27. Chapter 26
Chapter 26
Marcus
Miguel closes his eyes and drifts back to sleep after waking up for the first time in over a week. I stroke his hair, studying the easy fall and rise of his chest. He's sleeping more comfortably today than when we first brought him into the room.
Isaiah leans on the wall by the door with his arms folded over his chest. "I knew no one could take down my father with some weak ass car bomb."
My lips form into a thin line and I brush a strand of loose hair from Miguel's face. "They don't know that though and we won't let them. Makes it easier to catch Del Rae off guard when he thinks he's won."
"What makes you think this was his doing?"
I open the drawer from the nearby nightstand and pull out Miguel's beat up phone. "I don't think, I know."
I toss the phone his way and he quickly steps forward with open arms, catching it between his palms. "What's this?"
"Proof I got the right man. Able located Miguel's phone a foot away from where they found his body. Check the last text message sent from an unknown number." The screen is cracked with a few black lines running down it, but if you look hard enough, you can make out every word in the message. He had warned Miguel to go back to Mexico or he'd hurt his family.
He never wanted to leave me.
He was doing what he thought he had to do. Isaiah turns on the phone, his eyes studying the screen closely. "So, what do you suggest we do? Stand around this room, watching my father sleep his way to recovery while that asshole gets away with trying to have him killed?"
I shake my head, sinking my nails into the pillow beside me. "No. We blow his fucking house down after destroying everything he thinks he has."
"I'm all ears." He stands taller, leaning off the wall.
"First things first, we make sure a few pictures of Del Rae and his lover end up in the hands of his wife. She will care less to hear about his death once she has the evidence of his secret affair."
"How do we get these pictures?"
"It's already been done. Antonio is on his way to deliver them as we speak. It was easy finding the guy he occasionally sneaks away with. Every man makes a mistake and Del Rae's was falling for some big mouth stripper who spends most of his free time bragging about his big, powerful crime lord boyfriend. After Julia's sister was delivered to Del Rae's places of business, he ran scared to make sure his precious pet was safe. Cesar was outside the apartment waiting with a camera in hand."
"Something tells me your plan doesn't end there."
"No. Not even close. A tracker was placed on his car and earlier this morning he took us to where he's been staying. Some run down trailer on a farm forty-five minutes from here. I thought we'd go there and show him a new way to feed the animals."
Isaiah cocks his head, his lips stretching into an evil grin. "Tell me when and we'll be on our way."
I glance down at Miguel, tracing the healing wounds on his face before meeting Isaiah's eyes again. "When."
Isaiah calls for Able to get the car ready and without question he does as asked. Carlos and Joey are waiting for us outside, standing in front of their vehicle. "Let's get this over with." Carlos opens the back door and gets in after Joey does. Isaiah gets into the front seat of the other vehicle, and I climb in the back. Cesar and Germo stay behind with Miguel, along with Trenton. Mateo and Gabriel are on their way and would be here soon, so I don't have to worry about Miguel being alone.
We pull up in front of the house, not too close to get noticed, but enough to see how many men Del Rae had standing outside. Not enough. Able steps out of the car and walks into a wooded area across from the house, getting lost in the trees. A few firebombs go off from further down the road, getting the guards to look the opposite way we are coming from. One rushes toward the explosions and the other walks into the woods. We don't get out of the cars until they are out of sight. Another man with a gun emerges from the house and Isaiah aims his AR15 and shoots the guy in the head. Del Rae never steps out and the door is locked when Joey enters. Carlos breaks the door down and Able is right behind us after taking care of the other men.
The front of the house is empty. Heavy breathing and footsteps lead us to a basement. I gesture for Carlos to check outside for any back doorways. He nods, rushing in the direction we'd come from. Able checks the rest of the house while Isaiah and Joey follow me into the basement. We walk down the non-sturdy, partially broken steps. The room is dark and none of the light switches seem to work. Joey turns on a flashlight attached to his gun, and we are surrounded by old pieces of furniture. I pause when a table wobbles. Smiling wide, I sing, "Rock a bye baby, on the treetop…” Pulling out a lighter, I move closer to the rattling noise.
“When the wind blows the cradle will rock.”
Del Ray’s loud breathing leads me closer to him. “When the bough breaks the cradle will fall…"
I flip the table over and Del Rae is crouched over on the ground holding a gun, his eyes are moving frantically from me to the other guns pointed his way.
I continue singing. "And down will come baby, cradle and all." I cock my revolver and Del Rae drops his weapon knowing he has no way out. He swallows hard, lifting his hands in the air. "What do you want?"
"Oh I think you know," Isaiah says from beside me.
"I don't know what you think you'll accomplish, but if you kill me—"
"What? Your wife and lover will forge an army for justice for your death." I laugh, twisting my lips. "Not likely."
"People will come looking for me."
"Oh we're counting on it," Joey spits. "In fact we will make it very easy for them to find your head." Joey grabs a machete from the wall. Del Rae's eyes grow wide as Joey lifts him by his hair and slams him face down over a large piece of wood from the broken table. He lifts up the weapon and brings it down to Del Rae's neck in one hard blow, only cutting halfway through the flesh and cartilage. Del Rae's body convulses, his arms flailing. Joey lifts the blade again and brings it back down a few more times until the head is separated from the rest of the body. "Wrap the head in a bag and make sure it makes it into his lover's trunk."
Isaiah lifts up the head, and blood drips, adding to the puddle on the floor. "What about the rest of the body?"
My lips twist. "We'll see if the pigs and chickens have been fed yet."
Joey starts hacking the body into pieces. "I'll see that there's enough to go around."
"Good. I'd hate for anyone to miss out on the special of the day."
I help Joey toss the remains into the animal pens and judging by the way they waste no time biting into each piece of flesh, it's obvious it's been a while since anyone's fed them. Likely Del Rae had killed the real owners of the property and was using the house to stay hidden. He didn't do a good enough job. I take off my gloves, throwing them into one of the fires caused by one of the bombs. Del Rae had caused an explosion and in the end was the one who got burned.
I get in the car with Able and this time Isaiah rides home with his men. The only thing I can think about is getting back to Miguel. “Miguel isn’t going back to Mexico is he?”
“I don’t know.” I shrug, not meeting Able's eyes.
“Mateo doesn't seem to think so.”
“Did he?” I glance out the window, tapping my fingers on my leg, hating how fast my heart is beating. “I don’t think any of us speak for Miguel.”
“No, but you know as well as I do, Miguel will do anything you ask him.”
I don’t want Miguel to stay for only me. I want it to be for him too. “Miguel will be the one to decide in the end what he does, and I will support him even if his choice doesn’t involve me.” My throat tightens and the restlessness inside me feels like it's ripping at my skin.
“Ah, I was ready to leave Mexico anyway. What I want is closer to here.”
“What’s that?”
“More like who, let's just hope I’m as convincing as Miguel was with you.”
I laugh. “I think he knew he never had to try too hard to get me back in his arms. I liked watching him put forth the effort anyway.”
“Miguel never thinks with his brain when it comes to you.”
“We have that in common apparently.”
Able doesn’t talk the rest of the drive and neither do I. Closing my eyes, I focus on the soothing sounds of the road until we are back at the house. I waste no time getting out and rushing inside. The room is mostly quiet and the only sounds filling the small space are Miguel's breathing and soft snores. I strip out of my clothes and climb underneath the covers, snuggling up beside my Papi. I’m now less scared than before for what our future together will bring, but I am willing to give it my all after the last few weeks of events. As it turns out, I didn’t have everything taken from me before, but almost did eight days ago.
I nudge my head into his shoulder, and he hums, pressing a kiss into my hair subconsciously. The gates to my heart open wide and I don’t think I can ever close them again.