AllFreeNovel
Share Us
My head reels with the realization. I want Marisol as my wife. Taking a shaky breath, I look to Ozzie again. “What happens after the ceremony?”
Ozzie looks away then, refusing to meet my eyes. My heart begins to pound, and I nudge Ruiz to get him to make his cousin answer. He repeats the question in Spanish, but Ozzie only shakes his head. He looks up and answers in broken English. “If she behaves, they’ll leave her alone and put her to work the next morning. If she doesn’t, the guards get to have her first. All four of them.”
An inhuman growl builds from my gut, and I turn from the group. Piper is on her feet in an instant, reacting to me. She drops her head, and the fur on her back stands on end. I stoop and wrap my arms around her neck, crooning in her ear to calm her down. Piper whines. She settles into her ready stance and nudges my arm.
“Me too, girl. Me too.”
I pet down her neck, and she barks at me before spinning around and dropping into her ready stance again. My eyes flit left and right, not seeing, but my mind spins faster than a hamster wheel. I think back to the day I first met Marisol and how impressed she was at Piper’s obedience. It gives me an idea.
Jumping to my feet, I spin to face the men now staring warily at me. “Ruiz, you got a nice suit?”
Knot asks, “What are you thinking?”
“We join in the performance. Have Borrero call the Don. Since the bride's father can’t be there, ask him to walk Marisol down the aisle. Have Borrero say that he has a gift for her. Something from her mother that Ruiz will bring for Marisol to wear for the ceremony. Tell Marisol to hold on and not do anything to jeopardize herself, but don’t tell her we’re here.”
“Wait. Hold up,” Knot interrupts. “First off, if Borrero can call the Don, why isn’t he just calling to shut this whole fucking thing down?”
“Because Dario will kill them both,” Ruiz answers. “He’ll make it look like a rival family did it, but they’ll still be just as dead.”
“Okay, then, based on what you’ve told me, shouldn’t the god-fucker be suspicious of these sudden nuptials? Marisol’s father was just shot up yesterday. Wouldn’t he expect the daughter to postpone the ceremony so her father could be there?”
Knot has a point, but since neither Ozzie nor Ruiz has heard any word from Otero, the point is moot. “I don’t have an answer for the missing father element, but this Cruz asshole has been smooth. He’s had this fake relationship splashed all over the local gossip scene. He’s covered his tracks well.”
Ruiz nods in agreement. “El Gran might question why the wedding isn’t being postponed, but he won’t stop it either. He hasn’t heard any objections from my boss, but we only learned of Dario’s plans last night. Remember, Marisol had been threatened to keep her mouth shut.”
Knot still looks skeptical, so I present another idea. “If the Don asks, have Borrero say that Marisol and Cruz offered to postpone the wedding and that he refused. Say they’re planning to come to the hospital after the ceremony.”
The CEO’s hands go to his hips. “What if Borrero won’t play along? What if the Don won’t accept the story or won’t step in for Borrero? What if he refuses?”
Ruiz and Ozzie chuckle. “He won’t. That man may be a hardass, but he’s sentimental. He loves weddings and babies.” The smiles fade, and Ruiz adds, “And Cirilo is smart. He knows that saying something would start a war. Rivers of Cruz blood would run for their betrayal, but Borrero would still lose his daughter.”
Knot finally seems convinced, but only just. “Fine, but this plan only gives us eyes on Marisol. It doesn’t help us get her out.”
I turn to Borrero’s top man and tip my chin. “Make the call. It’s our only way in at this point. We’ll figure the rest out after.”
Ozzie follows his cousin onto the deck, and Knot grips my forearm to keep me from following. “What is it you’re aiming for here? Did you join a suicide pact or some shit?”
“If Ruiz gets in, he can cause a disturbance at some point. Just enough of a diversion that we slip out unnoticed.”
“That’s if you can even get to her!”
The door opens again, and the two men reenter the apartment. “Cirilo will make the call. We will hear back from him soon. Now that we know how to get you in, how do we get you out?”
All eyes turn to me, but I study the satellite image on the computer screen. A green lawn surrounded by gardens stretches between the main house and an elaborate pool. Two greenhouses flank the travertine deck, and a two-story pool house sits on the opposite side between the pool and the fence. The symmetrical setup features an arched bridge stretching over the water, creating a walkway straight from the lanai to the lawn. “You said the pool house is the staging point, and the minister will be positioned on the lawn near the house?”
“Si. That’s where the chairs will be facing.”
I consider every angle and keep coming back to one place. “We’ve got to get into that pool house.”
Knot pulls out his phone, ready to put the plan in motion. “Birdie, we need some help here.”
At her response, Knot places the call on speaker. “Okay. I’m set. What do you need?” she asks.
“I need schematics on the pool house behind the Cruz estate.”
While Birdie looks, I get on logistics. “We need to figure out the best time to infiltrate. Is anyone staying in the pool house tonight?” I direct to Ozzie.
“No.”
