27. Parker
PARKER
I swung my keys around my finger as I prowled through the commons. Some of our men dipped their heads in greeting, but Anton jogged to catch me.
“Sir. Where are you going?”
“Out.” I sent him a grin, but it dropped as soon as I faced forward again. Anton was more of Grey’s man than he was mine. Still, he wouldn’t jeopardize his life by trying to stop me. Which was precisely what he’d do if he tried.
Die. Painfully.
So much fury, the likes I’d never known before, simmered under my skin. Just behind my sternum was a swirling vat of molten rage thrashing against my ribs, threatening to spill over into the rest of my body. I could practically feel the ghost of it in my fingers and toes.
Fucking Vicente.
Fuck that motherfucker to his grave. Which is exactly where I wanted him.
Before the break in our bastard brother bond. Before Amorette. Hell, even before yesterday, I only wanted out. Yeah, I wanted to make it a painful break and give Vicente a dose of his own medicine. And take my part of the Institution with me.
But now?
Now, I wanted to take everything from the devil himself, and make him bleed while he watched. Then, once he knew he’d lost everything, I wanted to take one of Grey’s serrated knives and have a go at his gut. Play around for a while.
I had a feeling nothing would be quite as satisfying as the warmth of his quickly cooling blood coating my skin. It would be one of those fleeting moments that I’d know only in that second and never again.
It would be worth every inch of required sacrifice to experience it.
“Andre said no one was to get in or out of the compound. It’s too dangerous.” Anton’s voice shook, a sure sign that he knew what he was doing.
“Hmm.” I slowed to a stop and turned to face him. “Is Andre the King of the compound, and I just didn’t know it?”
I swiped my thumb over my bottom lip, highlighting the smile trying to break free. Some people frowned when they were angry. Some had faces twisted with terrible rage.
But since I’d been maybe twelve or thirteen, I smiled. It didn’t matter if I was angry, frustrated, or sad. I smiled. All the ways I’d serve revenge cold were too good to not smile about. It was what kept me going.
Anton glanced at my mouth and gulped. He at least knew this little quirk about me, which wasn’t saying much. I smiled all the fucking time. The smirk was my signature look.
Who knew… Maybe there was something in my eyes that gave away exactly how much patience I didn’t have.
“No, sir. But we’ve talked to our friends outside the island. It’s not safe for you to leave. Andre gave the order until things died down a little.”
“When are they going to die down?” I mused and took a step forward.
“When Vicente has humiliated us until we can’t show our faces?
When our people who are not on the island are dead?
Until one or all of my brothers are dead?
How about when he razes the island to the ground for fucking giggles? Will it be safe for us then?”
His face paled as I took another step toward him. Then another until his back slammed against the wall. I reached up my hands, and he flinched.
I grinned even wider as I gently straightened the collar on his black button-down and smoothed my hands down his shoulders. “How about this? I’m leaving. I have shit to do, and unlike my weak-ass brother, I won’t hide under a rock until the deck is so stacked against us we’re dead, anyway.”
Anton dropped his dark gaze, then glared back at me with false bravado. “Fine. But I’m going with you.”
“Is that so? And what are you going to do when Andre asks why you disobeyed a direct order?”
He flexed his hands at his side, fear clinging to him like a bad perfume. “I’m going to tell him I kept his baby brother alive.”
Well, well. What do you know? Maybe Anton should be my friend instead of Grey’s.
I clapped his back and started pushing him toward the doors. “Why didn’t you say you wanted to tag along from the beginning?”
He laughed, and it was almost as dark as Grey’s. Not bad. He definitely had potential. I knew Grey had trained him, so he wasn’t a complete waste of space if he was coming with me. Anton might even serve a purpose.
More of our underlings cast us curious glances, but no one else tried to get closer. The men at the gate just stepped back when I approached. Glad to see some of our men still had their wits about them.
“I’m going to do the checks and get the chopper ready. You can help, or you can sit in the front and look pretty.” I let go of his scruff as I started walking around the chopper.
He helped, though that wasn’t surprising.
By the time we were in the air, I still hadn’t received a call from Andre. Either he was still down from his migraine yesterday, or none of the soldiers had ratted on me. I’d like to think the latter. Regardless, I’d find out soon enough.
“Where are we headed?” Anton’s voice crackled over the headset.
The sun was setting and soon it would be dark. He should have had a clue. Maybe it was a mistake to bring him.
“A club in LA. It’s Vicente’s favorite money maker.” I glanced at him. “And ran by Maikel, my least favorite uncle.”
“Your only uncle,” Anton added.
I shrugged. Semantics didn’t really matter. I wasn’t fond of anyone in the Institution, but I did have a little extra hate in my heart for what Vicente loved the most. That was this club. And Maikel because he ran it.
“What is it? A nightclub?”
“The front is. The back is a strip club and a gambling hotbed for organized crime in the US.”
“You’re not worried about the Feds tracking you? Surely, you’re a known member of the Castillo cartel.” He glanced over at me with the lights on the dash highlighting his harsh features.
Of course, they knew. But there were bigger fish to fry when we handed them pawns and enemies from time to time. Vicente got to keep his hands clean, and the Feds looked good. The public never knew they were taken as part of an agreement between the cartel and the Feds.
They even gave us special permission to fly this beauty over the border.
That wasn’t a relationship I feared would turn on us anytime soon. Not while Andre was around. For all his faults, he handled his business with rigid precision.
“Not a concern,” I answered as we dipped to the right.
Anton didn’t say another word the rest of the flight. He kept his gaze locked on the horizon, probably wondering if this was to be his last trip to the US. He’d be fine, but the man was definitely gearing himself up for something.
When we landed and climbed into the car waiting for me, I called Jorge. He didn’t waste my time with useless questions, instead jumping right into the thick of important information.
“Vicente is at his mansion like we suspected. Maikel is locked away in his gallery, but Sanders is there. In case you want to have a little fun. All our men are accounted for.” He hung up.
Perfect. Sanders was a little bitch who thought he was a big shot because he ran guns for Vicente, among a few other dangerous items. Of all the factions, he was probably one of the savviest businessmen Vicente worked with, but he was also an American-born man who came over to the dark side after an unfortunate set of choices in college. He was also not much older than me.
He’d always had a chip on his shoulder because he thought my brothers and I were more important than we were.
“Please stop smiling. It’s giving me the wrong impression of what we’re about to do here.”
“We’re here to fuck shit up.” I clapped him on the back as we moved through traffic. It wouldn’t be long now, and I’d be able to upset Vicente just a little bit. It wasn’t the satisfaction I was looking for, but it would do until that day came.
And it would. Eventually.
Hopefully, sooner rather than later.
At least for this trip, my brothers and our sweet little love were tucked safely away in the compound. I didn’t like the guilt of Little Love’s kidnapping on my shoulders. The looks my brothers gave me were enough to shrivel my balls up.
No, thank you. Let’s not do that again.
Anton cursed periodically right up until we stopped at the front entrance. I hopped out and locked the vehicle.
“Sir,” the valet said as he reached out his hands to take the keys. I pretended to toss them at his face, and when he flinched, I pocketed them instead.
“I’m a family friend. You won’t want to tow it. Otherwise, it will be your head.” I winked, letting the thicker part of my accent bleed through. I studied so many languages I didn’t use one unless it suited me. And now, it suited.
The young kid of barely twenty-one paled and stepped back. Apparently, the cat got his tongue. Perfect. I wouldn’t be here that long.
Neither would he.
This particular club sat outside the city proper, and Vicente owned the real estate two blocks in every direction. It made everyone’s life much easier when there were fewer spying eyes.
The entrance line was primarily men and mostly wrapped around the side of the building well into the alley. There were a few women here and there, but the real beauties were either on the stage or had already been pulled from the line to enter.
“That’s Mr. Adair.” I heard whispered at the entrance as the bouncer stepped back. At least one of the people working the door recognized me. And it seemed from the reverence in their voice, they weren’t aware of our little family squabble.
Fantastic.
The first floor was all stages and lights. Women in various levels of undress twined around the poles while one main dancer took the spotlight on the stage. But I wasn’t here for this level. I was here for the back room. Or the gambling floor.
Anton walked two steps behind me. When I glanced back, he had his hand on his waist, where his conveniently tucked gun was, as he glared at anyone who looked like they would breathe in my direction.
At the back of the club, one woman with a shimmering evening gown stood with a clipboard. Something much too classy for the strip floor.