3. Chapter 3
Chapter three
Marcus Hernandez sat on his patio overlooking the ocean. His estate on the Florida coast was his legacy. No one would take this away from him. He’d earned it all. This was his empire and he’d be damned if some little twit would be the reason it was taken from him.
He pulled his phone from his pocket and hit a button. “Get here, now, and bring Rodriguez with you.” He had to keep his cool. If anyone noticed a weakening in his demeanor, he’d lose the respect he demanded.
Growing up on the streets of Bogatá, Colombia, he learned early how to survive.
Selling drugs on the street got him the things he needed—food, shelter, and later, plenty of money.
He’d risked everything, including his life, to get where he was today.
If Isla Pierce thought she’d be able to take down his empire, she was dead wrong.
Ten minutes later, Roberto Mendez and José Rodriguez walked around the side of the house, their faces stoic, their bodies tense.
“Boss,” Mendez nodded.
Rodriguez extended his hand in greeting, “Se?or Hernandez, it’s a pleasure.”
“José, glad you could get away to see me. Have a seat. Roberto, sit!”
The men took their seats. “I’m going to get right to the point.
I’m sure Roberto filled you in on the way over.
What should have been an in-and-out hit—the old man of that traitor informant Will Watkins—has turned messy.
This is unacceptable. I don’t allow mistakes in this business.
José, I want this Isla Pierce gone. I don’t care how you do it—just get the job done.
Call our contact in the Agency and find out what she knows.
I pay her enough to keep her ear to the ground.
She better come through if she knows what’s good for her.
José, Roberto is at your disposal for as long as you need.
Don’t let me down. I want that witness dead. Do you understand?”
José was sweating in his expensive suit. But he answered, “No problem, I’ll get it done. It might take a while to locate her, but my team will find her and she will disappear. I guarantee it.”
“Get to it! And keep me updated on every move. I don’t want any surprises. Keep me informed.” Marcus Hernandez picked up his phone and punched in a number, ignoring the men before him. Dismissed, they stood and left the compound.
Isla awoke from a restless sleep. Nightmares had invaded her dreams. Twice she woke up bathed in sweat, her body trembling.
She hadn’t had any more company invading her room so she must have kept her screams to herself.
A hot shower was what she needed to wake herself up.
This was her new normal. The woman who finally had control of her life was now at the mercy of complete strangers for every aspect of it.
That control had been lost in the blink of an eye and that terrified her.
She went to the closet and found a pair of jeans, a T-shirt, and a pair of sneakers to wear.
Even her underwear and bra were the right size.
After finishing with her shower, she dressed and opened the door cautiously, looking down the long hall and listening for any sounds of life.
She heard a quiet murmur coming from the direction of the kitchen.
She found everyone sitting around the table going over papers.
“Morning everyone,” she said. “I’m sorry I woke everyone last night. I hope you were able to get back to sleep.”
“There’s no need to apologize, Molly. You’ve been through hell,” Lara said.
Isla poured herself coffee. “I’m a nurse practitioner in the ER, for goodness’ sake. I thought I’d seen it all. I guess I was wrong.”
Colt looked at her with his intense dark eyes.
She could tell from the laugh lines around his lips that he was a joker, but had also seen a lot on the job.
He replied, “One doesn’t expect to see someone murdered in front of them, Molly.
Murder is never easy to witness. Your mind is just trying to accept what it saw.
You wouldn’t be human if you didn’t feel the way you do. ”
Mitch chimed in. “Molly, there’s breakfast casserole in the oven and bagels in the fridge. Max made it last night since he was on watch. We all take turns cooking. Well, everyone but Lara. She’s not allowed near the stove.”
Lara scoffed. “Hey! Just because I burned one dish, you’ll never forgive me.
One dish! It wasn’t my fault that we ended up in a gun fight and I forgot to turn off the stove before I pulled out my revolver and joined in.
Besides, it worked to our advantage. The smoke worked as a distraction and we caught the guys.
I promise I can cook. I’ll prove it to you all, I’ll make dinner tonight. ”
The men around the table, looked at each other and smirked. Isla laughed, “Lara, you’ve been played! You walked right into that.”
The men just laughed.
After breakfast, Max and Dirk went upstairs. Mitch looked over at Isla and said, “Molly, I want you to know you’re not a prisoner here. You can go outside, with one of us with you. Do you have a hobby or something else that can keep you happy and occupied?”
Isla thought about it. “Happy isn’t a feeling I’m aiming for right now.
But I do paint, sometimes—well, before I got my job.
Can you maybe get me some watercolor art supplies?
That’ll help me to pass some time. And why don’t you let me take over meals?
I’m a foodie at heart, and my mom taught me everything she knows about cooking.
Lara, if you don’t mind, I’ll make dinner for everyone. ”
“Cook away!” Lara whooped.
Mitch looked at Isla. “Are you sure?”
Isla shrugged. “It’ll give me something to do. And I’d like to take a walk if that’s okay with you. I need a way to get some of this pent-up energy out. Maybe it’ll clear my head.”
Mitch brightened. “Give me fifteen minutes and we can go for a walk. Lara, if you’d give Jax a call, ask him if he can have his wife pick up those art supplies.
Tell him not to buy the stuff himself. I don’t want him calling attention to himself.
This is a small town and if you had a look at him, you’d know why I want his wife to buy the supplies. ”
Isla cut a square of the breakfast casserole out of the pan and put a bagel in the toaster. While waiting for her bagel to toast, she refilled her coffee mug and sat across from Mitch. “How long do you think we’ll be here?”
“It depends on when they arrest Hernandez. Hopefully we’ll know more soon.
But Molly, I don’t want you to be disillusioned—it’s not over when Hernandez goes into custody.
There’s the hearing. He’ll try to get to you so you can’t testify.
You’re his ticket into prison. Without you he’s a free man.
He’ll be after you even when he’s in jail.
Molly, you may have to go into witness protection.
Men like Hernandez don’t stop even if they go to prison.
It doesn’t matter if he’s sentenced, he’ll be out for revenge.
As of right now this place is the best place to be.
No one knows about it, except me, my supervisor, and those who are here.
We’ll stay here unless we hear otherwise. ”
Isla saw her life flash before her eyes—the car crash that took her mom, becoming a foster kid at six, in and out of homes, finally adopted by loving, older parents.
A marriage, failed, and an ex who left her with nothing.
Going to school for six years while working full-time.
Finally getting her dream job at thirty-six years old this year. She finally loved her life.
But Isla knew then that the life she’d built for herself—was over.
“Come on, let’s get out of here for a while,” Mitch said, directing her to the garage.
The SUVs were parked inside and along with those were two ATVs, two snow mobiles, and two WaveRunners.
Mitch went over to a board on the wall and pulled some keys off the hook.
He hopped on one and pulled it out of the garage. “Hop on, it’ll be fun.”
Isla slid behind him. She felt funny being so close. It felt intimate and unnerving at the same time. “How much do SEALs make? This guy is loaded!”
“They don’t make as much as you’d think. He’s a trust fund baby—his family’s loaded. Put your arms around my waist and hold on.” He revved the engine and they were off.
Isla held on for dear life. She’d never been on an ATV before, and it terrified her.
The thrill of it vibrated through her body; or was it the thrill of being pressed against a man for the first time in over eight years?
After her divorce from Jason, work and school had consumed her life.
There was no time for romance. While her friends were happily married with kids, she was working her fingers to the bone for a caterer and going to school full-time.
She worked at the hospital during her rotations. Men were out of the question.
Jason had left her with an empty bank account and a broken heart.
They’d been married five years when he decided to take another woman to their bed.
She’d come home from her catering job early that evening with a migraine.
As she climbed the dark stairs and walked down the hallway, she’d heard noises coming from their room.
She found Jason having sex with the woman who lived down the street—her own friend.
She’d just stood there frozen in place until Karen turned her head and saw her standing there.
Karen squirmed herself out from under Jason and pulled the sheet around herself.
Jason had looked up with a smirk on his face and said, “Care to join?” She never went back, and he drained their joint accounts the next day.
She never wanted to be homeless and broke again—so new relationships were a no-go.
Isla was happy that riding on an ATV wasn’t conducive to conversation—she wouldn’t want Mitch to know what she was thinking.
She leaned into the moment. Soon, they were roaring down gullies and up cliff sides.
And she was having fun—it was exhilarating to be flying around the countryside.
For a moment, she forgot the mess her life had become.
Mitch pulled the ATV into a clearing. “Do you want to try?” he asked as he climbed off and pulled off his helmet.
“I wouldn’t know what to do,” Isla laughed. “I’d probably crash us both into a tree.”
“Come on, you can do it. It’s easy. Skooch forward.”
Isla slid to the front and he slid behind her. “We’ll take it slow till you get the hang of it.” He showed her what to do and she tried her best.
They spent the next hour riding in circles around the meadow. Then Mitch said, “Ready for some rough terrain?”
Isla could imagine them crashing into a tree. She shook her head. “Maybe next time, please.”
“We’ll come out tomorrow again if the weather holds,” Mitch promised. “Deal?”
Isla smiled. “Deal.”