Wreaking Havyk (The Hounds of Zeus MC Book 4)

by Faith Gibson

  Juan bit down on the tip, and Mercedes cried out while remembering to keep her hands to herself. She’d learned the hard way that trying to push her husband away resulted in bruises. The sting from his teeth did nothing for her. She wasn’t into pain, and that one bite quelled any passion her body had longed for moments earlier. Thankfully, Juan stepped back without assaulting her further.

  “Later.” And with that one threatening word, he was gone. Mercedes hated when her husband was excited. It was like his endorphins were on steroids and they made him crazy. When Juan was crazy, he took it out on her body. He was rough on a good night, but when he was in one of his moods? Mercedes sighed and closed her robe. There was no use dwelling on the inevitable. Instead, she allowed herself to dream of moving to a new house, one closer to the family she’d been taken from. Taken, right. Mercedes prayed her mom had never given up on trying to find her. Unless her father had told Gloria the truth, she’d still be looking. Mercedes knew if something ever happened to Mateo, she’d never give up. Not until she had proof… Nope. Not going there. Nothing was going to happen to her son. Not as long as she was alive.

  The rest of the day was a blur of packing. Ana Marie helped gather all of Mateo’s things. Clothes, toys, everything the child owned. When Juan said they were moving, Mercedes didn’t realize it was more of a permanent move than just the few months he’d mentioned. Mercedes didn’t understand how a Mexican could simply purchase a home in the States without being a citizen, but she wasn’t knowledgeable in things of that nature. She’d not finished her education after being taken, and what she had learned in her first two years of high school left a lot to be desired. Juan had made the exchange from her father in Texas, so it was possible he had the necessary documentation to live both places.

  Large clothing boxes had been brought to her suite, and Mercedes busied herself transferring her dresses over from the closet. The myriad shoes were then placed in the original boxes they came in before being stored into larger containers. She assisted Ana Marie instead of sitting and watching. She was brought up to be useful, and that was one lesson she tried to hang onto as long as Juan or Antonia weren’t around to witness. By the time night fell, Mercedes’s excitement over moving to the States was replaced with dread. She had hoped to have dinner with Juan in the dining room. When she and Mateo joined the man, his mood lightened, and he focused on their son. Mercedes had dressed for the occasion, but when their dinner had been brought to her suite instead, her own mood fell. When Ana Marie knocked on her door at half past nine, Mercedes had already gotten Mateo into his pajamas and in bed. She was sitting on the edge of the sofa, and the older woman nodded.

  As Mercedes passed Ana on the way to the door, the woman placed her palm on Mercedes’s cheek, but she didn’t say anything. Her eyes gave way to the emotions she couldn’t speak aloud. Mercedes squared her shoulders and mentally prepared herself for the night ahead.

  Mercedes knew she was in trouble the second she opened the door. Juan was standing in the middle of the room, his chest bare and his belt unfastened, hanging loose. It did no good to beg. She was sure he liked when she cowered, and Mercedes wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. Instead, she lowered the side zipper on her dress and let the garment slide to the floor. As she stepped out of the bunched material, Mercedes unhooked her bra and slid the straps down her arms before dropping it next to the dress. Standing in only a pair of heels, she waited. Juan licked his lips as he removed the belt from his slacks. She didn’t lower her eyes the way he preferred. No, Mercedes stared at him as he doubled the belt, then slapped it against his palm.

  Better his palm than my ass. But that was the kind of night she was in for. A painful one.

  “Colocate en posición.”

  When he told her to “take her position,” she knew what was coming. Mercedes didn’t hesitate to walk over to the bed and lean forward, spreading her arms above her head. She pressed her cheek to the soft duvet, grabbing it in both fists, and only then did she close her eyes. After the first strike, she knew the ride to their new home was going to be painful. Her husband was rarely a gentle lover, but nights like this one proved how much of a monster he was. He lashed out so many times she lost count. Then, without giving her time to recover, he shoved into her, and a cry left her throat. All Mercedes could do was endure the dry fucking. The one time her body didn’t betray her by being ready for Juan was after he whipped her. He didn’t care. He took her hard, grabbing her hair and pulling. Mercedes cried out again against her will. The only good thing about nights like this was the sex was over quickly.

  As soon as Juan found his release, he didn’t linger. He pulled out, leaving her spread over the mattress. She remained where she was until he gave her permission to move. It didn’t take long.

  “Vuelve a tu cuarto,” Juan said, commanding her to go back to her room.

  Mercedes was thankful for the reprieve. She would rather lick her wounds in the privacy of her suite than endure lying next to her husband and pretend she was okay. Mercedes was far from okay. She dressed as quickly as possible and left without looking back. Antonia was leaning against the wall outside the door to Juan’s suite. She glared at Mercedes but didn’t say anything. Mercedes mentally rolled her eyes. One day, she was going to figure out why Antonia hated her so much. If she didn’t know better, Mercedes would think her sister-in-law was jealous.

  Ignoring Juan’s guards on the walk to the other side of the estate, Mercedes held her head high and did her best not to hiss at the sting of her tight dress rubbing against her ass. She held the tears at bay until she entered her room and closed the door. Ana Marie looked up from the sofa where she was flipping through one of the fashion magazines.

  “El baño esta listo para ti.”

  “Gracias.” She hated that the older woman knew enough about Mercedes’s sex life to have the bathroom ready with the special lotions that would ease some of the pain. Mercedes had never questioned how Ana Marie knew Mercedes needed the medicated creams, but she was thankful the woman had delivered them to her room one night and told her they might help. They did take away some of the sting, but they did nothing for the emotional scars that were left long after the whelps faded.

  Mercedes didn’t bother with a shower. She couldn’t stand the spray hitting her abused skin. Instead, she removed her dress, applied the cream, then bathed as best she could at the sink. Mercedes never went to sleep with her husband’s release or scent on her body if she could help it. When she exited the bathroom, Ana Marie gave her a small smile before leaving Mercedes alone. Instead of getting into her bed, Mercedes went to Mateo’s room and climbed in beside her son, letting the little boy’s soft snores ease her mind enough that she could fall asleep. Eventually.

  Chapter Five

  Hayden

  The information Quinn had on Juan Carlos Alvarez kept coming in. Since Hayden was new at the merc game, he asked Spyder about it. “Does this happen often?”

  “No. We’re given a target, then left to do the recon afterwards. Whoever put the hit out on Alvarez wants to make sure we get the man.”

  “And his wife. I’m going to tell you straight away I’m not ready to swipe my claws on the female. Not until I have solid proof she’s a partner in her husband’s crimes.”

  “You think women can’t be as ruthless as men? Because they can. I’ve seen some evil females in my years.” Spyder held a copy of the latest intel in his hands, but Hayden didn’t think the male was reading over them. He wondered if Spyder was recalling someone from his past.

  “No, I know they can. Just look at Cassandra and what she did to Natalia and Ryker. I’m just saying, this is a young mother. I don’t want to leave a small child an orphan unless I know without a shadow of a doubt the woman is a monster.”

  One of Poppy’s grandsons, Jericho – a.k.a. Joker – had offered for Hayden and Spyder to stay with him instead of with Poppy since his house was closer to New Laredo. Like them, he was a Gryphon as well as a Hound in the MC, a
nd their club had eyes and ears all over the Southwest. Jericho also offered his help in this particular job. “Word on the street is Alvarez has crossed the border. He ‘bought’ an estate in New Laredo, which means he overthrew the previous owner, thus inheriting all his assets. I would say I’m sad about that, but Hector Ramirez was a known human trafficker, so good riddance.”

  “Maybe I’m way off base here, but I just can’t imagine a young mother being okay with buying and selling other humans.” Hayden couldn’t imagine how anyone was okay with it, but then he knew there were some truly vile people in the world. Thus the need for mercenaries and assassins.

  Spyder tossed the papers onto the coffee table. “Maybe she’s not okay with it but goes along with her husband since he puts her up in million-dollar homes and lavishes her with expensive gifts. She could claim blissful ignorance.”

  “Or,” Hayden countered, “she could be another victim. She’s only twenty-three with a five-year-old son.”

  Spyder stood and stretched his arms overhead. “Whoever took out the contract has a beef with her, though.” When Hayden opened his mouth to argue, Spyder held his hands up. “I’m not saying we take her out immediately. We have a lot of ground to cover in finding the best way to get close to her husband. In doing so, we’ll watch the woman. If we don’t find enough evidence of wrongdoing on her part, we’ll figure something out then.”

  “How will that go over with your handler? If you don’t complete the contract on both husband and wife, will you still get paid?” Jericho asked.

  Hayden rolled the documents in his hand. “It’s our responsibility to find out as much as we can about our marks. With Alvarez, it’s cut and dried since he’s a known drug lord. We would rather not get paid than take out an innocent.”

  “But won’t whoever put out the contract get pissed? Put out another contract?”

  “It’s possible, but if we do find out she’s innocent, I’ll do whatever I can to protect her,” Hayden vowed.

  Spyder crossed his arms over his chest. “Why are you so invested in this woman you’ve never met?”

  Hayden knew that question was coming, and he didn’t have a good answer, so he went with the truth. “Call it a gut feeling.” He ran a hand through his hair and blew out a breath. “I just…”

  “I’m not saying you’re wrong, Havyk. I’ve been where you are. One of the first jobs I went out on had me second-guessing everything. I was supposed to take out a schoolteacher. She was single, early thirties. The woman didn’t even have so much as a parking ticket. Allegedly, she was a pedophile. I watched her for days. Yes, she had kids over to her home for tutoring, but I was able to see into her house through the front windows. The parents remained in their cars at the curb while their kids went inside. Not once did she do anything remotely inappropriate. She sat on one side of the table with the student opposite. When their time was up, she walked the kid to the door. Yes, sometimes they would hug her, but it was purely innocent. No lingering touches in places hands shouldn’t have been. When I was ready to call Ryot and tell him I wasn’t doing the hit, I saw something.”

  “Please don’t tell me she molested a student,” Hayden said.

  “Quite the opposite. The student went after her. He was older. Had driven himself to her house. She stood in the doorway without asking the teen inside, but he pushed past her. Instead of remaining in the house across the street where I was watching from, I rushed over there. The kid was yelling at her that she ruined his life, and he was going to make her pay. I listened long enough to get an idea of what was going on, then I knocked on the door, and when she opened it, I pretended to be her boyfriend. Long story short, the teen had a crush on her, and when she refused to tutor him after he made advances toward her, he failed his algebra class. The kid was a star linebacker, but the coach had a strict no-fail policy. On the night when scouts were sitting in the stands, the kid had been benched. He blamed her, told his dad she molested him. The dad, having money, put a hit out on the woman. It didn’t take long to get to the bottom of everything, but when I did, the dad was arrested, and the teen… Let’s just say he was convinced to tell the truth.”

  Jericho reached out to give Spyder a knuckle bump. “How did you explain your presence at the door to the teacher?”

  “I told her I heard their fight as I was walking down the sidewalk. Then I had her go into the other room to call the cops. While she was doing that, I had a little chat with the teen. By the time the police showed up, the kid was subdued and willing to spill his guts. The teacher was so thankful I stopped the teen from hurting her she asked me to stay for supper.” Spyder wiggled his eyebrows, and Hayden groaned while Jericho laughed. “I told you all that to say I understand. My gut told me she was innocent, and I was right. If I hadn’t watched her as long as I did, I would have taken out an innocent.”

  Hayden was glad his fellow Hound understood. There was no proof Mercedes Alvarez was innocent, but until he had evidence that she was guilty, he wouldn’t kill the woman. He wasn’t sure he could kill her even if he knew she was in on her husband’s activities. “Let’s go over what we have so far, starting with where the new house is located.”

  Being at Jericho’s instead of Poppy’s allowed them privacy to discuss the case without being interrupted for a few hours. When the three of them decided to break for lunch, Hayden decided to visit one of his sisters knowing he would get a wonderful meal. Jericho headed to the clubhouse, and Spyder opted to drive by the Alvarez compound. When Hayden reached Iris’s home an hour later, he grinned when he saw all the cars. He should have known word would get out he was close by. The six sisters lived within a few hours of each other, with most of their offspring living all around the southwest. He figured it was better to get the visits over with before he got too deep into the job.

  All six twins had Gryphons for mates, which meant all their kids were shifters as well. Some of Hayden’s nieces and nephews had found human mates, so their kids were a mixture of both. Hayden couldn’t remember which ones were shifters since there were so many of them, but it didn’t matter in the long run. They were all family, Gryphons or not.

  By the time he made it back to Jericho’s house, Hayden’s belly and his heart were full. He loved his brothers, but there was something about being surrounded by his sisters that reminded him of Rory. The girls doted on Hayden, and he soaked up the attention.

  Spyder was kicked back on the sofa, bare feet resting on the coffee table. “How’d it go?”

  “It’s like having six of Rory taking care of you all at once.” Hayden presented two cloth bags full of leftover containers. “They wouldn’t let me leave empty-handed. They also made me promise to bring you next time.”

  Spyder jumped to his feet, rubbing his hands together. “I smell something spicy.”

  “You’re not wrong. There’s a little bit of everything in here, including your favorite – tamales.”

  “Please tell me Holly made her famous pork and peach ones.” Spyder’s face was as hopeful as a kid waiting for candy on Halloween.

  Hayden grinned. “Maybe. Wait. How do you know about those?”

  “This isn’t my first trip to Texas, my friend. Now, give me.” Spyder took the bags from Hayden and went into the kitchen where he unloaded all the containers.

  “There better be some chili rellenos left,” Jericho said as he came in the back door. “Aunt Holly called me and said I better hurry home if I wanted to eat.”

  Spyder pushed a container toward the large Hound. “They’re all yours. But these babies are all mine,” he said, guarding the dish of tamales.

  Jericho grabbed two plates from the cabinet and passed one over to Spyder. The two of them dug into all the food Hayden brought from his sister’s. He snagged three beers from the fridge and passed them out before leaning against the counter, watching the two males chow down. He didn’t begrudge them their lack of conversation. Just a few hours prior, he had been the one stuffing his face.

  When Spyde
r was finished devouring the food, Hayden asked, “What did you learn about the compound?”

  “It’s heavily guarded. There were eight men patrolling the outside, and from what I could tell, at least that many more are on the inside.”

  Jericho rinsed his empty container in the sink, then put it in the dishwasher. “When I went to the clubhouse, I had a talk with the Hounds who were there. We’ve always kept our eyes on Ramirez, and now that he’s no longer in play, Alvarez has our attention. A couple of the males have mates who like to dance. Alvarez has been spotted at a couple of the nightclubs holding court in the VIP sections. Not only are there guards with him but also a woman. Could be the wife.”

  “That could be our in. It would be easier to watch the man out in a crowded nightclub than trying to infiltrate a heavily guarded estate.” Spyder did a little Salsa move. “I could be up for some dancing.”

  Hayden wasn’t much of a dancer, but Spyder was right about the logistics. “I didn’t pack clothes for clubbing. Looks like I’m going shopping.”

  “Yes!” Spyder grabbed Hayden’s hands and tried to do a snazzy dance move, but Hayden just stood there.

  “You know I can’t dance, right?”

  “I’ll teach you, mi amigo. Just follow my lead.”

  “Do you think this is necessary?”

  “A sultry dance is always necessary. You want to blend in, not stick out like a wallflower. Tell him, Joker.”

  “I have to agree.” Jericho moved Hayden out of the way and took Spyder’s hands. “Watch and learn, Uncle.”

  “Wait.” Spyder pulled his phone out of his back pocket, and soon, Latin music was playing. He set the phone on the counter and retook Jericho’s hands. Hayden stared in amazement as the two males gracefully moved back and forth in perfect sync.

  “The hips don’t lie,” Spyder told Hayden, grinning.

  “They really don’t,” Hayden muttered. He studied their moves, trying to emulate what they were doing.