Javier (Alpha Heroes #12)

Chapter Twenty-six

Javier

“Holy fucking shit.” I stared at Missy, having just witnessed her mind’s brilliance in action, then returned my gaze to Rozina. “You do work for Richard Astor, don’t you?”

She kept her lips tightly pressed and her glower on Missy.

“Fuck Richard Astor,” I muttered. “He’s the dick that keeps on giving.”

“This is what happened.” Missy engaged the Glock’s safety and slumped down on an upholstered chair. Her thoughtful expression as she considered the other woman told me she was processing and fast. “My father recruited you. He offered you lots of money to find me and drag me back to him. He chose you because you’re good at your job.”

“So Mousy Missy has a brain.” Rozina mocked her with the smirk I wanted to rip off her face. “I’ll admit to being fucking amazing at my job.”

“I have news for you.” Missy looked the woman straight in the eye. “My father’s dead.”

“What?” For the first time since we’d caught her, Rozina flinched. Her lips slacked and her eyes went as wide as they could go.

“He’s dead,” Missy reiterated, her tone stern and sure. “As in gone, buried, extinct.”

“No.” Rozina shook her head, frowning. “I would’ve known.”

Her denial was an admission in itself.

Missy leaned back on the chair. I could almost hear the well-oiled cogwheels of her mind working. “How long have you been on leave from your job?”

“Six months,” Rozina said. “Why do you ask?”

“You’ve been in Central America all that time,” Missy guessed. “You must’ve missed the news. My father’s death got little coverage over here. I didn’t hear about it and neither did you. I’m going to guess Father asked you to contact him only if you found me. He wired you a generous allowance on a quarterly basis.”

The confusion on Rozina’s face told me that Missy was right. She knew her father’s MO. She’d guessed correctly on all counts. She crossed one leg over the other, and sat straight on her chair, wearing only my T-shirt, and yet exuding the same confidence I’d witnessed in her sister Thena when she dealt with pricks and assholes.

“Have you received your latest allowance?” Missy asked. “I bet it’s late, isn’t it?”

The color drained from Rozina’s cheeks, but she didn’t break.

“The man’s dead,” I built on Missy’s argument. “He’s not looking for Missy anymore. You’re fucked. You might as well come clean. How did you find Missy?”

Rozina dropped her head and cursed under her breath.

“Please,” Missy said. “Just tell us.”

“Really, Mousy?” The woman scorned. “What’s in it for me?”

Missy looked at me.

“You get to live,” I snarled. “I won’t put a round on your fucking head right now. Which I will do if you insult Missy again and don’t answer her questions.”

Rozina’s throat rippled. “I’ve got a kid.”

Missy’s face instantly softened. I scoffed. Rozina was trying to tug on our heartstrings, Missy’s mostly. My heartstrings were short and unavailable to criminals and kidnappers. I didn’t have any mercy for a woman who’d planned to kidnap Missy and tried to play me to get to her. It infuriated me that Rozina had believed she could neutralize me so easily. Even though we’d proven her wrong, it pissed me off that she’d made it this far.

“You put Missy in danger.” My voice was as cold as my glare. “You cut the landline and fudged with the little signal we get up here. You better talk and fast.”

“Swear to me you won’t kill me,” she pleaded.

“He does.” It was Missy who answered.

“I won’t neutralize you if you answer our questions truthfully,” I qualified, playing my part. I wasn’t a cold-blooded killer, but Rozina didn’t have to know that. “How did you find us?”

She inhaled a big breath. “A few days ago, I got a tip.”

“From whom?” I demanded.

“It was an anonymous tip.”

“What kind?”

“An untraceable phone call.”

“What did the person sound like?”

“Like a robot,” Rozina said. “The voice was disguised by a vocoder or a ring modulator.”

Shit.

“Why you?” I demanded, and despite the promise that Missy made on my behalf, I kept my weapon on the bitch.

“Last year, Mr. Astor hired me to search for his daughters in Central America,” the woman explained. “He told me he had assets in other areas doing the same. So, technically, this was my territory. Whoever called me, knew that.”

“You didn’t find this unsolicited tip suspicious?”

“To be honest, I thought it probably came from Mr. Astor himself.”

An impossibility, given that Richard Astor was dead.

Missy and I traded worried glances. Whoever had delivered the tip knew the details of Richard Astor’s searches. It could be an insider, someone who’d been close to Richard before he died or someone somehow in the know. Or, it could be the NWO. They’d sent mercs after Missy in Nicaragua. They also knew she’d crossed into Costa Rica. My money was on Bekker. Which begged another question.

“Did they tell you to come to this resort?”

“Yes,” Rozina nodded. “I checked in a couple of hours after you did.”

Fuck.

Whoever was behind the tip had made it very easy for Rozina. If she knew our location, surely the NWO knew it as well. Why hadn’t they made a move on us yet? Why give Rozina the info?

The answer punched me in the nose.

Bekker couldn’t get to us. He had to lie low. His face was on every Most Wanted list in the world, and I’d turned the resort into a veritable fortress. On the other hand, Rozina had her law enforcement credentials to check into the hotel without creating suspicion, and no red flags showed up in her background check. This explained the anonymous tip. Rozina had no idea she was being used, but Bekker’s plan was to wait for her to extract Missy from the grounds and then pounce. A cursory glance at Missy told me she understood all of this as well as I did.

“So,” Missy said. “You came here to abduct me against my will.”

“I’m working as a private detective for a distressed father who wanted to find his daughter.” Rozina straightened. “Nothing wrong with that. If the pay’s good, well, even better.”

“Key words for you to remember,” Missy said. “You meant to abduct me against my will. Since I’m an adult, your actions and your attempt to force me to return with you aren’t legal. Perhaps you did this for your kid.” Missy perused Rozina’s face, and I could’ve sworn that, even after everything that had happened, she held some compassion for the woman. “Maybe you did it out of greed. I don’t know, but I think that everyone deserves to be treated right.”

I sucked the air between my teeth. Was Missy about to let this bitch go Scot-free?

“Angel,” I started. “I get what you mean, but—”

“I’m not done.” Missy sliced me a look that shut me up before she returned her gaze to Rozina. “Taking someone against their will is wrong. Everyone should be able to live their lives in freedom. I know what that means to me. You’ll need to figure out what it means for you, detective.” She put out her hand. “Javi, may I borrow your cell?”

Keeping Rozina in my sights, I fought to dial down my indignation. Altruism sucked. Kindness was dangerous. Good people died while bad people thrived.

When I hesitated, Missy asked again. “Please, Javi. Trust me?”

Her pleas always slayed me. Going against my instincts, I slid the cell out of my pocket and handed it over to Missy.

“I’ll be right back.” She stepped out of the treehouse leaving Rozina and I staring at each other wordlessly. I’d never wanted to sock a woman before. Tonight, I did.

Missy came back a few moments later. “I went down the hill and got a good signal. I spoke to Allen. I told him we had a situation. He’s on the way. You have very little time left.”

“For what?” Rozina asked.

“My father, your employer, is gone. There’s no payment in your future.”

“Zero,” I put in gleefully. “Squat. Nada .”

“You’ve committed several crimes—trespassing, assault with a deadly weapon, attempted kidnapping, the list goes on,” Missy said. “If I press charges, you’ll be stuck in a Costa Rican prison for a long while. You won’t get to see your kid, either. Also, the NYPD will be notified and you’ll be fired. You’re now unemployed and unemployable.”

The woman’s shoulders slumped and yet, a moment later, her head snapped up and her eyes narrowed on Missy. “ If you press charges?”

“You heard me right.” I’d never seen that crafty smirk on Missy’s face, but it was both cunning and stunning. “I want your silence and your assurances that you’ll leave us alone, forget that I exist, and never, ever mention my name to anyone for the rest of your life.”

She got Rozina’s attention.

“You do what I ask and you’ll be escorted back to the States. I won’t press charges against you… yet.” She paused to let that sink in. “I want to help you, detective, but I need to make sure you’ll honor our agreement.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Rozina asked, her voice cautious.

“I’m going to give you something a lot of people never get.”

“And that is?”

“A second chance,” Missy said. “An alternative to prison and ruin.”

I suddenly understood what Missy was doing. My Angel was kind but also brilliant. I should’ve remembered that all along. My hothead began to cool. I was happy to be a spectator to this showdown.

Rozina’s forehead wrinkled into a suspicious frown. “Why would you give me a choice?”

“Because we’re all human. We all make mistakes.” Missy lifted a delicate finger in the air. “However, the alternative I propose entails atonement and sacrifice.”

Rozina glanced at me and grimaced. “What the fuck is she talking about?”

I smirked at the fucked-up bitch. “I suggest you hear her out.”

Face hard with distrust, Rozina turned her gaze back to Missy.

“Mr. Allen will arrive soon,” Missy explained in her calm and calming voice. “He’ll document everything that happened here today. You’ll sign a legally binding affidavit confessing to your crimes. We’ll also be keeping pictures, motion detector data, DNA evidence, witness testimony, your gun, mask, and outfit, everything we need to put you in prison. We’ll seal the evidence and certify the investigation. Then, we’ll make sure to keep it all safe for posterity. If you don’t keep your side of the bargain, we’ll begin by delivering such evidence to the NYPD.”

Rozina stared, her mouth hanging open, her tanned face the color of wax.

I suppressed a bark of laughter. Heaven had no angel as bright as mine. My huntress was ruthlessly sweet and mercilessly kind. She blew my mind with her mental maneuvers. Yeah, Missy was compassionate, but she was no pushover. She was determined, decisive, powerful.

Rozina swore a nasty string. “You’ve got me by the balls.”

“Does that mean you agree to Missy’s proposal?” I demanded.

“I guess.”

Missy just stared at the woman, her eyes a pool of serenity.

“Fine,” Rozina spat.

Missy inclined her head. “Congratulations on making what I hope is the first of many good decisions.”

“Guzman!” Allen’s knock rattled the door on its hinges. “Are you in there?”

“Give me a sec,” I yelled, enjoying the spectacle of Missy unleashing her star power to right our very wrong universe. “I’ll be right there.” I glanced at Missy. “Are you done?”

“Um…” Her hesitation was as adorable as it was brief. “No.”

I swept a hand in the air. “Please continue.”

“As part of our agreement,” she said to Rozina, “you’ll compensate Pedro for damages in whatever amount Pedro and Allen decide is fair.”

“But—”

“Stop.” Missy shook her head. “This is a deal breaker for me.”

The woman groaned. “Okay, fine. Are we finished now?”

“I have one last tidbit of advice for you, because, well, why not?” Missy shrugged. “Hunks have souls, you know? Don’t try to use a guy to get what you want ever again. It’s not kind. Or right.”

Missy tossed me a discreet glance and I barely managed to smother the crazy cackle that wanted to burst out of my throat. She was protecting me , standing up for me , aggrieved on my behalf.

“Also,” Missy added. “Give your fellow women a break. We’re not wimpy, or whiny, or mousy. We’re just fighting to be ourselves however we can.”

“You’re really weird.” Rozina eyed Missy as if she was an alien from another planet. “You look sweet and soft and tame, but you’re spooky. You know that, right?”

“I do now.” Missy tossed me a triumphal smile. “I’ll go open for Allen.”

I kept my weapon in play, but my gaze trailed Missy across the room, admiring how she’d handled the situation, in awe of her.

Rozina dragged her bewildered stare to me. “Is she for real?”

“Oh, yeah.” I widened my grin until my face hurt. “She’s for real.”

And I was going to make her mine.