Page 52 of Heart of a Devil
Gabriel took in the scene with a quick nod, arriving right as Torres came back to consciousness. “Did you say he threatened Sam and Max?” he asked, glaring at him. When Lauren confirmed, he punched him even harder than I had. Lights out again. It was easier that way, anyhow. Meant he couldn’t struggle or shout for help as we carried him down to the garage. He’s too bloody big to wrap up in a rug, and sadly we’ve agreed to leave all his limbs attached so we can’t chop him up and chuck him into trash bags.
Lauren left me and Gabriel to do the heavy lifting and buzzed ahead of us, ready to deflect any passing interest. Fuck knows how she was going to explain it, but I was confident she could. Inthe end, we lobbed him into the back of my car without anybody crossing our path.
Now, after driving for the best part of an hour, we’ve arrived at this tiny airstrip, which turns out to be a few miles from Samantha and Gabriel’s new home. It’s deathly quiet at this time of night, with a reception area manned by a security guard who looks as though his nose has been broken multiple times. This isn’t the kind of place where Hollywood A-listers board their private jets.
We’re expected, and the guard waves us through right onto the tarmac, where a jet is waiting, all lit up against the night sky. The steps come down, and two extremely hard-looking men emerge, both dressed in black, both dark-haired with intelligent brown eyes, both from the same Hispanic crime lord supermodel agency as Alejandro.
“Ms. Montoya?” one of them says to Lauren, nodding respectfully.
“Yes,” she replies, “that’s me. I presume my cousin sent you?”
“He did. We’re, uh, colleagues of his, based in Barcelona.”
“Colleagues, huh?” She gives him a dazzling smile. Jealousy stirs unpleasantly as I watch her flirt with the guy, and I remind myself he’s only doing his job and that she needs to feel normal again.
“Well, admittedly not the kind who hang around the water cooler and gossip about Kevin from accounts, but we’ve worked together on projects for many years now. I’m Antonio Rivera, and this is my twin brother, Javier. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
He shakes her hand and lingers a bit too long for my taste. A low growl emerges from my throat without me telling it to, and Javier laughs. “Baby brother, behave yourself,” he chides. “We’re here to work.”
“I’m only your baby brother by five minutes. But you’re right.” He turns to me and Lauren again. “I apologize for mysheer charm and handsome good looks. I use them far too often.”
Lauren grins at him but places a hand on my arm. “This is my boyfriend, Sebastian Donovan, and his business partner, Gabriel Sullivan. If you ever need friends in London, they’re good men to know.”
“I see that.” Antonio nods at each of us. “Now, shall we get to the matter at hand? I believe you have some cargo for us?”
The Rivera twins walk with us to the back of my car, and when I pull up the lid, Diego Torres immediately starts yelling for help. We wait, letting him scream himself hoarse, waiting for him to get the message that nobody’s coming to his rescue. Eventually, Antonio shrugs and punches him, rendering him unconscious yet again. “That’s better. Okay, let’s load him in—big bastard, isn’t he? Was he hard to take down?”
“Ask Ms. Montoya,” I reply, helping heft his legs out. “She’s the one who took him. Had him zip-tied to a chair and bleeding by the time I turned up to rescue her.”
He laughs and shoots her an appreciative look. “I’m impressed.”
“Well, now my life is complete.” She holds her hand to her heart, but there’s no sting to her snark. “Do say hello to my cousin for me, won’t you?”
None too gently, the two brothers drag and bump Diego across the tarmac before hoisting him up the steps, swearing in Spanish all the way. Once he’s in, Antonio turns toward us, gives us a salute, and retracts the stairs. We watch as the plane taxis down the runway and takes off.
“Bit anticlimactic,” I say as we gather back at my SUV. “But I’m glad he’s gone. Gabriel, should I drop you at home, mate, and you can get your car from town tomorrow? Seems daft to drag you all the way back.”
He agrees, and we let him out at the edge of his driveway. I note with approval the additional cameras in the trees around the property and that the code on the security gate now involves a retinal scan. My daughter is in safe hands.
“So,” I say to Lauren as I start the car up again. “You fancy stopping off somewhere? Bit of food, a drink, whatever? It’s been a batshit-crazy day and I’m fucking exhausted, but if you’re hungry or you just need to take your mind off things… Or how’s this for an idea—I could see if that cottage is available? The one from that first night?”
I glance at her profile as I drive, not sure which way she’ll jump. “Yeah. Actually, that might be nice. I know I’ve got to go back to my place and sort it out at some point, but I really don’t have the energy for it right now.” She groans. “I hate that his blood and guts and piss are all over my living room.”
“Not to mention a couple of his teeth. You did quite a number on him. You want me to send someone round, start the cleaning?”
She shudders a little, and I turn the heating on in case she’s cold. “Maybe. Let me think about it. Part of me feels like I should do it myself—like I need to face up to what I did.”
“I’m going to take that as a yes and sort it. I don’t want you having to go back in there to deal with that shit. It’s your home, and he invaded it. You have nothing to feel bad about, nothing to face up to. You know he deserved it, don’t you? And whatever else is coming to him?”
“My brain knows it, logically, but my emotions haven’t quite caught up. I’m sure some of it’s the adrenaline and stress, but I keep remembering how close I came to killing another man. How easy I would have found it. Is there something wrong with me?”
“No. Not one damn thing. You’re perfect. Or at least you’re perfect for me.”
I pull over onto the side of the road and log on to Airbnb. “Shit,” I say after a few moments. “It’s booked. Some other cunts are probably fucking each other onourkitchen table.”
The sound of her laugh fills me with happiness. All is well in the world as long as she can still laugh. “Don’t worry, Seb. Let’s just go home.”
“I do have another option, if you’re up for it.”
