Page 21 of Queen's Move

“Absolutamente.” His low voice sent a shiver right down her back.

She gripped the edge of her seat and watched him warily. Raina wasn’t a naïve girl. Though she hadn’t experienced much of the world in her 19 years, she had eyes, attitude and a good solid brain. She knew how things worked. Yet with Mateo she couldn’t figure out what he wanted. One moment she would catch him watching her, intently, maybe lustfully. The next she thought he might want to get his hands on her for another, more violent reason.

He was an intense man. Good-looking in a hard, rugged way. He moved with ease, yet his movements had purpose. As though he thought everything through at lightning speed and then executed. She’d discovered, when he kidnapped her from the campus, just how fast and ruthless he could be. Yet, he hadn’t touched her since their arrival. She got this impending sense that he was simply waiting… for something. Probably her mother’s arrival, but she couldn’t figure out why unless her mother had ordered Raina’s abduction. God, she hoped not. She didn’t need another reason to hate the woman.

She stared down at the food, convinced that he would indeed starve her into submission. If she was smart she would start eating. Still, Raina had never been one to go the easy way. The way people wanted her to go. In fact, the more she felt pushed into something, the less likely she was to do it.

“You ever seen Beauty and the Beast?” she asked. “The Beast tries to starve Beauty unless she agrees to eat with him.”

“Interesting,” he said. “And how does this tale end? Did she die of starvation?”

Raina smirked. “No, the manor staff fed her behind his back. They nourished the heroine when the villain refused her basic sustenance.”

“The difference,” he drawled, “between fairy-tale and reality is that the staff here are human, not clocks and candlesticks. They can bleed, they can hurt and they can die. Very easily, mia chica. These people, they will not help you. They know the consequences of disobeying my orders.”

Her mouth went dry and she had to take a quick swallow of water from the crystal goblet in front of her. “So you know the story,” she snapped, avoiding eye contact. “Could’ve just said in the first place.”

“But I do enjoy sparring with you, sweet Raina.”

Her nostrils flared and she glared hard at the table, still refusing to look up at him. He’d shaken her. She had her suspicions, from the way Mateo spoke, the movements of the staff, the armed guards and they’re location, deep in some kind of jungle well south of the US. Mafia. It was the only thing that made sense. The careless way Mateo spoke of torturing the mansion staff. The ease in which he’d kidnapped her. She thought, maybe she’d somehow gotten caught up in the underworld scene. Who exactly was her mother?

“I think your master will not be pleased with my treatment under your care, Mateo.” She was making a leap in logic, thinking Mateo wasn’t the one who’d had her kidnapped, that maybe he wasn’t the head honcho. Though he was strong, smart and capable enough. “Careful, or I might tell him exactly how you’re mistreating me.”

He dropped his napkin on the table and stood. It took him barely a second and he was right next to her chair, overwhelming her with his size, his scent, his essence. She sat stiffly in her chair, determined not to move. His chin was inches from the top of her head. “No man is my master.”

He dropped a kiss on the top of her head, ruffling the fine blond strands. He straightened and strode from the room. She stared after him, for some stupid reason looking forward to their next encounter, the next meal.

She eyed the food in front of her, Atlantic salmon with a dill sauce, sweet peas and herbed rice. It looked delicious, but she’d lost her appetite. She dropped her own napkin on the table and pushed her chair back. It seemed as though she would just have wait until the arrival of her mother. She wasn’t getting a damn thing out of Mateo. No matter which way she baited him, the bastard simply wouldn’t give.

Chapter Seventeen

“This isn’t Miami,” Vee observed, watching from the window as Sotza’s private jet prepared to land. She felt the gentle thump of the wheels lowering.

“You are correct,” Sotza said from beside her, not looking up from his laptop. He’d been on it since shortly after their take-off from St. John’s. He’d seated her, ensured her comfort and introduced her to the flight attendant. Though he didn’t bother to introduce her to the five or six guys sitting further back on the plane. They in turn didn’t look up when Vee was escorted onto the aircraft.

Vee eyed the mountainous rainforest-like land surrounding the small airport. “Pretty sure this isn’t Venezuela either. We haven’t been in the air long enough.”

Sotza closed his laptop and tucked it away into the leather laptop bag. He leaned into her, forcing her to shift away, closer to the window. He glanced past her, out the window and said, “Your knowledge of geography is exemplary, my dear.”

She wanted to scratch his eyes out every time he said something in that deep dry voice with his British accent. It was like being mocked, but so subtly she barely noticed. She suspected this was just Sotza though. He appeared gentlemanly and mild-mannered. Until it was time to go to work.

Two could play that game. Vee was nobody’s fool. She had a good, smart head and she could be as much of an asshole as him. “Putting my excellent knowledge of geography to good use,” she said coolly leaning toward the window again and studying the landscape. “I would say we’re probably in Mexico. Maybe somewhere in the Durango region.”

He looked somewhat impressed. “Well done my dear, but no, we are currently landing in the state of Sinaloa, though we’re very close to the Durango border.”

She should have known. “Business,” she muttered.

“Indeed,” he said, reaching over to fasten her seatbelt as the plane began sharply descending. “We need to refuel somewhere and, since Domingo is no longer an appropriate Mexican contact, I had to find someone else. I will also be discussing business here, with this contact, mitigating some of the damage on the East coast.”

Vee rolled her eyes and tried to shove his hands away, but he persisted until she was properly belted in. “It’s a little hard for Domingo to do much of anything without his head. Good move there, Sotza.”

“You couldn’t control the man,” Sotza said sternly. “He insulted you at every turn and gave his people orders to attack you. His life could no longer be sanctioned.”

“God help anyone that looks at you funny,” she muttered, staring hard out the window as the plane landed on the runway with a slight bump. From her vantage point, it looked like there were several vehicles further up the runway, ready to meet the plane. Sotza had clearly organized this meeting ahead of time.

“Are you afraid of me, Vee?” Sotza asked gently.

She turned to give him a scathing look, but it fell away as she was forced to take in his regal, rugged features. The seriousness of his expression, the hidden depths buried in his enigmatic gaze. She took in a sharp breath and decided to tell him the truth. “Yes, of course I’m afraid of you. Anyone with half a brain would be. You cause a wake of destruction everywhere you go, but you do it in such a way that everything is perfectly organized to your specifications once the dust has settled. It’s a terrifying prospect to be your captive.”

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