Page 131 of Devil's Claim

Navarro took slow steps toward us. “Yeah, you look like shit, Kruz. He is losing his shit, Jag. You know what that means. Right?”

As he handed Jago a glass, I turned and took long steps, snatching the second drink, tossing the whiskey back in a single shot.

“He’s in love.” Jago sat down on the chair, immediately crossing his legs.

I moved to the bar, pushing Navarro out of the way as he was attempting to pour himself something strong. How could I deny the way I felt? “I don’t know what I feel. Just leave it there.”

“That’s bullshit and you know it,” Jago said. “You killed two dozen men a few nights ago without any hesitation. All because the woman you dragged from Miami had been roughed up.”

“Did you see her face? Did you see what the bastards did to her?” As soon as I threw out the questions, I knew I’d fallen into the trap. “Fuck you both. Yeah, I care about her. Plus, she’s good for business.”

“I’ll say,” Jago snorted. “Christine knows her stuff. Did you know she refused a shipment from what she called a lying sack of shit just yesterday? We won’t be doing business with the group from Brazil any longer. Inferior quality when they assured us the shipment included several pink diamonds.”

I had a sense of pride.

“It would seem Fassi has been busy the last few days.” Jago threw out a carrot.

Navarro snorted. “Eliminating loose ends?”

“He cut ties with two international jewelers. From what my sources tell me, the CEO of one didn’t take it very well.” Jago had a smirk on his face.

“Let me guess. The CEO is no longer working for a pension,” I threw out.

“Ding. Ding. Poor Tonya. She had no idea she’d been used as an introduction to Skyler Worthington and Thomas Callahan. I’ll venture a guess the engagement between Malcolm and Tonya had been a placeholder.”

I shrugged and glanced at Jago. “Unless there were plans to backstab Fassi.”

Jago’s eyes lit up. “A possibility. If that’s the case, our time spent in New York could be bloody.”

At this point, I couldn’t care less. I was eager to end the life of the bastard who’d plagued our business for almost a year. No one before had been allowed to remain in hiding for that long.

Either we’d lost our touch or had fallen into appreciating other aspects of living. Maybe the truth was a little bit of both.

“The regular board and president’s meeting of the Diamond Club is in two days. Right?” I knew the answer. I’d familiarized myself with the layout of the exchange, including everyone who’d been invited.

“Right on schedule. Get this,” Jago mused. “Skyler Worthington is running for a seat on the board. If he’s stupid enough to be playing Fassi, he has a much better opportunity.”

Both Navarro and I shot him a look, Navarro laughing.

“Whatever the case, he’ll have more control over selected importers,” I said absently. “Maybe he believes himself to be king of the world.”

Jago nodded. “Plus, obtaining a seat will mean a coup for their jewelry business. If they block certain legal importers, Fassi will become an extremely rich man, perhaps the richest in the world. Or just the opposite and Worthington and Callahan will have the world of precious jewels in the palms of their hands.”

“More money, more power.” Navarro sighed. “What about your cousin? Any other news?”

“He had an attack on a small shipment. Nothing he couldn’t handle. I think nothing more than a warning.” Jago didn’t appear overly worried. “My cousin is no fool, even if he lacks in common sense and decency. I’ve tasked him to keep his ear to the ground.”

I nodded and thought about how out of control the entire situation could become if we weren’t careful.

“What is it, Kruz? I can tell you have something on your mind.”

Jago always knew when something irritated me. “Why go to the trouble of attacking Eduardo? What did Fassi have to gain?”

“Maybe he hoped we’d waste time protecting the man’s empire,” Navarro suggested.

While I didn’t buy it, right now whatever Eduardo was into couldn’t matter. What we were planning was risky, especially since there was a basic plan to destroy all parties with no meat to how that was going to happen. This wasn’t a situation where the use of muscle would provide results. Even with Christine’s expertise, we were sorely lacking in enough information to make the attack successful.

After taking another swallow of my drink, I checked my watch. It was almost time for the wedding, more a formality thananything, but with pictures inevitably showing up on social media, the look had to be right to bring Fassi out in the open.

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