Page 65 of Reckless Woman

“You kept me alive because I reminded you of yourdaughter?”

His lips quirk. “I was hoping some of her good would shine through you one day, but you kept crushing it with this inherited hatred you have for me. Unfortunately, my patience has run out. You made a bad move threatening the safety of my wife by blowing up her doctors’ aircraft.” He releases his fist from the knife and holds up his bloody palm. “That’s when I knew you were not of my blood, Viviana. You were ofhis.You are nothing but your father’s daughter, and I should have killed you months ago.”

“I don’t believe you,” I croak.

“I couldn’t give a fuck if you believe me, or not. You’ll be dead in a minute anyway.” He chucks the bloody knife onto the table. “I know why you came here. You want the name of our FBI insider, and you were willing to walk into a lion’s den with dead meat wrapped around your shoulders to get it.”

“It’s only a matter of time,” I splutter. “Once we blow your insider’s cover, your whole organization will crumble. We know most of your intel comes from him.”

“Better keep that secret extra safe then. As for yours...” He jerks his head at the iPad lying uncovered on the tray. “That’s the security footage from the office earlier. There’s no sound admittedly, but I’ll trace the calls.” He pauses for a moment to let this sink in. “I hope you didn’t make yourself too comfortable at my desk, Viviana...not when I’m about to nail you to it.”

He lunges for my hand as I unleash a string of hate in Spanish. His grip tightens and I yelp in pain. “You laid the foundations well. You built a house out of your deception, but I’ll always be the big bad wolf who blows it down.”

“¡Hijueputa!”

“You were arrogant. Complacent. Did you think I’d let a sea snake slither into my world without knowing everything about her first? Did you think I didn’t hear what you said to Grayson in Colombia?” He’s crushing my bones now. The agony is breath-stealing. “Killing Whit Harris and his obstetrician was the stupidest fucking thing you could have done.”

“You’re the stupid one, Santiago,” I spit, scrabbling for ascendency before I die a horrible death. I’m under no illusions of what my uncle is going to do to me. “You let me wander these hallways straight to your daughter’s nursery.”

“What you fail to realize,” he says, sounding bored, “is that you were watched at all times. By cameras, by two-way mirrors. The moment you lifted a finger to her, a bullet would have taken it clean off.”

I blink as reality comes crashing down. The player didn’t just get played. She was never in a fair game to begin with.

“Eve smelled your deception the minute you walked in.”

“And Grayson?” I wheeze, shooting him a mocking smile.My only weapon left now is words. “I hear your aircraft was scattered across three counties.”

“He’s not dead, Viviana.” He wrenches my cell out of my pocket and holds it up. “I know that he survived the plane crash, but there was a moment there—a briefenlighteningmoment—when you made me believe that regret was a rose with sharp thorns. For that, the punishment is…” He lunges forward again to grip my chin, forcing me to look at him. “He and I are blood brothers,” he snarls, his mask slipping. “You hurt him, you hurt me. You fuck with my family? You better be saying your prayers at night. Do you have any last words before I make your existence a misery?”

“I hate you,” I wheeze.

His expression resets to chilly indifference.

“Iwillmake you suffer, Viviana. Give me the name of who you’re working for, and I’ll make it quick. You have my word. I don’t enjoy torturing women, especially on the same day my youngest daughter is born.” His grip on my chin intensifies, but it’s hard to distinguish the pain from my throat and wounded knees anymore. “Is it Benni Morozov?”

Not exclusively.

“Which bastard sent you?”

Fear is an animal holding me fast in her jaws, but I’ll never betray Papá.

“You may have outsmarted me,uncle, but you’ll never win this.”

“I’m not a patient man,niece—”

“Helearned to take death as an old debt that sooner or later should be paid,” I whisper, misquoting Einstein at him.

“—Nor do I like repeating myself.”

“Dig your grave. Suffer the consequences.Vindicta!”

I’m choking out my final battle-cry when there’s a noise at the office door. From Santiago’s abrupt reaction, it could only be his wife.

He drops my chin and rises to his feet. “What is itmi alma?”

She never speaks, but whatever she conveys on her face is enough for him to leave my line of sight right away, barking out a terse order to Sofía.

“Keep her here. Reece is on his way.”

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