Page 59 of Corey
During the entire flight down to Mexico, Sera kept quiet. But her mind raced. The first opportunity to escape, she’d be ready. She had no idea what to expect once they landed, but she knew that once Joel handed her over to Barrera, her chances of getting away were slim. She had to do it before they reached his house or compound or wherever the hell they were headed.
Being a blue-eyed blonde might’ve saved her life because if not for Barrera’s preference, she had a feeling she’d already be dead. Every time Joel looked at her, she could feel the hate pouring off him. She managed to stumble onto a murder scene and destroy his base of operations. If she weren’t so terrified, she might be proud of herself.
Her mind kept going to Corey. Hopefully, Julia called Ellie or Lottie, and they’d let her and Mitch out of the shed. Then Julia would’ve called Brandon and the team would be aware that Joel kidnapped her. She prayed the news wouldn’t make Corey teeter over the edge. Send him spiraling back into his dark place. He deserved happiness more than anyone she’d ever known.
She made a promise to herself that when she made it out of this—and she couldn’t let herself think any other way—she’d make sure he was surrounded by love and light at all times.
The private plane touched down and the two muscled guard dogs hustled her and Joel off the aircraft and straight into a waiting SUV with black tinted windows. She’d barely had time to blink much less try to make a run for it. Especially when Snake held her upper arm in a secure, beefy grip.
Shit.Suddenly she found herself in the back of the car with Joel. The locks clicked shut and her heart stalled. Time was of the essence and she was running out of it fast.
The two men up front conferred with each other in Spanish, keeping their voices too low to make out any specific words.
Okay, time for Plan B,she thought, turning her attention to Joel.
“Do they work for you or Barrera?” she asked.
Joel sent her a scathing look. “Barrera, obviously. They were sent to escort me down here so he and I could decide how we’re going to continue our mutually beneficial arrangement. No thanks to you.”
“What makes you think he wants to continue anything? In his eyes, you messed up. He probably plans to kill you.”
A flicker of fear flashed through his eyes before his arrogance squashed it. “You don’t know what you’re talking about. Besides, I haveyouto help smooth things over.”
Her stomach soured. If she wound up in Barrera’s hands, she could only imagine the tortures she’d be forced to endure. Bile rose in the back of her throat and she swallowed it back down. Becoming a drug kingpin’s sexual plaything wasn’t in her future. She’d die first.
You’re not a victim any longer, Sera.
She kept repeating the mantra as the SUV drove through the hills and eventually pulled up to a guard booth outside of a wrought iron gate. The driver lowered his window and two men appeared. After a brief conversation in Spanish, they scanned the underside of the vehicle. Once they were satisfied, they opened the gates and motioned for the car to drive through. It began to roll up a large hill lined with palm trees and other desert shrubbery.
Barrera must have a ton of enemies,she thought. She wasn’t a news junkie, but she imagined the conflict and turf wars among the Mexican cartels must be epic. A constant raging battle to gain control of the drug trade. It explained the tight security and high walls surrounding the home.
And now she was on her way into José Barrera’s private lair. According to Corey and his crew, Barrera was the head of the Lazaro snake now that Fernando Lazaro had been murdered. Someone needed to chop his head off. But she feared another replacement was already waiting in the wings, ready to step up and take over. It was probably a vicious, never-ending cycle.
The car stopped and she sat there, frozen, wondering how she was going to get out of there. The men stepped out and, a moment later, Snake opened her door. “Out,” he ordered.
He held his gun by his side and she didn’t want to provoke him. Running was out of the question unless she wanted a bullet in the back. Whatever slim options to escape she may have had seemed to disintegrate. But each moment alive was potentially a chance to escape and survive. She had to remain aware of her surroundings and be ready to jump into action.
Refusing to show fear, she lifted her chin and followed the men up several stairs to the large front door. The house reminded her of the wealthy real estate she’d seen in the nicer areas of San Diego—very modern, stone, a lot of windows and a Spanish tile roof.
The guards escorted them across a marble-floored foyer with soaring ceilings. Everything appeared gilded, from the furniture to the fixtures, and she wondered if all the accents were really made out of actual gold.
It was a tacky display of wealth, meant to impress and overwhelm visitors with awe, but Sera only felt nauseous.
A set of sliding glass doors stood open, and she and Joel were herded onto cobblestones. A fountain bubbled in the center of the garden courtyard and tropical flowers bloomed all around them. It would’ve been a nice place if it weren’t the home of a mass murderer who made his living making, transporting and selling drugs.
“Where’s Barrera?” Joel asked.
Unease slid through her body as she looked around the area, searching for an escape route. Just as it had done when bullets started firing in the mall and people began falling in front of her. Trying to contain the panic rising fast, her fight or flight response kicked in hard.
You’re not a victim any longer, Sera.
Then why did she feel like one?
“Hello, Joel,” a voice said, and they both spun around to see a man who seemed to have materialized from some secret garden path.
“José, how are you? I came all the way down here to apol—”
“Who’s your friend?” Barrera interrupted, his dark gaze sliding down Sera’s body.
