Page 12 of Casualties of War
Duardo chuckled. “I’d like to see her try.”
* * * * *
Ariella called two days later, with news that changed everything.
The city hospital bombing still ate most of the news cycle, although the bit of footage someone had taken of Adán leaving the site wearing a blood-splatteredtuxedo had run its course.
Instead, everyone speculated on what had happened. Adán found it curious that no government agencies were joining in on the guessing game. No one was talking about Vistaria.
He kept one eye on the news feeds while he went about the business of settling his affairs and selling off his assets. He had already converted all his liquid assets, except for a spot of cashto get him through the next few weeks. The revenue raised he had sent to Nick’s personal accounts, which he knew Nick was using to feed and shelter the Loyalists in Acapulco.
It prompted an outraged phone call from Nick himself, twenty minutes after the transfer went through.
“What the fuck, Adán?” Nick demanded. “You can’t give me your…shit, what is this, anyway? Your life savings or something?”His perturbation came through clearly. He was only two hundred miles away.
“It’s barely scratching the surface,” Adán assured him. “You need the money, Nick. Take it and shut up. It’s the least I can do. The rest will come later. It will take a while to convert it.”
Silence, for three heart beats. “What do you mean,the rest?” Nick asked, his tone dropping into the quiet notes that made theback of Adán’s neck crawl.El Leopardowas speaking.
“This house will fetch a few million at least,” Adán said, looking around the living room. “There’s the house at Big Sur, too. I’m keeping the yacht, though. I’ll live on it until I get something more permanent sorted out.” He didn’t add the rest of his thought—that the yacht would be parked at Acapulco while he lived on it. The dangerous notein Nick’s voice warned him to keep that phase of his plans to himself for now.
Nick erupted. Spanish swearing was far more colorful and expressive than English swearing and Nick had spent more than his share of years hanging around with the military, who had stropped his curses into a sharp edge.
Adán held the phone away from his ear and waited, smiling at some of the metaphors. God’s testiclesand excrement featured.
When Nick fell silent, Adán put the phone back. “Done?” he asked.
“Not by a million miles. Youcan’tsell your goddam house, Adán! That’s…I refuse to accept the proceeds. I won’t touch a single peso.”
Adán nodded, even though Nick couldn’t see it. This was the reaction he had been counting on. “Then, I will come down there myself.”
“No!You’re too well known! Serranowill spot you coming—you leave a fuckingcontrail, Adán. He’ll kill you just to see the fuss the media spits up! I forbid it!”
“Youforbidit, little cousin?” Adán replied.
“Don’t make me do this,” Nick warned him.
“Do what?”
“Forget I’m family for a moment,” Nick said, his voice tight. “The President of Vistaria is telling you that if you come anywhere near this place, I will bag you up inan oat sack and toss you back to Los Angeles.”
Thank you, Adán mentally told him. “So, take my money, instead,” he replied. “Consider it my contribution to the war, if you won’t take me.”
“Fuck, you set me up,” Nick breathed.
“I did,” Adán agreed. “You forgot I study people for a living.”
“I forgot how good you are at it,” Nick shot back. Adán knew he was scowling, the blue eyes narrowed,as he tried to anticipate what Adán would do next.
“Go and win the damn war, Nick,” Adán told him. “That’s whatyou’regood at. Let me prop you up financially in the meantime.”
“If you’re determined to do this, then fine. Thank you. I mean it, too. Things are…well, they’re tight.”
“I know.” Adán hesitated. “Can I speak freely?”
“Did you install that app I sent you?”
“Yes.”
