Page 76 of Vendetta

I swallowed as the warmth of his touch ran straight from his skin down to my belly. “Not really.”

What they did was justified. It didn’t make them good men, but maybe bad men killing bad men for the right reason was a sum positive in the world.

“Good, because we couldn’t have let them live, anyway. Francisco won’t agree. That was his second in command, Marcel, and his pack.” Cruz dropped his hands to my shoulders. “You understand what that means, right?”

“Nico is Francisco’s heir. I’m sure he trusts Nico’s judgment.”

Would he, though? Those men weren’t just soldiers, they were part of Francisco’s inner circle. I tried to consider what my father would do and shivered.

Cruz tangled his hands in my hair. “A harsh punishment is coming at the very least, if not war. We need you out of the line of fire. Nico is going in to talk to Francisco. It’s the only chance we have to avoid more bloodshed. We won’t be able to protect you against him, but your father can.”

I wrapped my arms around Cruz’s waist and buried my face in his soft, black T-shirt. “What do you mean? My father can? Clearly not. If that were true, I wouldn’t be here, now would I?”

His thick fingers threaded through my sun-warmed hair. “The island is a fortress. We were only able to infiltrate it on a lucky tip, and even then couldn’t get you out. This will work.”

“What if I want to stay?”

He pressed a kiss to the top of my head. “Then Francisco will force Nico to torture and kill you.”

“What? Why would he do that?”

“That was always the plan. Francisco’s hate for your family rivals anything I’ve ever seen. Once Mariposa was murdered, any possibility of mercy was gone. But you changed everything.”

“We didn’t do that.” I was almost certain we hadn’t, anyway. “Francisco killed my brother, most of my father’s pack, and left the rest of us for dead years ago. If we were going to retaliate, it would have been then, but both sides suffered. If anything, our hate should be worse. It doesn’t make any sense.”

“Francisco’s motivations rarely make sense these days. He’s more ruthless and violent than I’ve ever seen him. Making rash decisions and flying off the handle at any minor slight. But who can blame him? His wife was tortured to death and left on his doorstep.”

“That’s what I mean. Why would he think my father did that after all this time? I don’t even know how it would be possible. If a dead body showed up inside the walls of our estate, I would assume it was someone we knew. No one else would be able to get that close to the house. It had to have been an inside job.” I nuzzled against Cruz’s chest, breathing him in, seeking comfort. His scent warmed me more than the sun ever could. I didn’t want to be away from him, or any of them, if I could just stop fighting against myself.

“Francisco said it was your father, and we had no reason to question it. All we have to go on is his word.” Cruz’s big hands smoothed down through my hair and under the hem of my borrowed red T-shirt to stroke up my back.

The instinct to purr pulled at my insides as I let out a contented sigh and leaned into his embrace.

“I still don’t believe it.”

Chapter 50

Cruz

“It’s time to go,” Nico grumbled, brushing past us, and continued up the dirt driveway toward the house. Fucking asshole. I got that he was worried, but weren’t we all?

“Nico,” I growled out a warning, clenching my teeth, restraining myself from knocking that scowl off his face.

He kept walking, intent on hiding how bothered he was by all of this, but the anxiety buzzing in my chest showed it for the lie it was.

Oliver walked up behind Rosa, sandwiching her body between us. “All done. Jon’s gonna sanitize the wheelbarrows. Nico’s worried about his dad sending backup if he doesn’t hear from Marcel soon. Which, we all know, isn’t happening. So, we've gotta get going.”

She squirmed out from between us, and I found myself missing the warmth of her soft curves.

Oliver backed off, giving her a little space, but offered her his hand. When she took it, he threaded his fingers through hers and started walking up the incline back toward the house. It was nice seeing him so content instead of the standoffish brat he could sometimes be. He needed her more than I realized.

We all did.

She swam in the clothes Oliver loaned her, but the unconscious swish of her hips as she walked away dragged my eyes straight to her juicy ass. She shuffled, almost tripping over those giant slides, and I stepped forward to catch her, but Oliver steadied her, pulling her to a stop and crouched down in front of her. “Get on.”

“I’m not gonna let you carry me around. I am perfectly capable of walking,” she said, but she was doing a piss-poor job at hiding the pleased grin overtaking her face.

“Sure, but what if I want to carry you around?” Oliver glanced over his shoulder at her with big puppy-dog eyes.