I nodded once. “Delgado’s watching her too. Plans to sell her to the highest bidder. But not before he has his own fun with her.” I leaned back, resting my forearms on the chair. “I can’t let that happen.”
Lucian smirked. “So the soulless hacker might actually have a heart.”
I hurled an icy glare at him. He lifted both palms slightly. “Just saying.”
“She’s nothing to me,” I said sharply. “But…she reminds me of Ana. Innocent. Too trusting. She’s got no clue the hell she’s in.”
Lachlan scoffed. “Yeah, well, Ana didn’t turn out so innocent. And this girl’s a stripper in an MS-13 club. She doesn’t sound so innocent to me.”
I was across the room in a heartbeat, grabbing him by the throat. My hand wrapped around his neck, crushing his windpipe as I hauled him up off the edge of the table.
“Don’t ever disrespect my sister,” I growled. “Or that girl.”
Lachlan’s eyes went wide. He raised his hands in surrender. “All right. Fuck. It was a joke. Ease up,” he choked out.
I dropped my hand and stepped back.
“She deserves better,” I muttered, turning away.
Julian finally spoke, his voice low. “You said Delgado’s people have been following her?”
“Yeah. One of his men even showed up at Carmine’s coffee shop to rattle her.” I looked around the room. “I told her to leave town. She won’t.”
Luca grunted. “That could explain the mayor’s brother showing up here with one of Delgado’s men. He figured out who she’s tied to—and sent you a message.”
“Yeah, and today I sent him a message of my own,” I said, glancing around the room. “I marked her as mine. Now they know she belongs to me—and by extension, to you. All of you.”
Luca let out a slow, frustrated breath. “Delgado’s been itching for a reason to come at us. Whether it’s over a stripper or something else, it was bound to happen.”
“I’ve got my guys watching her,” I added. “If she needs help while I’m out of town, they’ll step in.”
“That’s a ticking time bomb,” Luca muttered. “If Delgado knows you want her, it gives him leverage.” Then, in that cool, confident way of his, he said, “MaybeImake her disappear. For her own good.”
A slow chill crawled down my spine.
Lyla was mine.
No one made her disappear except me.
Before I could respond, Lucian cleared his throat and cut through the unease. “I’ve been hearing other things too—about Delgado, that is. Word is, the mayor’s planning a citywide crackdown on clubs like this one. Places with illegal gambling. Escort services. It’s all about to get targeted.”
Gabriel scoffed. “Let me guess. The Sacrifice will be left untouched?”
“Of course,” Lucian said. “The mayor’s already bought.”
“By Delgado?” Lachlan asked.
I met their eyes one by one. “Delgado and the Salvadoran dictator have money, influence, and reach, and they’re making deals with the current bunch in the White House. You’ve seen what’s been happening—people snatched off the streets, sent to Salvadoran prisons. No charges. No lawyers. It’s straight out of the Kremlin’s playbook, dressed up in the Stars and Stripes. The rules have changed, my friends.”
Julian’s gaze darkened. “The underworld just got a lot bigger.”
The room went quiet once more.
Luca exhaled. “You want this girl to survive this, Nikolai?”
I nodded once.
He stood, brushing invisible lint from his sleeve. “Then you’d better start building your brigade, Nikolai. Fast. Pull together men you trust. A proper chain of power. No more lone-wolf bullshit. You want to help me hold this city? You’d better have the muscle to match the choices you’re making.”
