Warrior Without Rules

by Nancy Gideon

  Zach was still shaking inside.

  When he’d looked up from the squat little woman trying to sell him necklaces, Toni was gone.

  At that moment, Zach Russell had realized that Rule Three no longer applied to Antonia Castillo. There was nothing even remotely professional about the icy terror solidifying in his belly when he couldn’t find her. He’d run from corridor to corridor. No sign of her. Panic seized control of his rational thought process.

  Then his pocket locator beeped and all his honed instincts had jumped into play.

  Now she was sitting next to the far door, her face turned slightly away from him so he couldn’t quite discern her mood.

  If anything had happened to her…

  “Do you think it was a robbery?”

  Her voice was quiet but sounded in control.

  “Perhaps.”

  “Perhaps not. Random or planned, do you think?”

  “It doesn’t matter. It’s not my job to solve crimes, just to prevent them.”

  She nodded once. His response was a cop-out. True, but a cop-out nonetheless. Though she didn’t say it, her stiff body language conveyed that message loud and clear.

  “When does Premiero arrive?”

  “In two days. Why? Do you want to lock me in the suite until then?” A bit more tartness to her tone. That was good.

  “If I thought you’d stay put.”

  Locked in a suite with Antonia Castillo for two days…and nights…presented other dangers.

  Tomas sank behind the wheel. As he adjusted the rearview mirror, he nodded to Zach.

  The ride back to the hotel was silent and pensive. Both were thinking along the same line.

  Random or planned?

  Watching her, one would never know of the morning’s trauma.

  Zach sat beneath a shading palm-frond umbrella, nursing a bottled water, while the subject of his scrutiny played beach volleyball on a patch of wetted-down sand.

  She was gorgeous. A fit, healthy female animal, bronzed by the sun and gleaming with exertion. Instead of the teeny weeny bikinis worn by most of the women, she chose one of the suits from the Aletta line to accentuate her curves. The black-and-white high-cut bottom featured a wide hip-hugging waistband, and the cropped tank-style top provided support while making an eye-popping statement, proving more was sometimes…more. And, of course, she wore the shoes for the benefit of Bryce’s camera.

  The game went on for over an hour in the broiling sun with Toni playing hard, but relaxed and laughing often. The way it should be instead of the tightly strung, nervous woman he’d returned to the hotel late that morning. If it had been in his power, fear would never shadow her lovely blue eyes again. If he did his job right, perhaps this would be true. He did another scan of the area, noting the faces, the positioning of everything and everyone from poolside bunnies to drink carrying servers, looking for a potential threat. Anyone could conceal a gun. But he didn’t think this was about getting off a clean shot. This was about down and dirty intimidation. This was more personal than professional. Someone knew the secret horrors of Toni’s past and was using them to terrorize her. But for what purpose? Who would benefit from Antonia Castillo’s fear?

  He glanced up at Tomas’s approach. In shorts and a tank top, the young Latino looked more like a guest than a hired driver. Or a government operative.

  “News?”

  “He’s got some high-profile lawyer flying in from Mexico City this afternoon. Once he gets here, our friend will be gone.”

  “Any chance of getting a private word with him before that happens?”

  “Could be. I have a cousin who works in the jail. If you are there and the men assigned to him just happen to take a break.” He shrugged meaningfully.

  “Can you take me there?”

  “Can you leave now?”

  Zach’s attention shifted back to the beach then to the pool. “Give me a minute.”

  Veta Chavez sat stretched out in a lounger, her face and the political thriller she was reading shaded by a huge brimmed straw hat. There was a tin bucket next to her chair with the remains of two Mexican beers and a dish of squeezed lime wedges. She looked every inch the leisurely tourist until that brim lifted to reveal the all-business directness of her gaze. Zach posed his request.

  “I need you to fill in for me.”

  Toweling the sweat from her face and shoulders, Toni searched the sea of white chaises, but it was Veta who waved her over, not Zach.

  “Where’s Russell?” After the morning’s excitement, his absence upset Toni more than his always aggravating presence.

  Veta put down her book and passed her friend a cold drink from her newly refilled bucket. “He said he had something to do. Could you settle for me this afternoon?”

  “Gladly.” She dropped into the adjoining couch and took a long swallow of the golden beer.

  “Mateo told me what happened this morning,” Veta began. She skewered Toni with a probing stare. “He doesn’t think it was a purse snatching and neither do I. This is the second time someone’s gotten past Russell. What good is he if he can’t protect you?”

  How to explain the good Zach’s mere presence did for her peace of mind?

  “Both times were my fault. I broke the rules.”

  “Rules.” Veta made a rude noise. “Toni, you need a professional to take care of your interests and those of Aletta. This is a dangerous place. Teo tells me executives get snatched off the street all the time and held for ridiculous ransoms. We already know your father’s response to such a thing. If something happens to you, could Aletta pay the price for your return and still prosper?”

  Toni’s blood chilled. “What do you mean?”

  “Could we afford to pay a ransom without bankrupting the company?”

  A tremor started deep in Toni’s belly. “Russell won’t let anything happen to me.”

  “Things happen, Toni. You’ve got to protect yourself and your future. Your father’s not going to. And Russell hasn’t done a very good job so far.”

  In her mind’s eye, she saw the van’s sliding utility door standing open and the darkness waiting inside.

  When Toni hesitated, Veta continued in earnest. “Mateo wants you to meet with someone. He insures wealthy executives against the possibility of kidnapping. The premium is staggering but the benefits far outweigh that. If something happens to you, these people step in to do the negotiating. They pay the ransom demand and take all the risks.”

  No. Toni knew better than that. She’d still be taking all the risks.

  “Think about it, Antonia. Just a temporary policy while you’re in this country. Don’t let your father be in control of your safety.”

  And suddenly, even with the tropical sun beating down on her, Toni felt cold to the very marrow.

  His conversation with Toni’s would-be assailant was a dead end. Zach’s money bought him five minutes alone with the supremely self-confident thug who refused to say anything until his lawyer arrived. His story would be that he merely tried to help some Americano woman who misinterpreted his intentions. And he got ten stitches in his brow for his troubles. And if that wasn’t the truth, where was the supposed victim who would challenge his fairy tale?

  Toni wouldn’t come forward to press charges. She wouldn’t risk the negative publicity such a thing would bring to the Aletta merger and apparently, this uneducated street punk knew that or he wouldn’t be calmly smoking a cigarette in defiance of Zach’s best intimidation.

  Such confidence and knowledge didn’t come cheap. Whoever paid the two locals to grab Antonia Castillo knew the target and knew what her reaction would be.

  Zach left the station, disheartened until he saw the private car pull up out front, announcing the arrival of the high-priced criminal lawyer. Zach looked to the young supposed driver leaning patiently against his own transportation.

  “Tomas, how much trouble would it be to find out who this dirt bag represents?”

  “A phone call or two. Or j
ust open the local paper. His main client is Angel Premiero.”

  Premiero. Sitting in the front seat of the limo next to Tomas, Zach considered it on the ride back to the Royale.

  “What’s Premiero’s connection to Castillo? Not the official version but the behind the scenes.”

  Tomas was silent for a moment, weighing his answer and how much he should reveal. “They grew up together here in Mexico. They ran the streets playing shill games with tourists and getting into trouble with the policia. Castillo was the smarter, the slicker of the two and he found a way out by finding a sponsor in America, by going to night classes and by marrying well. Premiero made enough money to dress in imported suits and have fine things but he will always be little more than a knee breaker on Castillo’s payroll.”

  Was he still or had he moved up in the world to do the dirty work for his own benefit?

  “Making Mercedes Aletta his wife took Castillo out of the gutter and into a whole new social registry. Premiero had to resent him for that.” Tomas continued. “You can take the man off the streets, but you take those years on the streets out of the man. They are cut from the same crude cloth. And now Premiero wants to start playing in the same exclusive league as his childhood amigo.” Tomas pointed to a gap between the high-rise hotels. Only a burned out shell remained. “Castillo’s. Some say Premiero is responsible. Some say he did it for revenge. Some say he did it for a friend.”

  And this was the man Toni was going into partnership with. The man she was going to trust with her mother’s legacy.

  Was she crazy? Or was she well aware that she was getting into bed with the devil?

  It was late when he got back to the hotel. The sun was already setting. In a hurry to find Toni and secure his place at her side, he headed for the elevator and a change of clothes only to be hailed by the desk clerk. He took the telegram, noting its origin in Detroit. Jack. He tore into it in the elevator, scanning the message that brought another possible player to the forefront of his suspicions. One he didn’t like to consider.

  The suite was empty. Toni’s swimsuit hung in the tub. Zach stepped out onto the balcony to scan the pool area below. It was mostly empty except for couples crossing the lighted cement bridge that spanned the two sections of the pool as they headed for a walk along the beach or a drink at the open-air restaurant. At one of the restaurant tables, a woman sat alone. The dramatic hat was unmistakable.

  Veta raised her glass to him as Zach approached. “You look like you could use one of these.”

  “Where’s Toni?”

  Veta didn’t react to the menace in his tone. “She’s fine.”

  “That doesn’t answer my question.”

  Veta pointed outward. He looked past the middle aged man watching his children weave in and out of the incoming surf to where the horizon was a smudge of blue sky at the edge of grey seas. Graceful sails glided along that melding of air into water.

  “Don’t worry. She’s in good hands. She’s with Mateo.”

  Zach took no comfort from that claim.

  Toni was out on the ocean with a man who may have had every reason to harm her.

  Chapter 9

  It should have been a relaxing moment in paradise. The eighty-five-foot windjammer schooner glided across the twilight waters. The breeze filling the parade of canvas was warm yet wonderfully refreshing. Seated on the open deck with the blackness of the Pacific behind them and the twinkling of the hotel zone lining the distant beach, a handsome, adoring man beside her and a starry canopy overhead to wish on, another woman would have been swept up in the romance. Antonia Castillo was brokering a business deal.

  “You won’t regret it, Toni. It’s the closest thing to a guarantee of safety I know.”

  She nodded absently at Mateo’s words as her new insurance representative folded the paper with her signature and tucked it into his briefcase. Mateo had arranged the discreet meeting between them. The modestly dressed and properly mannered salesman had all the references to make her feel secure and in good hands. So why did she feel as if those hands had just pulled out of her pockets after giving her a good fleecing?

  The seeping sense of uneasiness didn’t leave along with her bankcard number when the impeccably dressed insurance agent went below deck. Toni knew she’d done the right thing for Aletta. And that was the important thing, that Aletta go on.

  “Thank you for setting this up for me, Mateo.”

  “I would do anything for you, Toni. You know that. I know how much your mother’s company means to you. I only wish I could be as important in your life.”

  She thought he was teasing at first. It wasn’t like Mateo to speak with any seriousness about his emotions, but when she glanced at him, beginning to smile, she saw a sobering truth in his dark eyes. And the heat of an underlying hope.

  Why hadn’t she seen this coming? When had Mateo’s feelings for her matured from childhood friendship into an adult devotion?

  “Don’t be silly, Mateo. Aletta is just a thing. You’ve been like family for most of my life. Like my brother and my best friend.”

  He made a regretful face. “Just what a man wants to hear when he’s out on the ocean with the most beautiful woman in the world.”

  “And what did you expect to hear?” She kept a teasing tone in her voice to lessen whatever he was leading up to.

  “That you’ve missed me. That you’ve thought of me often.”

  “Those things are true.”

  “Then why do I hear what’s happening to you from my sister instead of from you?”

  “What’s Veta told you?”

  “That you’ve been threatened. That your father is pushing this deal with Premiero even though you’re not sure it’s the right thing for Aletta. Or for you. That you’re all work and no play and you’ve forgotten how to have fun.”

  “I just needed you to remind me.”

  “Maybe you need me for more than just an occasional phone call. I’m here for you. I always have been.”

  “I know.”

  “You were the one watching my back and cleaning up after my mistakes as we were growing up. You protected me from those who would take advantage of my foolishness by paying off my debts. I want to do the same for you.”

  “You think I’m being foolish?”

  “I think you’re in more trouble than you’ll admit. And you’re scared and alone. Let me help you, Toni. Let me be more than a friend.”

  In her heart, she knew what he was suggesting but if she acknowledged it, she was afraid everything about their relationship would change and her best friend in the world would be gone. Before she could think of a way to forestall it, he said the words.

  “I love you, Toni.”

  “I love you, too.”

  He frowned because the words were the ones he wanted to hear but the significance of them was underplayed. “As a friend and a brother.”

  “Always.”

  “How about as a partner. A life partner. One who can protect you and make you laugh.”

  “Is that what you want to do?”

  “If it’s all you’ll let me do. Toni, I know what happened to you. I know why you’ve never gotten serious or close to any man.”

  She froze. All the playfulness and gentle feelings went overboard as her innate defensiveness seized up inside her chest.

  “Veta told you?”

  “She didn’t have to. You’ve never been the same since then. And I blame your father and his greed.”

  “I don’t want to talk about this.”

  He tried to take up her hand but she jerked it away. She couldn’t help herself.

  “Toni, you don’t have to be alone. Let me take care of these things for you like you’ve taken care of me in the past. I can take the heat from your father and Premiero. I can step out front so that you don’t have to be the target of intimidation. You’ll be free to do the work that you want to do with the company. I can take the pressure off. Let me take the risks. All you have to do is say yes.”r />
  “Yes to what?”

  “Marry me, Antonia. Together we can take them all on and win.”

  “Mateo—”

  Hearing the objection and reluctance in her voice, he pushed his case. “It can be on whatever terms you want it to be. As friends, to start. As partners. You don’t have to take on the world by yourself. Let me help you, Toni. Say yes and I can make all the nightmares go away.”

  She stared up at him in confusion. In some corner of her mind, she was actually playing the possibilities, considering his offer.

  Until he bent down, thinking to kiss her.

  Two things were immediately apparent when Toni opened the door to the suite. Zach was furious. And he was packing. He gave her a quick look before continuing to fold his shirts. Anger radiated from him, not in gestures or attitude but in the complete absence of expression. She might well not have been in the room.

  She stood just inside the door for a long moment, following his precise movements as the realization of what he was doing kept building and building.

  He was leaving her.

  Faced with the choice of a defensive or offensive approach, Toni went with the latter. She sighed heavily and when she spoke, her tone was an impatient mix of irritation and weariness.

  “I’m not in the mood for this, Russell. Not after the day I’ve had.”

  He paused long enough to draw a slow, stabilizing breath. Still he wouldn’t acknowledge her with his full attention. “You’re not in the mood. Fancy that. We’re finally in agreement on something.”

  To her dismay, he reached for another shirt and began to make meticulous folds. Anxiety massing until she found it difficult to swallow, Toni finally crossed the room, her alarm making her more aggressive and short tempered.

  “Stop the game, Russell. Just spank me with your lecture about the rules so I can get to sleep. I’m tired.”

  He did look at her then and his chilled gaze was the darkly shadowed green of the surrounding jungle, filled with dangers and pitfalls untold. His accent thickened along with his ire. “I’m tired, too. Tired of the games, especially the kind you were playing tonight. If you can’t take your protection seriously, the joke’s on you, Ms. Castillo. I told you quite plainly what would happen if you refused to accept my terms.”