Desire & Deception (Entangled Ignite) (3 page)

Felipe went straight to the back door, pulling a cigarette from a soft-pack before shoving it into the breast pocket of his dress shirt. He seemed preoccupied, likely trying to figure out how to untangle himself from this mess. In his thirty-plus years, he’d likely never taken full responsibility for his actions, much less the consequences. How he’d worked his way up to underboss was still in question.

Cruz shuffled in, clearing his expression as he settled at the hallway entrance. Maybe he was the reason Felipe was scrambling for an escape. The older, heavy-set man found pleasure in torturing his counterpart—figuratively speaking, of course. Though he’d have no issue coming up with creative ways to cause excruciating pain—that particular talent made him the perfect
sicario
, or enforcer, for the cartel.

Although he knew he wouldn’t like the answer, Kris questioned both men. “Tell me about the woman.”

Felipe blew a cloud of smoke toward the ceiling. His subtle change in stance brought his right arm against his ribs.

Cruz rubbed his chest, a sure sign of anxiety. He shifted his weight, taking a deep breath. “Juarez put out a contract—”

“I’m well aware.” Kris exhaled, giving Cruz a dead stare. “I showed up at the club last night to help bring her in
quietly
.”

Felipe’s jaw tensed as he rolled the cigarette between his fingertips.

“Oh.” Cruz stepped forward and leaned against the faded kitchen cabinet. “Then Felipe can take over from here.” He grinned, crossing one foot over the other like he didn’t have a care in the world.

“The blonde left the club.” Felipe tossed the cigarette out the door then folded his arms. “Oscar pulled the car over, but got this one by mistake.”

Damn, he hadn’t tagged the red-head as a player. Maybe he was slipping. “And?” Kris prodded.

Felipe clenched his jaw so hard it twitched. “The girl caught him by surprise. Broke his arm and messed up his foot.”

Cruz scoffed. “Way to downplay the story.”

Kris focused on Felipe. “What else?”

“She got my arm,” he muttered, avoiding eye contact. “And Jaime’s ankle.”

“Jaime?” Kris shook his head. “How’d
he
end up there?”

“He rode along.” Felipe shrugged. “Good thing, too. He caught the Fox when Oscar went down.”

Kris frowned at the news. Jaime was a sixteen-year-old
halcon
for the cartel. But keeping watch wasn’t enough for him. Having lost his father, Jaime was the man of the house. He was responsible for his mother and two sisters, so he’d come looking for work in the only life he’d ever known. He was ambitious and anxious to move up. The damn kid didn’t realize what he was getting himself into, but Kris did. He’d made sure Jaime stayed in the fringe of the cartel’s dealings. “What did you find out about her?” he asked Cruz.

“I don’t know, man. She
iiiiis
cold
.” Cruz shook his head in disbelief. “When women are brought in, there’s tears, begging, and prayers asking for safe deliverance. This chick…” His thumb pointed over his shoulder. “Just said she couldn’t get money.” He counted off on meaty fingers. “She didn’t flirt, cry, beg, or try to negotiate.”

“She knows what’s up,” Felipe chimed in. “After I got the blonde, this one went Bruce Lee on Oscar then came after me.” He straightened. “Why didn’t she run?”

“But you don’t know for sure?” Kris needed certainty, not a string of assumptions.

Cruz raised his shoulders, forehead wrinkling. “She
didn’t
pass this off as a mistake.”

“So you’re
not
sure.”

“Well…” His shoulders slumped. “She asked for her friend and said her name’s Tessa. That’s all I got.”

“Bitch is more trouble than she’s worth,” Felipe blurted.

The whisper of a careful footstep on gravel made Kris smile. He put the Coke bottle in a crate with the other returnables. “Well, you may not have to worry about her for long.”

Felipe frowned. “What do you mean?”

Kris nodded toward the back room. “I think your pigeon flew the coop.”

Felipe glanced back and shoved Cruz aside, squeezed past, and ran down the hallway.

Cruz followed at his own pace. “Damn it. Who left the gate open?”

They wanted her to run. Heightening her senses, making the struggle more enticing when the miserable animals caught her.
Typical Felipe tactic, creating a situation to justify beating and raping her when he was actually retaliating for what she’d done to Oscar. He’d get revenge and have a good reason to ignore the Juarez Boss’s order to turn over the girl “intact”. Kris stepped into the vault, a windowless room where the cartel stored excess money. He pulled a pump action, sawed-off shotgun from atop the cabinet then followed the others outside. He stopped next to Cruz, who hadn’t given chase.

“Which one you think runs more like a girl?” Kris ignored Cruz’s ribbing. The girl had a good head start, but Felipe’s longer legs ate up the ground between them.

Cruz glanced over and scoffed. “That’s not gonna reach her.”

“Doesn’t have to.” Kris grasped the shotgun in his left hand, pointing the business end up and away from Cruz. He jerked the pump down and waited, hoping his plan worked. This was the worst possible time for him to jeopardize his cover.

The loud snap of the shell going into the chamber brought her to a skidding stop.

Cruz gave a low whistle. “Smart.”

Kris handed him the weapon then leaned against the door frame, waiting. This wasn’t the first time his early detection system had paid off. Nothing like six feet of gravel to warn you someone’s coming or going.

Felipe reached her in two strides, grabbing her arm. His momentum sent them stumbling onto the uneven driveway. Tessa landed on her side, but managed to roll and come up on one knee. Felipe landed hard—face-first.

Kris winced as Cruz guffawed. Felipe shot up, hauling Tessa up by her bicep. She dug in her heels, shifting her weight away from him. He cursed and yanked her around before bringing her back, boots dragging through the dirt.

Kris suppressed a grin. The girl had guts. He could already tell she was going to be trouble.

Cruz laughed, his big belly bouncing.

Felipe spat, interrupting his ragged breathing. “Yeah, keep laughing, fat man.” His nose flared and he tightened his hold on her arm until she winced.

Cruz held up his hands, chuckling. “Learn to work smarter, not harder, boy.”

Damn Cruz
. Kris schooled his features. Cruz didn’t need encouragement to rub Felipe’s face in his shortcomings.

“Glad you were here,” he said to Kris. “Or Felipe would still be running after her.”

“I was the first to hear her outside, that’s all.”

Felipe’s glare shot from Cruz to him. “The
first
to hear.” He nodded, tipping up his head. “If you can do better, step up.”

Fuckin’ perfect.
He’d come by for a status check, not to play babysitter. Kris studied her, curious where she fit into the puzzle. The failed escape masked the usual telltale signs that led him to answers. One thing for sure, she was pissed. Smeared makeup made the curl of her lip more pronounced, almost grazing her flaring nostrils.

Over the past few hours, those big doe eyes had held interest, apprehension, gratitude, shock, and now brazen disdain. She was a knot of emotions. Taking her meant trouble, but left to her own devices, she’d get herself killed—a complication they could do without. He just needed one little detail to figure out what made her tick.

…

Unforgettable
assessed her with intelligent eyes. They were the exact gun-metal blue as the Mazda coupe she’d planned to buy. A sporty, little expense she probably wouldn’t have to debate about now. Her lips thinned. Why
him
? The only man who’d ever stirred such an intense physical reaction from her without a single touch. “What?” She raised her chin a notch. “You think you’re the first guy to try intimidating me?” Even as the words flew off her lips, fear dug in at the base of her skull. But she’d be damned if she let on.

Kris turned away with stoic disregard. “I’ll take her off your hands.”

“Fine.” Felipe sneered, winded from the run. “She’s all yours,” he said, shoving her forward. “One less headache for me.” After handing her off like an unwanted stray, he turned on his heel and walked into the house.

Tessa straightened, taking a step back from her “keeper”. Humiliation burned a trail up her face. She’d gone from being a “prize” to a burden thrust upon an unlucky participant.

“Hey,” Cruz interrupted. “What about me?”

Kris cocked a brow. “Consider yourself lucky.” He claimed a bicep, pulling her into the house. “She’s a tricky handful, amigo.”

“O-okay.” Cruz fumbled for words. “I can wait my turn.”

Dread exploded inside her. She couldn’t fathom being passed around to every guy who came through the door. Saliva pooled around her tongue. She was going to throw up.

Her captor stopped dead, squaring his shoulders before turning to the doorway. “
Nobody’s
getting
a turn, Cruz.”

The two men locked eyes. Tension steamrolled through the room.
So this is what a bone feels like between two pit bulls.

Cruz followed them. “She needs to work off her stay, Kris.” His breathing became more pronounced.

A glimpse around the room kicked her heart rate back up. Felipe waited, cautiously concerned, while a scrawny kid peeked around him, intrigued. Even the prisoners sat wide-eyed, waiting to see what happened.

“You’ll settle for a hefty payday.” Kris pointed at the captives. “Taking a bonus would be gluttonous.” His tone afforded no argument. The hand around her arm wasn’t gentle, but unlike Felipe, Kris’s hold didn’t tighten with his temper. “Besides, we can’t afford to have her take out another man.”

Cruz sneered. “Whatever the Boss wants.”

Boss?
Tessa’s eyes snapped back to Kris, her stomach dropping.

Kris led her toward a partition in the corner. “Give me your hands.”

Tessa blinked at him. She moistened her lips then turned to Cruz. Pretending ignorance. Keeping to English might buy some time.

“Would you prefer to negotiate with Cruz?” asked Kris.

She stiffened, struggling to cap the outrage mushrooming inside her. Miserable jerk. How dare he taunt her with the threat of rape?

“He says to—” Cruz started to translate.

“That’s not necessary.” Kris’s voice went low, nothing more than a murmur. “Right, Little Fox?”

Don’t panic. He’s testing you.

“You know exactly what I’m saying.” He crowded her against the wall. A heartless stare pinned her there. He slipped a knife from his front pocket. A five-inch, black blade snapped open with a flick of his thumb.

A lump rose to her throat, stifling her breath. She held her wrists up while he sliced through the rope in one clean swipe. He tossed the pieces aside while she rubbed the raw skin at each wrist.

“The bathroom’s through here.” He nodded to the doorway while he tucked the folded weapon into his front pocket.

Tessa went around the wall to find bathroom stalls with no doors. She was almost grateful after hours without relief. The commode hadn’t been cleaned in a while and lacked a seat. Still, she had toilet paper and a little privacy. More than enough under the circumstances.

Pure instinct had kept her going since she was pulled from the car. The shiver along her spine told her Kris was different from the other men she’d dealt with. A dangerous animal moving with fluid grace she’d seen on experienced martial artists. He wouldn’t give her the time to formulate a plan, much less execute the first step.

She made quick use of the facilities while Kris’s back filled the doorway. Privacy lasted until her zipper scraped closed. He entered, staring at her forehead then looking down.

“The next stall is a shower. Use it.” His tone brooked no hesitation yet she faltered. If she went over, she’d be cornered and defenseless. She had a slim chance to escape from here. There had to be somewhere to go once she got beyond the front door.

He crossed his arms, filling the space between the stalls. “Either come clean up on your own, or Cruz will do it for you.”

She had some difficult decisions to make in order to survive. Between the lecherous gleam in Cruz’s eyes and the determination in Kris’s, this was definitely the lesser evil. Her eyes skipped away from his before she wedged past him.

The stall greeted her. Her gaze swept over the small space. Unfinished cement walls, soap holder, a pipe sticking out overhead, and a single water valve were visible. She sighed. No shower curtain, no light, not even a place to leave her clothes.

Kris hadn’t budged. He stood waiting, daring her to defy him. She toed her boots off, then leaned down and tossed them out at his feet. The subservient act cut a trench of self-pity across her chest. Unable to face him, she ducked. Tears weren’t going save her. In fact, they would probably make things worse.