Page 20 of Cartel Cobra

“You were my brother’s roommate.” Her brow furrows. “I watched you play soccer together. You’re even bigger than you were then.”

Her gaze sweeps over me in appreciation, and it makes my cock ache.

“I didn’t recognize you.”

“We never said more than a passing hello.”

Her eyes narrow, and she tries to push away from me. I step back, not crowding her.

“If you’re so close to my brother, then how can you betray him? How can you work for mytío?”

“Because your brother told me to.”

She stops short, and the color drains from her face. I reach out for her, and she lets me pull her against me. She burrows her face against my chest, and I peer down at her as she closes her eyes again.

“You could die for what you’re doing.”

“I know. But your brother is my best friend, besides my cousin Alicia. Besides Luis, I’m his. I work for your brother in New York, but I’m down here because your father isn’t safe.”

“Why have you been spying on me?”

“You don’t believe that’s what I’ve been doing. If you did, you would have told Luis. He would have either explained to you or killed me. Neither has happened. You know why, even if you haven’t admitted it.”

“I already have guards.”

“Who have served your father for decades. That doesn’t mean I think they’re good enough.”

“They’d die for me.”

“I know they would. But they have their own families. I couldn’t fault them if they hesitated, even for a second. You might not have a second to spare.”

Life has a fucked-up way of proving you wrong. It has just as fucked-up a way of proving you right. Gunfire rings through the air downstairs. I shove Lucy into the bathroom.

“Lock it. Don’t open it to anyone but me. Call your brothers.”

“No, Este! Don’t go down there.”

“I have to find a way to get you out. You have a gun and a knife, right?”

Her cocktail purse isn’t that big, but I can tell it’s heavier than it looks from the faint line left by the strap pressing into her shoulder. She nods. I pull the door shut, but she tries to stop me again.

“Chiquita,obey me, or I will take you home, bare your beautiful ass, and spank it until my hand hurts. Then I will spank it for making my hand hurt.”

“Yes, D—Este.”

What was she going to call me?

I snag her chin between my thumb and index finger.

“You wouldn’t obey him like this. You aren’t his. You’re mine.”

I give her a punishing kiss before she lets me shut the door. I hear it lock, then I hear the shower curtain open and close.

Chiquita buena.

I inch toward the door and put my ear to it as I check my gun. I know it’s loaded, but my father and grandfather drilled it into me to always check before exposing myself to shots intended to kill me. I ease the door open and inch down the hallway. I hear voices begging for mercy. I spy Domingo at the foot of the stairs, his eye already swelling shut.

Interesting.

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