A few days ago, walking into the bar.
Scared out of her fucking mind.
My eyes flew open. There was no way in hell she was willingly trafficking drugs. It couldn’t be. The genuine fear in her eyes that night when I finally got her to speak and tell me her story couldn’t be faked. When she reacted to my statement about her brother being dead already couldn’t be falsified. She was scared for her life and worried for his. And plus, the hiring of the private investigators didn’t make sense. It was apparent, from the records I pulled from them, that they were searching for her brother per her request.
Unless she fired them for finding her own personal cartel connection.
I put my hands on my hips and looked back at the computer monitor. There was no way she was playing me. I’d know it. Beneath her beauty and seduction, I’d know if she was yanking my chain. Or the chain of my club. I always did. Leti was honestly under the impression that her brother was alive and that she was helping him by doing what the cartel asked her to do.
Then what were the accounts for? And who the hell set them up?
No matter the answer, it solidified one issue in my mind. We had to help Leti get herself out of this mess. I sat back down at my desk, taking a look at the outbound transactions of the accounts. There was very little money going out and a lot of money coming in. The balance on the account was almost one hundred thousand dollars. And as I continued digging through the statements, a theory formed in my mind.
What if this was a dummy account?
It made sense. If the cartel had plans to use Leti even after they had killed Nicholas, it would be easy to make someone like her the fall guy. All the police would need was this damn bank account in her name with the transactions from the cartel flowing in, and she’d be sunk. The DEA had itchy fingers like that. Shit. If the cartel was setting her up to take the fall for something, then we really needed to help her.
I gathered all of the bank transactions into a document, highlighted a few portions, put my theories at the bottom, then sent it on to the guys.
I wasn’t sure if all of them would take to my theories, but it didn’t matter. Dean would, and that was enough for me.
I closed down my computer again. I had to get away from it. Because the more I dug, the more I found that made me sick. I had to get Leti out of this mess. I had to get her untangled from the Roja Diablos Cartel. She was in deep in ways she didn’t even understand, and it would ruin her world once it all came crashing down around her.
And I sure as hell wasn’t allowing her to take the fall for some bullshit she had nothing to do with.
I turned away from my computer, and my eyes fell to the suitcase. I slowly walked towards it, looking it over as my hand stretched out for it. I ran it over the material. I reached for the zipper and slowly unzipped it. I sighed as I flipped the top open, taking in the black interior. Leti had been open with me about everything. About how they were getting her to smuggle drugs into the country. But I hadn’t verified it. I hadn’t actually gone through her stuff to figure out if she was telling the truth or not. Shit, her bag wasn’t even here before for me to look through.
My eyes lifted and looked out the window, watching as the sun began to dip over the mountains in the distance.
I’d look through her suitcase again, and if she didn’t walk through that door by the time I was done, I’d go hunting for her.
I picked up her suitcase and went to go sit on the couch. I set it on my lap, then gingerly began peeling back the folds I saw hanging off the sides of the suitcase. The stitching was impeccable. I never would have seen it with stuff packed in here. I peeked in and saw sparse traces of white residue lining the sides. And my stomach dropped. My hand felt around the bottom of the suitcase. I could feel the hollow lining stitched over the hard base of it. I slid my hand into the slit made in the fabric and pulled it out, my hand sparkling just enough with white residue to make my heart slam against my chest.
Unless Leti wore white makeup, there had been cocaine in this bag.
As I felt around the bag, I felt something underneath the fabric. It felt like it was more cloth of some sort, but as I pushed at it, I could tell that there were some hard things in there too. I got up and grabbed my switchblade and cut the fabric. Inside was a small zipped up makeup bag. I picked up the makeup bag and unzipped it, then peered in and looked at all of the makeup cases. I shook the bag. The cases clattered as if they were empty.
And my stomach fluttered.
I dumped the empty containers into the suitcase and began to open them. I rolled up the lipstick before looking into the cap of it. I opened up the eyeshadow and saw the powdery residue, indicating one of the bags had apparently busted in transit. There was a mascara tube that had been hollowed out. A foundation bottle that looked as if cocaine has been merely poured into the damn thing. And at the very bottom, there was a powder compact.
A compact that had an off-kilter bottom to it.
I took my switchblade and tried to remove the bottom of it, but I couldn’t get my blade sneak under it. Gripping it in my hand, I strode into the kitchen. I ripped open the drawers and shuffled through them until I found what I was looking for. A flathead screwdriver. I jammed it underneath the bottom of the compact, trying to make sure I didn’t dent the plastic or the cheap metal in any way. Then, I pressed down and popped the bottom right off.
And as if the bag had been begging to be freed, a small plastic baggie of white powder jumped out and onto the kitchen counter.
Shit.
I stared down at it. Judging by the residue that had been left behind, this little baggie hadn’t been the only source of cocaine in her suitcase. But, it had been left behind. Which meant the cartel would come looking for it. My mind raced with questions faster than I could process them. I set the bag of drugs gingerly onto the counter, trying not to leave any more bullshit residue strewn all over my place. There were so many untethered pieces. So many things that needed answers I couldn’t give to myself at the moment.
But I knew one thing was for sure.
The fear in Leti’s eyes was genuine. The genuine concern for her brother was real. Which meant that, no matter how any of this bullshit seemed to line up, there was the inevitable truth I couldn’t let anyone waver from.
Leti was innocent.
I tossed the screwdriver down onto the kitchen counter just as I heard footsteps coming up the porch. And my heart raced. I walked over to my kitchen table and reached my hand underneath it, fingering the gun I had strapped to the underside of it. With no idea of how that fucking suitcase got back to my place and no idea where Leti had gone, I couldn’t take any chances. I listened as the footsteps fell lightly along the steps leading up to my front door, then peeled the gun from underneath the table.
But instead of knocking, the person slid my warehouse door open.
And as I stood there with a gun in my hand, I watched a head full of raven black hair walk through the front door.
With white plastic bags hanging from her arms and cutting into her skin.
Chapter 17
Leti
I walked through the door with my bags and found a shirtless Jace standing in the middle of the kitchen. With a gun in his hand. I furrowed my brow as I stood there, the plastic cutting into my arms and my skin throbbing from the heat. I was frozen in place as I stared at his gun and the harsh look in his eyes. After a moment, his eyes softened, and he walked towards me.
The two of us danced around one another silently. Jace slipped the bags from my arms and tossed them onto the touch. He took my hands and led me into the kitchen, his thumbs tracing over the lines that were two minutes away from busting open and bleeding. He turned on some cool water and placed my arms in the sink, cupping water and pouring it slowly over the red and angry marks from carrying the heavy bags.
But when I looked over at the kitchen table, I saw it.
My suitcase was blown wide open.
I furrowed my brow as my eyes l
ooked around the kitchen. There was a computer in the corner I’d never noticed before, and it was counting down some sort of process. A notebook laid there on the kitchen table, hung open haphazardly with a pen about to roll off the floor. The room was disheveled, and things seemed out of place. But the thing that caught my eye was what sat on the kitchen counter next to me.
The small baggie with white powder in it.
“Oh my god,” I said.
I yanked my arms from Jace and walked over to take it in.
“Leti, we need to get you--.”
“What the hell is this?” I asked.
I pointed to the baggie on the counter as Jace’s eyes danced along my face.
“I’m sorry, Leti. I was doing some research and got curious, so I opened up your suitcase and started poking through it.
“There are so many things about that statement I can’t even begin to unpack. But you didn’t answer my question. What. Is. That?”
My hands began to tremble as my finger lightly tapped the small baggie on the counter. If that was what I thought it was, then that explained why Sebastian was blowing up my phone. It wasn’t because he wanted to know where I was. It wasn’t because he was keeping tabs on me. It wasn’t even because he wanted to give me another job.
It was because he was missing product and thought I had taken it.
“I found that in a false bottom in your compact makeup case,” Jace said.
I felt my stomach hit the floor as I backed away from the kitchen counter. I ran my hand through my hair, feeling the beads of water trickle down my skin. Holy shit. Sebastian would think I took it. He’d think I’d fallen off the face of the planet with his product.
“I have to get this to him,” I said.
I snatched the baggie off the counter and made my way for the door.
“I have to get this to Sebastian.”
“Oh, no you don’t.”
Jace leaped around me, placing his body between myself and the front door.
“Get out of my way, Jace.”
“You’re not going back to him again,” he said.
“You don’t understand. I have to get this to Sebastian.”
“Leti, you’re not leaving this apartment.”
I knocked his hands off me before I reached for the front door. But he grabbed down onto my wrist and turned me around on my feet.
“Get off me. I have to go see Sebastian.”
“You’re not going anywhere,” Jace said.
“You don’t control me. You don’t own my actions. You’ve got no idea what this means, me having something like this!”
I shook the baggie in his face before grabbing it against my palm.
“If Sebastian, even for one second, thinks I took this on purpose? I’m dead. Nicholas is dead. Everyone’s fucking dead, Jace.”
“You’re dead anyway if you take it to him. Because there’s no groveling you can do that will change that man’s mind. I know the implications of what has happened. I know you went and saw Sebastian at some point while I was gone. I know by the residue in the suitcase how much you carried over the border, and I know you’re scared. But that’s why you’re with me, Leti. You don’t have to be scared anymore when you’re with me.”
I shook my head. “I have to get to Sebastian. I have to get this back to him.”
“Leti, you can’t--. Leti. Stop it. Leti!”
I shoved past Jace with all my might, feeling anger creeping into my bones. I reached for the front door and shoved it open, but not before Jace stopped it with his foot. I pushed, and I shoved. I leaned my back against it to try and slip out of the front. But the only thing that happened was Jace gripped my arm, pulled me back into his place, and closed the front door on me again.
“I have to get this to Sebastian,” I said breathlessly.
“You’re not safe out there Leti,” he said as he locked the front door.
“My brother’s dead if I don’t get this to him!”
I threw the packet of cocaine at the wall and watched it bounce to the floor.
“He’s going to think I took it on purpose and he’s going to kill my brother, and I’m going to be alone for the rest of my life!”
I ran my trembling hands through my hair as I backed up, collapsed over onto the couch cushions. I felt Jace kneel next to me as I covered my face with my hands, crying into my palms. This couldn’t be happening. This had to be a dream. There was no way in hell those men forgot a baggie of drugs. They never forgot anything. They pried anything and everything open in my bag. Always.
I felt Jace scoop me up into his arms before he sat down onto the couch. I felt him settle me in his lap as he cradled the back of my neck. I felt him guide my wet face into the crook of his neck as my shoulder shook with my sobs. Sobs I could no longer take the energy to hold back.
“I’m so sorry, Leti,” he whispered.
“Sebastian’s going to kill me,” I said, crying.
“No one is going to touch you so long as I’m around.”
“What about my brother. Who--?”
I drew in a shaking breath and sniffled.
“Who’s going to protect him?” I whispered.
He rocked me side to side, trying to quell my saddened state. But yet again, Jace was right. It didn’t matter if I returned the drugs. If they had it in their heads that I had taken it purposefully, then I was dead. They’d shoot me on the spot and not think twice. Then, they’d kill Nicholas as well. At least if I kept myself alive, I stood a chance at saving him along with Jace and his club.
With me dead, they didn’t have a client. So, they had no reason to go after my brother.
I cried until I couldn’t cry any longer. I cried so hard my head hurt. I cried until my eyes couldn’t open themselves. And all the while, Jace rubbed my back. Stroked his fingers through my hair. Whispered that it would be okay and that I was safe with him. He rocked me side to side. Swayed me, like a small child needing comfort. I slid my arms around his neck and held onto him tightly, wanting nothing more than to sit there on his lap until this endless storm finally passed me by.
I felt him sit my body up before he wiped at my tears. He stroked his long thumbs over my skin, filling me with a heat that was undeniable. I found his beautiful stare, full of concern and protection and curiosity. Our foreheads fell together, and I sighed, my eyes falling closed and my body slowing down its tremors.
“I need to repack my suitcase,” I said breathlessly.
“We’ll take care of that later. And honestly? If we do our jobs right, you won’t ever need that damn thing again.”
“You did research on me, didn’t you?”
I opened my eyes and pulled back before my gaze fluttered over to the computer. I caught a glance of what was on the screen just before it shut down. An article on the fire that burned down my home. A bank statement. A picture of Nicholas I’d looked at a thousand times to reassure myself he was alive and well.
“You really did your research,” I murmured.
“I’m sorry, Leti. It’s standard procedure with our clients. I compile a document of all the information I can scout out on the internet and try to piece together a timeline as well as pertinent information that might help us. Then, I send it off to the guys.”
“I can see you looked into everything.”
“I did,” he said.
My heart dropped to my toes as I went to slide off his lap, but his strong hands fisted me. Held me to his body instead of allowing me to pull away.
“What happened with the house fire, Leti?”
“Do you believe me now?” I asked.
My eyes panned back over to Jace, and I met his stare.
“Do you finally believe that I’m telling you the truth?” I asked.
“I do,” he said, nodding.
Images bombarded my mind. The smell of the smoke. The searing heat of the flames. My brother, screaming for me. Reaching out for me to pick me up. I remember the gathering of the neighborhood. Their pry
ing eyes watching our childhood home burn to the ground.
My eyes ripped open, and I found Jace staring at me, his hand entwining our fingers together.
“It has nothing to do with the cartel, if that’s what you’re asking,” I said.
“All I want is the truth,” he said.
He brought my hand to his lips to kiss, and it shot a buzz of electricity through my body.
“The house that burned down was my family’s home. It had been in my mother’s family for generations. I’m sure you’ve figured all of this out by now, but I used to have a great deal of money. Our entire family did.”
I felt Jace nod against my hand before dropping our connection to his thigh.
“My father was kind of the recluse. The black sheep of the family. He struggled with depression all his life, but of course, it got worse when my mother died having Nicholas. There’s a belief in my family that stems from our religious background that those who commit suicide are destined to forever walk the planet in their afterlife alone. Searching for the thing they wished they would have found on earth.”
I looked up into Jace’s eyes as and drew in a deep breath.
“It’s dumb. And idiotic. And I never believed any of it. But my family? They did. To them, suicide was the ultimate shame upon any family. So much so that they didn’t even believe those who committed suicide deserved proper burials.”
“What?” he asked.
“Yeah. My father would’ve been tossed in a river. Or dropped into a hole in the ground out back. Or worse, cremated and forgotten about. Left in a pile of ashes on the floorboard of some human-sized kiln.”
My eyes fell closed as the memories came rushing back.
“I was the one that found my father swinging from the ceiling, but Nicholas wasn’t close behind. And after freaking out and sobbing while my brother got our father down from the ceiling, the two of us decided that my father deserved some sort of burial. Some sort of…”
Jace (The Black Hornets MC Book 1) Page 10
