Malo - Page 26

I turn to him, narrowing my eyes, not answering.

“You know that a serpent can end a beast with a single bite, don’t you?” he taunts me. Bruises are starting to form on his face, and his split lip oozes with blood, but he’s still grinning up at me like he’s just thought of the funniest thing in the world. I spit at his feet, grabbing him by the hair and dragging his head backward.

“You think that means anything to me?” I laugh in his face. I know if El Serpiente thought he could take me on, he would have done it by now. He would have tried to take me down, but he hasn’t. He knows he isn’t as strong as he thinks he is, and I can take anything he throws at me. A flash of annoyance crosses Rayo’s face, as though he thought that would be enough to really piss me off.

“He’s going to wipe you off the face of the Earth,” he protests, as I let go of him and begin pacing again. “Nobody will even know the Ruthless Kings existed. You, your men… Bella…”

I stop dead in my tracks. I don’t want him to know he’s gotten to me, but I hate hearing him even say her name. I turn to him slowly, and that grin returns to his face again.

“Oh, yeah, I remember Bella,” he continues, twisting the knife, even as his hands are bound behind his back. “You think I’d forget a pretty little thing like her?”

“Shut the fuck up,” I warn him, my voice dropping dangerously low. I feel the adrenaline rising in my system, fists clenching, ready to swing for him again.

“How do you think she would feel, being handed over to us again?” he mocks me. “You remember that, right? You remember what she went through? What Harley went through.”

Rage starts to cloud the edges of my vision, and I take a deep breath. I can’t let him get to me. This is just his way of trying to get me to break and give up on him. It’s like some part of him enjoys pushing me like this, even though he must be well aware of how much danger he’s in right now.

Or maybe he just doesn’t give a fuck. Maybe he’s already given up. And maybe he just wants to cause me as much suffering as possible before he goes out.

I’m not going to give him the satisfaction. I turn away from him and open the door, stepping outside, where Thor is waiting for me.

“You get anything?” he asks.

I shake my head curtly. “Don’t think I’m going to either,” I reply. “We don’t need him. Take him out.”

Thor nods, and I turn to head back to my office. My fist still aches from the pummeling I gave Rayo, and it’s gone some way to making me feel better about how I failed Bella and Harley before; I know it’s far from retribution, but I’ll have that soon enough, and taking out a member of Las Rosas Negras is at least something.

I wash up in the bathroom, cleaning the blood from my hands, and stare at myself in the mirror for a moment. I look old. Older than I ever thought I would get. I know a lot of that has come in the last year or so, since Bella and Harley were taken from me. I won’t be able to rest until I know I’ve taken revenge on the people who harmed them, and until I’ve made sure I’m certain nothing like that will ever happen to another young woman. To anyone at all, really. I have to bring an end to Las Rosas Negras—it’s my life’s mission.

And killing off Rayo is at least going to give me one less of them to worry about.

I slump down into my chair, reaching for my phone, planning to shoot off a message to Blue to find out how things are going in Mexico. But before I can, there’s a knock at the door. Glancing up, I see Bella standing there, hands clasped in front of her, a nervous expression on her face.

“Can I talk to you?” she asks, smiling slightly. I nod, get to my feet, and close the door behind her. I can tell when she wants privacy, she doesn’t need to spell it out for me. I can read her.

“Something wrong?” I ask with concern. Ever since we got her back, I’ve been watching her like a hawk, making sure she’s been settling back into life here as easily as she can. I know it can’t be simple for her, navigating the mess that those bastards put her through, but at least I can keep this place steady and solid for her.

“No, nothing’s wrong,” she assures me quickly. With everything that’s happened, it’s normal that my mind would jump to the worst case scenario, even if there’s no reason for it.

“I think you should sit down,” she tells me, nodding to my seat. I pause for a moment, then do as I’m told. Not many people get to give me orders, but she’s one of them.

She takes the seat opposite me, and pauses for a moment before she speaks again. I can tell whatever she’s got to say to me, it’s big.

“Bella, you’re worrying me,” I tell her bluntly. “What’s happening?”

“I…” she begins, and she stops, gathers herself, closes her eyes, and then opens them again. She grins at me. “I’m pregnant.”

I stare at her for a moment, trying to wrap my head around the enormity of the words that have just come out of her mouth.

“You’re…?”

“I’m pregnant,” she repeats again, as though making sure I heard her right.

“You’re pregnant,” I repeat after her, and the words finally begin to sink in. I let out a delighted laugh.

“Bella, that’s amazing news,” I tell her, and I get to my feet to give her a careful hug. I plant a hand on her belly, but there’s not much of a bump to feel yet.

“How far along?” I ask.