Page 113 of Devil's Claim

His eyebrows furrowed. “You know him.”

“I know of him. Have you had contact?”

“Are you shitting me? I doubt he’ll step foot in this country. He has more than one target on his back.”

Exhaling, I took a few seconds to scan the area. “I suggest we leave now.” Did that mean I could trust the man? No, but I doubted he was double-crossing us. If Fassi knew about his relationship with Jago, Eduardo also had a target on his back.

“I’m here for one reason only, Eduardo. Because you refused to come through on your end of the bargain with regard to our shipment. If I had my way, we wouldn’t be standing here talking. Since it seems Diego has had a change of heart, spend your timeand energy on ensuring he follows through instead of inciting a war. And stay away from Fassi.”

Jago had learned to deal with Eduardo’s constant push at doing things his way. I hadn’t and never would. At least tonight, he knew better than to push.

“Fine,amigo, but I don’t appreciate your tone. You are my guest.”

“And you’re our business partner.”

Eduardo shook his head. “Get the valet. It would seem we’re leaving,” he told the two men, immediately turning away from me. As usual, he pulled out a cigar and a cutter, concentrating on lighting his smoke while his men obeyed his orders.

I shoved my hands into my pockets, eager to return to the hotel. Nights like this had always put me on edge. Too much wide-open space. Too many distractions. Very little security, although Diego had long ago deemed himself impenetrable, a force to be reckoned with.

Much like Eduardo.

There was no such thing as being too cautious.

Fassi was in too many places. Perhaps he was attempting to play us for fools.

Benito headed in my direction, but I waved him off. This wasn’t about siding against Eduardo but about preventing him from doing something stupid that would place both our lives in danger.

From where I stood, the outdoor music had a direct line around the end of the house, loud enough I could no longer hear evena portion of Eduardo’s conversation. However, a man in my position had learned early on to pay attention to the anomalies. When I noticed a single man standing in all black smoking a cigarette, I paid attention. When it was obvious he nodded to someone then stubbed out the smoke, I unbuttoned my jacket.

The nagging feeling increased.

The moment I noticed movement coming from two directions, I had my fingers wrapped around the handle of my weapon. No matter the age, training, or anger within an assailant, they always glanced toward their intended victim prior to pulling the trigger.

In this case, there were three men, their faces pinned on Eduardo. There was no time to shout a warning. I simply reacted, racing toward Eduardo and lunging off the ground just as the sound of rapid gunfire shattered the night’s festivities.

With the house a solid fifty yards away, the moment Eduardo was on the ground, I twisted and rolled, firing off several shots without fear of hitting innocent guests.

Screams erupted, chaos ensuing. I sprinted to my feet, firing off another shot as an unknown assailant launched himself in my direction. The bullet caught him in the chest, the close proximity and the force of the Glock pummeling him backward. Guests were running from the house, another horrified scream tearing the air as I pumped another two bullets into the bastard.

When I swung around, I caught sight of Benito and one of Eduardo’s men racing toward the direction of the initial gunfire. Another was attempting to shove Eduardo into the back of the SUV. Drowning out the other noise, I concentrated on scanning the perimeter just as a vehicle careened up the driveway.

The windows were down, assault rifles sticking from the open, shadowed space. There was no time for hesitation. I fired off several rounds, Benito doing the same. Several pinged off the side, more off the windshield. The vehicle was basically bulletproof. I followed the line of sight as the driver tried to speed off, catching the assailant in the front passenger seat just as he passed.

His limp body hung out the window, the man in the rear jerking away from sight.

People were everywhere, spilling out onto the front lawn, trying to flee the scene.

I turned in a full circle, surveying the scene. One of Eduardo’s men was down, his vacant eyes staring toward the sky. Another was injured, blood seeping through his fingers from where he was holding his arm.

Exhaling, I turned my head toward Eduardo, the man’s eyes staring directly at me from the comfort and safety of his SUV.

After taking a deep breath, I headed in his direction.

“You’re the one who has a target on your back,” I hissed.

“I guess I owe you,” he stated so no one else could hear.

I glanced down, taking a deep breath. “Keep that in mind.”

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