CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
The evening sky over Cuba painted the horizon in hues of orange, pink, and violet as the sun began to sink into the ocean.
Ramon walked barefoot along the beach of his private estate, the warm sand beneath his feet a comforting contrast to the cool breeze rolling in from the water. The sound of the waves crashing against the shore, accompanied by the occasional rustle of palm trees, created a serene atmosphere that did little to calm his restless mind.
Ramon’s thoughts drifted to his brother, Lorenzo, as they often did during these last few months. It had been two months since Lorenzo’s death, but the loss was still felt fresh, a gaping wound that time had failed to heal. His brother had been everything to him. They’d grown up side by side, navigating the dangerous world of the cartel together, always watching each other’s backs.
But now, Ramon was alone, left to carry the weight of their legacy on his own shoulders. His brother’s absence was a constant ache, a hollow void that no amount of power, wealth, or revenge could fill. He missed Lorenzo’s laugh, the way he would light a cigar and crack a joke even in the darkest moments as if to remind Ramon that there was still something worth fighting for. Without him, the world seemed colder, more dangerous, and infinitely lonelier.
As he gazed out at the endless expanse of the ocean, Ramon clenched his jaw, a familiar surge of anger rising within him. He promised himself that the person responsible for his death would pay. He would make sure of it, no matter how long it took. But even the thought of revenge did little to soothe the ache in his chest. Lorenzo was gone, and no amount of bloodshed could bring him back.
He headed back inside and went to his office. There was some paperwork he needed to complete before the day’s end.
Just as he sat down and booted up his laptop, the sharp ring of his phone cut through the silence.
Ramon picked it up from the desk and glanced at the screen, a smirk appearing on his lips.
“Tyson,” Ramon answered, his voice low and controlled, though a hint of irritation seeped through. “I was hoping to hear from you soon. What news do you have for me?”
“Well, for starters, how about Gabriella Allen.”
“What about Ms. Allen?”
“I’m literally looking at her from across the room.”
Ramon felt his heart rate spike.
“Where are you?”
“At some local restaurant joint that my step-sister dragged me to. Ms. Allen is here with a group of friends. It seems like they are celebrating something.”
Ramon leaned back in his chair. “I see.”
Tyson cleared his throat. “Uh, there is something else you should know.”
Ramon pinched his eyebrows. “What’s that?”
“You’ll never guess who else I ran into today. And it appears that she is friends with Ms. Allen.”
Ramon rolled his eyes. He fucking hated guessing games.
“Who?” he asked a bit impatiently.
Tyson chuckled. “Check your email. I just sent you a picture.”
Ramon turned to his laptop and brought up his email. He clicked the message from Tyson and then clicked on the attachment.
As soon as the picture popped up, Ramon froze. He felt a slight squeeze in his heart.
“Selena...” her name left his lips in a whisper.
However, Tyson must have heard him because he said, “The one and only.”
Ramon had wondered where she ended up when she disappeared six years ago. After he killed their parents because they became a weak link to the family business, Selena feared for her life and took off, not wanting to be a part of their illegal affairs.
At the time, she had been dating one of his good friends and business associates, Omar Bolivar, and he didn’t even know where she had gone. But Ramon knew that even after all these years, Omar still craved Selena. He had hired private investigators to look for her. But she was smart, and up until now, she had managed to evade being found.
Suddenly, Ramon’s office door opened, and his other brother, Ruben, walked in.
Ramon waved him over and pointed to the chair in front of his desk. He held up his finger, signaling to him to wait a minute.
“What would you like for me to do?” Tyson asked.
“For the time being, just keep an eye on both of them. I need to make a call to someone before I decide how I want to proceed. I will be in touch within a few days.”
Ramon disconnected the call before Tyson could say anything else.
He sat there for a moment, letting the news of what he had just learned sink in.
“You look like you’ve seen a ghost. What's wrong?” Ruben asked, breaking the silence in the room.
Ramon looked at his brother. “It seems our baby sister is friends with the enemy.”
Ruben shot back in his chair as he looked at Ramon. “Selena?” he spat.
Ramon nodded and then proceeded to tell him what Tyson just told him.
Ruben stood up and started pacing.
Ramon leaned back in his leather chair, fingers steepled in front of him, as he through everything.
Ruben suddenly stopped mid-stride and turned toward Ramon. The look of disbelief and disgust was written all over his face.
“You’re being serious. Selena is alive, and she’s involved with this Gabriella woman?”
“According to Tyson, yes. Apparently, our dear sister, who has been living under the radar for the last six years, is friends with the very woman who had a hand in Lorenzo’s death.”
Ruben clenched his fists, a sneer forming on his lips. “I knew she was a traitor the moment she disappeared, but this? Aligning herself with the enemy? She’s gone too far, Ramon. We should’ve taken care of her when we had the chance. When she went to Omar for protection.”
Ramon regarded his brother, weighing his next words carefully. He understood Ruben’s anger—hell, he shared it. Selena’s departure had been an open wound, one they’d never had the chance to close. She’d abandoned them, abandoned the family when they needed her most. And worse—she’d left Omar, the man who had given her everything, left him broken. Though, if his sources were correct, he had literally broken her too.”
“I’m not going to pretend that Selena isn’t a problem. However, we don’t know if she knows that Ms. Allen was involved in Lorenzo’s death. She may not even know about Lorenzo. Tyson has done a good job so far in keeping our names clear of the incident.” Ramon said slowly, letting his words sink in.
Ruben scoffed, resuming his pacing. “Then what’s the plan, hermano? We can’t just let them walk away from this. We have to avenge Lorenzo. And make Selena pay for her betrayal.”
Ramon’s gaze drifted to the windows of his office, where the last traces of the sunset cast an orange glow over the estate. His mind worked, thinking through every angle.
An idea began to form. Ramon’s lips curled into a slow smile, and he sat up, leaning forward as he fixed Ruben with a calculating stare. “Omar,” he said softly.
Ruben stopped, turning to face him. “Omar? What about him?”
Ramon’s smile widened. “Omar still loves her. He never got over Selena leaving him. She tore him apart when she disappeared, but now that she’s back, he’d want to know. And he’d want her back, no matter the cost.”
Ruben’s eyes narrowed as he began to understand where Ramon was going. “You want to use Omar to get this Gabriella woman?”
“Exactly,” Ramon said, the plan solidifying in his mind. “We bring Omar in. Let him know Selena’s alive and that we know where she is. He’ll be desperate to find her, to bring her back. We use him as our weapon. Let him be the one to get his hands dirty. He gets me Ms. Allen, and I’ll give him Selena.”
Ruben smirked, his anger slowly giving way to a dark satisfaction. “It’s a good plan, hermano. Omar will be easy to manipulate. He’s been waiting for this for years.”
Ramon nodded, his eyes gleaming with cold calculation. “I’ll contact Omar and tell him we have information on Selena. He’ll do the rest.”
“Where is Omar nowadays?”
“Last I heard, he’s been living in the Miami area.”
“I’m just saying. What if Omar doesn’t want Selena back? What then?”
Ramon tapped his fingers against his desk. “Then we deal with Selena ourselves. She’ll face the same fate as Ms. Allen.”
Ruben suddenly looked deep in thought. He turned his eyes on Ramon. “Are you sure you want to bring Ms. Allen back here? Why not just have Omar or someone else take care of her and be done with it? Why risk it?”
The picture of Gabriella was still fresh in his mind. He would never admit it to his brother, but he had become sort of obsessed with her.
“I’m thinking of having a little fun with her first.”
Ruben’s eyes widened. “You want to fuck the bitch who murdered our brother?”
“Oh, I’m going to do a lot more than just fuck her,” he stated very seriously, and a bit irked by the tone his brother was using toward him. “Now, if you’re finished questioning my authority, you can leave.”
Ruben stood up, but before he turned to leave, he looked at Ramon. “I hope you know what you’re doing. The last thing we need is some bitch coming here and causing even more problems for us. If it were up to me, I dump the bitch in the ocean and let the sharks deal with her.”
Ramon watched as Ruben stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him.
He started to wonder if his brother was right and that bringing Gabriella here to Cuba was a bad idea. Would he be opening up Pandora’s box and inviting a war to his doorstep? He thought about it, weighing the pros and cons. Sure, hiring someone to take her out would be easy and leave his hands fairly clean. But in his deranged mind, that would be letting her off easy. He wanted to see her suffer before he ended her life.
Not wanting to waste any more time, he picked up the phone and dialed Omar’s number.
Ramon leaned back in his leather chair, the phone pressed to his ear. He drummed his fingers on the glass desk as he waited for Omar to pick up.
Finally, the line clicked, and Omar’s voice came through. “Ramon?”
“Omar, my friend,” Ramon greeted, a smile spreading across his face. “How are you?”
“I’ve been well. What can I help you with?”
“I’m reaching out because I have a proposition for you. It involves the woman who is responsible for my brother’s death. I need you to grab her and bring her to me.”
There was a pause on the other end. “Go on,” Omar said, his tone cautious but intrigued.
“Her name is Gabriella Allen, and she lives in Virginia Beach,” Ramon continued. “I need her brought to me.”
Omar’s voice hardened. “And why are you calling me with this?”
Ramon chuckled. “Because, my friend, I have some information that I think will interest you.”
“What kind of information?”
“What if I told you that I have a location for someone you’ve been searching for?”
The line went silent, and Ramon could almost hear Omar’s breath quicken. “Selena?” Omar said, his voice barely a whisper. “You found her?”
“Yes,” Ramon confirmed. “And she just so happens to be friends with the woman I want dead.”
Omar’s voice turned cold. “Where is she?”
“All in good time,” Ramon replied smoothly. “First, I need to know if you’ll help. Think of this as a two-for-one deal. You get to settle a personal score with my traitor of a sister, and I get my revenge.”
Omar was silent for a moment, weighing his options. Ramon knew the memories of Selena would flood Omar’s mind. The memories of the night she fled Venezuela and the anger and betrayal he felt when she left. But more than that, Ramon knew Omar’s need for control and retribution would drive him to agree to this deal.
“Alright,” Omar finally said, his voice steady. “I’ll handle it. But I want your word that you won’t interfere in my plans for Selena.”
Ramon’s smile widened. “My sister lost her place in our family the moment she turned her back on us. She is all yours.”
Omar was silent for a few seconds before his voice came across the line filled with determination. “Consider it done.”
“Excellent,” Ramon said. “I’ll send you all the details and a contact of mine who is already in Virginia Beach keeping an eye on things. I’m sure he’d be willing to assist you. Just keep me updated, and when the time comes, I’ll have a plane ready.”
Ramon hung up the phone, satisfaction coursing through him. He leaned back in his chair, thinking about how perfectly everything was falling into place. With Omar’s help, he would finally get his revenge on Gabby. And as for Selena, there was no doubt that she would pay for crossing Omar.
He poured himself a glass of whiskey. It was now only a matter of time before everything he planned came to fruition.
◆◆◆
Omar ended the call with Ramon. His heart was racing. Selena. His sweet, sweet Selena. After six long years, he finally found her.
He leaned back in his chair, staring at the ceiling as memories of their time together flooded his mind. Selena had been the love of his life, his everything. But that one night, fueled by drugs and alcohol, he had lost all control. He had taken things too far, punishing her in front of his business associates to assert his dominance. The image of her bruised and broken in the hospital still haunted him. It was a constant reminder of his biggest regret.
He stood up and started to pace his office. Ramon’s request for this Gabriella woman was straightforward enough. He needed to handle Ramon’s business first, and then he’d deal with Selena.
He walked over to his desk and pulled open the top drawer. He reached for the photograph of Selena, which he had kept there. Her bright smile and sparking brown eyes looked back at him. It was a stark contrast to the last time he saw her. He gently traced her face with his finger as a lump formed in his throat.
“I’ll find you, my sweetness,” he whispered before returning the picture to the drawer.
As he went to sit down, his phone pinged with a text from Ramon. It was a phone number for a guy named Tyson.
As he dialed the number that Ramon provided, he pulled up his email and sent a message to her telling her to have his plane ready tomorrow morning for a flight to Virginia Beach. He wasn’t going to waste any more time.