Page 22 of Wicked Union
"The FBI. They're serving a search warrant on the laundromat. Someone finked on us again, said we're laundering money." Carlos steps back, and I know he's right. I have no choice.
I lean over and kiss Aria, stealing her breath. "I have to go. You be awake when I get home, and stuff your panties in your pussy like a good girl."
Her whimper is enough to let me know I'm needed, and I leap out of the car with one thing in mind. I will find out who did this and I will kill them. Even if it's Hector Peralta himself. Even if Aria finds out.
17
ARIA
At home, I shower and dress for bed. The look on Tito's face when Carlos interrupted our sex was physically painful to me. Not only did I really want to have sex with him, but the anger in his eyes cut me to the quick. I was the one who betrayed him. I was the one who guided Carlos to leak the information to Tito's enemies who inevitably leaked it to the police. I had no idea it would rise to the heights of the FBI.
I curl up in bed and set my phone on the nightstand. Tito hasn't checked in, and I’m not sure if I want him to. I don't know if I can keep lying to him—or myself. I should hate him for his sneaky, traitorous actions. I should want to murder him in his sleep for trying to own my father’s business, to prey up on his vulnerability after losing my brother. I should loathe him from somewhere deep in my soul.
But I don't.
For some ridiculous reason which I can't begin to comprehend, I actually felt guilty and ashamed of myself when Tito lunged out of that car, desperate to go clear his name. I come from a very long line of liars, scoundrels, and thieves, but I am not one ofthem. At the heart of who I am, my being can only anchor itself in compassion and concern for others. I thought I could do this, and maybe if I didn’t have this strange dynamic of being married to him, I could.
But I can't. I have to tell Carlos it's off now. I have to. Hurting Tito even in his business isn't who I am as a person. And now there is this strange bond.
Tonight at dinner, I expected him to scold me for sulking or order me to smile more. But something was different about him. He was kind and patient with me. The compliments he poured over my soul felt like droplets of water to a thirsty plant. He surrounded me, and yet he gave me space, and now I'm confused and conflicted. I may be developing feelings for him, but I can't. It would mean Jasper's killer goes free.
The phone rings, startling me, and I jolt and tense before taking a deep breath. It's just a phone call. The screen on my phone is lit up, but it's not the ringtone I saved for Tito. I push my naked form upward to prop myself on one elbow and see the caller ID displayed. It's Carlos. My shoulders tense. I don't want to talk to him. I should never have commissioned his help.
The phone stops ringing and the screen displays a notification that I have one missed call. Behind it is the picture of Jasper and me on the day of my wedding. He looks cross with me, and I know he was. He hated my marriage to Tito.
He tried to warn me.
I should have listened.
Now Jasper is dead and I'm in a mess of trouble. I should be with my family, mourning, but they're not my family anymore. Tito is my family now, and while he'd allow me to go, I'm afraid the onlything that will happen is his talons will tighten on my father's organization until there isn't anything left for Dad to grab on to.
I stare at Jasper's face on my phone screen with an aching heart until it goes black and I remind myself why I’m here. I’m not here to fall in love and live happily ever after. Tito is fucking with my mind, that's all. He knows the game and he's playing it well, and I would be wise to follow his lead. I have to continue my plan with Carlos, making him look better in every way than Tito so their father will make Carlos the leader and not Tito.
When that happens, Carlos will see to it that Dad's businesses are separated back to him, and I will get out of this ridiculous marriage contract by proving Tito broke the statutes in the agreement. Even if I have to bruise myself to do it.
The phone rings again, and again it's Carlos, but this time, I don't hesitate to answer. I lift the phone to my ear after swiping.
"Yes?" I say and hear a very breathless man on the other end of the line. If I'm not mistaken, it sounds like he's scared.
"He's gonna find out. He's on a fucking rampage. What the fuck did you get me wrapped up in?" Carlos is furious and scared, a dangerous combination.
"Nothing you didn't already want. Now calm the fuck down or he will figure it out, moron." I swing my legs over the side of the bed and sit there with a palm pressed to my forehead. I feel tired and nauseous, and my heart is screaming at me to stop and back out of this whole thing, every part of it.
"You stupid bitch. You are going to get me killed."
His insults don't affect me. I grew up with a brother who was being trained to murder without remorse. That's a pet name to me.
"You could step off the curb and be hit by a bus tomorrow, Carlos. Life is a risk. Just live it. Now just follow the plan. Stay calm, and let the information work for you. If you don't stop freaking out, you're the one who's going to get us busted." I sigh and continue. "Give it time. The FBI knows everything now, and your father will bail Tito out. He'll pry around, but it will look like the Russians. They have nothing on us."
My heart hammers but I’m confident I’m right. Even if they did trace it back to us, Carlos can get me proof that Tito ordered the hit on Jasper. I know it was my fault. I'm the one who got him killed, but my parents don't know that. They'll only think that Tito crossed lines and the agreement will officially be terminated. I can’t get that proof on my own, or else I'd expose him now and be free.
"You'd better be right," Carlos hisses before he hangs up, and I exhale in relief.
Maybe I have it all figured out, or maybe I am subconsciously self-sabotaging. Tito isn’t that bad as a husband, and the sex is incredible. But none of that is worth the cost my family will pay in the end.
"There you are," I hear, and I look up to see Tito walk into the bedroom. His eyes are wide and bloodshot. The stench of whiskey wafts in my direction, wrapping around my throat like his hands when he fucks me. "Who was that?" he asks and looks down at the phone in my hand.
"Oh, it was Carlos. He called me to tell me you were pretty upset. He suggested I help calm you down." I toss the phone onto the nightstand and feel my heartstrings being tugged by the lie. I'm feeling guilty over lying to him now? Oh, fuck, I have it bad.
