Chapter Two

CHAPTER TWO

Rico

“ I want to welcome you to my home with a little tasty treat, Rico. It’s called Anurak.”

That’s what that mother fucker had said to me when I’d taken a seat at his table down in that dingy, rank basement.

Anurak was a sweet-looking boy with pain in his nearly black eyes—a pain that tore at my soul and made me fucking rage . I had a particular hatred for abusers and traffickers, but seeing that boy on his hands and knees, tears rolling down his cheeks and blood staining his skin— his blood—made me murderous .

I’d come here for a possible business deal—a deal to expand on my weapons trade. The first mistake this fucker had made was thinking I wanted any part of his sick, demented interests—interests I’d had no idea he was sticking his fingers into. I had no interest in watching a boy crawl for me. Had no interest in an unwilling, terrified partner. I had any number of boys ready to do my bidding. All I had to do was make one phone call.

But seeing Anurak looking up at me with those big eyes, eyes silently pleading for anyone to save him, had wrecked something inside of me. I wanted him. Needed him. But I had to get him out of here first. Had to get him safe and clean and doctored up. Had to show him that he was safe and that no one would ever harm him again without his consent.

When he squeezed his eyes shut just as I’d told him to and flattened his bloody palms over his ears, I stood and grabbed my gun, putting a bullet in each of Frederick’s business partners’ skulls. When Frederick lifted his gun, aiming it at me, I fired a shot that went clean through both of his wrists. When the door upstairs opened, bright light flooding the dim basement, I put a shot through that guard’s throat.

The boy was screaming despite his ears being covered and his eyes being shut, the sound slicing through my ear drums to settle deep in my chest like his fear was a living, breathing thing inside of me. I raked my fingers through his hair, hoping to soothe him. He curled around my leg, his little body trembling. Arching a brow at Frederick, I sneered. “How did you get him?” I demanded.

I didn’t have long before he bled out, and I wanted answers.

“I got him a few years ago from Johnny Dorman,” he spat at me.

At least that son of a bitch had been dealt with already. Johnny Dorman had been an attorney with sick, twisted tastes. He’d run a trafficking ring in the basement of his building and another up in Canada. Between my men and the Ghost Born MC, who I had connections with through Jax Gresham, a kid I’d protected to the best of my ability and had reconnected with when he’d gotten out of prison, we’d taken out all of the major players—people ranging from politicians to attorneys to law enforcement.

No one got left out.

I put a bullet through Frederick’s skull before shoving my gun back into my slacks and crouching in front of Anurak. When I tugged his bloody hands away from his ears, he slowly blinked his eyes open, looking up at me. I let a soft smile tilt my lips. “Keep your eyes on me, perrito ,” I crooned. When I looked at him, all I could think of was an abused, adorable puppy. The name had formed in my mind for him before I’d even had a chance to think about it. But when some of the pain left his eyes at the pet name, I knew I’d never stop calling him that.

“I’m going to get you out of here,” I promised him, my voice low. Soft. “I want you to close your eyes again for me, okay? I’m going to pick you up and carry you out. I bet you’re real tired, aren’t you, perrito ?”

He nodded as he closed his eyes. I swept him up into my arms, then quickly headed for the basement stairs, climbing up them and carefully stepping over the guard’s dead body. When I emerged from the basement, my second-in-command, Alfonzo, was waiting for me, an automatic rifle strapped over his chest. He was wearing jeans and boots and a Kevlar vest.

A man could be taken out of the cartel, but the cartel could never be taken out of the man. He’d grown up in Mexico surrounded by members of the cartel, and when his father was murdered right in front of him in retaliation, he’d escaped to the states, which was how I’d met him. He’d been sleeping at the homeless shelter I’d been camping out at that night, and we’d somehow been attached at the hip ever since.

He helped me build this empire from the ground up. On paper, he was the CFO of Rico Enterprises, a shipping company with locations worldwide. Off paper, he was my second in command and handled most of the dirty work of weapons exchanges and took care of the bloody work… most of the time.

This had been one of those unplanned instances.

“Heard the gunshots, but looks like you had it covered.” I snorted at him. His lips quirked in amusement. “What’s the deal with him?” he asked, nodding his head toward Anurak, who was still squeezing his eyes shut and clinging to me.

I strode for the exit of the house. “Bringing him home with me.”

Alfonzo grunted but didn’t say anything else. When I stepped outside, the boy’s eyes snapped open despite my order, and he looked around him in wonder, his bloody hands tightening around my neck before he made a small noise of pain and quickly loosened his grip. I winced at the sting on my skin—like Anurak had splinters in his fucking hands.

Dammit, I needed to get him home so I could take care of him.

“It’s…” His voice was so soft and sweet, and it made my heart clench in my chest. “I’m outside.” There was so much wonder in his voice, and something inside of me broke.

How long had he been a prisoner?

“Yes, you’re outside. And after today, you’ll get to be outside as much as you want,” I promised him as I strode to my car.

His dark eyes snapped to mine, his just-as-dark hair flopping onto his forehead. “Really?” he croaked, his voice thick with happiness and fear. It was an odd combination, but I understood why he felt both.

For him, every kindness came with a price. But it wouldn’t with me. It’d take him time to come to terms with that, but I was determined to show him freedom and love and safety… within my care. I didn’t think I could ever let him go.

“Yes,” I assured him as Alfonzo opened the passenger door to my Audi R8. I gently settled Anurak in the seat and buckled him in. Then, I cupped his cheek, letting my eyes meet his. Some of the fear was gone now, replaced with curiosity and… dare I say it—hope? “You’re safe now, perrito . You’ll always be safe from now on.”

His lips trembled at my words, and then, my sweet little pup burst into tears.