Page 36 of Faking With My Grumpy Billionaire

“I told her she should take one even if she isn’t feeling sick because then she would know if she was going to have any side effects,” I added.

“Valid,” Lucas said with a small nod.

“I’ll see,” Maya said with a small shrug, and I had a feeling she wasn’t going to be doing that.

“Not that I don’t love the surprise, but why the hell are you here?” I asked with a playful smirk as I handed him the beer.

“Why don’t we all sit down, and I can explain a few things,” he suggested, and I didn't like the sound of that, but we all went over to the table, nonetheless. If he was here that meant he found something in Maya’s case, and I suspected it wasn’t going to be anything either of us wanted to hear.

“What’s going on? What did you find?” I instantly asked. The very last thing I wanted to do was drag this out.

He bent down into his soft briefcase and pulled out two files as he spoke, “I looked into the case, and I wanted to come down here so I could show you what I found. I know I could have done this over the phone, but in my experience it is always best to have these conversations face to face. That way you both can ask any questions you have and can see the files.”

“In my experience, bad news is always done in person.”

I could hear the mixture of hurt and defeat within Maya’s voice, and I hated it. I knew it would be a long shot that she would be safe after five years, but I had been hoping for a long shot. Hell, my whole career had been a long shot. I had worked my ass off to get into the NFL, but that didn’t mean a team was going to draft me. There were plenty of guys that were just as good as me that didn’t get drafted. It was a long shot that Maya was currently pregnant. Long shots seemed to be our thing, and I had been hoping with everything in me that we could pull off another one.

I couldn’t help my own fear starting to bubble up. If it wasn’t safe for her, I knew she would want to run to protect Zoey and me. That was the last thing I wanted. I wanted to be there for her while she was pregnant. I wanted to raise this baby together. I wanted to be a family, all four of us. And that couldn’t happen if she was living in another country under a fake name.

“I did find Santiago and Diablo. However, I didn't find them in prison,” Lucas started, but I cut him off before he could get much further.

“They’re out?” This couldn’t be happening. These men should have been in prison until old age took them. How the fuck could they have gotten out?

“Whoa, no, no they are not out. Both Diablo and Santiago are dead,” Lucas stated in a hurry to stop any further panic from growing within either Maya or myself.

A wave of cold wash splashed me right in the face at his words. Out of all the possible scenarios that were playing out in my head, that wasn’t one of them. They were dead. Did that mean Maya didn’t have to run anymore? Was she actually safe?

“What?” Maya barely managed to get out. I looked over at her, and I could see her whole body was tense. Clearly she had been prepared to hear that they were out and hunting her down, not that they were actually dead.

“Santiago was killed three years ago by a rival cartel. He had a good run for a couple of years of being in charge at the prison. He had multiple guards in his back pocket. However, Escobar was a leader from a rival cartel, and he was transferred in three years ago. It didn't take long before he had control over the prison. He bribed the guards to allow him and six other members of the cartel to jump Santiago while he was in the shower.”

“Does Santiago’s cartel blame Maya for his death?” I asked.

“Chatter suggests that they don’t. After Santiago went to prison, everyone was pissed for about a year. After that, the new head of the cartel was killed, they turned their attention to that target. Within the past five years they have gone through a lot of management changes. They are too busy with the cartel wars they got going on right now to even care about Maya.”

“And Diablo?” Maya softly asked next.

“Diablo had multiple attempts on his life. From victims reaching out and paying inmates to kill him to other inmates trying to kill him because Diablo killed someone they loved. He had been placed in protective custody for the last two years. A year ago, he was killed by a guard, Matthew Winters. He used to be an English teacher at a high school. He became a prison guard when he got word where Diablo was being kept. Diablo brutally tortured and killed his fifteen-year-old daughter because she was talking to the police about a human trafficking ring that was trying to recruit members at a community center.”

“So, no one is looking for her?” I asked. We needed to make sure we understood this fully. I didn’t want to get my hopes up, but it was sounding like she didn’t need to hide any longer.

“I’ve checked with every agency and all online chatter, no one is looking for her. She’s old news, and the new leader of the cartel is very happy to be in his position. He’s not going to risk being arrested for trying to kill Maya over Santiago. And with Diablo dead, there is no pay out, so his contacts moved on,” he finished explaining with a warm smile.

“It’s really over? I don’t have to hide anymore?” Maya asked, and I could hear a bunch of emotions mixed into her voice. This was a lot for someone to take, and I knew it wouldn't fully sink in just yet.

“WitSec removed your name from their database. You are no longer within the program nor need to be. You’re free Amarya,” Lucas said with a big smile, and I knew he was happy for the both of us.

We didn’t have to worry about someone coming for her. We could actually be a family, all four of us. This was more than I could have ever asked for. I never thought it would even be possible for her to be free from them. I could see the tears building within her eyes, and instantly I got up and wrapped my arms around her. Her tears quickly mixed with her laugh, and I knew they were tears of pure joy. She wrapped her arms tightly around me.

“I’m free,” she said against my shoulder, and I could hear the relief and shock in her voice, but I could also hear the excitement. She was free to finally be herself again. To have a life and not have to hide and jump at shadows. The whole world was at her fingertips now, and I couldn’t wait to see what she was going to do with it. What we were going to do with it.

Maya

“Whatdoyouwantto do about the property taxes?” I asked as I kicked my feet up and placed them on the other chair across from me.

It had been a week since we had discovered that I was a free woman now. A fact that was still hard for me to accept and believe. I knew it was going to take time. You couldn’t go from looking over your shoulder all day and night for five years to suddenly not having a care in the world. I was still being cautious, but I was trying to relax a bit as well. I had immediately told Holly that night, and she was over the moon excited for me. She had also agreed it was best for me to take it slow. I didn't have any social media pages, and I didn’t think that would be something I was going to have anytime soon. However, I was walking with my head up and not being afraid to say hello to people that walked by.

It was slow progress, but it was progress, and I was happily taking it. Even my morning sickness seemed to be getting better. I still had some days where I felt terrible, but those days I did listen to my body, and I spent it in bed just relaxing and getting some sleep. There was definitely a shift in the house between Charlie and me. I felt like we were truly connecting and now with me no longer being in the program we stood a chance at having a real relationship. You could feel the difference in the atmosphere around us. I never thought this would be possible, but I was living it. I was actually living in a home with a family. It all felt so surreal, and if this was a dream I never wanted to wake up.

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