In four strides, I had Lou by the throat, his short legs dangling over the couch. “I’ve been wanting to pluck out your nails and every tooth you have with your pliers. I just might do that before you leave, if you so much as make one more remark regarding my sister.”
Lou’s leathery face turned red as he tried to grin through the pain.
Mateo just sat there. “Lou is quite the fuckwad. I don’t know what Tito saw in Lou to hire him. But he serves my purposes.”
I tossed Lou on the couch. “You’re next.” I turned to Mateo. “Now, instead of trying to rattle my cage, let’s talk business.”
“What? You’re not going to offer us a drink while we chat?” Mateo asked.
I needed one for sure.
Quiet pounded through my office as I served them their beverages. Too bad I didn’t have strychnine to sprinkle in their bourbons.
Vince stood by the door, hands in pant pockets, eyes on our enemies.
The burn of the alcohol sliding down my throat was exactly what I needed to deal with these assholes.
“I heard that you have something I want,” Mateo said. “I’m dying to know what that is because I can assure you that you don’t. You lied to flush me out.”
Maybe he wasn’t as stupid as Tito. “Then why are you here?”
“Can’t a guy come to a club to drink and have a good time?” he asked sarcastically.
“Cut the bullshit, Mateo.” My anger was rising fast and furious.
Mateo regarded Lou, who had a cheeky smirk on his face. “Lou tells me that before you linked with Rosario, you were making deals with Arturo Rodriguez. Lou even told me he stole money from you.” Mateo whistled. “I want to know why you kept Lou alive?”
“Do you want to tell him, Lou? Or should I?” I asked.
Lou’s nostrils flared. “Fuck you, Hart.”
Vince was grinning. “Oh, come on, Lou. I want to hear how you can’t satisfy women anymore.”
Mateo’s jaw dropped so far, it approached his lap. “The fuck. You cut off his balls?”
I pushed my tongue against the back of my teeth. “You see, Mateo, dead men in our business bring a lot of attention to us. That’s something neither you nor Tito understand, which is why Tito would’ve never been accepted in my organization. So if your motive is to steal something that doesn’t belong to you, like Lou did, then I suggest you return what’s not yours. Otherwise, you might be the one without a dick and balls. Because in the end, I will get what I want. Isn’t that right, Lou?”
He flipped me off.
“That’s just wrong,” Mateo mumbled, seemingly scared out of his mind.
It was fucked up that men who weren’t threatened by a gun to their heads were desperate to keep their manly parts. I wouldn’t lie. I was one of those men.
“In the end, Lou returned my money,” I said smugly. “So start talking, Mateo. Because the way I see it, Emilio already told Rosario who he was working with before you whacked him. You did, right?”
Lou grinned cunningly. “Emilio was fun to kill.”
Tito growled at Lou. “Shut the fuck up.”
Lou didn’t seem fazed by Tito at all.
“Rosario knows that you have her guns,” Vince chimed in. “The question is why?”
“Are you working with Arturo? Tito? Is this Tito’s way of fucking with me?” I asked. “Or are you trying to do what Tito couldn’t?”
Mateo played with the flavor savor on his chin. “For the last year, Tito and I have been planning on how to exact our revenge on you. You’re the one who gave Tito the finger. You’re the one who snubbed him. If you hadn’t, he wouldn’t be in prison.” Mateo’s knuckles were white around his glass. “When I stole the guns, that was to fuck you over, Duke. Without weapons, you’d have angry customers, and you would have to pay Rosario regardless, or she would kill you. Either way, you’re out a lot of money or screwed with the Colombian bitch.”
I was willing to give him a small amount of credit. We certainly would lose customers if we couldn’t deliver.
