She shrugged. He didn’t need to hear her problems. She was utterly exhausted but how the hell was she supposed to sleep? She clenched her jaw together to stop herself from snapping at him.
“I’m fine.”
“Whatever. Come through to the kitchen. Rogan’s got breakfast ready.”
Rogan cooked? Somehow it didn’t seem in keeping with his image as a dangerous gang leader. She followed Aedan into the large eat-in kitchen to find Rogan plating up huge meals of fried eggs, ham, and toast.
Aedan gestured over to the breakfast bar. “Have a seat. I’ll get you a cup of coffee.”
“Thank-you,” she replied, although the smell of food made her nauseous. Rogan and Aedan chatted as they sat and started to eat. Natalya just moved her food around on the plate. Why waste time eating? She needed to do something…anything.
Aedan studied her. Another frown crossed his face. It was becoming a common theme. He either frowned, glared, or snapped at her. A far cry from the loving, caring man she’d known before.
Last night he touched me.
It was more than she deserved and far, far less than she longed for.
“Eat, Natalya,” he ordered.
“I’m not hungry. It looks delicious, though.” She attempted to smile at Rogan, who sat across from her.
“When was the last time you ate?” Aedan asked.
“I don’t know,” she said impatiently. Who cared about food? “What does it matter? I’m not the one who is important. Mateo is.”
“And you’ll be little help to him if you collapse from exhaustion and hunger and end up in the hospital,” a strange voice spoke from behind her.
She turned to find a slim-built man standing behind her. He had a predatory look about him—sharp and dangerous. His thick dark hair was interspersed with gray. His green eyes seemed to miss nothing as he ran his gaze over her. Although his expression didn’t change, she got the feeling he was unimpressed by what he saw.
“Stanton.” Rogan stood and came around to shake the older man’s hand. “Thanks for coming on such short notice.”
“I didn’t think I had much choice,” the other man retorted. “You called in the favor I owed you.” There was a dark note to his voice, and Natalya held her breath as she waited for Rogan to retaliate.
“If you didn’t want to take the job, you wouldn’t be here,” Rogan said mildly.
“Refuse the great Rogan MacGuire?” the other man replied sardonically. “I don’t have a death wish.”
“Don’t be a drama queen,” Rogan replied, as he dished up another plate of food.
Natalya looked over at Aedan with wide eyes. He just shrugged, looking puzzled.
“Carson Stanton, meet Aedan Blake and Natalya Ramirez. Stanton is an old acquaintance of mine. He manages a team of mercenaries who specialize in location and extraction.”
Natalya frowned. “You rescue people?”
Stanton nodded as he sat and dug into his breakfast. He swallowed. “We usually operate overseas. We’re often hired to rescue people taken prisoner by extremists.”
“How often are you successful?” Aedan asked.
Stanton grinned. It wasn’t a pleasant smile. If anything it made him look harder. “We’re one of the best in the business.”
“And the most expensive?” she asked. She was betting it cost a lot of money to hire him and his team.
“Experience and expertise costs,” he told her around a mouthful of food. She watched in amazement as he put away a huge amount of food. Where did it all go?
“You should make that your slogan,” Rogan said dryly.
Stanton glowered at him before turning to her. “We cost more than the average person can afford, but occasionally we take on pro bono cases. This one is on us.”
“What is?” she asked, confused.
“I called Stanton last night after the two of you went to bed,” Rogan explained. “He’s going to find Mateo for you.”
Stanton snorted. “No pressure.”
“Are you saying you can’t do it?” Rogan asked.
“Of course I can do it. Can’t guarantee that he’ll be alive, though.”
Dots swirled in front of her eyes as terror enveloped her in its dark hold.
She heard someone swearing, but it was as though they were far off in the distance. Someone pushed her head down between her knees.
“Breathe, Natalya,” Rogan told her.
She didn’t know that she wanted to. If Mateo was truly gone…a low moan erupted from her. Suddenly she was swept up against a firm chest. A familiar, masculine scent filled her senses.
Aedan.
“Shh, lovely,” he told her in a calm voice. “Mateo is fine. There’s no reason to believe he’s dead. Calm down. We’ll find him. I promise you.”
“She needs to hold it together, or she’ll be no use to anyone,” Stanton’s voice was calm.
“So you told her that her son might be dead as a test?” Rogan asked sharply. “Your social skills have grown worse over the years.”
She took a deep breath.
“You okay?” Aedan asked.
“I’m fine. Sorry, I wigged out. You can put me back down.” Although she felt a whole lot safer in his arms.
Aedan placed her down. He scowled at Stanton, who just stared back at him calmly.
“Like I said, she needs to stay strong.” Stanton examined her. “Can you do that? Can you keep your shit together?”
Natalya glared at him. “You didn’t have to do that. You think I haven’t imagined the worst? Do you do this with all your clients?” It was a wonder he was still in business.
Stanton shrugged. “Tanner usually deals with the clients.”
“Where is your partner? Why didn’t you send him?” Rogan asked.
“Because you called me at two in the morning and told me to get here immediately. Tanner is on his way along with some other members of my team.”
The costs kept mounting up.
“I’ll pay your fee,” Aedan said stiffly. “We don’t want to be indebted to you.”
Stanton took a sip of coffee. “Save your money. There’s no debt. As I said, this is on us.” He stared at Natayla for a long moment. “I might be an asshole, but my team is the best. We will find your son.”
Relief hit her hard enough to bring tears to her eyes. “Are you sure?”
“I’m sure.”
“I don’t know what to say. I can never repay you.”
“That’s the point of pro bono. You don’t have to.” Stanton quickly ate the rest of his food then pulled a tablet from his bag. “So from what I’ve discovered, Diego Mota is a real fine catch.”
Natalya took a deep breath. Remember that he’s helping you. So he didn’t have much in the way of people skills, as long as he got the job done, she could take whatever he hurled her way.
“He’s a criminal,” she admitted.
“Oh, he’s much more than that, sweetheart.” His voice dripped with condescension. “He’s scum. He’s one of the cartel’s main lieutenants. It’s rumored that he’s ordered dozens of hits. The only place he seems to draw the line at is rape. But maybe we just haven’t uncovered that yet.”
Mouth dry, she just stared at Stanton. “I know he’s not a decent person.”
“Understatement,” Stanton retorted. “So why did you stay with him? Or is that what you’re into? Bad boys?”
“I thought you were here to help find Mateo,” Aedan growled.
“I am.”
“Then what’s with all the personal questions?”
Natalya sent him a grateful look.
“Because if she wants her son back, then I need to know exactly what I’m going up against. I’m not sending my men in to risk their lives against the fucking Fuerte Cartel without knowing everything.”
“Everything?” she asked.
He gave her a deadpan look. “Do you want your son back or not?”
Aedan watched the way Natalya’s eyes flared with temper. The
old Natalya would have chopped off Stanton’s balls and handed them to him on a platter. Aedan knew that’s what she longed to do. But the last three years had obviously honed her control. Is that what living with Mota had taught her? How to temper her reactions?
Stanton tapped on his tablet. “I’ll tell you what; I’ll start with what I already know.”
Where the hell had Rogan found this guy?
As Stanton recited everything he knew about the Fuerte Cartel and Diego’s background, Aedan gestured to Rogan and walked over to the other end of the room. Natalya watched them go, but Stanton didn’t even look up, as though they’d ceased to exist for him.
“I didn’t think you were getting involved?” Aedan asked.
“He’s just a child. He needs help.” Rogan watched him for a long moment. “And I want you to be happy, Aedan.”
“What does that mean?”
“You haven’t been happy since Natalya left. You weren’t happy before you met her. She made you happy.”
“Yeah, and then she left me for a violent, dangerous criminal.”
Rogan glanced over at Natalya, who was staring at Stanton with a mix of amazement and confusion. Stanton continued to recite everything he’d found out about Diego.
“Sometimes life takes a turn you don’t expect.”
“You’re getting all philosophic on me now?” Aedan asked incredulously.
Rogan just shrugged. “Despite his poor social skills, Stanton really is the best. He’ll find the kid. Whatever else happens is up to you.”
He walked back over to Stanton and Natalya, leaving Aedan staring after him in disbelief. Did Rogan seriously think he was about to get involved with Natalya again? After the way she’d treated him?
Natalya looked dumbstruck as she stared at Stanton. “How do you know all this?”
“This is my job. I had my hacker gathering info while I flew here.”
“How did they manage to find this information in such a short time?”
Diego was smart and cautious; it was what kept him alive.
“Because she’s very, very good. This information is really just the surface stuff. Give her a bit more time and she’ll dig deeper. Word of warning. Never buy anything online. Don’t put anything in an email. Someone is always watching. Even someone as cagey as Mota can slip up and leave information where it can be found.” Stanton scowled. “Damn government is always poking its nose where it’s not wanted. I don’t use emails, not anymore. Everything is done on burner phones. I replace them every month.”
Was this guy insane? “That must get expensive. How do clients contact you?”
Stanton shrugged. “Through a third party.”
He was paranoid, rude, and possibly a little nuts. But Rogan said he was the best and Aedan knew they needed help.
“So what’s our first move?” he asked.
Chapter Four
Natalya stared around the living room. She was numb. This felt like it was all happening to someone else. It couldn’t possibly be her life.
But it was. Her worst nightmare had come to life, and she had to deal with it. She had to be strong. Breaking down wasn’t an option. She was tougher than that. She’d lived through a lot; her father’s death, sneaking over the border into the states only to be abandoned and left to die, having to leave the man she’d loved more than life to save someone who had never bothered to even say thank-you.
“So, you ready to talk now?”
She peered over to find Stanton standing beside her. He sat on the sofa next to her. “I need information.”
“Your people seem thorough.”
He scanned the room. “They’re the best.”
Two men and one woman had arrived a few hours prior and taken over one of Rogan’s living rooms. Not the one they’d been in last night. This one was larger and brighter. They’d quickly rearranged the room to suit them. The woman had set up two computer screens on one of the coffee tables. One man seemed to be permanently on the phone while the other was pouring over a map.
Their movements were unhurried, and yet Natalya got the feeling they didn’t waste a second of time.
“Levi is in charge of communications,” Stanton told her, nodding to the man on the phone. “He’s liaising with everyone in the field. Tanner is my partner. He’s the one pouring over the map. Samantha is our hacker. I have three men out on the field; one in Hondo, and two who should nearly be in Matamoros.”
Natalya rubbed her head. “No one will talk to them. Even those who hate the cartel are too afraid of them to talk.”
“You’d be surprised by what my people can do,” Stanton said. “Right now, I need to know everything you do.”
“All right.”
“Tanner!” he yelled and she winced. The other man was only a few feet away.
“Jeez, Carson. You bellowed?” Tanner strode over and held out his hand. She shook it. “We’ll find your son, Natalya.”
“I just don’t know how. Diego could have taken him anywhere.”
Aedan sat on the chair opposite her.
“If it is your ex who took him,” Stanton said bluntly. “Could be someone else.”
She shook her head. “I don’t see how. My cousin saw him a few days before Mateo was taken. It had to be Diego.”
“You trust your cousin?” Stanton asked.
“Of course. We’re family, why wouldn’t I trust her?”
Stanton snorted. “Anyone can be bought. She knows that Diego is Mateo’s father?”
“Yes. And I don’t believe that everyone can be bought.”
“Why don’t you start from the beginning,” Tanner interjected smoothly. “Tell us about how you got involved with Diego.”
Natalya snuck a glimpse at Aedan. “What has that got to do with anything?”
“Could be nothing, could be everything,” Stanton replied. “You want to take the risk that whatever you leave out could be the one thing we need to find your son?”
Of course she didn’t, but this wasn’t the way she’d thought to tell Aedan everything.
Stanton glanced over at Aedan. “Want me to make him leave?”
“I’m not going anywhere,” Aedan said stubbornly.
Stanton shrugged. “You’re not exactly helping. You’re no use here, and if you stop her from being completely honest, then you’re a hindrance. I don’t like hindrances.”
Tanner sighed, looking apologetic. “My partner might not have much tact, but he is correct. We need Natalya to be completely honest.”
Aedan’s eyes grew dark as he scowled at Stanton, then Tanner.
“It’s okay. I’ll tell you what you need to know.” Natalya stared down at her hands before forcing herself to look up. She couldn’t look at Aedan though. Instead, she focussed on Tanner.
“Three years ago, I left San Antonio to return to Matamoros. My brother, Rio, had called me to tell me that our nana was dying and asking for me. I went back to pay my last respects. I thought I owed it to my mother to say good-bye to Nana. When I got back there, well, things were tense. Nana wasn’t quite as bad as I’d been led to believe, and there were other things happening.”
She licked her lips nervously.
“My brother lived with Nana. He’d get visitors at all hours of the night. Dangerous-looking men.” She stared over at the wall. “They scared me. They had a dead look in their eyes—like there was nothing they wouldn’t do, nothing they hadn’t seen.” She shivered.
“One night, my brother started arguing with someone on the front porch of Nana’s house. I came downstairs to tell them to quiet down before they woke her. Although she was so drugged, I doubt a foghorn would have roused her. I opened the door, and the man Rio was arguing with turned to stare at me. I was only dressed in a t-shirt. It wasn’t sexy, but I wished I’d put a robe on. He studied me like I was a piece of meat.”
She turned to look at Tanner. “I ran inside and shut the door. All my bravery fled as soon as I saw his tattoo and realized he was with the Fuerte
Cartel. He was one of Diego’s captains, Enrique Sanchez.”
“When I confronted my brother the next morning, he flew off the handle at me. Told me that I’d been home all of two seconds and already I thought I knew better than he did.” She smiled wryly. “He was right. I’ve always thought I knew best. I told him that man and all his other friends weren’t welcome there anymore, that they were dangerous, and if he knew what was best for him, he’d steer clear of them.”
“Rio wasn’t the boy I remembered. When we moved to the states, I was seven and he was twelve. He didn’t adjust well. He wanted to return home. When he was sixteen, my mother let him go back and live with Nana. He got himself mixed up with the wrong crowd. Anyway, he bolted out of the house, and I didn’t see him again until three nights later when a van pulled out in front of our house and dumped him out. He’d been beaten within an inch of his life. I wanted to take him to the hospital, but he refused to go. Luckily, the doctor who was looking after Nana was due to check on her, and he fixed him up. He was bruised from head to toe, with broken ribs, a broken nose, three smashed fingers, and a dislocated collarbone.”
“The cartel?” Tanner asked.
“Yes,” she whispered. “He owed them money. A lot of money. Gambling and drugs. He was stupid, but he’s my brother. I couldn’t let him die because of his mistakes. I told him I’d pay off his debt this once. But he owed them far more than I thought. The interest they were piling on top of the debt was astronomical.”
She rubbed her chest. “I have to admit that I thought about just leaving. My brother and I weren’t close. But I was worried that they’d come after Nana. She was helpless against them, and I knew that unless I did something, my brother would die.”
“You’d just be putting off the inevitable,” Stanton said bluntly. Tanner shot him a quelling look, but he just shrugged. “Her brother’s a ticking time bomb just waiting to go off.”
Aedan remained silent this whole time, just staring at her intently. She wondered what he was thinking.
“He was still my brother. No matter his mistakes. I knew I couldn’t live with myself if I’d taken off.”
“So how does Diego fit into this?” Tanner asked.
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