Page 6 of Death Drop

The scrawny man narrowed his eyes, making the scar rise on his cheek. “You’ve seen how your mother has gotten. Going off the rails, lashing out at people—half the time when they haven’t even done anything wrong. We figure we’re better off not following her orders than trying to stay in line.”

Mr. Lightning Buzzcut nodded. “She can’t keep up like this for long, not with the mess she’s gotten into. You’ll be the new Deadly Rose soon. So we came to you.”

The woman sketched a faux curtsy. “We’re here to prove our loyalty. Take us under your protection, and we’ll let you know anything we find out about your mother’s plans. We’ll stand with you if she sends anyone after you.”

I had to hold back a laugh. These three figuredIcould protect them? I hadn’t even been able to keep my coach and lover safe. They might be better off pretending they’d never heard of the Cordova family at all.

But they were here. They were making an appeal to me. There could be safety in numbers for both of us.

And if I wanted to keep my men out of the worst danger from here forward, having whatever intel these defectors could pass on could make all the difference.

“I can’t make any promises,” I said, unwilling to lie. “It’s not like I have the kind of manpower my mother can wield. But if you’re willing to work for me, I’ll do what I can to take care of you.”

As soon as I was sure I could actually trust them. I considered my options. “Do you have a secure place to stay?”

Scarface wrinkled his nose. “We’ve been hiding out in one of the local hostels. Not exactly prime digs.”

I hummed to myself. “That’ll have a lot of people coming and going. We’ll have to fix that. Our apartment at the Izumi Tower is already pretty crowded, but I’ll see about getting you a place nearby where you can lay low as soon as possible.”

The woman let out her breath in a rush. “That would be an amazing start.”

I took out my phone. “Let me get your names and numbers so I can get in touch.”

It turned out the woman was Ursula, the big buzzcut dude was Dámaso, and the scarred guy went by Frankie. I saved their numbers in my phone and lifted my head to meet Ursula’s gaze again, since she seemed the most eager of the bunch.

“How exactly did you getmynumber?” Only a few people in the Deadly Rose ranks had gotten a direct line to the heir apparent, and the three lackeys in front of me weren’t among that number.

The trio exchanged a glance. Ursula jabbed her thumb toward Frankie. “This guy managed to take a peek at Mireya’s contacts and wrote it down. I told him he was insane, but I guess it worked out in our favor.”

Frankie grinned. “Let’s hope so.”

We parted ways, the gangsters heading across one of the bridges and us backtracking the way we’d come. When we were well out of earshot, Jasper shot me a sideways glance. “What’s the Izumi Tower? The place we’re staying isn’t called anything like that.”

I smiled slyly in return. “I know. I noticed it during one of my grocery runs—it’s a building a few blocks down the street.” I turned to Rafael. “I’ll need you to keep an eye on it for the next few days to see if my mother launches any attacks there. If she does, then we know our new friends were looking to double-cross us and passed the info back to her.”

Rafael let out a low chuckle. “Smart thinking. I’ve made a couple of contacts on the wrong side of the tracks while you were off skating over the past couple of weeks… I can arrange to have the building watched.”

I took a gulp of the crisp air and let it wash some of the tension from my lungs. “Well, our rink time would be over by now anyway. Let’s head to the hospital. We can grab some lunch and eat with Niko if his parents are done visiting for the morning.”

Quentin rubbed his hands together. “Sounds good to me.”

It was a short trip from where Rafael had parked the car to the hospital where Niko had been admitted. I watched Rafael navigate the unfamiliar streets with a mix of affection and awe. He hadn’t even been fully mobile for most of his time in this new country, still recovering from his own injuries after an attack by his brother’s old gang back in Austin, but he’d managed to adapt in all kinds of ways already.

The hospital’s underground lot was pretty full. We had to park a couple of rows over from the elevator. As we headed over through the artificial light, two men in well-fitted suits stepped into our path.

What now?I couldn’t help thinking as I jerked to a halt, my body shifting into a defensive pose. Rafael’s hand shot to his holster.

“You don’t want to do that,” one of the men said smoothly with a flick of his eyes toward the gun. “We’re here on behalf of the Bright Dragon and the March Wind of the Devil’s Dozen.”

Oh, shit.

THREE

Luciana

Facingoff against two representatives for the world’s top criminal masterminds wasn’t quite as scary as dealing with the head honchos themselves, but only by an increment. The thirteen crime bosses who made up the Devil’s Dozen were the most powerful figures in existence, considering that between them they controlled all of the illegal activity around the globe except the pettiest of crimes that could escape their notice.

Mom was one of them. I’d met a couple who didn’t seem all that bad. But the majority, to get where they were, had turned brutality into an artform. And the two men in front of us were no doubt sanctioned to act on their behalf.

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