Chapter Twenty-Two
Madison
Celina joins us in the medical room while I stitch Alex’s forehead. He’s been grumbling at me since we left the conference room. Celina and I grin. We both know what his problem is. Even with blood covering one side of his face, the man is seriously sexy in his boots; he should wear them more often.
“Stop whining, cowboy,” I say just to get under his skin after he complains I’m too rough with the needle. I glance at Celina and wink. She winces when I slide the needle through his skin and I start the serious work without teasing him.
The injury is a little more than a scratch and requires nine stitches. Moon went to the control room to check on some new information while I tackle the whiney baby. Neither Moon nor Alex handles an injury well. Doesn’t matter if it’s a bullet or a splinter in their finger. Men!
When I’m tying off the last stitch, Alex brings his hand up and grabs mine. “You okay?” he asks solemnly.
He’s not talking about stitching him up. “I’ve been better,” I say honestly. After a deep breath, I cast a quick look at Celina. “I’m worried about Cori. We need to find her a counselor or something.”
Celina’s hand touches my back and she rubs up to my shoulder. “Maybe you both need a counselor.”
I keep my eyes on the work at hand after Alex releases me. “After Fernandez is dead, maybe. I don’t need someone in my brain making what happened tolerable. I need my anger to feed what I need to do.” I look into Alex’s eyes and see sympathy and understanding. Both he and my husband lived a large part of their lives seeking vengeance.
I slap a medium-sized bandage over my stitch job and smile. “You’ll have your ugly face back and scaring the kids in no time.” I place the medical supplies in their appropriate cabinets and then turn to leave. Alex’s strong arms pull me into his chest like he did when he first saw me.
“I want that son of a bitch too. I promise it will take him a long time to die.”
I step back and stare deep into Alex’s eyes. “I don’t want him dying by anyone’s hands but mine. I will cut him into pieces while he’s alive. I want to hear him scream and I want him to know he’s dying.”
Alex’s expression softens and understanding shows in his eyes. “I have your back,” he promises. He understands that sometimes people just need to die. I never did, until Fernandez. Killing is something I’ve done only out of necessity and self-preservation.
Moon would rather use a single bullet, but Alex understands this need for blood coursing through me. He believes death should come as slowly and painfully as possible for those who deserve it. He also likes his pain to be personal. I love that he protects my husband, but I’ve had doubts about my sanity when I think of what Alex really does. Now, I understand him too. Some people need to die by violence and if that means others won’t challenge my husband, it’s even easier to live with.
“Would you like to go see Cori?” Celina asks from behind me.
I turn and her eyes show she’s on the same page as Alex. “That would be great. We need to get her downstairs. Let’s stop in the kitchen and find out what’s for dinner first.” Gabriella has brought trays of food to my room and I’ve all but ignored her and the food. I need to make peace.
Celina gives Alex a quick kiss. “I’ll bring you aspirin so you can continue with the tough guy routine.”
He slaps her ass. “It’s only a scratch, but I’ll take the aspirin if it makes you happy.”
He’s such a… man and I don’t even try to hide my smile. If a rattlesnake bit him, he would claim it was a mosquito bite while whining about his treatment.
The smell of green enchiladas hits us before we reach Gabriella’s domain. I’ve always loved this room with its modern light fixtures, sliding door refrigerators, and every conceivable kitchen gadget known to mankind. Not that I can cook. My limit is little more than peanut butter and jelly on bread. This room reminds me of family. Our household may seem unorthodox to many, but everyone within these walls is an integral part of our lives. We’re a happy commune. Six of Moon’s men live on the property. The others have wives and children and live within ten minutes of our home. He pays well. The men might not exist at our level of extravagance, but their children will grow up and go to college without financial worries.
Gabriella is at the sink. I circle my arms around her waist and kiss her cheek before she can stop me. “I’m starving,” I breathe into her ear.
I release her and she turns around. I don’t expect the tears in her eyes. “I made your favorite, mi hija.”
She’s never referred to me as her daughter before and tears well in my eyes too. Her arms come out and I’m quickly in them, both of us fighting tears of the best kind. Gabriella is a constant pain in my ass and I love her for all the right reasons. She’s strong and fierce with loyalty to Alex and my husband that surpasses anything I’ve ever witnessed. I’m part of her loyalty and I’m able to push all the bad that’s happened over the past few days aside and feel comforted by her love.
When we’re able to control our emotions, she releases me. “Get out of my kitchen, chiquita, and I’ll call you when it’s ready,” she says while wiping her hands on her apron.
I smile. “Cori will be joining us,” I say and hustle from the room.
Celina waited at the entrance to the kitchen and now she’s staying on my heels as we head to the third floor. There are four bedrooms up here. Four of Austin’s men are staying in two of them. Two of his men are on the second floor in the room next to Austin’s and the last four are staying in the pool house. Moon gave me this information over breakfast before I was eating or speaking more than a few words, but I remember. Between our men and Austin’s, the house is the safest place we can be.
I have an idea, but I know it will upset my husband. If we give Fernandez a target outside the house to bait him, he’ll fall into our hands. I want to be that target. I haven’t told Moon about my plan yet because I’m still working out the details in my head. The cartel is throwing a wrench into everything at the moment and in the back of my mind, I feel the cartel and Fernandez are somehow linked. It’s a nagging sense in my gut that won’t go away.
When we enter Cori’s room, she’s sitting up in bed talking to Melina. Her lips form a warm, though exhausted smile when she sees me. “It’s about time you joined the living,” she says after I kiss her cheek.
“Same for you. Gabriella made my favorite dinner and I promised her you would be joining us.” At Cori’s stubborn look, I add, “She’ll beat me with a rolling pin if you don’t.”
Cori rolls her eyes. “We wouldn’t want that, but I’m not sure I’m ready,” she says honestly.
“I’m not sure if I’m ready either, so we need to tackle this together.” I take her good hand in mine. “We’re survivors, and that monster isn’t going to win.”
From her expression, she doesn’t believe me. The doubt is creeping back in and I understand. Talking and doing are two different things. The time for making promises is over and action is the only thing that will allow us to sleep at night. The bastard will die.
Melina breaks into our conversation. “How about a game of Spades,” she says, pulling a deck of cards from the side table. “We can play partners and pretend we’re ordinary women with too much time on our hands.”
I laugh. “You’re on, even though I’ve never played, I’ll kick your ass.”
“Good, I’ll take you on my team. Cori is stuck with Celina.”
Celina rolls her eyes. “No fair. Just because I’m unlucky doesn’t mean I can’t beat someone who has never played.”
For the next hour, I feel almost normal. I lay my final trick down and smile at Celina. “Told you that you would eat those words.”