Page 14 of Connected

“I need you to tell me what happened with Pablo Rodriguez. You don’t just off a fucking guy like that and not tell me about it.”

I raise an eyebrow at his tone. The balls on this motherfucker. If he wasn’t too busy getting his dick sucked, he would know about the situation with Pablo and the countless other problems I’ve dealt with since we took over Temptations. But his lack of appreciation is my own fault, in my quest to be part of Victor’s world, I fucking spoiled Rocco.

“All you said was there was a problem and the next thing I knew, you were changing your clothes, but I don’t remember seeing any blood, so what kind of fucking problem was there?”

Clucking my tongue against the roof of my mouth, I meet his gaze.

“First off, don’t fucking talk to me like I’m beneath you. I don’t give a fuck about bloodlines— we both know I do a fuck of a lot more around here than you do and if it weren’t for me, you’d be fucking dead.”

“Should I tell you where you’d be if it weren’t for me?” he counters, cocking his head to the side.

Oh, I know where I’d be and suddenly, it’s a lot more appealing. Grinding my teeth, I lean forward and match his stance.

“I didn’t know Pablo was even in the club until Miguel came to me and told me Pilar was unresponsive in one of the VIP booths. I immediately took her off the floor and brought her downstairs, he gave her a shot of Narcan, and I played back the surveillance tapes. Luckily, Rodriguez is a greedy motherfucker and stuck around after he sold to her. I knocked his two guys out and grabbed him when he was taking a piss, his dick was still in his hand when I dragged him to the basement. You want to know his last words too?”

Swiping a hand over his face, he mutters a curse. I lift an eyebrow at his response and laugh bitterly.

“I’m sorry, should we grieve the motherfucker who was dealing drugs in our club and nearly killed my girlfriend? Wait, maybe I should’ve paused before I pulled the trigger and asked your permission.”

“For fuck’s sake, Joaquin, I’m not fucking busting your balls for taking him out. You should’ve seen Uncle Vic’s face— he lit up like a Christmas tree. He was so proud and thanks to you, I’m nephew of the year and— ”

“What are you talking about? How did Vic know?” I ask, fearing the guys fucked up when dumping Pablo’s body.

He sighs, leaning against the leather cushions of the couch as he spreads his arms across the back.

“Did you stop to ask yourself how Pablo was allowed into the club?”

Recalling the conversation, I had with Omar before I made my way up to Rocco’s office, I nod.

“Omar said he was on the guest list, which is crazy because I checked the list earlier in the afternoon. I didn’t have a chance to dig deeper into it because Victor suddenly appeared, and I had to get back to Pilar.”

“Victor put Pablo on the list.”

“What? That makes no sense.”

“It was a fucking test, one I apparently passed thanks to you.”

“A test,” I repeat. “Why the fuck would he test us?”

The only logical explanation would be that someone reported some bullshit to him— my guess, that weasel Jimmy Gold. He might be Victor’s right hand, but there’s something not right with that motherfucker and it isn’t just his gold teeth.

“Bro,” he calls, demanding my eyes. He swipes a hand over his face and his bloodshot eyes go wide as he blows out a shaky breath. “I don’t know, and I don’t want to get ahead of myself, but what if he was testing me because he’s finally decided to make me a made guy.”

The tension that was escalating between us only moments ago suddenly dissipates, and I stare at him, trying to find the words. If that’s the case, that’s a huge deal. It’s huge for me too seeing as I can never be made. Having Rocco play with the big dogs is good for our crew. It gives us the power we lack in the organization. You see, him being a made guy means he can essentially do whatever the fuck he wants. He can take out anyone so long as he isn’t a made too and use his weight with the family to make a score. It means he has a say in what the fuck goes on. But more than any of that, it is his chance to finally step away from his deceased father’s shadow and rid himself of the tarnished reputation he inherited because they shared the same name.

Still, Victor setting us up like that, I don’t like it. Not only because I have another man’s blood on my hands, but because Pilar was a victim of his games.

“Wait a minute,” I start, pausing to swallow the lump in my throat. “When you say Victor set us up with Pablo, what does that mean?”

“He put his name on the list to see how I’d handle having a well-known drug dealer on my turf. You know how he feels about drugs.”

Pilar’s face flashes in my head as I rise to my feet and start to pace in front of the coffee table separating us.

“So because Victor wanted to test you, Pablo was allowed in the club with his drugs. Was Pilar part of the plan too or was she just a fucking coincidental casualty?”

“Uncle Vic has no idea who Pilar is,” he says, narrowing his eyes for a moment.

That’s not entirely true. During a few of his visits, he’s met her. She even came to dinner with us one night. I never introduced her as a girlfriend or anything like that, but that shouldn’t matter. She was with me and if . . .

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