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I knew it would be. Despite being hunted by the FBI, Cash was a fucking ghost. Greyson had nearly broken one of his laptops in a fit of rage when he’d tried. Whoever Cash was, he was very well hidden.
“Don’t,” Dominic warned. He edged closer until he could wrap a hand around my knee, though he kept his eyes firmly on Rafael. “We don’t know what the Wolf?—”
“Deal.”
Dominic’s hand tightened so much I hissed, the scrapes I’d gotten from the floor smarting against his grip. Like he’d just realized what he’d done, he yanked away from me. I could feel Rafael’s eyes on us, but he didn’t comment. “The deal is struck,” Rafael murmured as he stowed his hands in his pockets. I didn’t know if he was trying to look harmless, but it didn’t work. Osorios were notoriously ruthless. It was how my grandfather had survived fifty assassination attempts while maintaining a hold on the cartel that had lasted the entirety of his adult life. The man was a legend and a nightmare wrapped in one, and Rafael was his heir. There wasn’t a chance in hell he’d ever look less than lethal. “It will take time to get the Wolf into the country and find an appropriate place to meet here. Likely, a few weeks.”
Not enough time to help if shit hit the fan, but I already knew there would be no aid from the cartel anyway. Emmanuel Osorio would rather watch my father’s world burn than spit to stave off the fire.
“When can we expect the information?”
“Soon.”
Greyson met my gaze, the same thoughts running through his mind clear on his face. I was the leader of an entire city. How much more power did I need to root Cash out?
Rafael stepped forward, and all three men tensed. My uncle chuckled under his breath but kept moving until he could carefully grip my ankle over the hospital blanket. “Heal and be well, tesorita. I’ll be in touch soon.”
“What if we need to reach you?”
Rafael grinned, and it was a shark’s smile, all teeth and terror. “I’ll be around.”
Right.
Nate and Dominic crowded Rafael until Moore and Tennessee took over escorting duties in the hallway. Now that Rafael was gone, I didn’t want to stay in the hospital. All of the Marcosa powerhouses were in one room—minus Cameron—and I didn’t like it. There were too many unknowns, too many things that didn’t add up, and my gut was screaming that my allies weren’t as loyal as I thought they were. I had to show them that I was still the queen, still the baddest bitch in this city, but to do that, I had to leave.
Before I could get too squirely about it all, Dominic spoke up. “I don’t like this.”
Of course he didn’t. That didn’t change the fact that it was happening.
“We need the information, and this is the only way to get it,” I told him.
“That doesn’t make it the right choice.”
“No, it makes it the only one.”
Dominic growled under his breath and turned to me. He was still handsome, still the man I’d loved as a boy and a friend as close to me as any other, but he had a weariness in his shoulders now. The blue under his eyes that spoke of a sleepless night and stress. He was worried for me. Even after we’d ended, he cared. I didn’t know how to take that, so I pushed it aside for future Mari to look at later.
I’d almost lost them. I didn’t care as much that I’d almost died; I cared that I’d almost lost them in the process. That my last memory of Greyson would be him bleeding out on the floor. Nate’s voice on the phone. Dominic telling me he loved me.
“Mari?” Grey’s voice pulled me back into the present. Into the hospital room. At the sight of all three of them, I felt the panic ease a little. “Are you okay?”
Clutching his hand in answer, I pulled him into bed with me. He tried to fight me, but a stern look and a semi-feral growl got him moving. I had no doubt that he was hurting, though he’d hidden it well, but he needed rest and so did I. When we struggled, Nate helped us, carefully arranging the blankets and fussing with the pillows until we were settled, with me carefully snuggled into Grey’s side.
“Whatever else is going on, we can discuss later. Right now, we’re both going to take some painkillers and take a nap.” I twisted my head up, ignoring the ache behind my eyes. “Don’t fight me.”
Greyson’s breath gusted over my face as he kissed my forehead. “I would never.”
“Good. When we wake up, we’re planning a prison break.”
“Promises, promises.”
Nate cleared his throat. “I’ll be just outside the door if you need me.”
I crooked a finger, though it hurt like a bitch. He leaned over me, and I found I liked the way it felt. So did the heart monitor, which everyone thankfully ignored. “You and I have a lot to discuss.”
He obviously knew more than he was letting on about my family, and I needed to know what before we could move forward. If he was a danger to me, he had to go.
“Trust me, I’m aware.” His eyes darkened as he ran his fingers over my cheek. “Sleep well, angel.”
