CHAPTER SEVENTY SEVENCATALINAAs we walk into the apartment, I am overwhelmed by how distinct it looks. The colors of the walls are all over the place and for someone like me who likes an extremely well put together decor this certainly doesn’t appeal to me. I am sure whoever designed this must have thought they were creating an art piece, some type of modern art. Ihave never quite been able to understand modern art no matter how much I tried and believe me I did try.A woman approaches us and hugs Scot, he is all smiles with her as they exchange pleasantries. She is so beautiful is the first thought in my head as I see her standing there conversing with Scot, he is all smiles as he looks at her and for some weird reason for the first time in my life I find myself feeling a tad bit territorial. I do not like the fact that he is all smiles with this strange woman, who was she to him? Perhaps the owner of this house? Or maybe she is the friend he talked about. What is their relationshi
CHAPTER SEVENTY EIGHTSCOTThe slow realization creeps on Lily’s face as she realizes exactly what I just said, her father is dead.“Dead?” She says in shock, trying to confirm exactly what she just heard.“Yeah, I just got the call now.”She glances at Nickolas as he stands there shocked as well. This was also my reaction when I heard about it, I was not going to say anything at first until I was sure exactly what had happened but Catalina had kept on pressuring me and now she stood right in front of me in shock as well.“What do you mean by he is dead?” Nickolas asks, “How?”“I have no idea, my partner just called that he was found dead in his cell. I will not be entirely sure until I get there and confirm it myself.”“Dead?” Lily blurts out in shock to no one in particular as she walks around the apartment absent mindedly.Her brain must be trying to process everything right now, no matter what happened between all of us Robert was still her father and there is no way in hell she w
CHAPTER SEVENTY NINECATALINAThis overwhelming ache in my heart takes over as I watch him walk out of the room, he obviously doesn’t understand what is coming. This is way worse than all of them think it is, my father is going to do anything he can to get to me. Robert’s death is just the first step, there is only one way this can end. I have to face him myself.I never ever thought it would turn out like this, why is he after me? What did I do? Maybe there is a way I can talk some sense into him, all of this might just be one big misunderstanding. There should be a way I can reach out to him right?What the fuck am I thinking about? This is my father I am thinking of, Javier Vega. Once he has his mind focused on something it is hard to get him to back down or to change it. He has given out the order and he would rather die than go back on what he has said. There will be no negotiating my way out of this one, I can only fight my way out and it will not be easy.A part of me deeply wa
CHAPTER EIGHTYSCOTThe view of the city in the distance from the rooftop is simply exquisite, it has always been one of my highlights everytime I found myself in Nick’s house but right now as I stand here there is too much on my mind already for me to fully appreciate the scenery.There are so many questions running through my head as I stand here with the breeze running through my hair. I have to actually calm down and think deeply about everything that is going on, that is the only way that I can come up with a solution for this madness that is currently happening all around me.It is just like my father always used to sayCalm down and analyze the facts.A smile forms on my face as I hear his voice ringing in my head, I have a lot to thank that man for. He is one of the reasons I got into the force in the first place and definitely the main reason why I stayed.The facts I have right now are very simple. Robert is dead, Javier has escaped and I am not entirely sure of how much tru
CHAPTER EIGHTY ONECATALINAWe both sit in silence, drinks in hand as we are both lost in our thoughts. Underneath that hardened exterior of his Nickolas seems like he is a nice guy quite like Scot, I mean he was the one that came to check up on me when every other person seemed to be pissed at me. From the vibe I got earlier from him I definitely did not expect that we would be in this close proximity without ripping each other's heads off.“How are you feeling now?” Nickolas asks out of the blues.I look up at him but then I notice he is not referring to me as Lily just entered into the room with Scot following closely behind her. A slight smile creeps on my face as I realize what they just did, divide and conquer tactics. She took him and he took me. From the look of calm Scot now has on his face I think it might have worked, I can’t be so sure though so I had better continue keeping my distance.“I am not sure, I am not as upset as I was before and I do not know if that’s a good o
CHAPTER EIGHTY TWOSCOTMy body keeps on tossing and turning as I try to lay down in bed to sleep. Nickolas had insisted on taking the first watch earlier to enable me to get some rest but then there is no way I can get some rest at least not when my mind is not at rest. So many things are going on at once, so many thoughts swirling around in my mind that are causing my body to stir and sleep is definitely not one of them.Sitting up on the bed, I stare down at the floor as I recall the conversation we had in the afternoon. Catalina had made it so clear that she didn’t trust me after everything that I had done. I could see it in her eyes, the doubt. I tried my best to make sure she saw it but Javier is such a sweet talker, he has planted the seeds of doubt in her mind and now it sure as hell is germinating and will very soon turn into a mighty seed of its own.Every atom of trust I have managed to build over the past few hours has certainly been thrown out of the window by that one ph
CHAPTER EIGHTY THREECATALINA“What now?” I ask Scot as the phone line goes dead.He is silent for a while and from the look he has on his face it is obvious he is deep in thought. Finally he speaks“Here is what we are going to do, first of all I'll head back to the house and get my car. You are going to send him an address stating where to pick you up on the road and when he does I’ll follow you to wherever he takes you. If there is any sign of danger to your life I’ll come in myself and take care of things.”“Isn’t that a bit risky? If he figures out that you’re following us things could get bad really quickly.”“Don’t worry about that, I am going to make sure he never does.”“That’s not very reassuring given what just happened earlier” I say, referring to me catching him tailing me.He smiles a little “I am going to be more careful than that.” He says as he holds my hand.Right now I can not think of another way or another mode of action to take. This is the only logical way to do
CHAPTER EIGHTY FOURSCOTThe car keeps on taking turn after turn as I follow behind it. I know what the driver is trying to do, he is trying to shake off any would-be tail that might be following him. I graduated top of my class in college and I have been involved in a lot of clandestine operations over the years, it is certainly going to take more than a couple of fake turn signals and merry go rounds to lose me. Losing this car is not an option, I have to make sure she is safe and the only way I can think of right now is by capturing her father.This time I am sure the trial will be smooth and swift, the man had escaped the jail there is no way for anyone to spin this one other than him spending time in prison. For him to serve that time though someone has to catch him first and I am definitely going to be the one to do it.Maintaining my distance from the black jeep, I drive slowly, watching my pace because I know how important all of this is. If I am made I might as well kiss a lo
EPILOGUE SCOT SIX MONTHS LATER I could feel the wind in my face and the harsh glare of the sun on my skin. I inhaled, sighing at how content and fulfilled I felt with the woman in my arms. It has been six months since everything went down… six months since my life changed for the better and since I realized I would live and die for the woman I held in my arms. We had gone on this holiday after cutting all her ties with the clan and bidding them farewell. She was no longer with that life and the danger it entailed. She had no idea of course about everything I had planned for today and I could not wait to see the look on her face when she realizes that I am going to ask her today to complete me for as long as the world and our lives continue. I turned to the left, to the man holding the signal and he winked in my direction to let me know that everything was in place and it was time for the commotion. “Hey baby” I whispered in her ear, feeling her stir and open her eyes. “I think
ONE HUNDRED AND FIVECATALINADespite all the air flowing all around in the open yard I can feel myself struggling to get air into my system, the whole atmosphere around is so tense as both Dante and Scot face off in the middle of the square.This looks extremely familiar to me, I have watched so many fights take place in this same yard during my training but none of them held as high a stake as this. Everything is hanging on this showdown, whatever happens here is definitely going to change a lot of things drastically.“You came,” Dante says to Scot, “I see you are not a coward after all. Just a man with a death wish.”“Yes I have a death wish, but not mine.” Scot says laughing,I can tell Dante is furious by the blank look he has on his face as he turns to me, he still has the same expressions from when we were younger.“So this is it, your plan is to challenge me with this lowlife.” he says, addressing me.“He is not a lowlife.” I reply,“And now you defend him. What went wrong, Ca
CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND FOURSCOT“You should get dressed.” I tell her as I get up from the bed and begin to search for my clothes which are strewn across the floor.I can see the fear in her eyes as she clutches tightly onto the sheets and speaks,“No, please, you can’t go. This will be suicide.”Looking at her as I grab my shoes from the corner of the room and begin to put it on“I do not think we have a choice anymore, you heard what they said.”“There’s always a choice,” she says, getting up and rushing to kneel right in front of me as I put on my shoes. “We can run, go anywhere else but here, that’s a choice.”Her eyes tell me that she means everything that she says as they reflect the deep pain and worry which she feels right now.“Are you willing to elope with me?” I ask,“Yes.” She says without hesitation, cupping my face in her hands. “I will go with you wherever and we will be able to get away from them.”For the first time in a long time I understand what this feeling is no
CHAPTER HUNDRED AND THREECATALINAHe sleeps so soundly.I have a smile on my face as I look at Scot’s face as he lay there with his eyes closed. Last night was extremely draining for the both of us as I recall the nasty things we did to each other all through. Some of the best sex I have ever had in this life is definitely with this man who is laying here clutching on to my naked body. He had not let me go all night, the memory of me disappearing on him like the last time definitely still haunts him but this time is different though, I have no plans of doing such. I love it here, snuggling closer to him.“Is that how you always stare or am I just that special?” he asks, with his eyes still closed.“You are awake.”“Yes, I could feel you looking.”“Sorry I woke you,”“It’s fine, you could have been more creative about it though.” he says,“Oh really.” I reply, gliding my hands into the bedspread that covered our bodies and tracing his abs till I reach his lower region.The gasp escape
CHAPTER HUNDRED AND TWOSCOT“Do you want to get out of here?” she asks, out of the blues.The question takes me by surprise as I stand there still looking at her. Before I can say anything she grabs my hand and begins walking really fast towards the exit. Watching her from behind, it is a surprise she is moving as fast as she is in that dress and those heels she has on. She looks extremely hot.We get out of the club and turn right, continuing our little stroll in silence as the music blasting from the club gets more and more distant, eventually fading away completely. A brief look behind us reveals to me that we are being followed by the men who had thrown out the madman at the club earlier.“Friends of yours?” I ask, as we continue walking.“More like CCTV.” she replies, without bothering to turn around.“I count three of them, don’t you think that’s too much for your security? I mean you did say you can take care of yourself after all.” I say, shooting the snide remark in her dire
CHAPTER HUNDRED AND ONECATALINAThe room is spinning right now in my mind as I struggle to get my thoughts together. It’s harder to do thanks to the mixture of alcohol coursing through my veins and the shock that I can still feel reverberating through my entire system as I see him standing in front of me.This all feels like a dream, a trance that I am not sure what to make of. Is he really here? I am tempted to reach out and touch him in order to confirm but I try my best to hold myself. Scot in Italy? What the fuck could he possibly be doing here? Especially now that I am trying to let go of the past, trying to forget the one man that has consistently ruled my thoughts for the past week and now here he is standing before me once again.Short of words right now as my brain is still processing all of what is happening, trying to make sense of it. All I can do now is stare at this gorgeous hunk of a man standing before me. In the sim light of the club, all his features seem more prono
CHAPTER ONE HUNDREDSCOTA week…Seven days I have spent here and still I haven’t been able to get in contact with her. I know where she is but then I also know if I show up over there I am going to be dead before I will have the opportunity to even get to see her face. Javier is definitely not going to stand for it.Making enquiries about them had all led to the same thing.Stay away from the Vega’sEveryone I had asked turned out to be scared of them, even all of Nickolas’s contacts that I had reached out to when I first landed hung on me when they heard the name I was asking about. I knew they were a big deal in Italy but I never thought it would be up to this.What was I expecting though? Javier runs the biggest crime syndicate in the country, Of course they were feared.Recalling what Pascal; the man I had spoke to yesterday said,“If you keep on asking about the Vega’s you will end up dead, besides how good could the pussy have been for you to want to fly over from the states fo
CHAPTER NINETY NINECATALINA“I don’t think I should give you more drinks, anymore and you will be puking your guts out by the side of the road.” the bartender says to me,“Oh come on, I deserve it.” I say in between giggles, “After what I have gone through in the past couple of days, I most definitely need it.”He gives me a look and I reply with a pleading look of my own.“Pleaseee” I say, mustering the biggest baby eyes I can manage to pull in the state that I am in.“Fine,” he says, “two more and then no more. I will have the men take you home.”“You are no fun, let loose a little. I know that’s why I am here.” I say,“Well I am on duty, this isn’t as fun for me as it appears to be for you.” he says, chuckling.“How about me and you having a little fun?” I say, winking at him and putting on my best flirtatious smile.He looks back at me as he gets what I am hinting at.and a smile breaks across his face. Even in the dim light of the bar, I can tell how handsome of a man he is with
CHAPTER NINETY EIGHTSCOTWe all stand around in a circle with Javier’s man in the center of the room and the bag by his side. I do not want to let him out of my sight as we wait for the arrival of Javier. He had already made a phone call earlier and had indicated that he was already on his way. I told a couple of men to keep an eye on the entrance of the building so we would know exactly when they were coming.Finally he will be here soon and we will be able to settle all of this nasty business once and for all. My top priority is Catalina but in the event that the opportunity to take both her and Javier in safely arrives then I will take it as well. It will be a very big arrest for the department and I am sure the chief will be willing to look past the stealing of drugs and some of the other things I have done to achieve the goal. Catalina is the first priority though, all other things are secondary. Once I have her then we can figure the others out.Here I am risking my entire exis