Page 9 of Coyote Underground (Monsters of New York #9)

Discovering the EV

A na Sofia

I wake in the morning, feeling more rested than I have in a while.

Lorenzo’s arms are still wrapped around me, holding me to his chest. His skin is warm and smooth.

Sometime in the night, Isaac rolled into my side and wrapped an arm around me.

I’m sure they’ll see that as breaking our agreement, but it’s comforting.

I glance up, eyes searching for Diego, and find he’s not in the bed.

I wonder if he actually stayed last night or if he just humored me until I fell asleep.

There’s no way to know, because I’m not going to ask him.

My thoughts instantly switch gears, remembering that he said if any of his guys got a lead, they’d call him. Did that happen in the night, causing him to get up and leave without telling anyone?

I shift under the two arms wrapped around me, trying to extricate myself from the snuggles that helped me sleep but now prevent me from getting answers.

It seems these guys are heavy sleepers, because they don’t budge when I shove at them.

It takes a while, but I finally manage to get loose and climb out of the bed.

Looking over my shoulder, I tiptoe to the bathroom. Once my physical needs are taken care of, I tiptoe back out of the bedroom and into the attached sitting room. Diego glances up from the tablet screen he’s looking at. “Would you like some breakfast?” he asks.

I nod. “You’re up early. News?” It feels strange to be this comfortable with him. Knowing he slept in my bed last night and would have done more than just sleep if I’d only asked, makes me feel like we’ve connected somehow.

I’m still not over my annoyance at how they’ve treated me at work, but after our conversation last night, I understand why Diego acted the way he did. I’m not sure he’ll ever actually apologize for it, or if I’ll be expected to let it go. I guess we’ll see what happens when this is all over.

“Nothing helpful. The teams all struck out. There’s still one team following your friends from the bar last night, but they haven’t checked in for a few hours.

I’m hopeful they’ll find something, but I’m also not depending on it.

I’ve been reading some articles that point toward a specific organization being behind the recent kidnappings, and I think that’s where we’re going to start today,” he explains, pouring me a cup of coffee and handing it to me.

He gestures to the cream and sugar so I can fix it the way I like.

Diego types out a text on his phone before turning his attention back to me.

He hands over the tablet he’d been reading, open to the articles he mentioned.

“I won’t waste time explaining what you can read for yourself.

I’m not sure why the SRA hasn’t made a move on this organization yet, but there must be a reason.

I’m waiting for Gus to get back with me, but given it’s Sunday, it may be a while. ”

I hadn’t considered that Sunday would be an issue, but it makes sense. Most of the SRA has weekends off. “You have guys working on Sunday?” I ask, curiosity winning the battle in my head.

He nods. “Finding your sister is our top priority, so I’m paying overtime for these three crews to run down leads until we find something useful.”

“Overtime? I can’t afford that,” I insist.

He locks eyes with me. “Princess, we’ve already explained that you are not paying for anything here. You are letting us help you. We have the resources, so all you have to do is trust us to take care of this.”

As much as I want to believe him and let them handle everything, I can’t stop the sliver of doubt that works its way into my brain.

Why would these men want to help me for nothing in return?

It just doesn’t make sense. I’m wary of what kind of catch there is to this and find myself pulling away from him.

****

D iego

I know she doesn’t trust us yet, and I understand why.

I’ve been an ass to her for over a year now and haven’t bothered to apologize for it.

As badly as I want to take her in my arms and prove my feelings for her, I know this isn’t the time.

I have to find some clue that will lead me to the people responsible for her sister’s disappearance.

We’ll have time to sort the rest out after Valerie is safely returned to Ana Sofia’s embrace.

Finding the news articles that describe the paramilitary organization, the Eradication Vanguard, who are believed to be responsible for the recent kidnappings, feels like a miracle.

It’s not confirmation, but it’s a starting point.

Instead of sending out a dozen more crews to search the entire city, I can refocus our efforts on this one organization.

With any luck, I’ll have guys infiltrating the group by sundown today.

Gritting my teeth against the realization that I want to be one of those guys, I take a deep breath and let it go.

Ana Sofia has been quiet since I handed her the tablet, reading the articles I mentioned.

I’m sure she’s trying to figure out the same thing I am.

What could a paramilitary organization like the EV want with her sister?

It’s not like Valerie is a genius. She’s a regular kid with normal interests.

Unless there’s something Ana Sofia isn’t telling us.

But I find that hard to believe. She’s been pretty open about things that relate to her sister.

She wants desperately to find the girl and bring her home.

I hope we can do that for her. I want to make all the promises, but I know it’s a bad idea.

****

A na Sofia

After reading the articles, I’m left with more questions than answers.

“It definitely sounds like these could be the people responsible. But it doesn’t make sense.

Why would they target my teenage sister?

Nothing in those articles indicates a sex trade .

.. what else could they want her for?” I ask, distancing myself from the words I speak because it’s painful to think about what could be happening to Val.

“That’s the part that has me stumped, too,” Diego says. Before I can respond, a knock at the door interrupts us. “That will be breakfast. Do me a favor and go smack the other two awake, so they can eat?” He smirks as he heads to answer the door.

I do as he asks, except for the smacking part. I walk into the bedroom much less quietly than I left it. When I approach the bed, I find Lorenzo and Isaac snuggling each other. It’s too cute, and I wish I’d remembered to charge my phone. I’d love a picture of this.

“Hey, sleepyheads. Breakfast is here. If you don’t get up and come eat, Diego is going to eat it all without you,” I say loudly.

They each groan in response, not bothering to move. Time for another tactic. “Where did I put my phone? I’m sure a social media pic of the two of you snuggled up like lovers will get me a lot of views.” I act as if I’m searching my pockets for a minute. “Oh, here it is!”

Lorenzo bolts upright as if I had slapped him, nearly jumping out of the bed. “No, buttercup. You don’t want to do that. It’ll be hard for people to take us seriously if you post that picture.”

“Then you’d better get up and come have breakfast,” I say, turning around and walking away. He doesn’t need to know yet that I don’t have the picture. I’ll share that later. Who knows what I’ll be able to talk him into between now and then?

I smirk as I walk back into the sitting room, hearing Lorenzo and Isaac scrambling to get up and dressed. “They’ll be here in a minute,” I tell Diego as I settle back on the couch.

“Good. Get what you want to eat, and they can have whatever is left,” he says, pouring another cup of coffee.

By the time I make my plate and sit down on the couch, Isaac and Lorenzo join us.

Diego fills them in on his discovery, and they start to discuss next steps.

As much as I want to be part of the conversation, I don’t know much about tracking or hunting people, so I let myself focus on my breakfast. The French toast is perfectly cooked, reminding me of my mother’s.

I could get used to being taken care of like this, if I let myself. But I’m not sure I can, no matter how badly I want it.

“Ana Sofia,” Diego says, and I can tell it’s not the first time he’s tried to get my attention. Shaking off the daydream, I turn my attention back to the men planning how they’ll find my sister.

“Yes, sorry.”

“Do you want to go with us today or stay here while we check out this new information?” he asks. I’m surprised he’s giving me the option. What should I do? If I stay here alone, I know I’ll just be worried about everything.

“I’d like to go, please,” I answer.

“You’ll have to stay close to us and do what we ask. That’s the only way we can keep you safe.”

I nod my agreement at his condition, and he continues, “We’ll leave in an hour. Meet us here.” Before I realize what I’m doing, I jump up and hug him tightly.

“Thank you. I’ll be ready before that,” I say, darting off to the bedroom to find my clothes and shower.

****

I saac

“Do you think it’s a good idea to have her go with us while we search for this organization?” I ask after Ana Sofia leaves the room.

Diego shakes his head. “No, I don’t. But I’m also convinced she’d find a way to follow us, even if we locked her up in the brownstone. So, it makes more sense to bring her along.”

“One of us could stay back with her,” Zo suggests.

“I need you both to come with me. Trust me, I know what we’re risking with this. I think it’ll be okay,” he insists.

I’m not convinced, but I know she feels safest with us. And that’s what I’m worried about right now. We need to find her sister, but we also must protect Ana Sofia. Even if that means protecting her from herself.

“Okay, I’ll keep an eye on her today.” My offer is more selfish than helpful. I really want to spend some time with her, and this is the easiest way to make sure that happens. Otherwise, Zo will volunteer, and no one else will get a word in with her.

“That sounds good. You’ll drive, and that’ll make it easier if we need a quick getaway. We’ll be heading down to the docks. There are rumors about shipping containers being used for transport.” This is news to us, as Diego didn’t share it when Ana Sofia was in the room.

“Did you tell her that?” I ask.

Diego shakes his head again. “No, and I’m not going to, either. Not until we’ve checked it out and we know for sure. Understood?”

I nod, glancing at Zo, who does the same. “We need to go shower and get ready,” Zo says, walking to the door.

“Do you think she’ll wait for us if she’s ready first?” I wonder out loud, not expecting an answer.

Zo shrugs and walks away. Diego locks eyes with me. “I believe she will. She’s trusting us to find her sister. We have to trust her too.”