitting your men. One of his men told this to my border patrol just two days ago.”
I stand up immediately, feeling the familiar heat of rage creep over my body. I walk towards one of the empty writing desks and place my hands around the cold edges. In one swift move, I take the heavy piece of furniture, and I slam it onto the ground. My yells echo throughout the hall in a burst of sound.
Behind me, over the sound of my loud panting, I hear Guzman’s chair scratch on the tile surface. He walks towards me slowly and places a hand on my shoulder. I spin, grabbing him by the neck and throwing him down to the ground. “Don’t you ever touch me, you snake!”
The older man shivers as pulls at my grasp. His wispy voice chokes back, “I am trying to help you, you idiot!”
“What do you mean, ‘help me?’ How can a son of a bitch like you help me?”
I watch as his face turns a sickish color of blue, and his throat begin to cave under my grip. I let go a bit, just enough to let him talk. He coughs, struggling to find his voice. Finally, he clears his throat enough to whisper, “Backup. I’ll send backup. In exchange for you moving an extra hundred kilos in the next two weeks. The feds are on me, and I need it gone. You do that and my men are yours.”
“These men are fighters? Not like the ones who let me walk straight into your fortress?” I am intrigued. If Abe wanted to start a war, there was no stopping him, especially after Carmen’s attack. And the only way to stop a war is to strike back. Having extra men could weigh heavily in my favor.
“These men are my enforcers—former soldiers. They will provide twenty-four seven security to you and your team. I will provide them with weapons as well.”
“A hundred kilos?” I ask again. It’s double our normal pull, especially with the police following MCs even closer now. It’s not impossible, but it was going to be a risk, especially with Abe’s men on our tail.
“A hundred kilos by the end of this month. If the job isn’t done, my men come back and we renegotiate the terms of our agreement.”
I stand up, brushing the dirt from the tile floor off of my knees. Guzman follows behind me as he struggles to recover. I reach out my hand and shake his. Before I can leave, I give him a warning, “I’ll be back tomorrow for your men. In the meantime, load up my boys with the supplies. They’ll ride out of here at dawn.”