City Culprits (Book 1)

by Brittany Nicole Allen

  “What is this?” She asked him.

  “The truth. You need to know.”

  Zamora stared at the folder for a moment deciding if she wanted to open it or not.

  “Open it.”

  Zamora slowly opened the folder. Inside was a newspaper article. The same exact one that Tyson had read earlier.

  Zamora read the description of the article.

  Cartel kingpin Carlos Rivera-hidden adoption of daughter 25 years ago. Sources say he and his wife gave up daughter to protect her from his life, after son was killed years earlier. Carlos Rivera was released from all criminal charges Monday morning. Sources say there has been no contact with birth child since adoption and hid wife’s pregnancy and the adoption.

  “Why am I reading a paper about Carlos Rivera?” She didn’t understand.

  Dice didn’t know how else to explain so he just said it.

  “Because he’s your father.”

  “What did you just say?” She was unsure of his words.

  “Zamora. You are the daughter he gave up for adoption 25 years ago. Your birth parents hid the adoption to protect you.”

  “Carlos Rivera…the cartel kingpin…is my real father?”

  “Yes. If you don’t believe me, your real birth certificate is behind that paper. It wasn’t easy to get.”

  Zamora lifted the article up to reveal the paper behind it. It was her real birth certificate. She looked at it in shock. She didn’t know how to respond.

  “Why are you telling me this now?” She finally spoke again.

  “Because his enemies know that you exist and they are coming for you. The Jamaican Posse has already made their way to the city and there will be others when they discover your location.”

  “I don’t have anything to do with my real father. That doesn’t make any sense to me.”

  “You know that Carlos Rivera is a very dangerous man. He’s done a lot of things. I guess they just find you valuable for some unknown reason.”

  “Everyone knows Carlos Rivera but I have nothing to do with him.”

  “You do now Zamora. If his enemies get to you…they can make Carlos do whatever the hell they want. The only good thing about who you are…is you’re too valuable for them to kill.”

  “How do you know all of this?”

  “I’ve known the truth since I was 14. I overheard a conversation with mom and dad after one of your harsh training lessons. They were arguing about dad working you too hard. Mom was frustrated about the whole situation, saying that he needed to back off of you for a while and let you be a kid. Dad went on to say that it was for your own safety, so that you would be prepared if the truth about who you really were ever came out. He said that if Carlos Rivera’s enemies ever figured out about his secret child they would come looking for you. That’s when I pieced it together. That Carlos Rivera…was your real father.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “Dad caught me snooping on the conversation. He explained to me why you could never know the truth until the truth had to come out. We had to protect you from yourself. Carlos chose mom and dad to adopt you personally. He knew that dad would use his training to prepare you for the worst. Carlos had asked dad to teach you everything he knew but to never reveal the truth unless it was necessary for you to know.”

  Zamora seemed shaken up a bit, still shocked at the truth about herself.

  “So what? I was supposed to go the rest of my life never knowing any of this? Everything dad did…everything he taught me…was it because of Carlos? Was it because I’m his daughter?”

  “It was because if his enemies had ever discovered that you exist…that you would know how to deal with it. That you would know how to set yourself free from it and escape every situation you were ever in. It was so you could save yourself.”

  Zamora was left unspoken.

  “It was all for this moment.” He told her.

  “You were going to keep this from me? Did you ever plan to tell me the truth?!” She said angered.

  “I couldn’t Zamora! I made a promise to never tell you unless I had to.”

  “Unless you had to? Because of this newspaper you’re forced to. How do you even know his enemies are already here for me?” She said still raising her voice.

  “Why do you think I’m here Zamora?!” He banged on the table with his hand.

  “What do you mean? You’re here because you killed a man in cold blood. The only reason you got 7 years is because you got a deal of voluntary manslaughter.”

  “I killed that man…to protect you. He knew the truth.”

  Zamora didn’t know what to say again. Dice waited for her to respond.

  “You what?” She finally said.

  “I killed Mark…because he found out the truth. He was going to expose you to your father’s enemies. I had to keep him quiet. I guess that really didn’t matter though because the truth came out anyway.”

  “How did he know?” She wondered.

  “Mark had called me over to his house. He said he wanted to talk about something. When I got there, he immediately brought up the topic. He had asked me if I knew that you were Carlos Rivera’s child. I asked him how he knew that and he showed me your birth certificate and adoption papers.”

  “Why would he have that?”

  “Mark was a dirty cop. He was working for somebody who was after your real father. He must’ve found a way to dig up old shit on him. He said there were a lot of sealed records on your father, that he got his hands on it. He found a birth certificate of a second child called baby girl Rivera. He dug deeper to find out what happened to that child and then discovered the adoption records…with the name Zamora Cortez and Phillip and Maria Cortez listed as your adoptive parents.”

  “Why would he tell you that? Why wouldn’t he just take that information to whoever wanted it?”

  “I knew Mark was going to kill me so I couldn’t protect you. He just needed to confirm that you were the child of Carlos Rivera. That’s why he asked me if I knew about it. I told him that I did and that he couldn’t let that information get out.”

  “So what? You just killed him?”

  “I gave him a chance to burn it. To get rid of it. He said he couldn’t do that. That if he didn’t give the information to the guys who asked for it that he would end up dead. He wouldn’t give me the name of the guy who hired him. We fought it out. I won. I stabbed him with the fireplace stick and then I burned the truth.”

  “So how did the truth come back?”

  “I don’t know Zamora. Someone else must’ve dug it up again and this time they released it to the press so all his enemies would know that you exist. Someone is out to hurt your father. Someone wanted his enemies to know the truth. Someone out there knows that you are valuable for some reason. And I think someone killed Angel because she figured it out too. I think she was going to warn you.”

  “You think Angel was murdered because of me?”

  “I can’t say for sure Zamora. But I think that she knew someone who knew who you were and that she was going to tell you. Obviously they didn’t want you to know that Carlos Rivera is your father.”

  “And what about our parents? You know that wasn’t an accident.”

  “I can’t explain that. That happened five years ago. Unless someone’s known about you that long and decided to get rid of them first, without knowing that I knew too.”

  “I can’t deal with this.” Zamora sobbed standing up, walking toward the door.

  “You need to be prepared.”

  Zamora stopped for a moment standing like a statue. She thought about something that made sense to her now. Something that she could never understand before. Her brother’s words had triggered something her father had said to her once.

  When Zamora was 15, her training got really intense. Her father taught her a form of weapons training called Krav Maga. He often used a paintball pistol to show her how to keep from getting shot. He used a fake knife to show her how to keep fr
om getting stabbed.

  “Now Zamora! Take the gun from me.”

  “It’s hard papa. I can’t get it from you.”

  “Try!” He raised his voice.

  Zamora tried to get the pistol from her father, which was aimed at her. Every time she had failed the task, she was shot with the paintball.

  “See? You’re dead.”

  He made her try over and over again until she got it right. Then he made her take the knife and every other weapon he could think of. He taught her how to use them correctly to defend herself. He often made her escape from bound hands and handcuffs.

  “I don’t want to do this anymore papa. It’s wearing me out. I can’t get my hands free.” She told him weakened after trying to escape from the ropes.

  “Well then I guess you don’t leave this room.”

  “Why do I have to do this papa?”

  “You need to be prepared.”

  “Prepared for what?”

  “Someday mi amor…someday you will understand.”

  “What is it Zamora?” Her brother asked her.

  She waited before answering her brother.

  “Now I understand.”

  “Understand what?”

  “What it was all for." She turned back around to face her brother.

  “Our father was preparing you for when the truth came out. He wanted to teach you how to survive. He didn’t want you to depend on anyone else. It was so you could save yourself.” Dice said knowing what she was referring to.

  “I have to go. I can’t do this anymore.” She told her brother.

  “You need to be ready for what’s coming. The Jamaican Posse are going to look for you. I just hope that Carlos Rivera finds you before they do. He’s the only person on this entire planet…that can protect you.”

  “I don’t need to be protected.”

  “Braydon does.” Dice told her in a stern voice.

  “I will never let anything happen to that child. I love him like my own son. I will keep him safe.”

  “I know you will, but you need to be ready.”

  “For whatever reason I’m so valuable to my father’s enemies…I’m going to figure it out and then I’m gonna destroy it.”

  “The only way to do that is to find Carlos. He holds the secrets to your life.”

  “Carlos Rivera is a cartel kingpin. How the hell am I supposed to get close to him?”

  “You just hope that he’s searching for you already. And hope that you matter to him.”

  “Zamora went to visit her brother this morning. They met in solitary. She knows the truth.” Que reported to Tyson.

  Tyson sighed in annoyance. “That is going to be a big problem. That was our only advantage, was that she did not know. Now she is going to be alert and aware. Does she know about us? How do you know about this?” He questioned.

  “She called me a while ago. Asked me if I knew anything about the Jamaican Posse. Her brother told her that they were in the city already searching for her. She knows that you are here and that her father’s enemies have figured out her existence.”

  “Our only advantage now is that we are the only one of her father’s enemies here for now. We need to get to the girl before her father finds her and before other enemies make their way into the city. It’s only a matter of time before The Russian Mafia discovers her location. That is the one thing that we made sure to keep secret.”

  “How do you know the Russians are going to look for her?” Que wondered.

  “Her father has pissed off a lot of people. He killed the leader of The Russian Mafia. His son is going to be out for vengeance after taking over his father’s business. We need to hurry this up. Find a way to get her alone.”

  “She’s not going to be easy to control. Her adoptive father taught her a lot of things.”

  Tyson lit a cigar, looking out the window. “Everybody has a weakness. She has custody of her nephew?” He glanced at Que.

  “Not the boy. I don’t want to hurt him.” Que said concerned.

  Tyson turned to face him. “You care for the boy?” he smirked.

  “I do care for the boy. I don’t want him to get hurt. I’m not up for hurting children.”

  “Then find something else or I have no other option.”

  Que thought for a moment. “Her best friend Nikkya. They care for each other a lot and they are always together.”

  “Interesting. Find Nikkya first as a way to get Zamora’s attention. I think I prefer women over children anyway. They are more fun.” He smirked.

  “I can’t believe Carlos Rivera is your father. That’s crazy.” Nikkya said sitting on Zamora’s couch holding a glass of wine. She sat with her knees up to her chest.

  Drinking wine at late night was one of their favorite things to do together.

  “Yeah. Ya think? What’s crazy is all my father’s enemies are after me and I don’t even know why.” Zamora sipped her wine.

  “Did your brother tell you anything about them?” She asked concerned.

  “He said something about The Jamaican Posse. Whoever the hell they are. He said they’re already here.”

  “Oh shit.” Nikkya set her wine on the table beside her.

  “I don’t know what to do Nikkya. I mean I don’t know if I should even leave the house.” Zamora finished off her wine, setting the glass on the floor.

  “Do you know if they know what you look like?”

  “I don’t know anything. Clearly everyone knows more about me than I do. I have nothing to do with my birth father. So why do I have to pay for his mistakes.” She said angered.

  “I don’t know sweetie. I don’t know what to say about something like that. Carlos Rivera is a kingpin. I mean…that might be the only good thing about all this. He can protect you in ways no one else can.”

  “Then why did he give me up for adoption…if he could protect me?”

  “Maybe there’s more to it than that Zamora. There has to be a better reason why.”

  “Everyone around me is in danger now. Maybe you shouldn’t even be here.”

  Nikkya got up from the couch to sit next to Zamora.

  “Hey. You know I can take care of myself. You know shit like that, doesn’t scare me. You know what I and JT have been through. I’m going to stick by you. I’m going to help you get through this.”

  “What if you can’t?”

  “We’ll figure something out.”

  “My main concern is for the safety of Braydon. I couldn’t live with myself if something happened to him because of who I am.”

  “Look, JT and I will help you look after him. Okay? We’ll keep him safe. We really need to figure out what the hell is going on.”

  “Dice said that I better hope that Carlos is looking for me.”

  “Yeah. Let’s hope he is. Carlos Rivera has all the answers.”

  “I hope he does. Because I’m not really up for several kidnapping attempts on my life.” Zamora said sarcastically.

  “Yeah, can’t argue with you there. One thing is for sure though; you need to know what you’re up against.”

  “I don’t know anything about them. What I do know is that my adoptive father knew something like this was going to happen.”

  “That’s why he made you do all those things.” Nikkya remembered.

  “My father wanted to prepare me so that I could protect myself. He wanted me to be ready.”

  “Do you think this had something to do with their deaths?”

  “I don’t know, but I think it had something to do with my sisters. I think she knew something. Maybe she went to the wrong person about it. Someone else has known about me for years. I don’t understand why it all comes out now.”

  “Somebody wanted it out in the open now.”

  “I don’t get it.” Zamora said calmly.

  “Do you want me to stay with you for a while?” Nikkya asked worried.

  “I don’t want you to get hurt.”

  “I don’t want you to get hurt eithe
r.”

  Zamora understood her words. Nikkya leaned in to hug her.

  “I’m not going to leave you Zamora. We’re like sisters. Your shit…is my shit.” She told her.

  Que had met Zamora and Braydon for lunch again the following week. Nikkya planned to catch up to them soon. They sat at a table close to Braydon who was by the TV again so that they could talk alone.

  “So how are you dealing with everything?” Que asked her.

  “It is what it is.”

  “Do you really feel that way?”

  “I don’t really know how to feel about it.”

  “Did your brother tell you anything else about this Jamaican Posse? Does he know anything else about them?” He tried not to seem too curious about it.

  “No. That was all he said.”

  “Then how does he know about them?”

  “Good question. I didn’t really get around to asking him that much with the initial shock of learning that my real father is a cartel kingpin.”

  “That must’ve been difficult for you to hear.”

  Zamora paused. “You could say that.”

  “So what is your plan then?”

  “I don’t really have a plan. I’m not going to live my life in fear. That’s one of the things my adoptive father told me to never do.”

  “That is true.”

  Nikkya walked in one of the doors. Que noticed her. “Nikkya.” He said.

  Zamora looked. She moved over so Nikkya could sit next to her.

  “Hey sorry I’m late. I had to grab a few things from home and let JT know what’s going on.”

  “What is going on?” Que took interest.

  Nikkya looked at Zamora for reassurance.

  “He knows everything.” She told her.

  Nikkya looked back at Que.

  “I’m staying with Zamora for a while until we figure things out.”

  “Oh. I see. That seems like a good idea.” Que said with a smile.

  “Yeah. I guess I don’t really want to be alone until I know how to deal with all this.”

  “Well you know that I will help you in any way that you need.” He offered.

  Nikkya interrupted. “So do you know anything about this Jamaican Posse?”