“We may have gotten entangled in a job a few months back,” Felix says, shrugging.
I snort. “That’s one way to put it. I’d call it accessory to kidnapping.”
“Simple miscommunication,” Felix protests, eyes flicking to her and going soft, like he’s trying to convince her.
I frown at him and lay a hand on her thigh protectively under the table, gratified when she reaches down and threads her fingers through mine.
“What did you do?” she accuses him, delighting me further.
I don’t even bother to hide the self-satisfied grin. She has a close relationship with Felix that I know nothing about, but she takes my side so easily. And perhaps it proves that she knows him well enough to assume his implicit guilt, but it also means she trusts me enough to believe me about it without question.
He has the good grace to look sheepish, reaching up and scrubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. Madison looks between the two of us with undisguised suspicion, sensing how much is going unsaid.
“He helped a man kidnap my friend last autumn. She’s not part of this world; she’s a nurse—never did anything to hurt anyone.”
Madison gasps and glares at him. Without warning, she grabs the closest thing—a paper-napkin-wrapped silverware set—and chucks it at his head, hurling all kinds of insults about his manhood in Spanish while she’s at it. Felix ducks, and the silverware sails over his shoulder and clatters on the ground behind him. Hands raised protectively, he tries to defend himself in Spanish with all the same shitty excuses he told Mac—that he didn’t do it, didn’t mean to, didn’t know—but she continues shouting about how he promised he’d never hurt innocents until he stops fighting back. Looking cowed but pissed, Felix turns his head and takes the abuse with a sour face.
“He’s not really my uncle,” she tells me, switching back to English and grimacing. “We’re not related. He’s more like a friend of the family we can’t get rid of.”
That explains why he didn’t show up on her background check.
Felix adjusts his position. “He’sjust deflecting,” he says, gesturing at me. “It’s not even relevant here. Doesn’t have anything to do with the General.”
“It’s pretty fucking relevant to us,” I shoot back. “Because we’re after the General too, and we might’ve been able to combine efforts, but some wounds run too deep.”
“You’re after him, too?” he repeats, the look on his face shifting.
“Yeah, well, I’m not going to work for the bloke after he puts a hit out on the woman I—” I swallow the rest of the sentence. Fuck. I’m not saying it for the first time to prove a point to someone else. That’s privileged information, for her ears only. “—plan to protect. As far as I’m concerned, my contract with him is over.”
“Interesting. And knowing how tight thetres amigosare, I’m assuming this means you’re all out.” He strokes his chin.
“We’re aligned,” I confirm.
“Hmm… You know that means we have a common enemy now,” he points out. The tilt of his head is appraising, but not hopeful—we both know a temporary alignment is not the same as a truce.
I just shake my head. “How did you know the General sent me her name? How did you know we took the job?” I ask. What I really want to know is how he even knows about me, but that’s less important. Right now, Madison’s safety is the priority, and he might be able to give me some insight.
He cocks his head and studies me with a faint smile. “You mad I know something the spider guy doesn’t?”
“It’s SpyderMan,” Madison corrects primly.
A pit forms in my stomach. She didn’t tell him about me back when we were just mermaidav and SpyderMan, did she?
“It’s the same way you knew about Alfano and those other jobs you intercepted, isn’t it?” I say. It’s an assumption I’m testing. We don’t know for sure it was him…
Until he sits back with a smile. “What, you didn’t like my little Russian present? I figured the big guy would be thrilled to take out another Volkevich after him and his nurse. Heard it didn’t go so well for him, though.”
My scowl snaps down harder. He really does have ears and eyes everywhere.
He cuts me an unimpressed look. “SpyderMan,” he repeats, rolling the word around. His stare is a challenge. “Some kind of comic book hero kid, right? This is themierda de hombreyou want taking care of you,enana?”
“Be nice,” she warns.
Felix snorts. “You should stay here. We’ll keep you safe.”
The implication that he thinks he can take care of her better than me makes me gnash my teeth. But to my immense satisfaction, her laugh is derisive. “No thanks. Now, quit avoiding the question. How did you know Wesley took the job from the General? It might help in our search.”
He flashes her a grin, and the gold capping one of his back molars briefly gleams in the light. “Same way I know anything.I’ve got a man on the inside.”
