Page 46 of His Enemy's Daughter
“Not what?” I challenge, knowing exactly where this is going. “Not someone I care about? Too late for that warning.”
The silence that follows is heavy with implications. Finally, Simeone speaks, and his voice carries understanding that comes from experience.
“You’re in love with her.”
It’s not a question. And denying it would be pointless—Simeone knows me too well to miss the shift in my priorities, the way protecting Regina has become more important than strategy or revenge.
“I’m in something,” I admit quietly. “Whether it’s love or just the first real connection I’ve had with a woman, I don’t know. But I won’t abandon her to Sabino’s vengeance.”
“I’m not asking you to.” His tone softens. “I’m asking what you’re willing to sacrifice to protect her. Because once you cross that line—once you prioritize one person over the mission—everything changes.”
“Everything already changed the moment she climbed out her window and showed up bleeding and desperate.” I brush hair from Regina’s face, careful not to wake her. “The mission was always about more than just revenge, Simeone. It was about proving that sacrifice means something. That fifteen years wasn’t wasted. That loyalty and protection still matter in this world.”
“Even if protecting her means letting Sabino live?”
The question hits like a punch. Because he’s right—if push comes to shove, if I have to choose between pursuing Sabino and keeping Regina safe, the choice is already made.
“I’ll kill him eventually,” I say with absolute certainty. “But right now, keeping her alive matters more than making him bleed.”
“Then you need to disappear. Both of you.” Simeone’s back to business now, and I hear papers rustling. “I have a location—old cabin property in my name that Sabino doesn’t know about. Stocked, secure, off the grid. You can hold there while we figure out next moves.”
“Send me the address.”
“Already done. And Mauricio?” He pauses. “For what it’s worth, I understand. Loriana changed everything for me too. Made me want things I never thought possible. So I get it—the shift from seeing someone as strategic to seeing them as essential.”
“How do you manage it?” The question escapes before I can stop it. “How do you balance protecting her with running an organization?”
“Very carefully. And with the acceptance that some days, I’m going to choose her over strategy and live with the consequences.” His laugh is soft, self-aware. “Love makes you vulnerable in this life. But it also makes you fight harder, think smarter, refuse to accept outcomes that hurt the people who matter.”
Regina stirs against me, making a soft sound that’s half protest, half contentment. Her eyes flutter open—green and unfocused and so beautiful it makes my chest ache.
“Mauricio?” Her voice is sleep-rough, vulnerable. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” I lie, even as I’m memorizing the coordinates Simeone sent. “Go back to sleep. I’ve got you.”
“You’re tense.” Her hand moves to my jaw, turning my face toward hers. “Don’t lie to me. What happened?”
Simeone’s voice crackles through the phone I forgot to mute. “Tell her, Mauricio. She deserves to know what she’s walking into.”
Regina’s eyes sharpen immediately, sleep burning away under reality’s harsh light. “Put it on speaker.”
I obey, and Simeone’s voice fills the small room with terrible certainty. “Your father’s declared open war, Regina. Twenty million for your return, five million each for Mauricio and myself. Every criminal in the eastern territories will be hunting you by sunrise.”
She doesn’t flinch. Doesn’t cry. Just processes the information with the same cold calculation I’ve watched her deploy when analyzing intelligence.
“How long until we need to move?” Her question is directed at me, trusting me to make the tactical call.
“An hour. Maybe less.” I’m already mentally cataloging what we need to take, what we can abandon. “Simeone has a location—”
“No.” Her interruption is firm. “We don’t run. Not yet.”
“Regina—”
“If we run now, we’re giving Father exactly what he wants—proof that we’re scared, that his declaration worked.” Fire enters her voice now, that spark I recognize as her refusing to be a victim. “Instead, we make him bleed first. Show him that declaring war on us was the biggest mistake of his life.”
“That’s suicide,” I say bluntly. “Every bounty hunter in the city will be looking for us. We need to disappear until—”
“Until when?” She sits up, and the sheets fall away, revealing skin marked with my touch from earlier. “Until he gives up? Men like my father don’t give up, Mauricio. They escalate. So either we end this now, while we still have the element of surprise, or we spend the rest of our lives running.”
