Page 108 of Death

“Fucking fuck,” he spits right behind me, running out of words to say.

“I’ll let you remove the bullet,” I chuckle.

“What bullet?” Samuel asks just as he comes in from the other entrance to the lounge, almost giving poor Pedro a heart attack. “And by the way, I heard the two of you all the way down the hallway.”

“Santiago got shot,” Pedro snaps, giving me a glare that tells me he’s going to be pissed off for days.

“Where?” Samuel’s eyes flick over my body before latching onto my arm.

Pressing my finger to my ear, I ask, “Does anyone have eyes on Javier Rojas?”

One by one, I get a no from my men. We all stand around like lost fucking farts, when Samuel says, “That’s a trapdoor.”

The moment I take a step toward it, Pedro glares at me, and I wait for him and Samuel to open the door and check whether it’s safe.

“It’s a tunnel,” Samuel says before he lowers his body into it, and this time I’m allowed to fucking move so Pedro can have my back while I climb down into the tight space.

“Yeah, not my favorite thing today,” I mutter as I follow after Samuel with Pedro bringing up the rear.

The air is filled with dirt, and the only thing keeping the tunnel from collapsing is weak-as-fuck looking wooden planks.

Samuel begins to jog, and we all pick up our pace. The tunnel feels like it’s going on forever when it suddenly ends, and we have to go up.

“Be careful,” I warn Samuel as he climbs the untrustworthy ladder and shoves open the trapdoor.

I stare at him as he glances around, and then he moves quickly, climbing out and disappearing from my sight. When I hear a gunshot, I climb the stepladder fast and haul my ass into a dry area covered with sand and rocks.

Seeing Samuel going after a man, I break out into a run. Samuel tackles the fucker off his feet and they roll in the dirt before the other man ends up on top.

I drop the machine gun, and grabbing my handgun from behind my back, I take aim and the instant the fucker points his gun at Samuel’s face, I pull the trigger twice.

The bullets slam into him, and he falls to the side. Samuel moves quickly, disarming the man as I catch up to them.

Seeing that I shot Javier Rojas, a grin spreads over my face.

Pedro comes up behind me, holding both our machine guns.

I wag my eyebrows at him. “How’s that for good aim?”

“Shut up,” my second-in-command mutters. “I’m still fucking angry with you.”

I turn my attention back to Javier and crouch beside him where he’s gasping for air. “Ouch. A bullet to the lung must hurt like a bitch.” He makes a gargling sound, his eyes wide on me. “Such a pity you don’t get to choose a card. I would’ve liked to see what fate had in store for you.”

He lifts his hand, and gripping hold of my armored vest, his eyes widen even more. “Castro.”

I smile at him. “The one and only.” My expression grows serious. “You kept me busy for quite a while, but it’s time for a vacation.” I press the barrel of my gun to his forehead, andkeeping my eyes locked with his, I pull the trigger. His hand goes limp, falling away from me, and his eyes turn glassy.

I continue to stare at the man who’s been responsible for thousands of deaths, the moment feeling kind of anti-climactic.

CIARA

I’m sitting out on the veranda, staring up at the stars when I hear Pedro snap, “The shower can fucking wait. Getting rid of the blood isn’t going to make the shock any less for Ciara. I hope she kicks your fucking ass.”

Darting up from Santiago’s favorite armchair, I hurry into the house, and when I see the blood, my body goes ice cold.

“Mi amor,” Santiago says, quickly rushing toward me. “It’s not as bad as it looks.”

My lips part when I see the gunshot wound, and I cry, “You got shot!”