“I just don’t see how?—”
“Six months ago, I was living in Oceanside, California, with my mother. We’d spent most of our time bailing Eduardo out of one mistake after another. Then one night, he called saying if I didn’t show up at a bar in Imperial Beach with money, these guys would kill him. When I showed up at the bar, it was all a lie. The guys he owed didn’t want money—they wanted me.”
“The cartel?” Marisol asks.
I nod. “They bundled me into a van and took me to Rosarito, where they held me captive. I made weekly drug exchanges over the border in the States with another member of the cartel.”
“Ohhhh, hon.” Marisol wraps her arms around me. “We had no idea.”
“I finally managed to escape, but Benito doesn’t like to lose.” I lower my head. “I’ve seen firsthand what happens to people who disobey him. They disappear, never to be seen again.”
“Those fucking bastards,” Maxie grits out.
“That’s why I can’t involve either of you, and as much as I want to help Diesel, I don’t believe you or the Royal Bastards are any match for Benito and the power of the cartel.”
Saying those words makes me realize I’m responsible for Diesel’s abduction, and regardless of how he feels about me, I have to save him. I remembered how openly he spoke about his failed marriages, and the respect he had for his mother. All those things make him real, and just thinking of him in trouble knots my stomach.
“This isn’t your fight.”
“It is now that you’re a Harlot.”
These women have supported me when I had nothing, and here they are again, willing to put themselves in danger, but they don’t deserve to be drawn into my mess.
“Being held prisoner like that, it’s easy to see how you were brainwashed into thinking you were helpless,” Maxie says. “But we’re used to fighting back and winning.”
“I’m from a long line of cartel bosses, and Maxie survived being kidnapped, then held prisoner too.” Marisol takes my hand in hers. “We know what we’re dealing with, and we also know how to beat them.”
“Fear wrecks your confidence and plays with your mind,” Maxie adds.
Marisol nods to the bikes. “Now, let’s get this done before it’s too late.”
“But . . . Benito is ruthless, and very hard to fool.”
“He’s a man, isn't he?” Maxie sneers. “And like any man, he has a weak spot.”
They throw their legs over the saddle of their bikes, then Maxie nods to me, and I do the same behind her.
She throttles the bike and yells over the engine, “We’ve got you.”
CHAPTER 22
MARTINA
A half hour later, after stopping at Marisol’s apartment, we pull into the same lot in the Zona Norte. Only this time, Marisol and Maxie are dressed like the hookers from hell. Complete with sky-high heels, ass-hugging skirts, and tops cropped so high, you could see the underside of their breasts.
“I honestly didn’t think Versace and Dior could look slutty.” I cock my head. “But you ladies have pulled it off.”
Marisol fluffs up her over-teased, over-sprayed hair. “With the wrong accessories and makeup that would scare a vampire, anything is possible.”
We hit the main street, and needless to say, they fit right in on the Calle Coahuila. It also helps they both speak fluent Spanish.
At dusk, the area is even more crowded than before, and during the half-block walk to Eduardo’s apartment, all three of us get numerous offers and invitations, even though I’m dressed in leggings and a tank top.
When we enter Eduardo’s building, we stop in the hallway.
“No matter what happens,” Marisol says to me, “you stay out of sight.”
My heart's beating double-time, but I’d learned to trust these women, and I’d come to realize they are as fierce as the men.
