8. Rafe

8

RAFE

I never thought I would see the day that I helped Zavala, but it was necessary to keep my cover.

"Put pressure on that!" I shouted, taking a hard right down the next street. I glanced over at Zavala, bleeding out in the seat beside me. When that explosion went off and the car flipped, a piece of metal from the car broke off and lodged in his leg. The only way to remove Zavala from the wreckage was to remove the metal. Now he was bleeding all over the fucking place, and by the way he was acting, it was clear he'd never been in a situation like this before.

"Get me to the airport," he said weakly.

"We need to get off the grid. These guys know you have a yacht at the marina. It's not that far-fetched to think you have a plane."

He rolled his head to the side, shooting me a half smile. "Funny, you were with those guys earlier."

I tightened my grip on the steering wheel, ignoring his comment. If we were going to get out of this, I needed him to believe I was on his side. "Do you want to get out of this alive or not?"

"Take me to the airport," he said again.

I did as he asked, pretending I was pissed about it. As expected, as soon as we arrived at the airport, vehicles came screeching through the gates. Cash had been following us the whole way, and I was glad he hadn't gone right back to the marina. I laughed internally, knowing my brother was doing everything he could to get me to the island.

I would say I'd thank him later, but that wouldn't happen.

"That one!" Zavala pointed.

The tarmac was empty at the small airport, but workers scrambled out of my way as I flew across the pavement. I pressed the horn, signaling our arrival. His men immediately jumped into action.

I got as close as I could and screeched to a halt on the side of the plane. Ignoring the pain in my side from where I was stabbed earlier, I rushed around to his side and hoisted him out of the car. He used me as a crutch, rushing along beside me to get to his plane.

Gunfire shattered the silence of the night, eating up the pavement at our feet. Thankfully, Cash wasn't aiming any higher. We were almost there. I just had to get him on board and then hopefully, he wouldn't shoot me for my service.

A bullet pierced my back, taking me to my knees immediately. The pain was excruciating, but I knew it was a well-placed bullet, courtesy of my brother. Zavala nearly fell also, but I struggled to my feet, pushing past the pain as sweat coated my body. I was losing too much blood.

The plane was merely twenty feet away. I could do this. Gritting my teeth, I grabbed Zavala by the jacket and pulled him with me. Every step made me want to pass out. Black spots dotted my vision and my breathing was so labored, I could hardly draw a full breath. We were just steps away when I used the last of my strength to haul Zavala over to the steps. I pushed him from behind, wheezing as I used every last ounce of energy to get him onto the plane. His men grabbed him, dragging him the rest of the way. I made it to the last step and collapsed in the doorway. Blood oozed from my body, coating the floor of the plane.

My eyes slowly closed as I struggled to work up the energy to haul my ass the rest of the way inside. The engines were loud as we prepared for takeoff, but I didn't have the energy to move. My gaze opened once more, drifting over Zavala's prone form. His guys had no idea what to do as they put pressure on his wound. If I didn't get my ass up and help him, he'd bleed out on the floor.

Summoning strength that I kept on reserve, I pushed myself off the last stair and into the plane. My gaze drifted outside to the early morning light, and I thought I saw my brother by a vehicle staring at me, but it was difficult to tell in the dim light. My breaths were staggered and painful as I rolled to the side, pushing to my hands and knees. I crawled over to Zavala, taking a final look at the bastard before tearing his shirt into one long strip. My fingers trembled as I wrapped the shirt around his leg, tying it tight to cut the flow of blood.

The exertion nearly killed me. Hard pants of breath left my body as everything turned black. I swayed on my knees, trying to stay awake, but the blood loss was too severe. My body hit the floor hard, but I felt no pain as the darkness claimed me.

Sitting on the edge of the bed, I stared out the window as the bright morning light shone through. The ocean stretched for miles without any sight of land in the distance. I made it to the island.

At least, I really fucking hoped I was on Zavala's island.

I stood and walked to the door, ignoring the fact that I was wearing someone else's pajama bottoms. Gauze covered two wounds on my abdomen, each of them still painful as I moved. But I was alive. I didn't remember anything after I passed out, aside from the dip of the plane from time to time.

I was surprised when the door handle turned easily. Stepping out into the hallway, I looked in both directions, unsure of which way to go. If I had any clue where Zavala or his guards were, I would take the opportunity to look around. Voices came from down the hall to the right, indicating that there was a common area, which meant whatever was down the hall to the left could lead me to private quarters.

I itched to follow my instincts and check it out, but it was too soon to get caught snooping. That would only end with a bullet in my head. I turned to the right, hobbling down the hall as I held my hand to the wound just above my right hip.

"Going somewhere?"

I turned at the sound of Zavala's voice. He stood at the end of the hall with a cane for support, but he was alive. "Just wondering where the hell I am."

"You're on my private island. Normally, I don't allow anyone here, but my men tell me that you practically rose from the dead after getting shot to take care of my wound. And my doctor informed me that if you hadn't done what you did, I would have bled out. So, I guess that makes me indebted to you."

This was my opportunity to play my hand, but I had a feeling that a man like Zavala was constantly asked for favors. "I should have bled out on the plane. Obviously, someone got me medical attention. I'd say we're even."

He looked pleased with my response. "I'm afraid I had to have the good doctor knock you out. I never allow anyone to see what protects my island."

"I'm sure it was for the best anyway. But I could do with some coffee, if you have it."

"Yes, let's discuss what's going to happen moving forward."

The living area was everything you'd expect from a rich guy who owned an island. With long white curtains billowing in the breeze and bright colors on every surface, I felt like I was on vacation rather than in the home of a notorious drug lord.

He led me out onto a deck where a man in a white uniform waited for us. "Sir, would you like some breakfast?"

"Yes, please, Giles."

The man bowed and walked away. I took the seat across from Zavala, staring out at the ocean. This wasn't exactly how I thought I would end up here. I had expected to be his prisoner, but instead, I was being waited on by his staff. I wasn't sure how long that would last, but it didn't exactly play into my plans.

"It would seem that after our adventure, I have no choice but to accept your offer," Zavala said, shocking the hell out of me.

"I ask for twenty percent."

"You'll only get ten," he said shrewdly. "Tell me how much the bureau knows about my operations."

"They know about this island. They know it's heavily guarded and there's no way to reach you. Which is why I never attempted to visit you here."

"Why would I trust you? You've already told them everything you know about me."

"Not everything," I grinned. "They know only what I had to tell them to raid your most recent shipments."

"Then tell me what they don't know."

Now was the time to really hook him. "They know about The Syndicate and how embedded you are in the organization, but what they don't know is how all the other factions are falling. They don't know that you're the last one remaining of the original Syndicate."

He stiffened slightly.

"They don't know that if they take you down, the rest of The Syndicate will crumble."

He looked away. The anger building on his face was clear, but he kept his cool. "I don't know if I can trust you."

"Oh, you definitely shouldn't trust me. I'm a businessman first and foremost. I'm out to make money, and as long as our business relationship is doing well, you'll never have anything to worry about."

"You took over my shipping routes. Tell me your master plan to make me money."

"It's as simple as this," I started. "You use the government to handle all your shipping needs."

"If the government has my shipments, how will I get the product into the hands of the distributors?"

"You get the product as far as the border. Then, a government agent—technically me—will seize your shipment. Your men will flee, not wanting to be caught, and abandon the product. I'll have no choice but to turn the seized product over to the government where it will be stored in a government warehouse. Since we'll be so close to the border, there are only a few locations I can take the product to. And it just so happens that your earlier shipments are in several of these. As we're unloading the product into the warehouse, I'll have men loading one of your previous shipments into another vehicle that will be distributed to your buyers."

"But the earlier shipment will be missed."

"They'll be replaced with different product from the warehouse and tagged as yours. When the shipments do go missing, it won't lead back to your product or show my name on any of the seizures."

I could tell I was gaining his interest by the second, but I hadn't planned on plotting drug shipments with him. Whether or not I could actually pull this off was a moot point because I wasn't leaving until I had what I wanted, and if I was caught, I already knew what I was facing.

"What about guards?"

"I have a few I can put on the inside. That won't be a problem. Besides, we're not talking about a small warehouse."

"And what happens when the bureau catches on that these shipments are disappearing from the warehouse?"

"That's what you pay me to take care of. If I get caught, I'm not your problem anymore."

His gaze suddenly flicked behind me and he stood, walking past me. I turned carefully in my seat, still sore from my wounds. A woman with dark hair hanging down her back had entered the room, and from the way Zavala was touching her, I had to guess she was either his wife or his mistress. I stood, not wanting to be rude.

Zavala turned, grabbing the woman gently by the elbow. "Rafe, this is my wife. Isabelle."

The brunette turned, and when her eyes met mine, the whole world went still. With wide brown eyes and full lips, there was no denying who she was. I could see the resemblance as if I was looking at a younger picture of her.

"Nice to meet you," I said quickly to cover up the fact that I was staring.

When I tore my eyes from her, Zavala was scowling at me.

"You look familiar," I explained.

"Isabelle tended to your wounds when you arrived."

"You woke up once. Maybe you saw me," she answered.

"That must be it."

"I should check on your wounds again, and you should really be resting."

"Rafe isn't a guest," Zavala interrupted. "I haven't decided yet what to do with him."

Isabelle turned to him, her eyebrows raised. I could only guess that she didn't normally meet people who Zavala didn't plan to keep around. "I should treat his wounds and he really needs more rest."

"You may take care of him, but he is never allowed out of his room until I decide what to do with him."

She nodded and stepped aside, waiting for me to leave. Knowing I was dismissed, I nodded to Zavala and headed back to my room. My heart was pounding in my chest with every step I took. After years of searching, I finally had the answers. She was here and she was alive. It hadn't all been for nothing.

Now I just had to find a way to get her off this island.