“Would you have refused to come if you knew who he was?” she asked when I remained quiet.
“Well, he’s a freaking villain, isn’t he?”
She shrugged. “Well, you’re the one who kissed him first.”
“What does that have to do with anything?” I huffed. “What happened to women sticking together?”
“I’d stick with you if you were right,” she shot back. “But you aren’t.”
“What do you mean, I'm not right? He’s a mobster! An international criminal! That fucking man down there is dead.”
“I don’t see a problem,” she said calmly. “And I’m happy he’s tiedup and got a taste of his own medicine. I wish Mr. Cortes ruled the entire underworld.”
“There’s still time.” I scoffed. “Jesus, talk about ambition. And no, it’s not a compliment.”
She took a few steps, then leaned against the cold, damp wall. I shuddered. I wouldn’t touch anything here, including the walls, with a ten-foot pole.
“Gone are the days of heroes and villains. All that’s left are men like him.”
I stared at her speechless for a moment. “Is that like his criminal motto?”
She rolled her eyes. “I heard him say it to you.”
He must have brainwashed this poor girl. “Listen, Dina. Criminals are bad news all the way around. We need to get out of here.” Then realization hit me. “Crap, my car.”
I’d left it at the hotel. How in the hell would I make my getaway?
“What about it?” she asked.
“I left it at the hotel.”
She shook her head.
“Your car has been returned to the rental company,” she said. “I can drive you anywhere you’d like, or Mr. Cortes assigned a few of his cars to you if you wish to drive.”
“Well, that was…”Nice. “…unnecessary.”
“You could do much worse than Mr. Cortes,” she started, drawing a scoff from me.
“That’s a pretty low bar, Dina.”
“I disagree,” she claimed stubbornly, devotion shining in her eyes. “He might run the mafia, but he doesn’t tolerate anyone who hurts the vulnerable. He’s a protector.”
“But he also kills people.” I pointed down the stairs where the evidence lay. Kian’s offer to eliminate Jacqueline made sense now. The guy was probably in the habit of eliminating people daily.
Dina shrugged. “Not sure why that bothers you. He’s a bad man.”
“Just so we’re clear, who’s a bad man? This dead guy or Kian?”
“The dead guy.” She actually rolled her eyes. “You really need to thank Mr. Cortes.”
“I’m a healer, not a killer,” I spouted. “I’m not thanking him for killing a man. He should have put him in jail, not sliced and diced his fingers and…”
Why was I arguing with this woman when I was clearly getting nowhere?
“I thought you just delivered babies,” she retorted.
I huffed a breath, torn between arguing and applauding her quick thinking. “Listen, I need to get out of here and think this through. Can you drive me to some nice Copacabana spot?”
