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Octavio shrugged and slouched back in his seat. “Your funeral if you disappoint her.”
I studied him from the corner of my eye. He was laying it on pretty thick.
I already knewthisasshole didn’t have my best interests at heart. Was he promoting some agenda of his own under the guise of it being Mom’s? Or simply hoping to trip me up by pointing me down a path Mom wouldn’t have wanted at all?
No doubt he’d be oh so happy if I came out of this looking inept. Or dead.
Following his advice seemed like a surefire way to screw myself over. Whatever Maverick did, I’d just have to find some way of laying down the law that didn’t involve murdering him. Then I’d be happier and Octavio would be unhappier, and at least it’d be a win in those two ways.
And if Mom didn’t like it, she was welcome to hand over the role of second-in-command to this cabrón here and cut me loose.
Our car pulled into the chosen meetup spot first, a dusty stretch of hard-packed earth in the middle of nowhere, about halfway between Austin and Dallas. The transport truck carrying the high-end stolen cars collected by one of Mom’s subsidiary gangs rumbled after us, followed by two more cars that contained my squad of backup lackeys.
Maverick wasn’t the only one who needed to think about how he’d come across in front of his companions tonight. If I betrayed any weakness while Mom’s underlings were watching, things could getverydifficult back at the house.
I stepped out into the night. The fresh country air was a relief as it flooded my lungs, but I didn’t dare step more than a few feet beyond the hood of the car. Even with supposed allies, you had to be cautious.
Our headlights caught on a few cars parked a couple hundred feet away. A cluster of figures peeled themselves out of the shadows around those vehicles and sauntered over to meet us.
I hadn’t seen Maverick in three years, but it was easy to recognize the prick right there in the middle of the pack. He held himself like a tubby, redneck Napoleon surrounded by his shittily tattooed army. Arrogance radiated from his stance like a bad stench.
As they approached, I drew my frustratingly short frame up a little taller and held my ground.
He aimed a sneering grin at us with a glint of his crooked teeth. “Cordova sent her little girl, huh? Maybe I should take that as a gift.”
I rolled my eyes. “The less time I have to spend anywhere near you, the better. You can see we brought the cars. Where’s our money?”
He clucked his tongue at me. “Now, now. Don’t get your panties in a twist. You shouldn’t have come out here if you were on the rag.”
His fellow goons snickered. Frustration prickled through my veins, but I kept my tone totally bored. “Do you have the cash or not?”
Maverick motioned at one of the guys behind him. The sunburned thug swung a duffel bag for Maverick to grab.
The asshole took a couple of steps toward me but then stopped rather than continuing forward to offer up the bag. Instead, he set it on the ground in front of him and unzipped it.
Normally it’d be my people doing the counting to make sure the Hellborn were giving us what we were owed. I would have said as much, except Maverick didn’t just paw through the bag’s contents. He immediately started pulling out wads of bills and tossing them in a growing heap beside him.
“What the hell are you doing?” I demanded.
He glanced up at me, a gleam lighting in his eyes that was both sadistic and a little crazy. “You’re not the real woman in charge, now are you? I figure you’re worth barely half my respect. So you get half the payment. Seems fairer that way, don’t you think?”
Another chorus of guffaws, these ones both shocked and awed, carried from his crew.
My teeth set on edge. “Actually, I don’t think so. I didn’t drive all the way out here to be insulted, and I carry the full authority of the Cordova family. Deliver the agreed upon paymentnow, or you’re going to regret it.”
“Big words from a little pipsqueak of a girl.” Maverick shook his head. “Nah, I like my way better.” He took another handful of cash out of the bag.
Fury seared up through my chest. Fury that this idiot was mocking me. Fury that because of who he was and who I was, I was going to need to betray every shred of morality I had in me to set this right.
But his gang was watching, and so was mine. I couldn’t let his blatant disrespect go unpunished, not if I wanted my deal with Mom—and the safety of the men I loved—to stay intact.
I had to act—and fast, while the element of surprise could offset the size difference between me and my opponent.
I could have gone for the gun tucked into the back of my ripped jeans. I could have blasted the prick away where he squatted. But that would be playing into Octavio’s plans, not mine.
Instead, my hand dug into the pocket of my hoodie and closed around the handle of my knife. Without any warning, I launched myself at Maverick.
He might have had nearly a hundred pounds on me, but I’d trained against bigger guys my entire life. Helpfully, he was already crouched on the ground.
