Cruel Vows

Rourke’s eyes narrow. “How would he know that?”

I shrug. “Beats me, maybe the Cartel?”

“What hospital is he at?” Spartak asks.

“Mercy, why?”

Spartak nods. “That’s how they know, as Hernandez owns shares in the hospital.”

I clench my jaw as although it’s no good having him in a hospital ran by a man who wants to destroy us, it beats trying to weed out another rat in our ranks. Especially since only the family knows about my father’s hospitalization. “I’ll have him moved.”

Maxim steps forward. “Bad idea. If you move him, they might get suspicious.”

I glare at Maxim, despite knowing he’s right. “Fine.” I cross my arms over my chest. “The question is, what are we going to do about Adrik and the Cartel?”

“Have you learned anything new since we last spoke?” Rourke asks.

“We found out one of our caporegime was leaking information to him.” I clench my jaw. “I have him strung up in my basement.” And am yet to decide what to do with him.

I notice the flash of sadistic pleasure in Spartak’s eyes as he clears his throat. “If you need a hand interrogating him, I’d be happy to help.”

A shiver races down my spine at the look of sheer excitement in his eyes. It’s clear the man takes an abnormal amount of pleasure in torturing. I find it rather barbaric, but do it because it’s what is expected of me, even more so now I’m stepping into my father’s shoes. “I’ve got it handled, thanks.”

He looks disappointed, but nods.

“Apparently, Adrik isn’t ready to strike yet.” I glance at the Irish, who are all glaring at me hatefully except for Rourke. “The bombs he’s working on need another couple of months.”

Kieran and Killian’s shoulders both sag a little, no doubt from relief. “That’s grand news if I ever I heard it,” Killian says.

I nod. “Yes, but it doesn’t solve the issue that if we take down Adrik, we have to take down the Cartel too.”

Kieran’s expression turns grave. “We get our supplies from the Vasquez Cartel in Mexico. If the Estrada Cartel cuts us off, we’re screwed.”

“All of us get our supply from south of the border. They control all drugs coming in and out of Mexico,” Maxim says.

I clear my throat. “We don’t get our supply from Mexico.”

Every man in the room looks at me, confused, their brows furrowed.

“Then where the fuck do you get it from?” Spartak asks.

I exchange glances with Luca, who shakes his head. “That’s not something I’m going to disclose, no offense intended.” We have been getting supply from Europe for a number of years, since the Mexicans are too messy. The Albanian’s supply us with girls and drugs, giving us a favorable price for both. And the huge expanse of sea between us gives us both a safety net in a sense.

“Great, so you’re the only ones who won’t lose out if we piss off the cartel?” Kieran asks, stepping forward so he’s shoulder to shoulder with his two older brothers. “Why should we trust you aren’t just trying to screw us?”

I crack my neck. “You forget that your brother is the one who approached me with this, not the other way around.”

Kieran’s cheeks flush and he bows his head.

“To answer your question about how we do this without pissing off the cartel, I think we need to go over Adrik’s head.”

Spartak runs a hand through his hair. “How exactly are we going to do that?”

“Hernandez has had all of us running around for his loyalty, when he never intended to give it to any of us.” I cross my arms over my chest, glancing at each of the men in the room. “We change it up and invite him to another meeting, but this time, all three of our families will be in attendance.”

Maxim nods as if he’s on the same wave length. “We tell him we know about his plan with Adrik and persuade him to back out of the plan.”

“Exactly.” I tap my foot on the floor. “Hernandez is greedy, but he’s not stupid. The bombs aren’t ready and he can’t hold out all three of our families alone, even with the power of Mexico behind him.”

Rourke clears his throat. “It’s a sound plan, but we will have to offer him something. He won’t back out for nothing.”

“We’ll come to that bridge when it happens,” I say, glancing at Spartak, who has yet to weigh in on the plan. “What do you think?”

“I think it’s fucking risky.” He shrugs. “How do you know your man was telling you the truth about the bombs?”

“I’ve known the guy my entire life. He was telling the truth.” There’s no doubt in my mind that once Carlo was caught, he did tell us the truth.

“Fair enough.” Spartak nods. “Who will call the meeting with the Estrada family?”

“I will,” I say, nodding. “At the casino.”

Spartak’s eyes flash. “The last time I stepped foot in that fucking casino, my son got shot.”

“Things are different now. If we are going to work together, we need to have some level of trust.”