Total pages in book: 113
Estimated words: 107608 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 538(@200wpm)___ 430(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107608 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 538(@200wpm)___ 430(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
I open the top of a feminine flowery pair made out of hand-sewn crystals and sigh. They’re absolutely beautiful. Maybe I’ve been wrong about Alexei. This is a sweet gift. Perhaps he is the right man to handle the mob. Plus, he did sketch my face. That’s romantic, I’m pretty sure.
Although, I do wonder what business is keeping him out all night.
TWENTY-THREE
Alexei
I’ve brought Miguel Cruz down to the basement of his one-bedroom tenement on the outskirts of San Jose. Oddly enough, the place is already soundproof with plenty of cement blocks set against the walls. Blood sprays show on many of the blocks as well as on the dirt floor.
“You’re not going to get away with this.” He spits blood out of his mouth.
“I actually am.” I sound as bored as I feel. He’s tied to a chair, and I’ve cut ribbons of his skin, but I have to admit, he hasn’t broken as quickly as I would’ve thought. I stab him again, casually in the shoulder, and his jaw clenches.
He has to be around thirty with several tattoos across his face and neck. Some of it’s pretty decent ink. Some of it looks like he did it himself. I’ve cut off part of his right ear, and so I stick to the left side so he can hear me. “I could keep playing all night,” I say casually, twirling the knife in my hand. The blade has always been my favorite device, and apparently I haven’t lost any of my skill with it. I’ve removed his shirt, and his jeans are in tatters. His knees are bloody.
“What do you want, man?” he asks. It’s been a couple of hours, and that’s the first question he has asked. Good. We’re getting somewhere finally.
“I want to know why Reyes wants you dead.” I cross in front of his vision.
His gaze remains on the bloody knife. “I don’t believe you. Urbano Reyes does not want me dead.”
I crouch so I’m meeting his eyes. One’s filled with blood. “I have a kill list, Miguel. You’re the second name on it. You will tell me. You might as well make it quick.” I have no sympathy for him because I know his type. I’m certain plenty of the blood on the walls was spilled by him.
He swallows. “I don’t believe you.” His eyes widen and more blood drips out of the right one. “Did you kill Paco?”
I smile, and he shrinks back. “Yeah, I did.” His mouth gapes open, and he’s missing several teeth. I’ve only taken out two so far. I don’t know how he lost the others.
He shakes his head wildly, and blood sprays. “Why would you kill Paco?”
“He was number one on the list.”
Miguel’s chest sinks and his shoulders slump. There we go. We’re almost there. His breath wheezes out. “How did he find out?”
“He’s Urbano Reyes,” I say. “He’s the head of your organization.”
“He didn’t tell you why?” Miguel asks.
Just as he draws up his chin to be defiant, I stab him in the thigh again. He cries out. “Nope, but you’re going to tell me everything.” I look around at the cinder blocks. “You did a good job soundproofing this basement.”
“Thanks.” He coughs up more blood. I rip the knife out. The sound he makes is indescribable. I’ve been stabbed before. I know how it feels. He swallows rapidly. “You’re going to kill me.”
“Yep,” I say. “It’s up to you whether I do it in the morning or right now.”
He reaches the bargaining part of the dance. “How about we come to a different agreement?”
“I’m listening.” I have no intention of reaching any other conclusion, but I find that giving somebody hope in their last hours is not a bad thing to do.
“I have money. About two hundred thousand dollars. We’ll split it.”
Considering my funds were released earlier, and I already went shopping, that’s a piddly amount. But I smile. “Right now, I want information. Why does Reyes want you dead?”
He swallows, and more blood gurgles out of his lips. I think I may have punctured one of his lungs because he’s wheezing. “He must’ve found out Paco was making a move to take over Twenty-One Purple, and I’m one of his lieutenants.”
“Yeah, but that’s not all.” It’s expected that somebody will make a move. “What else?”
Miguel shudders violently. Yep, definitely nicked a lung. “I don’t know how he found out. There’s no way she talked.” Miguel’s eyes get a faraway look as if he forgets my presence.
I’m sure it’s the brain’s way of protecting itself. “Who?”
He jerks. “Reyes’s old lady. Juan, Paco’s other lieutenant, made a play for her. She wasn’t receptive. He didn’t care.”
I sit back. “What does that have to do with you?”
“I helped him cover it up. I threatened to kill her if she said anything.” He spits out blood. “I meant it. She has no protection now that Reyes is gone. She should’ve taken Juan’s offer.”