Page 51 of Hit Man

“How about I share with you my theory on architecture?” he interrupts. I search his face. Dead serious.

I roll my eyes. “What’s your theory then?”

“Sometimes to build things you first need to blow things up.” He grins, and my breath hitches at the sight of his dimples. How could such a charmingly infuriating man be involved in such ugly business? He turns away from me to shove the large bureau away from the door.

“Move it back into place after I’m gone.”

“I’m one step ahead of you.”

He snorts. Yet he doesn’t immediately leave. With a sigh, he turns back toward me and folds his arms across his chest. “I’m going to help you if you agree to do exactly as I say.”

I do my best to keep a straight face. Whatever he proposes, so long as it’s morally acceptable and doesn’t involve wild, dirty sex with him, I’m going to agree to. Because no matter what it is, I won’t be around long enough to completely follow through. “Depends on what it is.”

“I need you to barricade yourself inside here. The only time you answer the door is when food arrives. Keep to the bungalow for the next one . . . no, two days. I’ll need two days, and afterward, I’ll guarantee you’ll be safely headed home.”

I frown. “I’d like to leave tomorrow.” Iamleaving tomorrow.

“You’re a distraction.Dios, I shouldn’t even be offering you help.” He shakes his head. “But I’m giving you the benefit of the doubt in trusting you.”

“What do you do for Mendoza?” I demand. Trust me? He’s deciding to trust me? “What’s going to take two days that you don’t want me to know about?”

“If you are who you say you are, this is the best solution I can think of to keep you safe. Two days, Aubrey. That’s what I’m asking for.”

With that, he slips out the door.

15

Diego

In Loreto, a boy becomes a man after his first fucks.

After he fucks up his first rival.

After he fucks his first woman.

After he fucks over the cartel boss responsible for mass killings.

I don’t know which was more satisfying, beating the shit out of my rival Martinez or getting my cherry popped by a sexy brunette. But I’ve got to admit, sliding a knife into Arturo’s kidney while his cartel members screamed bloody murder tops the list of fucks. A revenge kill, for murdering my parents. It’s why Hayden sat up and took notice of me, why he recruited me to join the Lobos, and later on TORC. Nothing like blood, murder, and revenge to build a life around.

Past. Present. It’s swim with the sharks or die.

Funny how this crosses my mind as I dive headfirst into the living-room pool and force my body to relax as the waterfall sweeps me over and out, down to the secluded pool below and just outside the cave I need access to.

I’ve learned to hold my breath for long periods of time.

A handy skill, both in and away from the water.

And as I plunge to the depths beneath the waterfall, I swim toward the narrow shelf I discovered the other day, located just inside the waterfall and at the outside entrance to the cave.

I pull myself up enough to blink the water out of my eyes and get a good look around. The early-morning sky is pitch-black, clouds from today rolling back in to overwhelm the dwindling rays of moonlight. Making it hard to spot if Mendoza’s men are watching over the cave. The waterfall’s churning drowns everything else out. Gut instinct is all I have to work on.

Which is telling me right now to hurry the fuck up.

I lift myself out of the water and climb over the ledge, slithering on my stomach like I’m in one of Hayden’s Hell Camp Marine drills.

A useful skill I’ve mastered. Two of Hayden’s training camps will do that to a guy. The second one I’d been forced to complete the one and only time I failed an assignment.

Yeah, Hayden is as hard-core as they come.