Exposed

by Samantha Keith

  “We’ll search his family’s yacht company first.” Ashley punched the address in the GPS and eased into traffic. Carlos wouldn’t be stupid enough to take her there. Especially if he knew she was an informant. But they had to rule it out, and maybe, just maybe, they’d find a clue to another location. He scrubbed his hands over his face as the late afternoon sun dipped low in the sky. Ashley’s voice droned on but he couldn’t focus on anything she said.

  “Nate,” she growled, snapping his attention from the skin at his palms. “Get your shit together and think. Hadn’t Maddie hinted to you that she suspected Carlos owned another business in the city?”

  He dropped his hands to his lap, but tension turned his veins to lead. “Yeah, she thought maybe he has a nightclub here like the one in Miami.” And that whoever had made the cocaine deal with him could be involved in the nightclub as a partner. But Nate had come up empty handed with any other business in Carlos’s name, and he still hadn’t heard from Josh.

  Her mouth set into a grim line. “And I take it that was a dead end?”

  He nodded. “So far.”

  “Well he had to take her somewhere. We need to look at properties his family owns, or…”

  “Done all that.” He pressed the knuckles of his closed fist to his forehead. The air inside the vehicle was oppressive, and sweat layered on top of the sheen that was already pasted to his body.

  Ethan’s face filled his head. A memory flashed before him of Maddie at her sister Dana’s wedding, dancing with her big brother. Ethan and his family would be devastated. He’d never recover from this, and he’d never forgive Nate for being a part of it. Guilt clawed at him and the need to purge the weeks of lies, to somehow find comfort, overwhelmed him.

  Ashley was right, he had to focus on this like a case and not let his emotions turn off his training. Wallowing wouldn’t help. Right now, Maddie was in the clutches of a murderous drug lord. If he didn’t get his head back on he’d lose her for good. But first, he needed to do what he’d been avoiding all along. Tell the truth.

  He pulled out his phone and stared at the screen. No new messages. He swallowed. “I need to make a call. Can you do me a favor and be quiet?”

  Ashley nodded, her eyes wide with worry. “We’re five minutes from the yacht company. Who are you calling?”

  “Ethan.”

  Her head whipped around and the truck shot toward the sidewalk. Nate reached out and grabbed the wheel, righting it. “Jesus, keep us on the road,” he hissed.

  She nodded, the planes of her face tense as she repositioned her hands on the wheel and kept her eyes on the road. He let go and returned his attention to his phone, and pulled up Ethan’s contact. “You’re calling Ethan?”

  “Yup. Should have a long time ago.” What difference did it make? Finding Maddie now would be nothing short of a miracle. If he didn’t have her, he had nothing. Losing a decade-old friendship paled in comparison to letting Maddie fall into the hands of a murderer.

  The phone rang in his ear. He wasn’t answering, and Nate sure as hell couldn’t blame him, when he’d been treating Ethan like the plague.

  “Well, look who it is.” Ethan said into the phone, his annoyance prickled Nate’s senses. His skin grew cold and the whizzing of cars and buildings fell away from him.

  “Do you have a minute?”

  Ethan let out a long, slow breath. “You know, I should be a prick and tell you I’m busy, but I’m going to take the high road.”

  Nate’s mouth twitched. Damn, he was going to miss Ethan. His eyes misted and his throat tightened, almost preventing the words from bubbling up from his conscience.

  “I appreciate that,” he said softly.

  “Whoa, I think we have a delay in our connection. Where the hell are you?”

  He needed to get this over with. The longer he dragged it out, the harder it was going to be. Best to admit all of his lies. “I’m in San Juan.”

  “San Juan? In Puerto-fucking-Rico? I thought you were in Arizona!”

  “Yeah, I lied. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg.” His voice was dull and heavy. Ethan made an annoyed sound in his ears. Nate sucked in his breath. All he could do was speak from his heart and hope to God Ethan could one day forgive him.

  “You’re going to hate me in a minute, and I won’t blame you. No one hates me right now more than I do. I just want to tell you that you’ve always been a good friend to me, and you don’t deserve to hear what I’m about to tell you.”

  Silence met his words, ripping through him and shaking his resolve. He had to do this. He had no right to withhold what had happened to Maddie from her family.

  “What the hell are you talking about?” Ethan’s voice came out in a rough breath.

  Nate dropped his head in his free hand, pinching the bridge of his nose until pain split his forehead.

  “I’ve been with Maddie this whole time. We’ve been after Carlos Santiago. She’s been working as an informant.” The words tumbled out in broken sentences. No way he’d throw her under the bus and tell him Maddie had cornered him into this. Nate was more experienced, he knew what she was getting herself into, and he hadn’t stopped her. It was solely his responsibility.

  “He took her, Ethan, and I can’t find her. She’s gone.” His voice broke in his throat. He’d never see her smug, laughing eyes again. He’d never kiss her full, sensual mouth, or see her brilliant, coy smile. He’d wasted so much of his life searching for something that had been under his nose the whole time. And on top of that, he was milliseconds away from losing his best friend. A million memories, ten million drinks, and even more jokes… gone. All as lost as the beautiful young woman who had stolen his heart from the moment he’d laid eyes on her.

  “I’m so fucking sorry, man.” He hung his head. Tension built behind his eyes as he waited for the roar on the other end of the phone. He took a deep breath, ready to bend over and take whatever Ethan needed to say to him.

  “Get your head out of your ass and find her.” His voice was a low rumble that vibrated to Nate’s core. The line went dead in his hand, and Nate gritted his teeth. That hadn’t been the response he’d expected. He took a deep shaky breath and his chest expanded. Ethan was right.

  He didn’t have much time—he had to find her.

  The vehicle slowed and Nate turned to the passenger window. Infinite Custom Yachts loomed before him. The steel and glass building overlooked the harbor, a Puerto Rican flag danced in the wind outside. He’d researched long and hard into Carlos’s family business. His father, Luis Santiago, was the founder and president of the company. Carlos sat on the board of directors along with his much younger brother, Sebastian.

  All of his relatives had come out clean, and the company appeared to operate a legitimate business. Carlos had supposedly been summoned to San Juan because of his father’s failing health and business adjustments were to be made.

  Nate exited the vehicle with Ashley at his heels. He pushed the door open and a bell sounded overhead. A young woman with her dark hair pulled back into a severe knot at the nape of her neck rounded her desk. She sported a black pencil skirt and white blouse.

  She rattled something in Spanish that Nate took to mean ‘how can I help you?’

  Ashley unfolded the warrant and held it out for her inspection. “We’re investigating Carlos Santiago and have a warrant to search the premises.”

  Nate opened his wallet and flashed his badge. His gaze took in the smooth metal beams and sharp architectural angles of the twenty-foot showroom. Wood and stone samples hung neatly near the wall next to miniature model yachts.

  The woman stretched out her thin, shaky hand, accepting the paper. Her deep brown eyes clouded with fear and her ebony eyebrows touched above her nose in a frown. She stepped out of the way and her footsteps zig-zagged to the steel desk near the front of the door. She lifted the receiver of the phone and
spoke hurriedly in Spanish.

  Nate tucked his badge away, removed his Glock from the waistband of his pants, and moved down the long hallway off the showroom. He and Ashley split up, taking one room at a time each. Nate tore through each room, not caring about the mess he left behind.

  No signs of Maddie.

  Not a single one.

  Though he hadn’t expected to find her so easily, the boulder of panic crushed further into the cavity of his chest. He pushed the last door open and Ashley sat crouched by a filing cabinet against the wall. A large desk took up a fraction of the room, the rich mahogany sharply contrasting with the rest of the modern finishes.

  Nate holstered his gun, rounded the desk, and sat in the computer chair. He brought the screen to life and of course, it was password protected.

  Goddammit.

  He’d be able to confiscate it, but until the tech guys got ahold of it, he wouldn’t be able to access anything on the hard drive.

  “Shit.” Ashley slammed the filing cabinet drawer and stood. “I can’t find a single thing. Not an address, or any other business documents.”

  Nate closed his eyes and pinched his chin between his thumb and forefinger. “Maddie had been adamant that Carlos owned a club here. She’d overhead him talking about bouncers, but fuck, that could have been anything.”

  “Finding a specific nightclub in this city is like looking for a needle in a haystack.” She folded her arms over her chest and rested her hip on the desk. “Especially with no leads.”

  The boulder in his chest sunk deep into his stomach. She was right. They had nothing, no way to find the bastard. She’d been gone a couple hours and by now could be anywhere. He bounced his knee up and down, his body looking for a way to let loose the adrenaline that made him want to bolt and run laps.

  Which would do absolutely no good right now.

  “There’s only one thing we can do. We’ll have to talk to his family. I highly doubt they’re upstanding citizens, but who knows, maybe we can get a—”

  His gaze dropped to the desk and one single, purple-labeled pen caught his eye. Its design was so unlike the other contemporary pieces that he reached out to pick it up.

  Club Viejo.

  His heart stalled. He surged to his feet, and the computer chair bounced off the wall behind him.

  “This is it,” he tossed the pen to Ashley and charged out of the room.

  Chapter 24

  “What the fuck is this?” Carlos bellowed. He spun her around and shoved her down. Her back slammed roughly into the chair she’d vacated only minutes before. It tipped backward, before righting itself on all fours. Carlos’s hands opened and closed at his sides as he stared down at the man she’d tied up.

  “Untie him, dammit.” He gestured to Hector. Droplets of sweat clung to Carlos’s cheekbones and the neckline of his shirt had a darkening ring around it. He was pissed. Beyond pissed. She curled her hand into a fist and her other hand around her purse. Dammit, why hadn’t she called Nate immediately? If she could somehow get her phone out and hide it on her, she might be able to dial him.

  The man on the ground let out a stream of Spanish, a few recognizable curse words floated to her ears. Hector pulled him to his feet and he let out a deep, guttural cry.

  “She fucked Diego up.” Hector stepped back, his gaze raking over the man. Diego—she’d been right. Diego turned to her, and a big purple bruise colored his chin. His eyes creased at her.

  Carlos’s onyx irises sharpened on her. He stepped forward and his fist curled into the strap of her purse. He yanked it over her head, tearing it from her fingers.

  No! She surged forward, her hand opened to grab it away, but all she caught was air. He pinned her with his gaze.

  “Don’t move.”

  Her hands fell to the edge of her seat, curling around the plastic. She couldn’t tear her gaze away from him. He would pull out her cellphone, but he wouldn’t find anything incriminating in it. Would he think to look inside the seam?

  Please, God. Don’t let him find the encrypted phone.

  He rifled through it. A vial of lip-gloss spilled out and landed on the floor, rolling to her feet. He made an impatient sound and turned the bag upside down, shaking it.

  Shit. Shit. Shit.

  The contents tumbled out as fast as if a two-year-old had gotten a hold of it. He gave it another hard shake and the encrypted phone dropped out. Its black, bare covering looked as ominous and out of place as a bomb.

  One thick, black eyebrow rose. “What’s this?” His tone hovered on curiosity, but the lines of his face hardened. He turned the device over in his hands and chortled, a curse rode the wave of his breath. He gripped the phone in his hand and advanced on her, his steps slow and deliberate. “Who the fuck are you?”

  He stopped in front of her, his knee brushed against her thigh. The hair on her arms stood at attention. Sweat collected in the deep crease at his brow. Maddie pursed her lips. Desperation clawed inside her, wanting to keep the façade up as long as she could. But what was the point? Should she outright admit that she was a cop? That the FBI was here and investigating him? Would it change her fate? No. She couldn’t give up her cover—especially when she didn’t have backup. Unless she could completely redeem herself, Carlos would kill her without hesitation.

  At the very least, denial could keep him talking and give Nate more time to get to her. Torture would be better than immediate death… wouldn’t it? She swallowed and met his glare, not hiding her temper.

  “We’ve been through this already.”

  He jammed the phone under her nose. “What is this, hmm? Why do you have two phones?”

  She swallowed and her throat bobbed over the dryness that had collected. Her mind worked at warp-speed. “It’s a cellphone. I found it on the ship and meant to turn it into the lost and found. I forgot.”

  Carlos’s lips thinned. He shook his head at her and lifted the tip of his index finger to his temple. “I’m not stupid, puta,” he rasped. He lifted his arm high and threw the phone. It smashed into a million pieces, which skittered across the floor. Her chest rose and fell on each shaky breath. Her only chance at communicating with Nate was gone. She’d have no one to bail her out, no back-up plan. She had to think her way out of this. If she couldn’t outsmart him, she would have to fight.

  “You have ten seconds to start talking before we make you,” he said through clenched teeth.

  “I’m telling you the truth.”

  “I’ll make her talk.” Diego’s voice boomed next to Hector. He hurled himself at her, his fingers splayed and aimed for her throat. Maddie shot her foot out, catching him in the stomach. He fell on top of her, his hands fumbled at her throat and the chair scraped across the concrete floor.

  His thick fingers closed around her sensitive flesh and the stench of his body odor invaded her, numbing her senses. His weight crushed down on her, cutting off her air. In the awkward position of the chair, she couldn’t use her weight against him. Carlos folded his arms across his chest, his thick eyebrows raised with interest.

  He wanted to see her in action.

  Diego leaned his face closer to hers. His bulbous nose touched the tip of hers. She craned her head back as far as her neck would allow and breathed through her mouth.

  “I’m going to turn you inside out—you will be nothing but a pile of fucking organs when I’m done with you.”

  A red mist crossed her line of vision. Fury spiked her body temperature, warming her face. She’d kill him before he had the chance. She twisted her lips into a smile. His eyes darkened with apprehension and the flicker of unease that crinkled his forehead fueled her. She hooked her heel over the back of his knee, weakening it. He tried to shift his weight and compensate with the other leg, but before he could gain stability, she rolled him to the side. A grunt rattled in her chest as his hips swung off her and toppled to th
e floor, releasing her throat. She leapt to her feet and positioned her hands in front of her face.

  Carlos’s smile wilted and Hector’s eyes narrowed into slits. Not taking his eyes off her, Hector pulled an automatic from the waistband of his pants, aiming it at her head.

  “Let’s see her fight her way out of this one.” His top lip curled and his voice shook. More than five feet stood between her and Hector. She couldn’t outrun a bullet and she couldn’t take him down unless she charged him. If she moved, he’d shoot. If she didn’t… he’d still shoot.

  His finger moved and her heart leapt into her throat. Her muscles jumped, but her feet remained glued to the floor.

  “Shoot her!” Diego yelled as he pushed himself to his knees.

  “Stop.” Carlos held out his hand and her gaze flicked to his, hope surging through her. Hector tore his gaze from her, but his hand didn’t move. Carlos moved into his line of fire and stopped a couple feet in front of her. He clapped his hands loosely in front of him.

  “That was impressive, puta.”

  Her fingers curled into her palms at the insult, but she pressed her lips together. She’d let him make the first move before deciding what to do. With him standing between her and the gun, she might have a shot.

  “But there’s three against one,” he continued. His hand shot out and snagged a clump of her hair. He yanked her head back, and drew her closer. Pain seared across her scalp and the muscles in her neck strained. She winced and inhaled sharply through her nose as he propelled her closer. She tightened her hands into fists at her sides, resisting the urge to fight. Not yet.

  “Are you a cop? DEA?” His voice rose an octave but she didn’t flinch. “I swear to god I will tear your hair out one clump at a time until you talk.” His eyes singed holes into hers. Her breath caught in her throat. His eyes were like black pools of death. He’d carry through with his threat. “You have no idea what we do to snitches.”