Chapter 32
Ava Gardner.
Okay. There has to be another explanation besides the obvious one. I only have to figure out what it is.
‘El Padrino’ may be using William to gain Reynaldo’s trust and that’s why the lawyer offered his own house to lodge those two bastards. That might be possible and would explain why the further we get into this mess the stronger William’s presence seems to become. However, my guts keep clenching painfully when I think about that old fox and I can’t get rid of the idea that he’s much more involved than I suspect.
I know for sure that Ricardo never liked William one damn bit and I wonder if I should start thinking about William from a whole different point of view, in a new light.
What do I know for sure about him? He’s addicted to soap operas and he’s in love with a dead actress. What that means I don’t know fucking anything. All I know about him is what he has been telling me over the years and at this point I know he’s an expert in keeping a secret life apart from the rest of us. Not to mention the fact that he’s a hell of lawyer capable of selling the most unbelievable lies if he thinks that would make him win a case. I already saw him at his best.
What else do I know? He has at least two indecently expensive mansions, if he has no other house hidden in some remote paradise, that is. He has been the lawyer of the Cartels since he was young and his name seems to be linked in all this mess because he has known Hanna the longest.
Oh, yeah, he watched while two heads were served up on a silver tray and how Fabio was given a necktie and all that without blinking an eye. That means only two things. He saw worse or he himself did worse.
I blink fast, snapping back to the here and now. I think it’s time to share my suspicions with Ricardo.
“I…I think I know who’s behind all this shit, Ricardo.” I say, clearing my throat. Ricardo narrows his eyes in anticipation, looking at me. “I think I know who has been helping Reynaldo, providing that bastard with the Intel he needed in order to reach his fucking goal.”
At my words, Ricardo’s eyes turn darker, showing that dead calmness I learnt to read and that only means he’s about to explode any second.
“Who?” Ricardo asks in a low cold tone of voice, sending shivers up my spine.
I swallow hard, forcing my voice out. I know that as soon as that name slips from my lips, there won’t be turning back. Fuck it.
“William.” I whisper through clenched teeth. In response, Ricardo arches a brow, his eyes flickering to mine.
“Are you sure of that, Dom? Are you completely sure?” He asks me slowly and for a second I have the sensation he’s talking with me as if I was a little child. “Tell me you’re fucking sure that fucker Bill is the one pulling the strings in this damn game, Dom.” His voice is freezing my blood within my veins.
“That picture”
Ricardo cuts me off, grunting.
“Answer my fucking question, Dom.” He whispers, facing me.
I frown deeply. I’m not sure but I’ve got this strong suspicion, twisting my guts. What can I say? It’s just a suspicion. I have no evidence beyond that little picture and what little Intel I’ve been pulling together within my busy mind. I’m not even sure if I’m making sense after what I saw so far.
“Maybe I’m wrong, Ricardo and the fact that picture is here only means this mansion belongs to him, but I…”
“Fucking answer me, Dom.” Ricardo hisses, his face a breath away from my face, his eyes pinning my very soul. Fuck it!
“Yeah.” I whisper under my breath.
Ricardo closes his eyes for a second, moving backward a step and then he fixes his cold gaze on mine.
“It’s all I wanted to know.” He replies, shaking his head. “Okay. First things first, Dom.” Ricardo adds as he turns around ready to resume his search of that damn boy’s bedroom.
“Wait.” I say making him stop dead in his tracks, turning his head. “What are we gonna do now, Ricardo? We can’t waste time, trying to find where that boy’s bedroom is. We don’t know where the fuck Hanna and Elaine are. We can’t keep walking around like that. Sooner or later we’re gonna run into one of those fuckers and who know how much time we have left. We need to find our women.” I whisper, fighting back my sudden rage.
I’m not mad with big dark guy, but with myself, for being that naïve as to let another fucker fool me around. I can’t fucking believe William fooled all of us the entire time. And I’m not only thinking about us now, but about my dad.
They were close friends since they were kids. I know for damn sure that my dad trusted him with his life. I lost count of how many times William came to have dinner with us, bringing presents when we were kids. Damnit!
“Listen, Dom. I know we’re running out of time, man, but we need something as a bargaining chip when the shit hit the fan, and believe me. It will hit the damn fan sooner than we expect.” Ricardo says, sighing hard. “That little queer is an ace up our sleeve; Dom. Reynaldo will not touch Elaine or Hanna if he knows we have him. It’s our only advantage over him.”
I frown deeply at his words. “That fucker doesn’t love anybody with the exception of himself.” I mutter, closing my hands in fists. “I don’t think he’ll give a damn about that little fucker if it comes to it.” In response, Ricardo shakes his head, chuckling. “He won’t give a second thought if he has to sacrifice that boy to save his sorry ass, and then what, Ricardo? Are we going to use our women as bait?”
“If we have no other choice, yes.” He replies as serious as a heart attack. “They are already bait, Dom and it’s not like we have too many options at this point either.” Ricardo adds, cursing under his breath. “It’s all or nothing, man and there’s no other way.”
I look at him, thinking about his words. I know Ricardo is right but I hate to do that. I don’t want to risk our women’s lives, but I damn well know that we’ve already reached a point of no return. Anyway, there’s one question I need an answer to, and I can’t let it go.
“Why do you want me to be sure about William, Ricardo?” I ask him in a whisper, holding his gaze. I can’t seem to force my voice out any louder. A heavy sigh passes his lips as he tilts his head to one side.
“Contrary to the popular belief, I only kill if I have to, Dom, and not because I want to. There’s a huge difference between killing someone who deserves to die and killing someone for the hell of it.”
Ricardo pauses for several seconds, frowning slightly as if he’s putting some order in his thoughts or searching for the right words.
“I only take a new ‘job’ once I’ve done my own research about the target. And I never took a ‘job’ involving women or kids, ever. I’m not a killer, Dom; I’m an assassin and even people like me have principles.”
He pauses anew, never lifting his gaze off mine, making sure I’m catching the meaning of what he’s saying to me. I do and I know where he’s heading though.
“I want to be sure you’re not gonna get in my way when the time comes, Dom.”
Now it’s my time to talk. “I won’t get in your way, Ricardo.” I say firmly, not even a single trace of doubt in my voice, knowing in advance that I’m sealing William’s fate without remission.
Ricardo doesn’t even blink at my affirmation. Not that I was expecting anything less.
“Good to know that, bro, because even though I will really hate to kill you, I will not hesitate for a second, Dom.”
—————-
“If you kill me Rey will skin you alive.” The boy hisses through clenched teeth.
I knit a brow, chuckling at Francis’ words. He’s so fucked he doesn’t know he’s about to die if he keeps fucking with Ricardo.
“Who says I’m gonna kill you?” Ricardo replies, emotionless, as he grabs the boy’s shirt forcing him to stand on his feet. “I’m gonna use you, Francis, so the Cuban thinks twice before he fucks with us.” He whispers a breath away from the boy’s face.
At Ricardo’s last words, the boy’s face turns pale in a second as his eyes widen in fear. He then glances at the two dead bodies of the fuckers that were standing guard at his door. They are both lying on the floor with their necks cut open after Ricardo took care of them. But in spite of the fact that he’s scared, the damn kid still manages to face big dark guy.
Damn! He sure as hell woke up this morning with a death wish. Fuck him!
“You don’t know who you’re fucking with.” Francis whispers, his voice shaking a little. In response, Ricardo laughs coldly and I can’t help but grin wickedly.
Oh, you little piece of shit, you are the one who don’t know who you’re fucking with. I tell you.
“I think you got it all wrong, kid.” Ricardo replies, chuckling. “Now let’s see if ‘caramel skin’ loves you that much.” He adds sarcastically as he pulls out one of his shivs, making the boy shudder violently, gasping. “Move!” He orders, pushing the boy hard in the direction of the door.
The boy stumbles on his own feet, almost losing balance and Ricardo grabs him at the last second, steadying him. Then big dark guy freezes and letting the kid go, he pulls out his cell phone, handing it to me.
I frown slightly, taking the vibrating phone and looking at the little screen I see a name flashing at me. Sean. Without hesitation I answer.
“Yeah.”
“Ricardo!” I hear Sean’s voice almost shouting.
“It’s Dom.” I reply, frowning deeply at the tone of the DEA agent’s voice.
“Where’s Ricardo, man?” He seems like he’s panting or something and I can hear people talking in the background.
I look at Ricardo and he’s tying the boy’s wrists at his back, muttering something unintelligible.
“He’s busy now.” I reply, frowning deeply when I notice the boy has a hard on as soon as Ricardo restrained him. Damn! Reynaldo’s boy toy sure is a fucked up freak.
“Yeah, I bet he is.” Sean chuckles coldly. “Listen, man, all of you gotta get out of that house right now.” He adds, cursing under his breath. “The shit is gonna hit the fan any minute, Dom.”
“What?!” I reply, looking at Ricardo as he slaps the boy hard, wiping his fucking grin from his face.
“The DEA and the Mexican police are gonna assault the mansion, man; they are already on their way!” He pauses for a second, taking a deep breath. “We got it all wrong, Dom! There are no rogue Zetas. They are all under ‘El Padrino’s command.” He pauses anew and I hear the click of a lighter. “Actually the new leader of those fuckers was the one decapitating ‘El Azul’ and Fabio’s father. ‘El Padrino’ reached a deal with him as soon as he knew that fucker had gutted alive the old leader of the Zetas.”
“Did you find who that fucker is?”
“Not yet, man. Nobody seems to know where that fucker came from. The rumors say he offered to get rid of ‘El Padrino’s’ competition in exchange for being in charge of the new army resulting from the joining two Cartels.” He pauses, sighing hard. “My new partner has connections with a trustworthy guy from the CIA and I got already a copy of this fucker’s file but I didn’t have the chance to take a look at the CD yet. There’s no computer where I am.”
“And where the fuck are you, Sean?”
“On my way there, asshole. I don’t want the DEA shooting first, asking later.” He replies, chuckling. “Tell Ricardo to use the tunnel to get out of the mansion.”
“What tunnel?”
“All those houses have a secret tunnel in case the shit hits the fan. The drug traffickers always build one so they can escape before we show up.”
“And where the hell is that tunnel, fucker? This mansion is damn huge!”
“What the fuck do I know, man?” Sean retorts angrily. “Don’t you think if I knew where the fucking tunnel is I’d be able to catch those fuckers once and for all?”
“Fuck you, asshole!” I reply, frowning deeply.
“Well, I’d say you’d be the one fucked if you don’t get out of there like right now, fucker.” Sean replies laughing. “Tell Ricardo I’ll meet you all in two hours where he knows.” And with that he hung up the phone.
Shit, shit, shit! Now what?!
I turn around, looking at Ricardo and he glances at the boy, his eyes flashing that devil gleam.
“This is fucking great, man.” I say, concern evident in my voice. Ricardo looks at me, frowning slightly.
“What did Sean say?” He asks me.
“Fuck! The DEA and the Mexican police are gonna raid the place in minutes. We gotta find Hanna and Elaine and get out of here as fast as we can.” I whisper, trying to keep my mind focused on business and not wandering once more. “Sean says there’s a hidden tunnel somewhere in this fucking house.”
In one second, Ricardo returns his attention to the boy.
“Where’s the tunnel?” He asks him, pinning the boy with his cold gaze. In response, the little fucker grins devilishly.
“I’m not going to tell you shit.” He retorts, spitting at big dark guy’s face.
Oh, shit, wrong answer, asshole. I flinch in anticipation. In a flash, Ricardo grabs the boy’s collar, pulling the little fucker to him. His eyes are smoldering with that predatory gaze and I already know that the little pansy is gonna regret the day he was born. With his free hand, Ricardo presses the shiv against the boy’s groin making him yelp in fear.
“You wanna bet, little queer?” He whispers and at the speed of light he drags the boy to the bathroom, closing the door at his back.
In seconds, I hear muffled screams and the sound of noises coming from the bathroom. Serves you right for pushing your luck, boy.
Chapter 33
Lies 32
Chapter 32
Ava Gardner.
Okay. There has to be another explanation besides the obvious one. I only have to figure out what it is.
‘El Padrino’ may be using William to gain Reynaldo’s trust and that’s why the lawyer offered his own house to lodge those two bastards. That might be possible and would explain why the further we get into this mess the stronger William’s presence seems to become. However, my guts keep clenching painfully when I think about that old fox and I can’t get rid of the idea that he’s much more involved than I suspect.
I know for sure that Ricardo never liked William one damn bit and I wonder if I should start thinking about William from a whole different point of view, in a new light.
What do I know for sure about him? He’s addicted to soap operas and he’s in love with a dead actress. What that means I don’t know fucking anything. All I know about him is what he has been telling me over the years and at this point I know he’s an expert in keeping a secret life apart from the rest of us. Not to mention the fact that he’s a hell of lawyer capable of selling the most unbelievable lies if he thinks that would make him win a case. I already saw him at his best.
What else do I know? He has at least two indecently expensive mansions, if he has no other house hidden in some remote paradise, that is. He has been the lawyer of the Cartels since he was young and his name seems to be linked in all this mess because he has known Hanna the longest.
Oh, yeah, he watched while two heads were served up on a silver tray and how Fabio was given a necktie and all that without blinking an eye. That means only two things. He saw worse or he himself did worse.
I blink fast, snapping back to the here and now. I think it’s time to share my suspicions with Ricardo.
“I…I think I know who’s behind all this shit, Ricardo.” I say, clearing my throat. Ricardo narrows his eyes in anticipation, looking at me. “I think I know who has been helping Reynaldo, providing that bastard with the Intel he needed in order to reach his fucking goal.”
At my words, Ricardo’s eyes turn darker, showing that dead calmness I learnt to read and that only means he’s about to explode any second.
“Who?” Ricardo asks in a low cold tone of voice, sending shivers up my spine.
I swallow hard, forcing my voice out. I know that as soon as that name slips from my lips, there won’t be turning back. Fuck it.
“William.” I whisper through clenched teeth. In response, Ricardo arches a brow, his eyes flickering to mine.
“Are you sure of that, Dom? Are you completely sure?” He asks me slowly and for a second I have the sensation he’s talking with me as if I was a little child. “Tell me you’re fucking sure that fucker Bill is the one pulling the strings in this damn game, Dom.” His voice is freezing my blood within my veins.
“That picture”
Ricardo cuts me off, grunting.
“Answer my fucking question, Dom.” He whispers, facing me.
I frown deeply. I’m not sure but I’ve got this strong suspicion, twisting my guts. What can I say? It’s just a suspicion. I have no evidence beyond that little picture and what little Intel I’ve been pulling together within my busy mind. I’m not even sure if I’m making sense after what I saw so far.
“Maybe I’m wrong, Ricardo and the fact that picture is here only means this mansion belongs to him, but I…”
“Fucking answer me, Dom.” Ricardo hisses, his face a breath away from my face, his eyes pinning my very soul. Fuck it!
“Yeah.” I whisper under my breath.
Ricardo closes his eyes for a second, moving backward a step and then he fixes his cold gaze on mine.
“It’s all I wanted to know.” He replies, shaking his head. “Okay. First things first, Dom.” Ricardo adds as he turns around ready to resume his search of that damn boy’s bedroom.
“Wait.” I say making him stop dead in his tracks, turning his head. “What are we gonna do now, Ricardo? We can’t waste time, trying to find where that boy’s bedroom is. We don’t know where the fuck Hanna and Elaine are. We can’t keep walking around like that. Sooner or later we’re gonna run into one of those fuckers and who know how much time we have left. We need to find our women.” I whisper, fighting back my sudden rage.
I’m not mad with big dark guy, but with myself, for being that naïve as to let another fucker fool me around. I can’t fucking believe William fooled all of us the entire time. And I’m not only thinking about us now, but about my dad.
They were close friends since they were kids. I know for damn sure that my dad trusted him with his life. I lost count of how many times William came to have dinner with us, bringing presents when we were kids. Damnit!
“Listen, Dom. I know we’re running out of time, man, but we need something as a bargaining chip when the shit hit the fan, and believe me. It will hit the damn fan sooner than we expect.” Ricardo says, sighing hard. “That little queer is an ace up our sleeve; Dom. Reynaldo will not touch Elaine or Hanna if he knows we have him. It’s our only advantage over him.”
I frown deeply at his words. “That fucker doesn’t love anybody with the exception of himself.” I mutter, closing my hands in fists. “I don’t think he’ll give a damn about that little fucker if it comes to it.” In response, Ricardo shakes his head, chuckling. “He won’t give a second thought if he has to sacrifice that boy to save his sorry ass, and then what, Ricardo? Are we going to use our women as bait?”
“If we have no other choice, yes.” He replies as serious as a heart attack. “They are already bait, Dom and it’s not like we have too many options at this point either.” Ricardo adds, cursing under his breath. “It’s all or nothing, man and there’s no other way.”
I look at him, thinking about his words. I know Ricardo is right but I hate to do that. I don’t want to risk our women’s lives, but I damn well know that we’ve already reached a point of no return. Anyway, there’s one question I need an answer to, and I can’t let it go.
“Why do you want me to be sure about William, Ricardo?” I ask him in a whisper, holding his gaze. I can’t seem to force my voice out any louder. A heavy sigh passes his lips as he tilts his head to one side.
“Contrary to the popular belief, I only kill if I have to, Dom, and not because I want to. There’s a huge difference between killing someone who deserves to die and killing someone for the hell of it.”
Ricardo pauses for several seconds, frowning slightly as if he’s putting some order in his thoughts or searching for the right words.
“I only take a new ‘job’ once I’ve done my own research about the target. And I never took a ‘job’ involving women or kids, ever. I’m not a killer, Dom; I’m an assassin and even people like me have principles.”
He pauses anew, never lifting his gaze off mine, making sure I’m catching the meaning of what he’s saying to me. I do and I know where he’s heading though.
“I want to be sure you’re not gonna get in my way when the time comes, Dom.”
Now it’s my time to talk. “I won’t get in your way, Ricardo.” I say firmly, not even a single trace of doubt in my voice, knowing in advance that I’m sealing William’s fate without remission.
Ricardo doesn’t even blink at my affirmation. Not that I was expecting anything less.
“Good to know that, bro, because even though I will really hate to kill you, I will not hesitate for a second, Dom.”
—————-
“If you kill me Rey will skin you alive.” The boy hisses through clenched teeth.
I knit a brow, chuckling at Francis’ words. He’s so fucked he doesn’t know he’s about to die if he keeps fucking with Ricardo.
“Who says I’m gonna kill you?” Ricardo replies, emotionless, as he grabs the boy’s shirt forcing him to stand on his feet. “I’m gonna use you, Francis, so the Cuban thinks twice before he fucks with us.” He whispers a breath away from the boy’s face.
At Ricardo’s last words, the boy’s face turns pale in a second as his eyes widen in fear. He then glances at the two dead bodies of the fuckers that were standing guard at his door. They are both lying on the floor with their necks cut open after Ricardo took care of them. But in spite of the fact that he’s scared, the damn kid still manages to face big dark guy.
Damn! He sure as hell woke up this morning with a death wish. Fuck him!
“You don’t know who you’re fucking with.” Francis whispers, his voice shaking a little. In response, Ricardo laughs coldly and I can’t help but grin wickedly.
Oh, you little piece of shit, you are the one who don’t know who you’re fucking with. I tell you.
“I think you got it all wrong, kid.” Ricardo replies, chuckling. “Now let’s see if ‘caramel skin’ loves you that much.” He adds sarcastically as he pulls out one of his shivs, making the boy shudder violently, gasping. “Move!” He orders, pushing the boy hard in the direction of the door.
The boy stumbles on his own feet, almost losing balance and Ricardo grabs him at the last second, steadying him. Then big dark guy freezes and letting the kid go, he pulls out his cell phone, handing it to me.
I frown slightly, taking the vibrating phone and looking at the little screen I see a name flashing at me. Sean. Without hesitation I answer.
“Yeah.”
“Ricardo!” I hear Sean’s voice almost shouting.
“It’s Dom.” I reply, frowning deeply at the tone of the DEA agent’s voice.
“Where’s Ricardo, man?” He seems like he’s panting or something and I can hear people talking in the background.
I look at Ricardo and he’s tying the boy’s wrists at his back, muttering something unintelligible.
“He’s busy now.” I reply, frowning deeply when I notice the boy has a hard on as soon as Ricardo restrained him. Damn! Reynaldo’s boy toy sure is a fucked up freak.
“Yeah, I bet he is.” Sean chuckles coldly. “Listen, man, all of you gotta get out of that house right now.” He adds, cursing under his breath. “The shit is gonna hit the fan any minute, Dom.”
“What?!” I reply, looking at Ricardo as he slaps the boy hard, wiping his fucking grin from his face.
“The DEA and the Mexican police are gonna assault the mansion, man; they are already on their way!” He pauses for a second, taking a deep breath. “We got it all wrong, Dom! There are no rogue Zetas. They are all under ‘El Padrino’s command.” He pauses anew and I hear the click of a lighter. “Actually the new leader of those fuckers was the one decapitating ‘El Azul’ and Fabio’s father. ‘El Padrino’ reached a deal with him as soon as he knew that fucker had gutted alive the old leader of the Zetas.”
“Did you find who that fucker is?”
“Not yet, man. Nobody seems to know where that fucker came from. The rumors say he offered to get rid of ‘El Padrino’s’ competition in exchange for being in charge of the new army resulting from the joining two Cartels.” He pauses, sighing hard. “My new partner has connections with a trustworthy guy from the CIA and I got already a copy of this fucker’s file but I didn’t have the chance to take a look at the CD yet. There’s no computer where I am.”
“And where the fuck are you, Sean?”
“On my way there, asshole. I don’t want the DEA shooting first, asking later.” He replies, chuckling. “Tell Ricardo to use the tunnel to get out of the mansion.”
“What tunnel?”
“All those houses have a secret tunnel in case the shit hits the fan. The drug traffickers always build one so they can escape before we show up.”
“And where the hell is that tunnel, fucker? This mansion is damn huge!”
“What the fuck do I know, man?” Sean retorts angrily. “Don’t you think if I knew where the fucking tunnel is I’d be able to catch those fuckers once and for all?”
“Fuck you, asshole!” I reply, frowning deeply.
“Well, I’d say you’d be the one fucked if you don’t get out of there like right now, fucker.” Sean replies laughing. “Tell Ricardo I’ll meet you all in two hours where he knows.” And with that he hung up the phone.
Shit, shit, shit! Now what?!
I turn around, looking at Ricardo and he glances at the boy, his eyes flashing that devil gleam.
“This is fucking great, man.” I say, concern evident in my voice. Ricardo looks at me, frowning slightly.
“What did Sean say?” He asks me.
“Fuck! The DEA and the Mexican police are gonna raid the place in minutes. We gotta find Hanna and Elaine and get out of here as fast as we can.” I whisper, trying to keep my mind focused on business and not wandering once more. “Sean says there’s a hidden tunnel somewhere in this fucking house.”
In one second, Ricardo returns his attention to the boy.
“Where’s the tunnel?” He asks him, pinning the boy with his cold gaze. In response, the little fucker grins devilishly.
“I’m not going to tell you shit.” He retorts, spitting at big dark guy’s face.
Oh, shit, wrong answer, asshole. I flinch in anticipation. In a flash, Ricardo grabs the boy’s collar, pulling the little fucker to him. His eyes are smoldering with that predatory gaze and I already know that the little pansy is gonna regret the day he was born. With his free hand, Ricardo presses the shiv against the boy’s groin making him yelp in fear.
“You wanna bet, little queer?” He whispers and at the speed of light he drags the boy to the bathroom, closing the door at his back.
In seconds, I hear muffled screams and the sound of noises coming from the bathroom. Serves you right for pushing your luck, boy.
Chapter 33