Deuces Wild

by Christina C Jones

“Is our meeting still on for tomorrow? The exchange, of Dacia?” Sebastian asked, wiping the deep red liquid from his face with his hands.”

  Paloma’s nostrils flared. “Only if you deliver a location on Alicia for me as well. The family reunion will not be complete without her. You tell my cousin to do whatever he has to do.”

  Naim, Cree and I were silent as Sebastian and Maxim left the room, presumably vacating the premises. It wasn’t until Paloma was alone, starting to pace again, that Naim started to speak, but I quickly held up a hand to halt him when Paloma snatched up a cell phone from the table, pressed a few buttons, and then put the phone to her ear.

  “Did you put a bug on her phone too?” I asked him. “Can we hear the other side of the conversation?”

  Naim shook his head, his expression regretful. “Didn’t have time or permission, love,” he said, as Cree stood up, moving away from us. “Getting a camera inside is one thing. Hacking a cell phone is something else. If it was a landline…”

  “I understand,” I said, turning my attention back to the screen as whoever Paloma was calling picked up.

  “Etienne,” she gushed, her voice falsely bright. That name immediately made my chest feel heavy. “Monsieur, I hope this is not a bad time, but I have just heard some disturbing news.”

  I watched intently as she paced, listening to whatever was happening on the other end of the line. I couldn’t hear him, but I knew Etienne Belrose was rattling off something in quickfire French, like he always had.

  “No,” she said, responding to him in his chosen language. “I am not alright. I have just heard that Alicia Pelletier is still alive and well, despite your assurance that she was no longer an issue.”

  Cree came rushing back to the table, creating a distraction that almost made me drop-kick him until I realized the conversation was playing through his phone too, only now, we could hear both sides of the conversation.

  “Willow,” he whispered, with a grin. “And we owe her a big favor.”

  “I will give her anything,” I muttered back, then motioned for everyone to be quiet, so we could hear.

  “No,” Paloma said sharply, in response to whatever we’d missed from Etienne before Cree came through. From the video feed, I could tell she was trying to hold her cool. “You know what I assumed you meant, Etienne!”

  “Your assumptions are not my problem, Paloma. You assumed the men you hired to assure your future would dispose of the girls – they did not. They brought them to me, to sell, and you know how I am about waste.”

  Paloma put a hand to her head. “I offered to reimburse you, and you refused. You promised me that Dacia would meet no harm, and would remember nothing, but she escapes. You promised that Adam’s little bitch would never darken my door. You have held this leverage over me for years Etienne, for no reason, and now I find out that Alicia is working for Black royalty in Vegas, and Dacia was taken from a brothel!”

  “Dacia went after a withered Rosebud. Alicia was requested as a final courtesy for Daniel Whitfield’s seat. We don’t make a habit of re-securing assets unless they pose some sort of threat to us. Neither of the Pelletier girls do.”

  “Wait, Daniel Whitfield had a seat?!”

  “Before you’d proven yourself to sit in Adam’s, yes.”

  “Why wouldn’t you inform me of this Etienne!? Why the hell do I have to find out years after the fact that you do not have the control that you claim?!”

  “You would do well to watch your tone, bien-aime,” Etienne warned, in a dark tone that was all too familiar. “I find that the more pressing question is, who have you been talking to? How do you know Belrose business?”

  Paloma’s eyes went wide – she’d obviously not thought it through before making this call. “Sebastian Gray,” she stuttered. “He… he has Dacia. Maxim Bisset found her in one of his brothels, looking for some young girl. He wants me to give him money, to get her back.”

  At that, Etienne laughed. “What ill fortune for you, Paloma. You gave birth to her to assure money. Got rid of her for money, and now you have to pay to get her back, only to do… what with her?”

  “You know what, Ettiene.”

  “Of course I do. Once you’ve dirtied your hands in that way, you can never get them clean.”

  The line went silent, and I didn’t realize what had happened until Paloma pulled the phone away from her ear, letting out a growl that fit the monster she was. She threw the phone across the room, then looked up when two men – obviously security – came to the doorway.

  “Tomorrow,” she told them, in a deadly calm voice that contrasted the seething anger I knew she felt. “Once Dacia is in our custody? Kill them all. Sebastian, Maxim, and Dacia. And make sure the bodies are never found. Understood?”

  They nodded and left, and for a moment, Paloma stood there completely still. And then she turned, quite suddenly, looking so directly into the camera that it startled Cree and I, but Naim quickly explained that there was a mirror there – she was looking at her own reflection.

  Glaring at her own reflection.

  But that was a glare I remembered vividly now.

  I’d been the victim of it so many times, often for doing nothing more than… being. I wanted to tell my father about it, wanted him to protect me from her, but he was too blinded by love – too blinded by the idea of a replacement mother for me, that he just couldn’t see it.

  Couldn’t see the evil that I did.

  I turned away from the screen, not interested in her terrifyingly beautiful face.

  “So,” Cree sighed. “It seems like what we can do is, find out the timing of this meeting. They’re probably keeping Dacia at Sebastian’s mansion in Saint Tropez, which is what… an hour-long flight? If we can do some kind of ambush—”

  “No,” I interrupted. “If we do it that way, we’ll never be safe. Paloma wants Dacia and I dead… because we can challenge her status as sole heir,” I realized, as I was saying it. “We could even challenge her seat in The Collective. And both of those jeopardize the cartel. Between her and Sebastian and Maxim, we’d never be left alone. Our friends, our family… we’d never be safe.”

  Cree nodded. “Yeah… you’re probably right. Do you have something else?”

  “I do, actually.” I turned to Naim. “All of this… is it recording?”

  “Every second.”

  “Good,” I said, standing up. “We’re going to need it. Going to need proof.”

  “Proof for what?” Cree asked, frowning.

  “Did you notice that Paloma didn’t mention to Etienne that Sebastian was coming for him? She’s trying to play both sides, and if we play this right… we can make them all eat each other alive. And I can take my sister back,” I said, picking up my phone.

  Cree sat up a little straighter. “Who are you calling?”

  “Etienne Belrose. I’m going to invite myself to dinner.”

  FOURTEEN.

  “Boy, you know how to pick them, don’t you?” Naim asked, walking up to stand beside me as I watched his security camera monitors. There was one in particular that had my interest – the one that showed me the roof, since Alicia was up there. Neither Naim nor I had been privy to the phone call between her and Etienne, and she’d barely said anything since. It was obvious she wanted some space – some peace – which was why she’d gone up to the roof in the first place. She’d been up there nearly an hour now, eyes closed, just… sitting.

  “She’s just… getting in her zone,” I explained, remembering how she’d dissociated before that night in the club with Reo.

  Hopefully this reunion goes better than that one.

  “The only people I know who get in a “zone” like that are killers,” Naim joked, playfully pushing against me with his arm. When I didn’t laugh, or even respond, I could practically feel the shift as understanding spread through him. “Oh, damn. I don’t think it really hit me until just now that… she’s the real deal, huh?”

  I shook my head. “I told you this
already man. Who she is, what she used to be.”

  “Yeah, but there’s a disconnect. A woman steps off a private jet with you, looking like she does, my mind doesn’t automatically think “deadly assassin”.”

  “Your ass should know better,” I laughed. “I’d think Europe was a hotbed for that type of thing.”

  He chuckled. “Yes, but I don’t typically get to deal in such matters. The Belroses have been on our radar for years. We couldn’t get anything, because their organization is impeccable. Paloma, though… Paloma is careless. That carelessness is about to pay off.”

  “Word?”

  “Yessir. As a matter of fact…” he pulled his phone, vibrating with a call, from his pocket. “This is my contact now. One way or another… we’re about to make something happen.”

  Naim walked away to take his phone call, leaving me to return my attention to Alicia. I was giving her the space she obviously wanted, but I wanted, more than anything, to know what the hell was on her mind.

  What is she thinking?

  I had to put my curiosity on pause when my own phone rang. I pulled it out, frowning when I saw Matt’s number on the screen.

  “What’s wrong?” I asked, not bothering with “hello”. For him to be calling me, I knew there had to be something.

  “Santiago is going crazy right now,” Matt answered, in a low tone that let me know he was probably still at the station, and had snuck off to make this call. “Your girl? He has her face all over local news, saying she’s wanted as a suspect in a murder. Breaking news. What did you guys set off over there?”

  I shook my head. “Nothing. Not yet. But Sebastian told Paloma Santiago about Alicia – I guess it was her first time hearing about it. She probably called her cousin to do something about it.”

  “Yeah well, he’s definitely trying to. He can’t find her, and he’s heated. And… he’s looking for you. I don’t know why. Don’t know if he’s made the connection between you and her yet.”

  “Good,” I answered. “I knew he was looking for me though. He’s called three times.”

  “And you’re not answering?”

  “To tell him what?” I asked. “That I just happened to hop a private flight to France?”

  “Shit. You’re right, but… still. He asked me if I knew who your girlfriend was. Your pregnant girlfriend. You told him that?”

  “I told him some of it – something verifiable, if he looks into it, because I didn’t want to tell him something that would be easy to pick apart. Trust me – I didn’t give him that lightly.”

  Matt sighed. “I know you probably considered all facets, but… this shit is going to get ugly. Santiago is pushing this Public Enemy #1 narrative about Alicia Miller, and trying to get the FBI involved. It’s only a matter of time before he does enough digging to figure out he needs to ask the Whitfields about their jet. I need something, man, if you want me to help. I’m not trying to break any laws, but I need to see this motherfucker go down.”

  “I understand that,” I assured him. “I have something in the works, with one of my contacts. She’ll be in touch with what she finds. Soon.”

  “I don’t think it’s going to be safe for Ms. Miller to come back – not until Santiago is taken care of.”

  “He will be. You just keep your head down, and when the call comes… you answer. Just like she told you… you’ll get to be the public’s hero.”

  I hung up with Matt and pushed out a sigh. On the phone, I’d been confident about taking Santiago down, but honestly… I wasn’t that sure. Turning the tables on Paloma would be easy, but proving that Santiago had done anything more than be in a few pictures with Sebastian and Maxim… that was a whole different animal.

  Because of that seed of doubt, and the bit of anxiety Matt’s call had planted in me, I shot a text to Kerri, one of Alicia’s people who’d been assigned to keep Loren safe. She hit me back almost immediately, assuring me that Loren was good.

  At least for now.

  After that, I made one more phone call, checking in with Willow on something I’d talked to her about putting in motion, hoping for another assurance that things were working in our favor.

  Unfortunately, I got no answer.

  I looked up when I heard Alicia come in, to see her looking more withdrawn than I’d seen her in… a while. Instead of doing what I wanted – touching, teasing, anything to soften her expression – I kept my distance, following when she indicated that we needed to talk.

  If we wanted to walk away from this alive, I needed her focused.

  “I’ve been thinking about Dacia… trying to put together these pieces, right?” she asked, making sure I was following before she continued.

  I nodded. “So what are you thinking?”

  “I’m thinking that… Dacia and Penelope had a connection. She looked at her like a sister. With my training, there was no room for… emotional connection. I was very good at mimicking feelings – acting. You had to be, fairly often, to get close enough to a target to eliminate them without being detected. With the Petals, and the Rosebuds… I don’t believe that’s been the case. I was reading, on the jet. When you and I weren’t… otherwise engaged.”

  I smirked. “Right. What did you find?”

  “With “high end” operations… like what the Belroses do… it’s not always just about one night. It’s about an experience, and the more you keep the client plugged into the experience, the more lucrative it is. You make them… believe you’re theirs. I think that’s how Penelope ended up with a client that did what he did to her – scarred her. Made her… for lack of a better way to put it… “unfit for duty”. And when Dacia found out that Penelope was gone, she went after her somehow.”

  “But I thought Penelope referred to her as an instructor?” I asked, and Alicia nodded.

  “Yes, but clearly everything there is compartmentalized. What if they still had her working as an escort, too? She gets with someone who brings her to America, where Penelope is. And then she gets away. To find Penelope, like she promised. Only, once she gets here, looking for her in these filthy places… she gets caught by Maxim and Sebastian.”

  I frowned. “Okay, but how do Maxim and Sebastian know who she is?”

  “You heard that phone call – Paloma knew Dacia had gotten away from the Belroses, because Etienne told her. Who knows how she framed it to Maxim and Sebastian, but they probably knew to look for her. They knew who she was coming for – Penelope was at the Playpen, and we know the Playpen is connected to Maxim. She walked into a trap, and had no idea. Who knows how long she was here, and I had no idea? Who knows what drugs they’ve pumped into her to keep her docile? I failed her, Cree. I was supposed to protect her, and look at this!”

  “You were a child,” I reminded her. “You may be a badass now, but you were a young teenager then. This is not your fault. It’s not your cross to bear.”

  She shook her head, looking away from me. “I… need to make this right for her. And the only way to do that is to climb back in bed with the devil I thought I’d already escaped. You know what I wish?”

  “What?”

  “That I could just kill them all. Like in the movies. Infiltrate the house, with nothing but a bag of weapons and a hacker in my ear telling me where to go, watching the security cameras for me, warning me. Just… murder everybody responsible for this, and take my sister away, where we can live in peace. Never worry about the bad guys touching us again.”

  I smiled. “Sounds like a great movie.”

  “It does, doesn’t it?” she asked, then pushed out a sigh. “But as it stands… I’m going to stand before Etienne. I asked for a private audience, and her granted it.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “And you trust that?”

  “I… I have to,” she sighed. “We’ve always had a code of honor – I have to believe he’ll stand by it. I can show him that Paloma intends to double-cross him. He’ll neutralize Paloma, Maxim, and Sebastian, and then as a favor to me, for telling him… h
e’ll give Dacia mercy. And then once we’re home, and safe… I’ll have another talk with Daniel. To find out who we need to talk to, to challenge the Belrose seat at The Collective table.”

  My eyes went wide. “A double-cross? You sure you want to do that? Losing that seat just means less power – not no power. Like you told me… if you go up against them…”

  “They’ll never leave me alone. I know. But I… for all these years, I’ve let it go. I didn’t remember how I got there, but I knew it wasn’t right. And now that I know what else they’ve done… to Dacia, to Penelope, to who knows how many other women and girls… how do I sit back and do nothing?”

  “You don’t,” I told her, shaking my head. “You do the right thing, but in a smart way – which isn’t always pretty. You think I want to just accept and be okay with watching you murder somebody? I don’t.”

  “I know,” she snapped. “It goes directly against everything you were taught when it comes to “protect and serve”.”

  I raised an eyebrow. “Does it? Supposedly “good” cops turn a blind eye every day to shit that we shouldn’t. Because it’s comfortable, or somebody’s palm gets greased, or somebody’s afraid, or somebody’s waiting on a come up. I may not like what you did, but I can accept the killing of one criminal as collateral damage for getting to something – somebody much worse. What that says about my future with LVMPD… I can’t say. But my point is that… you may not like having to wait a little longer, having to play this a certain way. But with some patience, it’s going to work out the right way.”

  “Cree… with everything you know, are you seriously pushing me to let the system do its’ job? Are you crazy?”

  “No, just… optimistic this time. I mean, at the very least, you have a little time to consider it, right? Not making a move until you’ve talked to Daniel – until we’ve made it back home?”

  She sighed. “Right.”

  “Then can we put a pin in that, and focus on the getting back home part?”

  Alicia nodded. “Uh… yeah. Yes. You’re right, I’m getting ahead of myself. I just… I’m too close for this to all fall apart. I need this to end up okay.”