Beautiful Dangerous

by Michelle Betham

  “How long?” Arturo Mendez, one of the best Sicarios in the Delgado cartel, shuffles his body weight toward the back doors, keen to get the job done. He once took down three men in less than two seconds, so I’ve no doubt his swift action will get this shit sorted cleanly and quickly.

  “Five minutes.”

  Drago’s wearing a tracker, we know these bastards’ exact movements. There’s been no stone left unturned to make sure this goes without a hitch.

  “Eddie’s got eyes on them. Two cars, one truck. Four in the first vehicle, five in the truck at the back of the convoy, and Drago and the Pino brothers in the middle car. All armed, but nothing more than hand guns. They’re not expecting any trouble.”

  Arturo grins, his fingers tightening around the rifle I know has killed dozens of men. Three women. No children, yet, but I’m sure he’d have no hesitation in doing so if they proved to be a threat. Anything’s possible in this god-forsaken world.

  I sit back and close my eyes, and I try to push Olivia to the back of my mind but she’s refusing to go anywhere. For so many years I learned to control these feelings I have for her, I had to, for both our sakes, until one, careless moment of weakness wrecked everything. And I did the one thing I vowed never to do – betray my best friend.

  My phone pings out an alert, and my eyes spring open, every nerve-ending in my body is on fire, my focus is back, this is finally happening. Although, not for the reasons everyone here thinks. The Pino Cartel didn’t kill Javier Delgado, because he never died. Never came close. They think they killed him, but the man they killed was a decoy, not an innocent man, not by a long shot, but one who had wronged Javier on many occasions. He had to go. He served a purpose, and repaid his debt, it was a stranger’s ashes Olivia scattered under the tree by Javier’s chair. And with Javier out of the way we knew the Pino brothers would breathe a little more easy; let their guard down a little more, they never saw Olivia as a threat, not really. But the fact they started to underestimate us was a good thing. That’s why we never tried to correct them. Let them think they have the upper hand, that’s the way we’ve played this, but all that ends now. They think they know enough to keep us under control, but what they don’t know; what they have no idea about is that Javier has been in a safe house in Mexico for two years, plotting and planning from that side of the border, working alongside contacts who are just ready and waiting to work with us the second we begin our job of bringing the Pino cartel down. Javier had to go in order for us to have this advantage. But Olivia would never have understood that, she loved him too much to let him go willingly.

  I slide my phone back into my pocket, and pick up my gun. “Everyone ready?”

  It’s time…

  Olivia

  The house feels eerily quiet. It’s almost as if I’m the only person here, but that can’t be the case, I’m never alone. Lucca wouldn’t leave me on my own, he wouldn’t do that. But Celine isn’t anywhere to be found, there’s nobody inside but me. And suddenly I’m swamped by a feeling of unease, I don’t feel safe. Maybe my nerves are more on edge than usual, given what day it is, and I move toward the window, reaching behind me for my gun, my fingers closing around it.

  Just one quick glance outside washes that uneasy feeling away, it’s okay. Jorge and Mateus are still there, and Celine’s probably just popped out to the garden to pick some fresh fruit and vegetables.

  Letting go of my gun, I drop my head and close my eyes, letting out the longest, loudest sigh of relief.

  “Okay,” I whisper to myself as I grapple to regain the control I lost just then, albeit momentarily. “I don’t have time for this, not today.”

  I don’t. And as I check the clock I realize I have less time than I thought, I need to get out of here, without Jorge or Mateus seeing me because Lucca will have told them to make sure I don’t leave. I told him I was staying put, but he’ll know I was only telling him what he wanted to hear. I just need to get to the garage, Javier’s bike is all ready to go, and as I glance out of the window again, I notice both Jorge and Mateus moving toward the gated front entrance, where a dark blue Sedan has pulled up. I don’t know who it is, but whoever they are, they’ll be sent on their way, the guards know I’m not taking any visitors today, business related or not. And I’m not expecting anyone, so they’ll be turned away any moment now, but while they’re being dealt with, it gives me time to get out of here, and hopefully escape out of the back gates before any of the other guards pass by there on their daily patrols. And yes, there’s CCTV all over the place, but by the time they check it, I’m aiming to be long gone.

  Slipping out of the room, I quietly close the door and make my way along the landing to the top of the stairs. Peering down the spiral staircase I can’t see anyone in my eyeline, and it seems quiet down there so I take my chances and head downstairs, making my way along the wide, carpeted hallway toward the back of the house, my heart beating so hard and so loud because with every pause; every second I lose by standing still I’m wasting time.

  “Where are you going, Olivia?”

  The deeply accented voice stops me in my tracks, and in a heartbeat my blood turns to ice, and that feeling of unease returns like a kick to the back of the knees, my legs literally buckling underneath me, and I throw myself back against the wall to prevent me from sinking to the floor.

  “Stubborn as always, hmm? Never one to do as she’s told.”

  “No,” I whisper, shaking my head, my eyes squeezed tight shut because this is crazy. This is fucking unreal. “No.”

  “Looks like I got here just in time.”

  I keep my eyes closed, because I don’t understand what’s happening here. But I can feel them coming closer, the smell of their familiar cologne overwhelming me, and I feel angry, confused tears start to stream down my face, which I quickly wipe away. No-one is going to see me like this, least of all him. I don’t do this. Not in front of him, never, in front of him.

  “Look at me, mi amor.”

  He’s so close now, right there, in my space, and when his hand rests lightly on my hip I flinch, and still my eyes are squeezed shut because the second I open them everything changes. Again. It all fucking changes.

  “Olivia…”

  I slowly open my eyes, and I blink, I try to focus, because my world is on its fucking head right now.

  “Are you not going to welcome me home?”

  Lucca

  Arturo kicks the doors open, his rifle firing before he’s even hit the ground, bodies falling to the floor, broken and bleeding, so fast they never stood a chance. At the back of the convoy the bikers are dealing with the last vehicle, but it’s the middle one I’m interested in, and I watch as Tony and Emilio Pino exit the black Cadillac like they’re stopping by the grocery store to pick up milk. All around them fires are fucking burning, their men lying dead like scattered skittles on the blood-soaked road and these two pricks, they think they’re untouchable.

  “Are you fucking serious?” Tony Pino spits out whatever the fuck he’s been chewing onto the ground and glares at me, but all I can see is a short, stacked piece of shit, his brother only slightly taller. But they’re dangerous men, way more clever than people give them credit for. Although, not that clever. Or they’d have found out who Drago really was by now. Instead, he’s still playing his part, standing between them, both his guns aimed directly at me in a fake show of loyalty to his “employers”. But I know exactly what those guns are about to do in the next few seconds. The countdown is on.

  “Everyone else is down.” Eddie walks over, lifting his gun as he passes the brothers, spitting at their feet, and the arrogance of them is breath-taking. Neither feel the need to turn their own guns on us, safe in the knowledge that Drago is there to protect them, man, I could laugh at the irony. They have no fucking idea…

  “Good.”

  We can’t make this hit look like it never happened, that’s impossible, and it’ll only be a matter of time before it’s
on Hawkins’ radar, but we have a new man in the police department on our payroll now. Another corrupt law man with a score to settle, and he knows exactly what he has to do today to stop this shit from blowing back on us.

  “You’re making one huge fucking mistake, cabron,” Emilio hisses, but at the same time the corners of his mouth are twisting up into a grin. His very own death mask.

  “I don’t think so.”

  It takes less than a heartbeat for Drago to take them out with two bullets fired so fast even I didn’t see it coming.

  “I guess we’re done here,” Eddie sighs.

  I take a couple of photographs for Olivia, the proof that she needs, and I pray that it’s enough to convince her that this really is over now. This part, anyway. There’s a ton more shit still to come, and the thought of what’s yet to happen, it makes me feel sick. “I guess we are. Let’s get out of here.”

  “We’ll meet you and your men at the port. Let’s go claim what’s ours.” Eddie gives my shoulder a friendly slap and strides back toward his brothers. It’s time to get out of here, get to the port, and collect the Pino shipment from our contact before the police come crawling ’round. And we don’t have a great deal of time.

  I get back in the van, slamming the doors shut as Arturo and the rest of our men begin celebrating another day at this twisted office. The victory we’ve been working toward for a long time. But I’m feeling nothing. I drop my head into my hands, dragging them back through my hair, I should be feeling a surge of adrenaline right now but all I’m feeling is numb. We’re on the brink of becoming one of the most powerful cartels out there and I used to get off on that shit. It was the one thing that fueled me; gave me a reason to live this fucked-up life, but this – the way it had to happen… What Olivia and I have become, and the truth that is yet to be uncovered, that’s huge. It’s fucking epic, and I have no clue how it’s going to play out. No idea how Olivia is going to react. All I know is, once the truth is finally out there, I’ve lost her, for good.

  She was never yours.

  I’ve lost her…

  Olivia

  My husband died. Two years ago. And I cried and I grieved and I missed him every single, fucking day, I missed him. I took over his business, every move I made, everything I fucking did it was in his memory. For him.

  He died. And every night before I’d gone to sleep I’d wished with every beat of my broken, empty heart that he was still alive; wished that I could wake up and find him lying beside me, but I never once believed in miracles.

  “You must have a lot of questions.”

  He’s so calm, my dead husband. His voice measured. His tone soft. His dark eyes are shining, and he’s smiling the kind of smile that used to make my stomach leap about and my heart sing, but right now all I’m feeling is angry and confused and scared.

  “Can I…? Please, Olivia, can I come a little closer?”

  I cock my head slightly, I think I might be dreaming, actually. Yes! That’s it. This has to be a dream. I must’ve fallen asleep after Lucca had left, and now I’m dreaming about Javier because today of all days he’s on my mind more than he usually is. It’s just an incredibly, vivid dream.

  I find myself breathing out a sigh of relief, and I close my eyes, willing myself to wake up because this is painful now. It’s so vivid, this dream, that when I wake up I know I’m going to feel a horrible, gut-wrenching sadness, and I’m trying so hard to prepare myself for that.

  “You aren’t dreaming, Olivia. I’m here, and I’m very much alive.”

  I shake my head, but I keep my eyes closed, I don’t want to open them. I don’t want to see him, it hurts too much. I want to wake up now. I need to wake up.

  The smell of his cologne continues to fill the air around me, and that wave of sadness washes over me again, tears once more streaming from my eyes, and I raise my hand, ready to sweep them away, but he catches it, his fingers slowly sliding between mine as his other hand gently brushes the tears from my cheek.

  “I’m very much alive,” he whispers, his breath warm against my skin as he leans into me, and the second his hand presses against the base of my spine, pushing me against him, I open my eyes. And I look into his…

  Lucca

  “Hawkins is gonna be paying you all a visit, you know that, right?”

  I lean across the bar and reach for a bottle of whiskey as I listen to Detective Harry Miles, a man with a grudge against Hawkins and a fascination with the cartel. He also has a shitload of secrets, crap that if we exposed would end his career, his marriage, and his affair with the mayor’s wife. He’s a crazy-ass bastard and I can’t work out why it’s taken us this long to get him on board, but we have him now. And unlike Jimmy, he understands the rules he has to play by very clearly indeed. “We’re prepared for that.”

  “You were good. Not a trace of either you or the club left at the scene. And your guys at the port, they played their part. Very convincing, Lucca. I’m impressed. There was nothing concrete to tie you in to what happened. The perfect mystery.”

  I smile and slug back a mouthful of whiskey, straight from the bottle. “That won’t satisfy Hawkins. He’ll try to dig something up. Any shit goes down in this town, he tries to pin it on us, or the club.”

  “And I’ll continue to derail anything that comes even close to giving him a reason to bring you in.”

  My smile widens, it’s quite obvious this man has done his homework on us, which makes everyone’s lives easier.

  “Keep in touch, Harry.”

  “You’ll get a heads-up from me if you need one.”

  I end the call and lay my phone down, staring at the screen. There’s been no word from Olivia yet, no messages, nothing at all, and that’s making me nervous. I can’t shake the feeling that something isn’t right, and I’m about to call Jorge, to make sure she kept her word and stayed home, when Eddie joins me at the bar. I’ll call Jorge in a minute. I trust that Olivia did stay put, but it doesn’t hurt to make sure.

  “You okay?” Eddie slides up onto the stool next to me and I hand him the whiskey.

  “Fine,” I sigh, glancing out through the open clubhouse door. For a moment I want to think about nothing, before the shit really does hit the fan, because it’s coming.

  “Have you checked in with Olivia?” Eddie asks, handing the whiskey back to me, and I down another mouthful.

  “She’s not answering her phone. I should probably go back to the house and make sure she’s okay.” I lean back against the bar. “Thanks for today, Eddie.”

  “It was a long time coming, brother. But we did it.”

  “Yeah. We did it.”

  “All of the product is safe in the warehouse, and I have men there twenty-four-seven, just to be sure. You got eyes on the Pino estate?”

  “It’s being dealt with. Any loose ends will be tied up by the end of the day.”

  “Looks like we pulled it off, huh? Now the real work begins.”

  “I’ll go talk to Olivia: organize a meeting for us all, we need to get together and work out our next move.”

  “I’ll call Mexico. They need to know what to do over there, in case there’s any blowback.”

  “The cartel that side of the border have it all in hand.” Because Javier himself has been running it. In Mexico, they’ve been very much aware of Javier’s presence, and how Olivia deals with that is just another mess waiting to happen. “I need to make a call, then I’ll check on Liv.” It’s been a long fucking day, and I didn’t realize how tired I was until I stood still for a minute; took some time to process all the shit we’re doing. “Thanks again, Eddie.”

  “Hey, we’re all on the same team, remember?”

  Yeah. We are.

  I head outside and find a quiet spot, away from all the celebrating, and pull out my phone. I need to talk to Javier, but he isn’t picking up. And that isn’t right. He always picks up. Always

  “Shit!”

  Is no fucker ans
wering their phones today? It’s not helping to ease that feeling that something isn’t right here.

  I try another number, and this time it takes less than a second for my call to be answered.

  “Everything okay your end?” I ask, my eyes flitting around the compound, my nerves are on edge right now, a feeling of unease creeping up my spine.

  “He’s gone, Lucca.”

  My head snaps back around, my teeth clenched, a wave of nausea flooding my entire body. “What do you mean, he’s gone?”

  “He’s on his way back to the US. Upped and left this morning, he said it was time. You didn’t know?”

  “No, I didn’t fucking know. I only spoke to him a couple of hours ago, and he didn’t say a fucking thing… Shit!” I lean back against a sprawling California pepper tree, glad of the shade, it’s too fucking hot today. “Is he going straight home?”

  “I don’t know. He didn’t give any details, he just said it was time.”

  “Jesus…”

  “Is the job done?”

  “It’s done. We’re good.”

  “Alright. I’ll tidy things up this end.”

  I shove my phone back in my pocket and throw back my head, sighing heavily. If Javier’s gone to the house… No if. Of course he’s gone to the house! But this – it wasn’t the way we’d planned for this to happen. We were going to wait, get everything in order, make sure everything was in place, our new border territories, new clients, new business deals, so I have no fucking clue what he’s doing here. But I guess I should go and find out, for Olivia.

  Mi reina.

  Mine...

  Twelve

  Olivia

  It wasn’t a dream. My mind isn’t playing tricks on me, this is real. He is real. I touched him. Smelt him. Kissed him. I rained frustrated blows against his chest and let the rage and the pain and the confusion flood out of me, and he let me. He accepted the onslaught of screams, the barrage of fists against his body, he knew they were coming. A by-product of his return from the dead.