Catching Fire (The Fire Duet Book 2)

by Billie Lustig

  “And he will kill Kane if I don’t comply with his demand anyway,” I debate, giving Reign a knowing look. “You know him, Reign. He won’t stop.”

  I look at Liam who is still not saying a word, just staring at me as if I’m a complicated piece of math. He runs a hand through his messy hair before he lets out a heavy sigh.

  “What do you think?” Liam moves his head to Jeremy, who keeps his eyes on me while his fingers drum the wood of the table in a nervous pace.

  “I think it’s a fucking dumb idea, and Kane is going to kill us for it. But it’s also the best idea we have. We need time to get him out, and Junior won’t give us that if she doesn’t agree to his terms.”

  “Fuck, we can’t do that. We can’t let her walk in there, hoping for the fucking best.” Reign shakes his head. “You can’t do that, Liam.”

  “I know, but can you think of anything better?” A crease forms on Liam’s forehead as he rubs his knuckles. His tense stance is not helping my own anxiety. I feel sick just thinking about the things my brother will do to me, so I try to push the horrific images away.

  Brushing his chin, Reign’s eyes move back and forth between Liam and me.

  “Yeah, I may,” he finally responds.

  Thirty

  Callie

  Present Day

  I step away from the table, in desperate need of a cigarette.

  And I don’t even fucking smoke.

  I seem to be on autopilot as my feet carry me out of the room while I try to control the agonizing feeling of my heart being ripped out of my chest. It’s weird how two days ago I was terrified he would find me and torture me for my betrayal. How he would crush my heart between his strong fingers.

  Now here I am.

  More terrified than ever.

  Terrified Junior will take my heart on a one-way ticket to heaven.

  Or hell. At this point, who knows what he will do.

  “Callie!” I hear Imogen call out behind me. “Callie! Callie, are you okay?”

  I wave my hand at her without looking back, not ready to talk to anyone. My mouth may not stop on a normal day, but I don’t really feel chatty at the moment.

  I walk into the huge, all black kitchen, heading straight for the fridge. Jerking it open, I close my eyes while the cold air hits my flushed face, sucking a freezing breath into my lungs, hoping it will help settle my racing heart. I lay my head against one of the shelves, closing my eyes.

  I hear footsteps behind me, and I growl at the sound of it.

  “You know I can’t let you do this, right?”

  I roll my eyes, grabbing a bottle of wine off the top shelf before I turn around, closing the fridge behind me.

  “We don’t have another option, Liam.”

  “Look, I’m sorry for being a dick to you, okay? Kane told me you ran because you overheard when I forced him to say he would stick to the plan. That he would kill you, you little eavesdrop.” He grins.

  “Don’t push it now, Liam. I may actually think you like me.”

  “I like you better knowing you’re not a Reyes.”

  “Yeah, you and me both,” I mumble as I run a hand through my hair.

  He stands against the kitchen island, his arms crossed in front of his body while he starts to shake his head.

  “There has to be another option. Kane will cut off my head if something happens to you.”

  “You never use it anyway,” I taunt before sticking out my tongue while I unscrew the bottle of wine and grab a glass out of the cabinet to pour myself some wine.

  “Funny, Reyes.”

  I cock my eyebrow at him as I take the glass off the counter and bring it to my lips.

  “Sorry. Habit.”

  “It’s okay. You can just call me Annie until we find out my last name.”

  “Annie?” he asks.

  “Redheaded orphan girl? It’s a hard knock life?” He keeps staring at me with a dazed look.

  “Really, Liam? Nothing?”

  He shakes his head in response.

  “Never mind.” I hold the stem in my hand, taking a sip of my drink while glancing at him from above my glass. He’s scowling at me, but I can detect a hint of worry on his face.

  “Look, I want my brother back. But I’m not sending you to the slaughterhouse. We need to find another way.”

  “There is no other way, Liam. I know my brother. You know my brother. If we even wait twenty-four hours, chances are Kane will be missing a fucking limb. Junior still needs me. He may hurt me, but he won’t kill me. Not yet.”

  “He could break you,” he whispers, his concern evident.

  I appreciate that he cares, liking the fact that sometime in the last day, he finally decided to accept me, but he couldn’t be more wrong. I gave Junior more credit, thinking that was the right thing to do, but now that I know the psychopath doesn’t even share the same gene pool as me, I will never give him that much power over me.

  “He can break my body, but he will never break me.”

  “It’s a huge fucking risk I can’t take,” he disagrees with finality in his voice.

  “Luckily, you don’t have to take it. I do.”

  Thirty-One

  Kane

  Present Day

  My hands are tied behind my back with zip-ties that are cutting into the skin on my wrists. I keep trying to swallow away the taste of blood that lingers in my mouth from all the punches I’ve received, but it’s no use. I hit my head against the car window when we got run off the road, resulting in a throbbing headache that is making me even more livid.

  I’m sitting in the middle of a warehouse that can easily hold three transport trucks yet is empty except for the dozen men walking around and four black jeeps. My ass is on a crappy chair that can barely hold my weight while Reyes men are stationed at each corner of the warehouse. On my left is a staircase leading up to a mezzanine that looks over the entire warehouse with what appears to be an office in the right corner. My eyes are roaming the area, trying to take in every detail I can. If this life has taught me anything, it’s that even the smallest detail can make all the difference.

  A door slams shut on the upper floor, snapping my head towards the reverberating sound. My jaw clenches as I watch Junior Reyes slowly strutting towards the stairs, my anger causing my hands to automatically ball into fists.

  Raising my chin up, I look into his brown eyes that now look blacker while he glares at me with a devilish grin. Watching his arrogant face come closer with each second makes my blood boil to a level that makes me feel like my skin will burn off my body any moment now.

  I already hated the guy for fucking with my brother, but now that I know what he did to Callie … I want him to suffer like she did.

  I want to let every single man in my army have a go at him while I watch with a bottle of whiskey in my hand. Bringing him to the brink of death only to patch him back up and do it all over again.

  For the next fucking year.

  Until he is begging me to fucking kill him. Begging me to end him and put him out of his misery.

  And then? Then I’ll let my girl decide what we do with him. But either way, I want to have his life in my hands.

  He doesn’t deserve to just meet his maker.

  He needs to meet the real Kane fucking Carrillo first.

  I take a deep breath, feeling my nostrils flare as I try to keep my head together. There is a lot of crap I want to tell him. A lot of crap I want to taunt him with. But right now, I need to buy more time, hoping it will be enough for Jeremy and Liam to get me out of here and get back to my girl.

  “Hey, Kane,” Junior sings songs while he walks down the stairs. “How are you, buddy? Todo bien? How are you feeling?”

  His Spanish accent makes me cringe, and automatically, I roll my eyes.

  “Never better.” I flash him a beaming smile.

  “Si, that’s good, that’s good,” he muses. He stops in front of me, bending down to look at my face, moving his head around to check i
t from every angle.

  I just continue to hold his gaze with a bored expression until his fist connects with my jaw, making my head turn at the unexpected impact.

  “How about now?” he asks.

  I spit blood out of my mouth onto the floor before moving my angry eyes back to his.

  “Still doing great.” I shrug.

  “I admire you, you know?”

  “Yeah, you’re not the only one.” I should zip my arrogant mouth shut, but I refuse to bow down for a fucking psychopath. I may not live to see the next hour, but I will not go giving in to Junior Reyes.

  “Mira! That’s just it! You’re funny, you’re handsome, you have a lot of money.”

  “I fucked your sister.” I wink at him.

  His face falls a little, irritation flickering through his eyes before his lips spread into another smile.

  “Si, but I’m guessing by now you already know she’s not my sister, right?”

  I don’t respond, just stare at him, refusing to give him anything.

  “Right,” he continues. “Well, that doesn’t matter. She will be here soon enough, and then you can go.”

  “Over my dead body,” I growl, wanting to tear myself out of this chair, hearing him talk about her.

  “Well, that will be the case if she doesn’t comply. But let’s find out first, shall we?” He takes his phone from his pocket, then puts it on speakerphone. As the dial tone rings through the cavernous space, I pray that she won’t pick up because I know she will do whatever he asks.

  Thirty-Two

  Callie

  Present Day

  I place my wineglass back on the counter before crossing my arms in front of my body, defiance dripping from my every pore. I don’t want to be a bitch about this, but I don’t feel like I have any other choice. If we go in full force, it will become a fucking battlefield, and I’m not willing to risk anyone’s life.

  Especially not Kane’s.

  Liam is still staring at me when Reign walks in with a troubled look on his face.

  “He’s right, Angel. It’s a fucking big risk.”

  Liam glances at him with an approving nod before turning his head back to me.

  “I don’t know if we can get you out in time. Junior is smart, you know that. A psychopath, but a smart one. We’ve been looking for him for weeks, yet we still never found him. If he gets you into those caves, I’m not sure we will find you.”

  “I know what I’m risking.” Before I can say more, I feel my phone vibrating in my back pocket. My eyelids shut closed and I sigh loudly because I know exactly who is calling. My hands reach into my jean’s pocket to grab my phone, then I show the screen to Reign and Liam.

  Both of their faces tense before I put the phone on the counter, pressing the speaker button.

  “I’m offended, Junior. You picked him over me?” I taunt.

  My back is leaning against the counter, doing my best to relax even though it feels like my heart is beating like a jackhammer.

  “Nunca, Hermanita. I would always pick you first, you know I love you.” His voice makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up, and I can’t help but shiver.

  “We have a different definition of love, Junior.”

  “Maybe, but that doesn’t mean I don’t love you.”

  “Cut the fucking crap, asshole. Just tell us what you want,” Liam booms, glaring at the phone.

  “Liam, how are you? Do you still speak to Cristina?”

  Liam lets out a low growl, but before he can voice anything, I give him a scowl, silently telling him to shut up.

  Junior just wants to get under his skin. It’s what he does, and frankly, it’s what he’s good at.

  We don’t need to give him any more power than he already has.

  “You’ve always been in to the theatrics, haven’t you? Ever considered going in to show business?” Reign asks.

  “Reign Wolfe. Are you guys having a party without me? I feel left out,” he sulks through the phone.

  “No, but I’ll be dancing on your grave soon enough,” I spit, feeling fed up with his bullshit.

  We’ve been prancing around each other our entire lives, but I don’t want to do it anymore.

  “That’s not the way to talk to familia, is it?” he chastises.

  “Last time I checked, you weren’t shit to me. So I’ll talk however I fucking like,” I spit, not having another ounce of patience left in me. My lungs start to heave in exasperation.

  “True,” Junior concedes before we both go silent for a while. I grind my teeth together, contemplating if I should ask the burning question on the tip of my tongue. Reign and Liam are looking at me with anticipation, probably wondering if I will break down in anger anytime soon.

  To be honest, I may.

  “How long have you known, Junior?” I finally ask.

  I hear him chuckle through the phone, a slight echo following it.

  “I’ve always known. My father gave me clear instructions to make sure you stayed unharmed until your twenty-fifth birthday. Telling me you could make us rich.”

  “So that’s all I ever was? A paycheck? Did either of you ever love me?” That little girl inside me wants to weep at his words, over the loyalty I had for the men I had considered family, but I know it’s a wasted emotion. And my question was stupid because we already know the answer.

  I mean, Junior literally sold me for the night.

  That’s not love. I don’t even know what it is. My so-called father never knew to my knowledge, but I doubt he would’ve done anything if he had.

  “Did I ever love you?” Junior snickers. “Uh, no. I do love the paycheck you come with, though. Does that count? And I can’t talk for Papa, but then again, neither can he.”

  The menacing tone in his voice has goosebumps trickling over my skin. My brows dip in confusion as I snap my head to the phone, letting his words sink in. My eyes widen when I realize what he said, making me glance at Reign, who shrugs while Liam just shakes his head.

  “You killed him?”

  Junior sighs into the phone, “Mira, I have a lot of needs. Needs that are better fulfilled with 1.5 billion versus 750 million.”

  I gasp in shock, not believing a word he’s saying.

  Reign moves closer, scowling at the phone.

  “You killed your own father because $750 million isn’t enough for you?” he asks, his voice filled with disdain. “Damn, you’re even sicker than I thought,” he continues when Junior doesn’t respond, wrapping me in his arms when he notices the baffled look on my face while I wonder how I ended up with this sick fuck.

  I’m giving myself ten seconds. Ten seconds to feel sorry for myself. Ten seconds to find the anger I need in order to get my man back.

  I press my forehead against Reign’s chest, closing my eyes, while his comfort calms me down. He rubs my back as I silently count to ten, exhaling and inhaling with every count until I reach the end and raise my head with the fighting spirit I need.

  “Where is Kane?” I bark while spinning in his arms, pressing my palms against the cold counter. Reign keeps his hands on my shoulder, and I’m grateful he’s there. Being my rock like he was years ago.

  “He’s right here.” Junior drags out the words as if it’s the most ridiculous question he’s ever heard. An audible thud comes over the line before I hear a grunt, followed by the voice that seems to have become my favorite sound.

  “Hey, baby.” His voice is hoarse, like he’s having trouble talking. But nonetheless, I close my eyes, feeling a slight sense of relief, grateful that he’s still alive.

  “Are you okay?” Liam asks.

  “Yeah, I’m okay.”

  I smile at his words before putting my focus back on Junior.

  “Tell me what you want, Junior.”

  “Easy,” he replies, his smug voice pissing me off more with every minute that passes. “You, for him.”

  “Done,” I reply, having expected this.

  “Don’t you fucking dare, Ca
llie,” Kane growls through the phone. I can only imagine his face, let alone the panic and rage he’s feeling.

  “When and where?” I ask, ignoring him.

  Kane will never agree to it. Liam is right—he will never let me go if it’s up to him.

  But it’s not.

  And the only one Junior has to keep alive for another six weeks is me.

  “Liam! Don’t fucking do it!” I can feel Kane’s energy booming through the phone. I suck in a breath, hating that I’m hurting him.

  “Your boys can find the warehouse. You have until sunrise. No tricks, or your fuck buddy will lose his head,” Junior adds before he hangs up the phone, a deafening silence echoing through the entire kitchen.

  Finally, Liam breaks it.

  “Fuck! Callie, this is a fucking bad idea.”

  It is.

  It’s a fucking bad idea.

  In fact, it’s the stupidest idea I’ve ever had.

  But we need time, and I’m the only one who can get us it. Hopefully, they will get me out.

  I know that the longer I will be in Junior’s grasp, the worse it will get.

  He will torture me.

  He will rape me.

  He will beat me.

  He will make me want to die.

  But it’s still better than giving up on Kane.

  “I know,” I agree, “but we’re doing it, anyway.”

  Thirty-Three

  Callie

  Present day

  Reign found the warehouse within minutes, and we used the last few hours to prepare ourselves as much as possible. It’s three in the morning, and I walk out of the house with a stone in my stomach, but my mind is hyped up as fuck. It’s weird how you can feel both excited and terrified at the same time. My entire life has been a series of forcing myself to keep going and putting on a game face, but it was never this easy. Just thinking about how Kane will walk out was all I needed to find the courage I’ll need to face my big brother.