Twisted Tides (Forged Hearts #2)

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-One

JAMESON

“Too Sweet” by Hozier

I get a call from Eduardo to meet him at his club. He doesn’t explain the reason for the meet-up, but I know it is important if he called me at work to meet him.

I promptly gather up my belongings and rush out of the office, rushing to his club. I park right next to the door in the back alley and hit the button on my key fob to lock my car door as I am met by Gus. He leads me down the hallway and up the familiar set of stairs to Eduardo’s office. Gus doesn’t knock. He opens the door, and I see Eli and Philip already there. I enter, looking back at Gus, and take the only remaining seat across from Eduardo’s desk.

“You aren’t at the gym today?” I know he isn’t, so it’s more of a rhetorical question, if anything.

Still, he shakes his head in a nonverbal answer to my stupid question that really didn’t need an explanation in the first place. His hands steeple over his mouth in a contemplative gesture as he carefully chooses his following words.

“I received a phone call today from Evie and Emma’s uncle in Mexico.”

I straighten in my chair, immediately on edge as to what this could now mean for us. “Did you speak with Emma? Does Evie know?” I look back at Gus, who walks closer to us and leans on the wall, crossing one foot over the other—his half-effort at getting comfortable.

Eduardo shakes his head. “No, he just called and told me about something exciting, and because of this new development, I need you to get me a camera.” He looks over to Eli and Philip.

“What is this about? How can I help?” I look back and forth at anyone who could put me at ease because I don’t like how my stomach drops at the uncertainty of the situation.

He hangs his head and then directs his focus at me. “I just found out that Mr. Martin is actually Mr. Martinez.”

I look over at Eduardo, who is waiting for me to react. I just don’t know what he’s talking about. Perhaps if I had more information, I would respond differently.

“I’m confused. Mr. Martinez?”

Seeing my confusion, Eduardo quickly brings me up to speed for the urgency of this meeting. “The same as Julian and his father. As in the same grandfather to Julian. That Mr. Martinez.”

I sit there frozen. “Ramón?”

My brain takes a moment to compute the gravity of the situation. This past year, Mateo has found a friend in this older man. I thought it was odd that this gentleman wanted to hang out with him so much.

“That’s his grandfather?” My hand falls over my mouth. “Evie has been over there multiple times, and they were with him over the holidays because the man didn’t have any family,” I say, my pitch getting higher, as my anxiety rises through the roof.

Good God, how could we not have known? All this time that Mateo was spending time with this man along with my girlfriend was because he didn’t have any family, when in fact, Mateo is his family. This is so fucked.

“Is he the enemy? Are they in danger?” I jump up quickly, my chair toppling to the floor as I move haphazardly, unsure of which direction to go. I imagine myself having a meltdown.

My body moves one way, and my mind moves another. My movements are jerky and erratic, causing me to almost misstep and tumble over the toppled chair. A loud thud echoes in the lofty office space.

I lean forward on his desk. My breathing picks up as my head hangs down. I try to calm the panic that Evie could be in danger. She has been going to this man’s house and hanging out with him and Mateo frequently. If I recall correctly, they were even meeting him today.

I lift my gaze to Eduardo and see the same concern for his fiancée’s safety. He holds his hand up as I am starting to ask another question.

“From what I can tell, he has been without contact from Julian before he died or from Mr. Martinez. I just don’t know how he met Mateo and Evie. I think it seems just a tad bit coincidental that he meets them both and hangs out with his grandson without him actually knowing that Mateo is his biological grandson.”

I look over at Eduardo’s security detail and trusted friends. “Is that why you want the camera? To see if something is going on?” I take the object from my bag and place it on the desk. “What do we do now?” I throw that question into the air and see who grabs at an answer. The room remains silent. Does no one know what we should do?

I look to Eduardo for guidance. He has been doing this longer, and while Emma was my friend and I helped to keep her safe, this hits a bit differently. Now it’s Evie, my woman, who is in trouble.

Eduardo sighs and rubs at his temples, like he is waging a war against an impending migraine. Everything is headache-inducing. The situation is complex and tiresome. Will we ever be able to just relax and hang out without worry? College was long ago; even days spent on Padre Island seem eons ago.

“Do you have everything I asked you to bring?”

I’m pulled from my thoughts and look at him, nodding that I do and pointing to his desk where I placed a bag with the contents of a camera inside.

He smiles. “I have an idea, but where are Mateo and Evie now?”

I take out my phone and send a text to Evie. I thought she was with Mateo in Galveston today, but I want to be sure. A moment later, she replies. My annoyance must show, so I quickly thumb through the reply, followed by two more. I put my phone down.

“She’s with Mateo and the old man in Galveston.”

Eduardo shoots a quick look at his best friend, Gus.

Gus steps off the wall and puts his hand out. He must sense my question to his outstretched hand. “I need the camera.”

I look to Eduardo, who smiles and then begins to explain. He hands the camera over to Gus, who hooks the bag over his shoulder.

“We are going to plant it in Mr. Martin’s house and see what he’s up to. It just seems all too coincidental, don’t you think?”

I nod in agreement. “I do. Coincidental as fuck.” I point at the camera I brought and explain how it works, but there isn’t much to it.

With that, Gus leaves for what I assume is Mr. Martin’s place. Since he is out of the condo now, it should be an okay time to get this done.

I send one more text to Evie and ask her to let me know when they are on their way from dropping off Mr. Martin. We need to come up with something and make a plan to handle this new and unexpected development.

The phone rings in Eduardo’s office. I look over in puzzlement at the source of the intrusion. Eduardo picks it up and smiles slyly. “Excellent, Gus.” He looks over at me. “I’m sure Jameson can get it up and running here, and we will see you soon.” He hangs up the phone, and I’m still staring at him, waiting to see what this conversation was about.

He feels me watching but ignores me to grab himself a drink as he hovers over the bar area in the corner. He grabs a glass and pours some amber drink into a glass. He looks over at me and tosses it back.

“What?” He stares at me in confusion.

I start to laugh. “I didn’t think you still had a landline.”

He looks at the phone and then back at me. “So.” He shrugs. “It’s for the club, and if anyone needs to call me.”

I nod, accepting this excuse. I look around.

“What are you looking for?” He seems to be helping search for the unknown item.

“Nothing, I was just curious where your fax machine was.” I start laughing, and he pours himself another drink.

“You know, I was going to offer you a drink, but now, I’m not feeling so charitable.” He chuckles. “Dick.”

“I’m just kidding, bro, but what did you need me to do? I heard you mention something to Gus.”

Eduardo's smile spreads into an evil grin. “Yes, we have the camera up in Mr. Martin’s house. It’s time to find out what that old bird has been hiding.”

I get the app up, and we look through the phone to see Mr. Martin standing in his kitchen. Eduardo called him an old bird, which isn’t far from the truth. Ramón is under six feet, but that’s not what makes Eduardo’s comment accurate. He has a hook nose that mimics a beak. His eyes are beady and elongated in an obsidian black color, much like the color of Mateo’s eyes and Mr. Martinez’s black ones that match his heartless soul. This combination gives him a bird-like quality that makes his comment laughable and highly on point.

I motion with my hand over to Eduardo. He peers over my shoulder. “Put it on speaker.”

I do as he asks and place the phone on his desk. Eli and Philip move over to see him on the screen moving about in his kitchen. The clanking of dishes in the sink sounds through the phone as he sets the clean dishes down on the rack to air dry. Suddenly, a sound pierces the room, and Philip looks over at Eli.

“What’s that noise?” Philip comments.

I laugh at his question. “I know, right? You should ask Eduardo,” is all I say as Eduardo scowls at me.

Mr. Martin dries his hands on a towel as he walks over to answer the phone on the wall. They start laughing, but it dies down as soon as Mr. Martin answers the phone.

“Hello.” He folds the dish towel over the sink and braces himself on the island. “Yes, I went to the doctor today, and Mateo took me.” He adds the last part hesitantly. He appears to be in physical pain as he shifts his weight from one leg to the other. Whether the pain is related to his doctor’s appointment or this phone conversation, we don’t know.

We hear in a hushed tone, “Please don’t ask that of me.” His head is bent down as his hand rubs at his hair, much like Mateo does.

I look over at Eduardo, and he listens intently to every word of this one-sided conversation. It funnels in through the speaker in a whirl of acrid sounds as if he is afraid to miss any detail. “Okay, son. Yes, I will.”

With that last sentence, I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding. He hangs up the phone on the receiver. I sit up straight and watch as Ramón hangs his head and cups his face. He stands abruptly and walks off out of view into the bedroom.

A moment of silence passes before Eduardo speaks, confirming what we all know to be another truth. Ramón definitely speaks to or is in cahoots with Mr. Martinez, Mateo’s father.

“Well, I guess we have our answer.” Eduardo looks over at us as we consider the gravity of the situation.

“So, who is going to tell them?” I ask.

As soon as Eduardo’s office door opens, Mateo and Evie walk in.

“Who’s going to tell them what?” Evie says just as Eduardo groans.

“Fuck. You always did have perfect timing, Evie.”