Page 84 of Sin With Me

Chapter21

Cameron

“Security!”A voice boomed from within the warehouse. Three brawny men who were sitting comfortably on the couch jumped up and took their guns from their holsters. They all rushed for the door at the sametime.

Shit!

This wasn’t good. Tonight’s transaction was supposed to go smoothly, yet there was chaos in the warehouse. I stepped to the side and looked through the one-way window. A woman dressed in black, wearing a face mask, kicked one of the body guards dead center in his chest. It was a professional move, one I’d seen my younger brother Brook practice many times in karate. Winded, the guy fell back and lost his gun. When she grabbed the doctor by his arm, a fire caught the side of the truck. It exploded, throwing them both backward. Seconds later they got up and ranout.

Fuck!My father’s heart was in that truck! Without the vital organ, it was time for me to leave.

Shots were fired, and I fell flat to the ground. The smart thing to do would have been to escape, but when I crawled toward the back door that led out of the office to the other side of the warehouse, I felt a gun jab into my ribcage, and so I stopped.

“You’re not going anywhere.”

“It doesn’t look like our business transaction will come to fruition tonight. I’m out of a heart and out of time.” I pointed to the blaze in the warehouse. “Cops will be here in a moment.”

“And we won’t be. Let’sgo!”

Aaron Cortez pushed me forward, out the back door. Crossing him would have been almost as bad as crossing his father, Mateo Cortez. I’d never met the guy. I doubted that many had, but my options to find a viable heart for my father were limited.

Cortez’s name had come up more than once in my lifetime as a bounty hunter, but I’d never taken the risk. The offers were never high enough, and even if they had been, finding Cortez was impossible. Neither I nor any of my brothers would agree to a bounty for hishead.

“Ease up on the weapon. I’m not armed.”

Unfortunately, not tonight.

He poked his gun harder into my ribs. I could have thrown Aaron’s gun right out of his hand, but that would have implied guilt. I was still hoping for an amicable solution to a disastrous evening, one that wouldn’t result in me becoming the hunted.

“You’ll be lucky if you get out of here alive.”

Yeah, maybe I was wrong. My defense mode kicked in after all, and before he realized what was happening, I turned around and struck his arm. The gun fell to the ground. I threw one punch, then another and another until Aaron was on the ground, heaving.

I sprinted to mycar.

“Shit! She slashed my tires!”

If I’d ever found that bitch, I’d make her pay. Sirens wailed in the distance, and from the orange glow, I could tell that the warehouse fire was quickly becoming an inferno.

Pain exploded as someone struck the side of my head. “You’re going to pay for this,” Aaron grunted. The gun was back in his hand and he dug it into my side again, forcing me toward a black Hummer. The glimmer of hope that those tires were flat as well faded. The vehicle had been parked too far away from the warehouse, secluded and hidden between large bunches of shrubs. He pushed me forward until we reached the Hummer.

I was forced into the back seat between Aaron and a Hulk look-alike who reeked of sweat.

“Go!” Aaron said to the driver.

He took off before the door shut closed. How in the world had this night turn from a promising one to a disaster? And if I thought things couldn’t get any worse, I was wrong.

“Where are we going?”

“Shut the fuck up.” Aaron looked nervously through the window. Two minutes later, a firetruck passed us, followed by three cop cars. We drove for another half hour before parking underneath a bridge in one of Brooklyn’s industrial areas.

“Getout.”

I followed the Hulk and stepped out of the car. He pushed me to the side and forced my body against the hood. I twisted around and out of his grip, switching our positions only to feel the back of a gun handle on the same side of my head as before. This time, my skin gave way and split, and warm blood trickled down the side of my face. My eardrums rang, momentarily blotting out the world.

“You set this up.” Aaron pointed his gun at me and I lifted my hands up in theair.

“No fucking way, man. My deal was and is firm. You get me the heart, and I get you the money.”

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