“Why not? Everyone’s thinking it,” he smirks. “Tallulah-”
He doesn’t get to finish whatever he was trying to say. I’ve already pulled out my revolver and fired a single bullet between his eyes. Finally, Jimenez’s body hits the ground with a loud thud and blood sprays the men sitting closest to him.
Nobody says a word. The men silently mop up Jimenez’s blood before facing me with fear in their eyes.
“That old bastard was asking for an excuse for me to kill him,” I yawn. “I don’t want my personal life discussed. Is that understood?”
Wordlessly, everyone at the table nods.
“Good. Now, let’s meet again next week, same time. Dismissed.”
As people pick up their things, I walk through the glass doors into my office. It’s a show of masculinity, all black and white with bourbon-colored leather accents.
I pour myself a drink just as Saul knocks on the door. Grinning as I face him, I motion for him to come in.
“Here to lecture me about Jimenez?”
“Fuck no,” he smirks. “That bastard had it coming for a long fucking time.”
“I couldn’t agree more.”
We share a meaningful look. This is why I like Saul so much - he matches my darkness and my killer instinct. It’s why we make a good pair to lead the cartel. Heath and his slave hermanito could never be as brutal as we are, which is why we will always rule over the Serpent cartel.
“So what’s on your mind?” Saul asks out loud. “The girl again?”
I nod, downing my drink and sitting behind my desk, pointing for Saul to join me.
“Her seventeenth birthday is coming up tomorrow,” I mutter.
“And you’re finding it hard to stay away?”
Swallowing, I nod.
“Increasingly fucking hard with every day. And there’s still a year to go.”
“Maybe-”
Saul is interrupted by my cell ringing. We share confused glances - nobody has this number. It’s only for urgent matters.
I hold up a finger to stop Saul and answer the call, muttering a dark hello.
“Is this Xavier Gunn?”
“Indeed,” I mutter.
The voice on the other side is distorted, like the person is using some kind of device to change the sound of it.
“We have news about your goddaughter,” the voice goes on stoically. “Someone is attempting to kill her tomorrow. We don’t know the details.”
Saul and I share a troubled look before I bark a response, demanding more information.
“That’s all we know,” the voice finishes robotically. “They’ll do it tomorrow at her parents’ house.”
The call cuts off and I curse out loud, putting my phone down.
“How did they find out about the Palacio?” Saul mutters.
“It doesn’t fucking matter,” I hiss. “We need to get the girl, fucking now.”
“Heath and Rain will never allow you to-”
“I don’t give a shit,” I snarl. “This doesn’t concern them.”
“She’s their daughter-“
“She’s mine.”
My gaze locks with Saul’s, not allowing any room for his questions.
“She’s always been mine, can’t you see that? And I will not let anyone hurt her.”
“Fine,” Saul mutters. “You want me to get her parents on the phone?”
“No,” I answer, shaking my head vehemently. “We don’t need to alert them to this. They’ll just end up doing something stupid. I don’t know who we can trust. We need to get Tallulah tonight.”
“But Heath and Rain won’t be happy.”
“Do I look like I give a damn?”
We face off in a silent war and he finally sighs, shaking his head.
“Whatever you want, boss.”
“Have the car ready in an hour, and make sure the men that are on our payroll are guardian Tallulah tonight. We don’t want any problems.”
“Of course.”
With a nod, he excuses himself from my office and walks out, leaving me alone. My mind is spinning with everything that’s happened and I’m having trouble focusing on anything other than Tallulah.
She’s in danger, and I’m the only one who can ensure nothing happens to her.
But taking her a year before I was supposed to is risky. Not only because of the wrath of her parents, but also because I don’t trust myself around Tallulah.
The last two times I saw her, the girl looked different. She had turned into a woman, her curves filling out and her looks full of knowledge she didn’t have before. But I can’t let myself lose control around her. I swore to myself I’d keep my cool around her eighteenth birthday, and I will not go back on that promise. Not even now, when her life is at stake.
I spend the hour staring at some photos I’ve gathered of Tallulah over the years. She looks somewhat like her mother, with long blonde hair, though hers is a shade cooler than Rain’s golden locks. Her teeth are gapped in the middle, which is fucking adorable. She’s taller than Rain, but still much shorter than me. Her body has filled out, but she’s also in shape, which tells me she takes care of herself.
I pick up one photo from her birthday celebration last year. In it, she’s gazing at me with pure adoration while I laugh at something she’s said. She’s infatuated with me, always has been. And I fucking love that because it feeds my obsession with her. I can’t fucking wait until next year when she turns eighteen.