Page 28 of Deadly Intentions

“Drew.” I greeted my longtime friend. “Glad you’re here.”

His eyes moved beyond me and locked onto the woman laying behind me. He stepped into the room and edged closer to Harley. “What the fuck happened? Where’s Catarina?” Drew ran his palm down Harley’s head, careful not touch the wound on her temple. “Get me some fucking gauze. This needs to be cleaned and dressed.”

I blinked, surprised at the venom in his voice over a woman he didn’t know. In all my years of knowing Drew, I’d never seen him react like this before. “That’s Catarina’s supervisor and friend. My guess is she stumbled upon them kidnapping Catarina.”

“Mother fucker.” Drew took the antiseptic Vin handed him and tended to her injuries.

“You alright, Drew?” Massimo questioned. He was just as confused about Drew’s response as the rest of us.

“Yeah. This woman didn’t deserve this. It just pisses me off.”

“Alright.” Massimo turned to us. “We need to find out whatever we can about this doctor. Vin, I want you and Drew to go to his house and see what you can find. Thanks to Harley, we have that info.”

Drew bristled at his request. “You sure I’m not needed here?”

Massimo quirked his eyebrow at him. “Positive.”

“Right.” He stepped back and turned to Vincenzo. “Let’s go. Watch her. Make sure she doesn’t throw up and choke.”

“I’ll make sure she’s good.” Antonio tipped his head toward the two men as they headed into the hallway.

“That was weird,” I remarked, shaking my head.

“Madison will be here in two hours, Antonio. She’s going to ride back with the private medics I hired to transport Michael to your house. A doctor will be waiting to review his files, which I’ve already procured from Harley. I will leave it up to you on whether you stay behind.”

“Fuck.” He cradled his head in his hands and propped his elbows on his knees. “I don’t know what to do. Catarina is my sister, but we’ve just found him.”

“Go with Michael,” I answered. “We will bring Catarina home. He needs you more than she does.”

“If something happens to her, I’d never forgive myself.” Antonio looked pained.

“I promise you. I will do everything in my power to make sure she’s safe.” My voice carried an air of authority. My only priority was Catarina. No one else mattered. Not even my own life.

“Can someone tell me what the fuck is going on?” The detective’s angry tone cut through the tension.

“Shit.” Antonio glanced toward Massimo.

“Alex.” Massimo blew out a frustrated breath. “Shut the door.”

Alex joined us in the small room and shut the door behind him. “Why in the fuck is the nursing supervisor laying on a gurney with a bandage on her head?”

“It seems Dr. Brooks is in bed with Javier Costa.”

“No shit,” he grumbled. “I just received word from my superiors in Reno that his name came up in an online search as being connected to him through a dummy business.”

“Well. He has Catarina.” Massimo nodded toward Harley. “And she was the unlucky victim of poor timing.”

“I need to call this in.” Alex slipped out his phone.

“Hang on a second.” I reached out and pulled his device from his hand. “You can’t do that.”

“What the fuck do you mean, I can’t do that?” Alex stepped into my space, bowing up in defense.

“Hey. Calm down.” Massimo grabbed me from behind, stopping me from knocking the shit out of him. “Alex. I know you want to do the right thing, but we can’t involve the cops”

“I am the cops.” Alex crossed his arms over his chest and waited.

“You know who I am, Alex. You have to understand why bringing in anyone else in a city we don’t know could be detrimental to my family.”

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