by Julia Sykes
Much later, I stirred in Javier’s arms at a knocking on the door. I blinked sleepily. It was late. Too late for a friend to visit. My stomach twisted as my mind instantly accessed the memory of Ortiz barging into the safe haven of the apartment.
I took a deep breath and pushed it away. Javier was with me. I would be safe, no matter who was at the door. I glanced up at him, and the worry in his eyes let me know he was uncertain who was knocking so insistently. He gave me a little reassuring squeeze.
“Stay here,” he murmured.
My fingers knotted in my lap when he disappeared around the corner and into the hallway.
“Miguel? What’s going on?” The worry I had glimpsed in his eyes now bled into his voice. “Get inside. Both of you.”
Seconds later, Miguel and Ana Lucia appeared, Javier hovering close behind. I took in Ana’s grimace and the red veins crisscrossing the whites of her eyes. I stood immediately and closed the short distance between us to take her hands in mine.
“Ana! What’s wrong?”
A single tear spilled down her cheek. She wiped it away almost angrily. “I don’t know why I’m even crying,” she said thickly. “I’m fine. Really.”
“Miguel. Tell me what’s happening.” Javier’s voice snapped through the room.
Miguel’s eyes were wide and frightened. He looked younger than ever. “Ramirez was arrested.”
Javier’s lips thinned, and he said nothing for a moment. I suspected he wasn’t too torn up about the man’s fate, given what he told me he had witnessed earlier that night; Ramirez had been torturing Derek’s friend Rose. I didn’t know her, but I found I was glad Ramirez had been arrested, too.
“How?” Javier demanded after a few beats of tense silence had passed.
“The FBI. The fucking Feds are onto us.” Miguel’s voice broke over the words. The kid was terrified. “The girl Ramirez took was the girlfriend of one of the agents. They tracked her down and then shot the ones who took her. Now they’re rounding up Los Furiosos. And they’ll come for us next. They won’t let up, not after what Ramirez did to that girl.”
I shuddered. “Is Rose okay?” My brain recognized that of course there was no possible way she was okay, but she might have at least survived.
Miguel stared at me in surprise. “You know her?”
“No,” I admitted. “But I know she’s my brother’s friend. Javier tried to help her.”
Javier shifted beside me. “I couldn’t do anything for her. Not against all of them. I’d like to know what happened to her as well.”
“I don’t really know,” Miguel admitted. “I don’t think they killed her.” He ran a hand over his close-cropped hair. “Fuck! All I know is the Feds are looking for Ana, and I’ll be next.”
“One of my husband’s friends texted me and told me to run,” Ana interjected quickly. “I went to Miguel, and we came straight here. His apartment is the first place they’ll look for me.”
“Why would the Feds come after you?” I asked. “You haven’t done anything wrong.”
She looked at me sadly. “They’ll want to question me about my husband and his friends. If I talk, the other Kings will come after me. If the FBI even take me in, the other tribes will suspect I caved. I can’t let that happen.”
Miguel wrapped his arm around his sister’s shoulder. “I won’t let it happen.” He turned his eyes on Javier. “Can Ana stay here tonight? Just until the Feds come look for her at my place? Once they’ve cleared me, she can come stay with me.”
I squeezed Ana’s hands. “Of course you can stay with us.” I didn’t even think to wait for Javier’s permission. No way was I going to leave my friend all alone out there, unprotected. Ana was a good woman who had never hurt anyone. I couldn’t bear the thought of her being harmed.
A fresh wave of hatred for the world we were trapped in surged through me. Ana didn’t deserve this. She was kind and gentle and managed to be joyful even in the darkest situations.
I pulled her into a tight embrace. “You’ll be safe with us. I promise.”
Hot tears wet my shoulder. “Gracias, chiquita.” She pulled back from me and gave me a small, watery smile. She wasn’t just kind; she was brave, too.
“Ana can stay here as long as she needs to,” Javier declared. “And I don’t think you need to worry so much about the Feds, Miguel. Jonas has plans in motion that should keep us safe from them.”
My back stiffened at the mention of Javier working with my father, but if he noticed, he gave no sign.
“What do you mean?” Miguel asked. “What plan?”
Javier hesitated, as though debating how much to reveal.
“He deserves to know,” I insisted hotly. “His sister is in danger.”
Javier’s hard black stare turned on me, and I shrank back a little under the weight of it. But after a moment, his expression softened. I breathed again.
“All right.” Now he turned his intimidating stare on Miguel. “But this doesn’t leave this apartment. Understand?”
Miguel nodded eagerly.
“Jonas is reaching out to the Russian Mafia to form an alliance,” Javier began slowly. “Once that’s in place, he intends to unite the Kings under his leadership. If the tribes are no longer divided, the Feds won’t be able to pick us off one at a time. And the Russians will help protect us all.”
“What?” I asked breathlessly. My father planned to take over all of the Latin Kings? The idea of him wielding that much power terrified me. I could barely even begin to imagine the damage he could do.
I turned incredulous eyes on Javier. “You’re helping Jonas with this? Don’t you understand what he’ll do with all that power? How many people he’ll hurt?”
Javier just shrugged.
It took a moment for disbelief to give way to anger. “How can you stand there and do nothing?” I demanded, my voice shrill. “You told me you didn’t sign on to see women abused. Do you know how many women my father will allow to be raped and tortured and killed without even batting an eye? He fucking sold me to you, Javier. His own daughter.” Fury consumed me. How could I have just made love to a man who was complicit in the destruction my father would bring? With a little snarl I didn’t recognize as my own, I launched myself at Javier.
He caught my fists easily, instantly putting an end to my efforts to punch his cruelly handsome face.
“Let me go!” I shrieked, twisting in his grip.
“Calm down, Charlotte.” The command was far too calm. It only fueled my rage.
“I won’t! I won’t let you do this! I won’t let you be like this! How can you not care?”
He was supposed to be good. He was supposed to care.
I had a moment to register the tick in his jaw before he bent to lift me over his shoulder. Memories of the night I tried to escape him assailed me as I thrashed uselessly against his hold. He flung me down on the bed and turned from me without a backward glance. Before I could catch my breath, the door banged shut behind him. I screamed out my rage when the lock slammed home.
Chapter 15
“Charlotte?” My name accompanied a tentative knock on the bedroom door. I lifted my head from the pillow, which was soaked with my angry tears. I didn’t know how long I had screamed out my rage before it gave way to desperate sobs, but my throat felt raw enough that I knew my episode had lasted quite a while. Recognizing it was Ana Lucia who was waiting outside the door, a flush of embarrassment colored my skin. She had heard me throw my tantrum.
“Come in,” I croaked.
Although her own eyes were red from crying, she had a small smile for me as she slipped through the door, closing it behind her to give us privacy. I assumed Javier was still in the apartment, and I was glad of the barrier between us, even if he could kick in the flimsy wood with very little effort.
Ana was at my side on the bed in an instant, taking my hands in hers. “Lo siento, chiquita,” she apologized softly.
I let out a short, choked laugh. How could she be sorry
for me? She was the one in real danger. I was just a stupid girl who had made stupid choices.
“Don’t be,” I said thickly. “It’s my fault, anyway.”
She shook her head. “You have every right to be angry with Javier. I know what your father is like, and I understand you don’t like your husband working with him. But that’s survival. It’s the way our world is.”
A fresh shudder of revulsion rolled through me. “But he’s supposed to be good. I thought he was good. That’s why I let him…” I trailed off, unable to admit what I had allowed the King to do to me. What I had asked him to do to me. Was I really so shallow that I had allowed physical attraction to warp the way I saw him? He was a ruthless gangster. He had never been anything more than that.
Ana’s hand squeezed mine. “I know it’s hard to understand, but Javier is a good man. It’s okay to have feelings for him.”
“I don’t have feelings for him,” I declared stubbornly. Ana fixed me with her best no-nonsense look. I sighed. “I don’t anymore.” Her implacable stare stayed firmly in place. I shifted and looked away. “I don’t want to have feelings for him,” I admitted on a whisper.
“He cares for you, too,” she told me. “Why do you think he challenged my husband to help that girl tonight?”
I blinked, confused. “You mean Rose? Javier said she’s Derek’s friend. That’s why he went to get her out.”
“Do you think any of the other Muertos would have done the same for your brother? Would Ortiz or Reyes put their necks on the line for him?” She challenged. “Javier did that for you. Because you’re his wife, and your family is his.”
I hesitated, trying to absorb that. Javier had endangered himself for me. To help a girl I didn’t even know, just because she was my brother’s friend.
But I knew it was more than that. I remembered the wildness in his dark eyes when he had come home, after he witnessed Rose being abused. He went to get her out because it was the right thing to do. And his failure had torn him up inside.
Weariness suddenly sank into my bones. “I don’t understand him,” I said heavily. “How could he risk his life to help one woman but still support my father in taking control of the Kings? Does he not understand what that will mean? How many people Jonas will hurt to get what he wants?”
The corners of Ana’s lips were drawn with sorrow. “Javier cares deeply about you, and about Miguel and me. We’re his family. And so are the Kings. Javier will do anything to protect his family.”
“But it’s not right,” I insisted hoarsely. “He knows it’s not right. He has to. I thought I knew him, but I don’t. I just let myself forget what he does with his life outside this apartment. And… Oh, god, I can’t believe how stupid I’ve been. I trusted him.”
“I can’t fix what’s wrong between you and Javier,” Ana said sadly. “You’ll have to talk to him about it. Just know that the man you’ve seen in this apartment is the real him. What a man does isn’t who he is.”
“Our choices define who we are,” I disagreed. “And he’s choosing wrong.”
Ana shrugged. “The world isn’t as black and white as you’d like it to be. You have a chance for something good with Javier. That’s more than most of us get in this life. My husband…” She trailed off, swallowing hard. I suddenly remembered that he had been arrested only hours before. I didn’t like the man, but what was happening to him had to be affecting Ana. I again took in her bloodshot eyes.
“I’m so sorry, Ana. I’ve made this all about me. I can’t imagine what you’re going through. Are you okay?”
A tear rolled down her smooth cheek. She swiped it away with an irritated little jerk of her hand. “I’m fine.”
It was my turn to spear her with an incisive stare. After a moment, she sighed.
“I’m scared,” she admitted, her voice small. “Emilio, he… They say he was shot. He might die. I don’t love him, but I do share a life with him. I can’t help caring. And now I’m hiding out, when I should be at his side in the hospital. It’s the right thing to do.” She sniffled, and her lips twitched in a brave effort at a smile. “You see? Right and wrong are not so clear.”
I felt for Ana, but my heart remained hard when it came to her husband. He deserved to be in prison. He probably deserved to be shot; he had earned that pain. But I held my tongue. It didn’t matter how much I railed about right and wrong and what was just. Ana was right; our world was a fucked-up place.
Even that realization wasn’t enough to ease my anger at Javier for his choice to support my father. But that anger wasn’t enough to erase my affection for him, either. I shifted uncomfortably beside Ana, and the little twinge of pain between my legs reminded me of the ecstasy Javier had given me. I resented the pleasure I found in the memory.
I did my best to push it away. I needed to find a way to deal with my tangled feelings for Javier, but there was nothing more I could do about it tonight. All I could do was support Ana through her ordeal and keep my own concerns tucked away. Turning my thoughts firmly away from Javier, I pulled my friend into a tight embrace.
I stirred when Ana left me early the next morning, but she insisted I get more sleep. The cops had searched Miguel’s apartment and moved on, so she went to join her little brother. It was hours later when Javier knocked on the bedroom door.
“What?” I asked sleepily, deciding not to invite him in.
“I’m going out.” Even through the barrier of the door, the coldness of his voice cut into me. “There’s fruit in the fridge if you’re hungry.”
My heard did a funny little twist. It was the first time he hadn’t cooked breakfast for me. It hurt more than it should.
“Oh.” I swallowed back my hurt. “Okay.”
Without another word, his footsteps retreated and the apartment door slammed closed. A sudden idea coming to me, I leapt out of bed. This was my chance to see what he did with his life, who he was when he wasn’t with me. If I witnessed his crimes, maybe I could finally get over my silly crush and see him for what he really was.
I changed out my sweatpants for jeans and threw a jacket on over my camisole while I shoved my feet into my workout sneakers. Without wasting time to check my appearance in the mirror, I darted out the door after Javier, just in time to see him disappear around the corner four blocks up. I broke into a light jog to catch up, slowing instantly when he came back in sight. I kept a two-block distance between us.
Javier didn’t take the subway, for which I was grateful. It would have been more difficult to keep track of him without him spotting me in the more cramped space underground. He walked for nearly half an hour before ducking down a narrow alley. I slowed as I reached the corner, listening.
“Glad you could make it, Santiago.” I recognized my father’s drawl, and my heart stopped. I glanced around nervously, but the few people walking the streets around me were giving the mouth of the alley wide berth. Unease stirred at the back of my mind, and I considered retreating. I wasn’t very familiar with the Kings’ territories, but I had the feeling I was no longer on Muertos turf.
Gritting my teeth, I steeled my resolve. I had to see this through. Witnessing Javier actively working with Jonas was the most effective way to kill any misguided feelings I might have for him.
Positioning myself as close to the edge of the alley as possible without being seen, I pulled out my phone and pretended to be absorbed in texting. As I kept my eyes fixed on the screen, I listened to Javier greeting my father and making apologies for being late.
“What is this, Carter?” An angry voice I didn’t recognize echoed against the brick buildings. “What do you want with Los Demonios?”
So I was in Demonios territory. I shifted, my feet urging me to run from danger. It seemed to pulse from the mouth of the alley.
Just a few more minutes. I’ll wait a few more minutes, then I’m gone.
“My boss is getting impatient, Carter,” another voice warned. “Can you deliver or not?” The accent wasn’t Spanish this time.
Russian? Javier had mentioned an alliance with the Russian Mafia. I took an involuntary step back before I could stop myself.
“I can,” Jonas responded calmly, as though he didn’t have members of the Latin Kings and the Russian Mafia breathing down his neck. A fresh spike of fear lanced through me at the thought of Javier standing at his side, trapped in the small space with my father’s potential enemies.
“The Latin Kings are making a rather generous donation to the Russians,” my father announced. “We’re going to be friends.”
“Los Muertos can do what they want. The Feds are looking for all of us. Los Demonios are going underground for a while.” The man representing the rival tribe spoke with barely-concealed contempt.
“The tribes need to act as one,” Jonas’ voice rang out like an edict. “That’s the only way out of this. Our Russian friends are happy to work with us. Divided, we are weak, but united we can stand up to the Feds.”
“Not interested,” the Demonios leader declared. “I’m not dying to protect a fucking Westie. You’re not one of us, Carter, and Los Muertos are fools for following you.”
“Carter isn’t our leader,” Javier’s voice was sharp with authority. “We’re a family, as we’ve always been.”
“Bullshit,” the other man declared. “A Westie will never rule the Latin Kings.”
“My boss will be most displeased to hear this, Carter,” the Russian said.
“Los Demonios might not choose to join us, but they will fall in line.” My father’s voice was soft, but I recognized the dangerous note that thrummed through it.
I took another step back, and ran into something solid. I whirled with a gasp, and found myself staring up into a pair of disapproving black eyes.
“You lost, chica?”
“Um, I’m good. I was waiting to meet my friend, but she didn’t show, so I’ll just go,” I babbled.
His hand closed around my arm, and he stepped toward the alley, tugging me along beside him. I tried to twist away.