Bad Men

by Stone, Piper

  “God. You don’t give a shit about anyone. You are one cold motherfucker,” Diego hissed.

  “That’s why I’m still alive. Maybe that’s something you should think about.” I made certain he could see my eyes in the moonlight. The stream of light also allowed me to see the hatred on his face. Another line had been drawn in the sand and it had Lindsey’s name written all over it. If I didn’t know better, I’d say he was falling in love with her.

  Poor bastard.

  She’d eat his heart out with a spoon.

  The quiet was deafening.

  “For the record, I didn’t know there was another operative involved or I wouldn’t have agreed to taking the assignment,” Diego finally said.

  Chuckling, I held up my glass in the slender stream of light. “So you’ve said. Well, congratulations, buddy. That makes two of us. Same here. Nothing against you, of course. I like working alone. Saves time wasted talking.”

  He inched closer, forcing me to bristle. “There’s a reason we were shoved together. You know it. I know it.”

  “Yeah, I also buy that. Go ahead. I’d be curious to know your theory, Spaniard.”

  He snarled, and I could feel his anger increasing even from where I was standing. “You don’t have to like me, Jack. I certainly don’t like you, but as I said, we need to work together. Every operation that’s gone wrong has been because the operative got cocky or the assholes in charge thought they had it made. I might have been nothing more than a lowly drug dealer to you given your stellar reputation in Black Ops, but that doesn’t mean we didn’t have to face the same kind of assholes. Or use the same tactics to try and stay alive. Maybe we were put together as a team to use different strengths.”

  “And maybe they wanted us to kill each other off.” I laughed after saying the words, although I wasn’t certain there wasn’t some level of truth in them.

  “Whatever chip you have on those wide shoulders of yours has expanded to a boulder. That makes you a danger to this operation, Jack. When I found out who I would be working for and after I did some checking, I tried to back out of the deal. I wanted nothing to do with you. Your reputation is shot, Jack. You might be the best at what you do, but you’re one damaged fuck. You can talk about my life as if I don’t deserve to be here. Maybe you’re right.”

  I simply waved my glass at him.

  The tension was thick, and the man still remained where he was. What the hell did he want from me, an admission that I gave a shit about the woman? Maybe so. I took a swig, refusing to give in. While my assignments hadn’t gone so well during the last few years, I’d gotten the jobs done. That was all that mattered.

  “Do you know that the first time I saw Luis Diaz kill a man was two days after he’d taken me into his house? Two lousy days. I thought I’d found nirvana then blood was spilled in the aisle of a damn grocery store. Hell, I was just a kid. I was buying soda pop and candy, because the man who’d given me a room of my own had also provided me with some money. Stupid, huh? I will never forget the screams of the other customers inside or the horror in their eyes when Luis dragged me out of the store. I could also hear their curse words when I passed. ‘Pecadore de Dios. Monstruo.’”

  “Sinner of God and monster,” I muttered.

  “Very good, Jack. From that minute on, I knew what my life would be like and maybe I should have run, but I knew there was nowhere I could go where he wouldn’t find me. You see, he made certain I realized that he was the collector of lost souls and that if his rules weren’t followed, the punishment would be indescribable. When I heard a woman had been captured, I realized I wouldn’t be able to look myself in the mirror if I walked away. Now you know, Jack. That’s my weakness. I refuse to allow innocent people to become trapped in the claws of a monster. That’s why I took this assignment.”

  I admired his morals more than he knew. Maybe that’s why I couldn’t stand him.

  Diego hesitated, laughing when I didn’t respond. “Such a prick, Jack. Whether or not you give a damn about that girl, she’s counting on both of us to keep her alive. That’s exactly what I intend on doing whether with your help or not. And if I have to kill you in the process, I can handle that.”

  I heard the sound of his heavy boots as he stormed toward the door, cursing under his breath. Exhaling, I closed my eyes as I thought about his words. He was right on several levels. I’d been the one to fuck up the last assignment, lucky to even be alive. I’d bitched about not getting full payment, but I was lucky I hadn’t been tossed back to the wolves. I had to face the fact that a portion of the anger I felt had nothing to do with my work or the people involved. I was furious with myself for fucking up my life.

  Even though I had several damn good reasons.

  A lump formed in my throat, a moment of pain settling in. Where had all the time gone? How had I fallen so far into a rabbit hole of self-loathing and hatred for everything and everyone around me?

  The answers were impossible to face.

  The fact he’d touched her again, that he’d… made love to her was a vision I found difficult to get out of my mind. Damn it. I wanted the woman for every illogical reason in the world.

  “Why don’t you like him?” Her voice was so quiet, riddled with concern.

  “You should be in bed getting a very good night’s sleep, especially after…” I barked, even though I couldn’t finish my damn sentence. Gathering the same damn scent of sex was enough to keep me on edge. I was intoxicated by it, could almost taste her sweet pussy and I wanted more.

  I knew damn good and well that nothing I said would make her follow the rules or my direction. Why in God’s name wouldn’t she respect me or at least under the circumstances? Oh, Christ, Jack. Stop feeling sorry for yourself. Hell, what was there to respect?

  “After?” she demanded, inching closer.

  I dared not look at her. “After the damn day we’ve had.”

  “Uh-huh. Whatever. Just answer the question, Jack. I thought you two worked together for the same organization.”

  Sighing, I moved into the darkness and toward the bar. The last thing I needed was to be grilled by the woman who… I swallowed and pushed the thoughts aside as I filled my glass, not bothering to offer her anything.

  Unfettered, she walked toward me, the closeness forcing me to suck in my breath. She remained quiet as she poured the same liquor.

  The woman had no idea what she was doing to me. “Same organization, yes, but every operative normally works alone. And I don’t appreciate his style.”

  “And he obviously doesn’t appreciate yours. From what I can tell, Diego is a decent man.”

  “You know nothing about him,” I countered, my hand shaking as I brought the glass to my lips.

  “You’re an asshole,” she hissed. “And yeah, he told me about the fact he was a drug dealer. That’s more than you’ve told me about yourself.”

  “You’re right, you know nothing about me and that’s the way it should be.” I couldn’t believe he’d actually told her anything personal. He was breaching every rule, crossing every line.

  “I know enough to realize that whatever organization you work for, which certainly isn’t government mandated, hires damaged souls. You know, the kind who could never again work for a legitimate company of any type, including saving the lives of innocent people.”

  “Are you innocent, Doctor?” I challenged, instantly regretting doing so. She’d pegged both Diego and me almost perfectly and for that, I’d lashed out. What a fucking asshole I’d turned into.

  A slight gasp left her lips. “What the hell does that mean?”

  I walked closer until we were only inches apart. “It means that we’re going to an awful lot of trouble in order to save the life of one doctor. You aren’t some scientist with the ability to cure cancer or even someone who’s saved hundreds of lives. You’re simply a doctor from a wealthy family. Or is that the case? Is your father some political leader, powerful in other ways? Do you have something hiding behind thos
e baby blues of yours? Does your father owe someone money?”

  Maybe all I could handle was something who sparred with me. I’d pushed boundaries my entire life. Where the fuck had that gotten me?

  She didn’t react at first and while I couldn’t see anything but her clenched jaw in the moonlight, I could feel her anger and her sadness. “My father has nothing to do with this. I am so sorry for you, Jack. You can be such an amazing man. I know that. I’ve caught glimmers of it, but you refuse to be anything but a horrible fuck of a man. Have it your way. I won’t give a damn. Just get me the hell out of here and those rules you mentioned about never speaking your name again will be honored without question.”

  When she turned away, I reached out, wanting nothing more than to apologize, but I realized I had no idea how. I managed to grab her arm, yanking her against me.

  “Get off me, Jack. If all you want is for me to believe that you aren’t a good man, then you’ve done it. One day with you and I get it cold,” Lindsey hissed.

  “You don’t understand the way of the world, sunshine. Sometimes the people you believe you can trust the most are the ones who will betray you without question or provocation.”

  “Sounds like you know something about that, Jack. Who hurt you?” she dared. “Why don’t you tell me? Who hurt the big, bad Marine enough that he closed himself off to every concept of feelings or emotions? Or love? Let me guess, you can’t.”

  Every word she said spiraled into me, grabbing at my insides like sharp claws. I was thrown by her ferocity, as well as the kind of anger that I’d reserved for everyone else but some damsel in distress. One who was so damn beautiful and sexy. A woman with a heart of gold and a caustic mouth. One who had awakened the very dead man inside of me simply by batting her pretty little eyelashes. And the one I wanted to protect and keep as my own.

  I snagged her hands, jerking them behind her before she had a chance to slap me. “Listen to me, little doctor. I will do everything I can to protect you, but this isn’t about fun and games. You are in significant danger and I’m guessing you have been for quite some time. The sooner you accept the fact that your life is about to change, the better. And you’re right. I have my reasons for remaining closed off just like you have yours for wanting to help others. Let me do my job.”

  “No problem, Jack,” she hissed, daring to rise onto her tiptoes, as if challenging me was going to get her anywhere but in my bad graces. The scent of her was suddenly overwhelming, the desire rearing its ugly head like a lion in heat.

  I couldn’t stand the thought that he’d touched her, taken her. Tasted her.

  Fucked her.

  She was mine. Mine!

  I fisted her hair, letting her hands go as I shifted my hips until she fully understood exactly how I felt.

  She slammed her hand against me, acting as if she wanted nothing more than to get out of my clutches while she clawed at my shirt, her breath skipping. “What are you going to do if I don’t?”

  Her daring whisper was too much to take. I crushed my mouth over hers, immediately thrusting my tongue inside. The taste of her was just like before, far too sweet, extremely debilitating. As the anger from the past swept into the present, I was thrown by how much I cared about her. I allowed the kiss to take over, the passion roaring between us.

  Even her moans couldn’t stop me as I took full control of her, drinking in her sweet essence as I swept my tongue across hers. The way she rubbed her tummy across my cock was enough to make me lightheaded. Every synapse was alive, on fire and willing to chuck it all to protect her.

  To own her.

  There was nothing good that would come of this, but I was unable to stop, feeling victorious as her moans of helplessness became ones of utter bliss. We were like oil and water, fire and ice, our body temperatures skyrocketing as we both plummeted straight into hell. Nothing and no one was going to prevent me from having her.

  I closed my eyes until the door was thrown open, the sound of Diego storming inside jarring.

  “We need to get out of here, now,” he hissed.

  Jerking back, I glared at him until I noticed the anxious look on his face. “What is it?”

  “Just get everything you can and get moving.” Diego shifted immediately toward the location where he’d placed the duffle containing the guns and ammunition.

  “What the fuck are you talking about?” I snapped.

  “Now, goddamn it. The place is gonna blow.” The bag in one hand, he grabbed Lindsey’s arm with the other, the sound of shattering glass as she dropped the tumbler jarring me into action.

  While I might have trust issues, there was no way Diego was going to allow Lindsey to be killed. The reason was simple.

  He was falling in love with her.

  Fuck me.

  Wasting little time, I managed to grab the communications console, cursing Dante’s name all over again. Either he’d sold us out himself or there was a serious issue with the entire procedural system. As I bounded outside, the gun in both hands, I swung in a giant circle, lagging behind them. While I didn’t see a damn thing—no lights, no activity of any kind—I could feel a level of danger that I hadn’t before. Someone had been to the house.

  “You don’t know the vehicle hasn’t been rigged,” I hissed as I approached.

  “Not from what I could tell, and we have no other options,” he retorted.

  What I did know about Diego’s expertise was that he was well known for his detection of various bombs, his innate ability self-taught. If he was wrong, we were dead.

  Diego shoved her onto the floorboard behind the front seats before tossing the bag and jumping into the driver’s seat. “Let’s go. Go. Go!”

  I crawled into the passenger seat, giving him a hard look. “You better be right.”

  His smile was laced with a snarl as he turned over the engine, chuckling before jamming the gear into drive. He slammed on the accelerator, flooring the engine as I breathed a sigh of relief. After roaring out of the carport, he threw a hard left, shifting gears flawlessly.

  “Do you mind telling me what the—”

  Boom!

  Chapter 9

  Jack

  Betrayal.

  The word hadn’t left my mind since the explosion. We’d been lucky to get out alive. Even thirty seconds later and there was a distinct possibility one or all of us would have been injured. The number of explosives used had been enough to level a city block.

  Someone wanted us dead in addition to the Serpent.

  I’d bet my reputation on it.

  The question that troubled me the most was how we’d been found. Either the minion Dante had sent sold us out or there was some kind of tracking device, although we’d swept the house as well as the Jeep in front of the contact, searching for any sign of an issue. Damn it. Was Dante losing his touch or was there another player in the mix?

  I turned my gaze in Diego’s direction, studying his pensive face. All three of us had remained quiet since leaving the area, the lovely doctor ashen white. While I should be surprised that my partner knew where he was going, somehow, I wasn’t.

  When I heard her stir, I shifted my gaze. Her eyes were open wide, her hand trembling as she placed it on the back of my seat.

  “Where are we headed?” Lindsey asked, obviously still shaken from the experience.

  “Trujillo,” Diego answered. “And it’s going to take us a few hours to get there.”

  “Too dangerous,” I snarked. “We need to find somewhere closer in case we’re being followed.”

  His grip on the steering wheel tightened. “Explain to me where else we can go that will be safe. The Serpent will have all the airports under control, which is why we were waiting to get the hell out of this country in the first damn place. From what I can tell, it would seem we have a tail all the way from the pits of the jungle.” He shifted a gaze toward me, shaking his head slightly.

  “One that’s far too good,” I hissed.

  “At least we’re no
t being tracked now as far as I can tell. That’s why I’ve taken different roads.” Diego glanced into the rearview mirror, his gaze settling on Lindsey.

  “Why is this happening?” she managed before taking several deep breaths.

  I curtailed the disdain in my voice as I turned toward her. “We will need to talk to you about your father, your life in the United States, and every detail about your time in Brazil. It would seem that someone is out to get you, no matter the cost.”

  “I’m not certain what help I can be, but I’ll try. I’ve told you everything that matters,” she insisted.

  “You’ve told us nothing about your father,” I countered.

  “Or that boyfriend of yours,” Diego added.

  As I glanced into the back, I didn’t have to see the horror on her face to know that she was incensed. She’d been telling Diego secrets, ones that I needed to hear. She had no idea that every scrap of information was valuable, especially when someone was trying to kill you.

  My thoughts drifted back to the conversation I’d had with Dante the day at the beach. The Specialists wanted additional power and influence. That had to mean Lindsey’s father was indeed more than perhaps she was aware of. I had to follow my instincts on this one. I was beginning to doubt it had to do with Lindsey as a woman. If I had to guess, I’d say she was a commodity. If that was the case, it would crush her to know. First things first. We had to figure out who was after us and the means they’d go to in order to fulfill their duties.

  “Tell me about the bomb,” I instructed Diego. Further upsetting her at this point wasn’t going to get us any answers.

  “The bomb was sophisticated in design and used with a timer. I was lucky I saw it in the first place. The damn thing blended in with the other crap in the carport. Whoever planted it figured we wouldn’t go looking.” His answer was laced with exasperation.

  “Yeah, how did you find it?” I asked, hearing the tone of defiance in my voice.

  “Sounds like you’re accusing me of something, Jack. Kinda pisses me off since I saved your fucking ass,” Diego responded, snarling as he jerked the steering wheel.