Page 63 of The Pursuit
TRISHA
El Sangre was my target tonight, and Raghav, the man who was once a mafia himself, was now the only one who could help me get inside the drug lord’s den. A strange feeling washed over me as we neared the dilapidated building. I had worked with Ayaan back in Singapore, but working with Raghav was different—trusting a former criminal with a mission like this felt uneasy, even though he was on our side now.
Although I was nervous as I stepped inside El Sangre’s lair, Raghav was completely poised, as if this were just another day on the job for him. We were stopped by the guards at the door, their eyes narrowing as they took me in.
“Who’s the woman?” one of them growled, eyeing me up and down suspiciously.
Raghav responded smoothly. “She’s with me.”
The guard shook his head. “She can’t go in with you to meet El Sangre.”
Raghav’s arm snaked around my waist, pulling me close. “She goes where I go.”
I forced a grin at the guards, playing the part of Raghav’s eye candy. The guard made a call, informing someone—presumably El Sangre—about the woman with Raghav. My heart raced. If El Sangre denied my entry, Raghav wouldn’t be able to do anything, and our entire plan would be compromised.
While the guard was still on the phone, Raghav snatchedit from him and spoke in an authoritative voice, the Spanish words rolling off his tongue smoothly. I had no idea what he said, but damn, the man had an attitude and a convincing power that could change even his adversaries’ minds. He grinned, handing the phone back to the stunned guard, and without a word, he pulled me through to the next gate. The guard had understood that El Sangre had given permission for his woman to enter.
I let out a sigh of relief, but tensed again as we approached the next set of guards. The building was swarming with men, all securing the path to their boss. These guards stopped us, wanting to check for guns or ammunition. Raghav and I exchanged glances, allowing them to pat us down. I had hidden a knife carefully under the guise of a bracelet as no one would suspect it was a weapon.
They finished their checks and nodded us through, but one guard stopped me.
“Take off your ornaments too, including that bracelet.”
My heart plummeted. If I removed the bracelet, I would have no weapon to kill El Sangre. I argued, refusing to take it off. When the guard tried to grab my arm angrily, Raghav lunged forward, punching him in the face.
“Don’t touch my woman,” he growled protectively, turning to me with an expression that said he didn’t care about the consequences of my keeping the bracelet on. Right now, getting inside was the priority—how to kill El Sangre could be figured out later.
I agreed, throwing the bracelet off and walking in, chewing on the gum-like transmitter the entire time. These fools had no idea that the seemingly innocuouschewing gum was actually a soft device I would use to signal Krish and the team to storm in once El Sangre was down.
Raghav and I entered the dimly lit den, and he quietly pointed out El Sangre amidst a group of thugs and guards in front of us. We hadn’t expected him to be surrounded like this—we thought he would be alone so I could take him down easily. Now, without a weapon and with all these guards, I would have to take them down manually, even if I signaled Krish and the team to come in.
El Sangre approached, saying something in Spanish to Raghav, looking seemingly happy to see him.
I murmured urgently, “You better greet El Sangre and make your exit, like to the washroom, so I can take them down one by one.”
Before Raghav could respond, El Sangre was standing before us, his cold eyes appraising me. Raghav replied in Spanish, his arm tightening around my waist as he pulled me flush against him, playing the role of a possessive companion convincingly. I forced a sultry grin, acting the part.
El Sangre chuckled, a deep, unsettling sound. He said something else, and Raghav tensed beside me, his expression darkening.
“What did he say?” I whispered.
Raghav’s jaw clenched. “He wants you to dance for him. For everyone.”
“What?” I angrily retorted.
“That’s what I promised him to get you inside,” hemuttered. “El Sangre has a thing for exotic dancers.”
Damn this man!
“How could you?” I glared at Raghav, who shrugged.
“That was the only way in.”
My stomach churned, but I knew I had to play along, at least for now.
“Any problem?” El Sangre asked as he looked between Raghav and me.
“No problem,” I replied before faking a smile and turning to Raghav again. “Your part is done,” I whispered, moving closer to him. “Get the hell out of here.”
