For having his child. That made no sense, but Emilo had been an abusive bastard. Maybe he had never wanted a son or daughter.

  But if that was true, why had he hunted them down in St. Louis? To kill Valeria for the “sin” of leaving him?

  “I do not understand.”

  “I left you behind, and I never should have. I should have risked myself to take you with me that night. I could have spared you a year and a half of utter abuse and misery. But I was too afraid of what would happen to me and my baby…” Valeria started crying, and Laila heard the genuine remorse in her voice. “I am so sorry, hermana.”

  That confession had obviously weighed heavily on her sister, and Laila hated to hear her tear herself apart over making the obvious—and correct—choice. “I understand. I support your choice. Nothing is more important to me than you and Jorge. Do not get involved in this mess, except maybe to demand that EM Security help me find Trees.”

  After all, his point about having no backup, no equipment, and no help was true.

  “No, it is time I do more. The root of all our problems is Geraldo. I will deal with him—once and for all.”

  Laila reeled back in horror. “You cannot.”

  “I must. He will not hurt me. He will never hurt me. I have the one thing he wants most in this world. Jorge.”

  “You cannot sacrifice your son to that monster. He will—”

  “Never,” Valeria said firmly, like a vow. “But perhaps I can negotiate with him since I have leverage, and I refuse to let you risk yourself again. I will call EM Security and work something out.”

  If Montilla would stop hunting them, maybe they could have a life? “But what if Geraldo will not negotiate?”

  “He will.” Her sister sounded smug.

  Laila didn’t understand, but her first priority was Trees. Valeria and Jorge having a cartel-free future was critical. Laila wanted that for them. But if these violent bastards took Trees from this earth, she would have no tomorrows.

  “And what of Victor?”

  Valeria scoffed. “Ramos is nothing but ass-licking pond scum. Emilo was right about very little, but he was right about that. He is more dangerous than smart, and I think I know a way to ensure that he gets exactly what is coming to him.”

  Laila blinked. This was her sister? Valeria almost always allowed her to plan and execute whatever needed to be done. “I do not understand.”

  “I know. And…there are things I should have explained much sooner, but I was embarrassed. If you had known, however, I might have saved you some heartache and trouble. Another grave mistake I will have to live with. I hope you can forgive me someday.”

  “Valeria—”

  “Give me an hour. I will see what I can work out. See if you can locate Victor. And take care of yourself, hermana. I will be in touch.”

  “I cannot wait an hour to start saving Trees.” She had already wasted too much time as it was.

  At least locating Victor would give her something to do. She could find out if he had taken Trees and plead for her beloved’s life. She would offer Victor whatever he wanted for Trees’s safe return.

  “Would he truly want you putting yourself in danger for him? No. The man who confessed to me that he loves you would give his life to spare yours. Please honor him. I will be in touch soon.”

  Then Valeria hung up. Immediately, Laila went to work, trying her best to plot how she could both keep her promise and save the man she loved.

  Chapter Ten

  As Laila left the bathroom, she found Matt in the hall. He’d been assigned to guard her?

  “Did you think someone would take me captive while I was in the bathroom?” She sent him a quelling glance. “There are no windows.”

  “We thought you might be plotting something behind our backs. From what I hear, you’re good at that.”

  She ignored the flush stealing up her cheeks and brazened her way past him. “I was talking to my sister.”

  “That doesn’t mean you’re not plotting something.”

  Laila didn’t dignify that with a reply, mostly because he wasn’t wrong.

  When she made her way back to the breakfast bar, Matt still trailing, she was surprised to see Kimber waiting for her, holding the baby. Her temporary sentry sent her a flinty warning glance, then made his way to the cluster of operatives, now huddled over the dining room table, deep in discussion.

  Kimber smiled and cooed down at her baby. “I have something useful for you. Play along.”

  She didn’t have to act to stare at the baby like she was adorable. “I am listening.”

  “I don’t know how the guys know this—something about online chatter from sources—but Montilla has Trees.”

  Laila’s heart leapt into her throat, clogging it until she couldn’t breathe. It was good to know who had Trees…but bad that the powerful drug lord, not the easily manipulated Victor, had taken him. “They are sure?”

  “They seem to be.” Kimber brushed a thumb along her baby’s cheek, then hazarded a glance up at Laila. “I know you haven’t always had good experiences with EM Security. My brothers told me your story and some of the hardships you’ve endured. But I swear, they’re the best. And if they’re this sure of something, it’s almost one-hundred-percent true.”

  Almost true didn’t make it fact, but Laila had to concede it was possible they had sources she didn’t and knew things she couldn’t. She just had to figure out how best to use the knowledge. “Thank you so much.”

  “I owe you a hundred times more. Tell me if there’s anything else I can do.”

  Laila’s panic urged her to take this woman up on her offer, but Kimber wasn’t the person most qualified to rescue Trees, and she had a bigger responsibility. “Stay with your children and be safe. I will figure this out. I promised Trees that if he ever needed rescuing, I would not act alone and I would not risk myself.”

  The woman’s gaze slid down to her infant daughter, then she nodded. “I think that’s wise. My brothers want Trees back, too. They’re hardheaded, but they will hear logic. I’m sure you can all work together.”

  Laila hoped so. “Thank you.”

  “When this is all over, I would love to do something to truly thank you for helping to facilitate my rescue.”

  “That is not necessary, but I would enjoy more of your company.”

  Kimber smiled and squeezed her hand. “Same. Stay safe. I hope you have Trees back soon.”

  With that, Deke’s wife returned to her husband’s side. They departed together, Deke letting the others know that Jack Cole would be arriving soon to lend a hand—and his tactical smarts.

  Even if he arrived in two minutes, that would be two minutes too late to start plotting a scheme. Somehow, she had to figure out what Montilla wanted—other than Jorge—and give it to him in exchange for Trees.

  Wouldn’t the leader of the cartel want the head of the man who had humiliated him by stealing his car? Serving Victor on a platter to Montilla might not be enough to sway him, but she had to try.

  She opened her phone and pondered the best way to find Victor without giving away her ploy, her location, or her dilemma when an unfamiliar icon labeled Locate Me jumped out at her. Someone had installed it on her device without her knowledge. How? The only person who had had access to her phone was Trees.

  Hope surged.

  Despite her suddenly shaking fingers, Laila couldn’t press the icon fast enough. She held her breath as she waited, eyes glued to the screen. A map appeared, slowly piecing together. Lafayette and surrounding areas filled her screen. In the center was a little blue dot, traveling southeast. A red line showed her every location that device had been since last night—starting with Trees’s place.

  She gasped. That had to be his phone. Had she actually found him? Her gaze bounced up to the men, mouth agape.

  Matt, who was still watching her, was by her side in a handful of steps. “What is it?”

  “I know where Trees is.”

  Surprise crossed his face, but before he could say anything, Hunter swore soundly across the room. Laila looked up to find him with his phone pressed to his ear.

  “Are you fucking serious?” the elder Edgington brother roared.

  “What is happening?” She worried it was bad news about Trees.

  “He’s talking to Kane. Your sister demanded a meeting. Hunter promised her one once this crisis is over, but she insists on seeing him now, and I’m guessing she didn’t wait for anyone to give her permission before she left her safe house. Then again, she’s paying the bills…”

  Valeria was coming here? What the hell was she doing, risking herself and Jorge?

  Logan gestured to Matt with a sharp jerk of his head. The cowboy nodded, then slipped out the back door. Laila’s mind whirled. Amid the mental chaos, she tried to devise a plan, discarding possibilities and nailing down more viable options while following Trees’s still-moving blue dot. A plot began to take shape.

  Minutes later, Matt entered again and stepped aside. Valeria appeared, holding a sleepy Jorge. Kane stood right behind them, on alert, gun in hand.

  “Were you followed?” Hunter barked to Kane.

  The man with the mustache shook his head. “Hardly anyone on the streets at this hour.”

  Hunter and his brothers visibly relaxed as they locked the door.

  Valeria ignored them, searching her surroundings. When Laila met her gaze, her sister gave her an imitation of a smile. To fool everyone else? It wasn’t fooling her.

  They met in the middle of the room, hugging as if they hadn’t seen each other in weeks, rather than yesterday. Still, with everything that had happened, that heart-to-heart in the apartment seemed like a lifetime ago.

  Laila drank in her sister’s familiar comfort, then kissed sleeping Jorge’s head. “What are you doing here?”

  “Making sure you finally get a chance to be happy. What have I missed?”

  In low tones, she filled Valeria in, aware of the men and their perceptive gazes. As she and her sister put their heads together, Laila outlined her working plan. Granted, it had one giant hole. “But if Montilla will not be satisfied with an exchange of Trees for Victor, I have no other leverage…except myself.”

  Without that, the man she loved would die. She couldn’t bring herself to say the words aloud. Terror threatened to shred her composure. She was doing her best to compartmentalize.

  “But you do.” Valeria grabbed her hand and led her toward the cluster of plotting men. “Come with me. Tell them your plan. I will fill in details as needed.”

  The group fell silent as they approached. Hunter turned to them, looking at Valeria as if she’d lost her mind. “You shouldn’t have come.”

  “My sister needs me.”

  “We had you in a secure location. And you risked compromising it because you wanted to give Laila a hug?” He pinned her with a glare. “If you have another problem, we’ll absolutely address it, but—”

  “I do not.”

  “Then with all due respect, you’re making our jobs a lot harder. We need to keep you and your son locked down so we can focus on rescuing our operative.”

  Valeria raised a brow. “Will all due respect, if we all work together, we can accomplish what none of us alone are able to, which is not only Trees’s rescue but to stop Montilla once and for all.”

  That made Hunter pause. Not that anyone here was naive enough to believe that ending the drug lord would stop the cartel. But it would make Valeria safe, enable Jorge to have a real future, and free the man she loved.

  “We’re listening,” Logan said.

  “I know where to find Trees.” Laila showed them the blue dot on her screen, now approaching the airport. That was both good and bad. Good because it seemed they meant to keep Trees alive long enough for a flight, which gave her and EM Security time. Bad because they likely meant to take him someplace where it would be much harder to extract him. “Any chance we could reach him before the plane takes off?”

  Hunter didn’t reply, simply fired off a text and waited for a reply with toe-tapping impatience.

  “I doubt they’re flying commercial,” drawled the younger Edgington. “If they’re going private, that means they’re on their own schedule, so no. Fuck!”

  Though Laila had been half expecting that answer, it still crushed her. “Can anyone else stop them? The police?”

  “If they go in, sirens blaring, there’s a good chance Montilla’s thugs get spooked and Trees doesn’t survive. The only teammate who could get there fast enough is Zy, but he can’t take on three of Montilla’s thugs without assistance and backup. He’d either become a captive or a casualty, too.”

  Hunter’s phone dinged. “Okay, Dad reached out to his friend at the airport. The air-traffic control tower said there’s a private plane due to take off in twenty minutes.”

  “Can the tower delay the flight?” Laila asked.

  “I doubt it,” Hunter answered regretfully. “They’ve already been pre-cleared and they’re about to pull away from the gate. But Dad did say they’ve filed a flight plan to an airstrip northeast of Mexico City.”

  “Geraldo has a residence near there,” her sister supplied. “He also has an operation in the mountains to the east.”

  Laila turned to Valeria. How did she know that? From Emilo? Had her late husband shared such things with her?

  “So it’s a safe bet that Montilla will have Trees taken to one of those locations,” Hunter said.

  Yes, but how would they know which one? “We cannot wait for Trees’s blue dot to settle in a spot before we act.”

  “No, and they’ll dump the phone well before they reach their destination. Did you two have an idea how to shut Montilla down permanently?”

  Valeria turned to her. “Tell them.”

  Laila took a deep breath. “I will write Victor and say that I know he has captured Trees and that I am willing to exchange myself for him.”

  Logan scowled. “Why? Victor doesn’t have Trees.”

  “I know, but he needs only to think I believe he does. He is furious with me for betraying him to Montilla. Trust me, he will not pass up an opportunity to hurt me in the name of revenge. If we lure him to a location, you can capture him. We will then offer him to Montilla in exchange for Trees.”

  The three brothers who owned EM Security frowned in unison, but Hunter spoke for them. “And if you’re talking about taking out Montilla for good, I assume you’re saying we need to capture him, too? What if Victor isn’t a strong enough lure for him to agree to a meet?”

  Exactly where Laila had been hung up.

  “I will take care of that,” Valeria answered. “It is me and my son he ultimately wants.”

  Laila turned to her sister in horror. “You cannot!”

  “Oh, I have no intention of staying with Montilla or letting him infect Jorge, but he will jump at the chance to meet my little boy. Take my word on that.”

  The grandson he’d never met. Perhaps that was true. Except… “There is a rumor Montilla is in a coma, one Trees put him in when he shot the old man during Kimber’s rescue.”

  “Can you verify that?” Muñoz chimed in.

  Laila gnawed on her lip, thinking through possibilities. “I can try.”

  “Good, because I doubt Montilla’s men would hop countries to grab Trees if el jefe himself hadn’t okayed the op.”

  “My thoughts, too.” Hunter nodded.

  “Same,” Logan tossed in. “Not unless he had a second-in-command with a lot of power.”

  At once, everyone turned to Valeria. Even Laila had no idea what her sister knew. They had rarely talked about life trapped under a drug lord’s thumb, as if they had both wanted to forget their dark pasts.

  Valeria nodded, surprising Laila again. “Federico Chavez. He’s ambitious, smart, and cruel. I have seen him do unspeakable things to gain favor and get ahead. Before I left, he was well on his way to becoming Geraldo’s right hand.”

  “Which means he will probably want to take over as boss someday,” Hunter surmised. “And your son is a threat to him.”

  “Very much.”

  That got Laila’s thoughts turning again. “Is it possible Federico would pretend to spy for the enemy, then sell them out to his boss at the last minute?”

  “Without blinking.”

  It was just a hunch, but… “Victor had an informant on the inside of Montilla’s organization. He clearly knew things, could influence the boss, and had power of his own. Could it be—”

  “Federico is the only one Geraldo trusts that much.” Valeria shrugged. “Or that was the case before I escaped.”

  That was probably the case now. In a den of criminals and cutthroats, trust like that wasn’t won over night. “I think I have spoken to him. And I think he will talk to me again. If I am right, this may be the last piece of the puzzle we need.” Laila turned to her sister. “You want no part of Tierra Caliente’s future? You do not wish to run the cartel or have Jorge raised to take over?”

  She clutched Jorge to her chest. “Never. It is why I ran from both Montilla men.”

  Laila palmed her nephew’s head. “Good. Then I think we have a plan.”

  Hunter narrowed those uncanny blue eyes on her. “You’re going to trade Victor to Montilla, then trade Montilla’s position to Federico in exchange for the promise that you, Valeria, and Jorge walk free from the cartel. Am I right?”

  She lifted her chin. “Do you have a better idea?”

  “No.” Then he smiled her way, and she saw respect spread across his face. “Trees said you were crafty. That’s an understatement. You’re a hell of a tactician. I wish I would have listened sooner.”

  She stopped bristling. “Thank you.”

  “Can you get in touch with Victor now? And his informant?”

  “I think so.”

  “Then set everything up. Logan is bomb with maps. He’ll help you find the best locations to draw them to. If this plan unfolds the way it should, you and your family will finally be free.”