But if there was a chance…
Axe rolled over and banged his head against the door. “Hey, hey. I’ll kiss her.”
More like he’d bite her lips off, but he wasn’t doing anyone any good by being stubborn. His father deserved a chance, and he had to warn Leanna and Tomas about Veronica’s plans.
Axe banged on the door until his head rang with pain. “Hey, Adolfo. I’ll kiss the Boss.”
Footsteps echoed down the corridor, and the door opened outward. Adolfo appeared alone and doused Axe with a bucket of ice water.
“Clean yourself up, and show some respect. She’s Boss Veronica.”
“Yes, Boss Veronica,” Axe repeated. “Get me clean clothes. I changed my mind.”
“I knew you would.” Adolfo grabbed Axe by the arm.
He brought Axe to a bedroom where a nurse stood by. After showering and cleaning himself up, the nurse dabbed his wounds and gave him an icepack.
“How long will I have until the party?” Axe asked Adolfo.
The guard checked his watch and said, “Boss Veronica wants you to rest. She’s expecting you in prime form tonight. Don’t try anything funny, because I’ll be standing outside.”
“Sure, sure.” Axe grimaced as the nurse wiped an alcohol pad over his cut lip.
As soon as the nurse finished and departed the room, Axe threw off the bathrobe they’d given him and went searching for his clothes.
“Damn,” he swore when he found the dressers and closets empty except for sex toys: whips, ties, and feathers. The windows were locked from the outside, and iron bars prevented anyone from escaping. The boudoir itself was luxuriously furnished, with curvy French-style furniture and a huge four-poster bed which could no doubt be used with handcuffs.
Too bad there were no cuffs in any of the drawers.
There was only one way out, through the door Adolfo guarded and the one Veronica would enter to claim her prize. Hopefully, she was too busy consolidating her power in the upcoming gang wars to bother with him.
At the same time, his father could be dying, Leanna and Soledad could be taken hostage, and the real Carmelita, if she wasn’t dead, might be found.
Axe couldn’t sit around and wait. He put on the robe and jiggled the door handle. “Adolfo, I’m ready for kissing. Where’s Boss Veronica?”
Adolfo opened the door, and Axe smashed a lamp over his head. The burly man went down without a sound. Axe dragged him into the room and hefted him onto the bed. He took off Adolfo’s clothes, weapons, and holsters, stripping him naked and made quick work of tying his hands and feet to each of the four posters on the bed.
After strapping on the weapons, Axe put on Adolfo’s clothes and wiped his hair back over the top of his head the way Adolfo wore his. He pocketed Adolfo’s phone, locked the door behind him, and walked straight and tall down the hallway.
Two guards passed him without word, but when he made it to the vicinity of the dumpster, a guard pointed a gun at him. “Who are you, and what are you doing here?”
“I’m Boss Veronica’s new bodyguard,” Axe said. “She wants all of the bodies out of the dumpster cleaned up. Got word that the Federales might investigate.”
“Seriously?” The man lowered his weapon. “The Federales are planning a raid?”
Axe nodded. “One of the prisoners Rivera brought in was a friend of El Bardo’s. The older man. Do you know what happened to him?”
“He’s in there,” the guard said.
“Then get him out. Boss Veronica wants this place cleaned up,” Axe barked. “What is your name?”
“Julian, sir!” the guard said. He waved to another man patrolling nearby. “Joaquin, we have to clean up the dumpster.”
“Shit.” Joaquin loped over. “Do you have gloves?”
“Just get it done,” Axe said. “We can’t leave any evidence.”
The two guards put on rubber gloves while Axe stood to the side. He was dying to get in there to help his father, but he had to keep up appearances of being Veronica’s bodyguard.
