“Everything seems to be going according to plan. He got the man who hired him here, and he just rejected his contract,” Diego reports, walking up to El Bandido and her husband on the second floor balcony of the summit.
“I can see.”
She could see, and hear the final words of the exchange, but she never got a good look at the man who’s been causing her business so much trouble. His face shrouded by shadows and hidden in the trees, was almost perfectly blocked from her view at all times.
“So you saw who hired him?” Diego asks.
“Yes,” she responds.
“And? You’re not pissed? You don’t want to kill him?”
“He’ll die, but not at my hand.”
The building is large, three floors with many private rooms, but the central courtyard, that’s where the action is. The open air and large trees seem to keep everyone more relaxed. It’s spacious but offers plenty of divisions, whether you’re looking to mingle or for deeper conversation. Balconies on the first and second floor line the entire courtyard, giving those who wish for a step back, a bird’s eye view of what’s going on below.
“Great, you know the guy who wants you dead, so why am I still a hostage?” Amber asks, gesturing to the handcuffs hidden only by the large pocket on the front of her sweatshirt.
“You think I trust this boyfriend of yours. No. You remain a hostage until he kills that traitor.”
El Bandido’s voice is deep and almost soothing. If Amber didn’t know she was the ruthless leader of a massive cartel, she might think the woman was a gracefully aging actress. With her striking appearance and beautifully bouncing curls, she has the look of a soap opera star. Matched with her confidence, she has the air of someone who knows exactly what she wants and knows exactly how to get it. Amber can see why this woman has done so well. She’s almost tempted herself to do whatever the woman wants.
“So what now?” Amber asks.
“I want to meet this man, this assassin who’s caused so much trouble,” El Bandido says.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” El Bandido’s husband cuts in. “No reason to put you at risk.”
“Mi amor,” she responds with a caress of his cheek. “I just love how worried you are about me.”
“She’ll be fine,” Diego adds.
“That’s not your place to say.” Vargas’s comment gets a sharp glare from Diego, but it’s the corner of El Bandido’s eye that quickly changes Vargas’s tune. “She’s safe here,” he immediately adds, trying to reassure her husband. “If the assassin were to try anything, it would be a suicide mission. Plus, we’ve still got his girl.”
Diego is ready to slice the man’s throat right here, right now, but if all goes to plan, he won’t have to be the one to do it. Vargas stares back at him, wishing he could kill him, but knows it’s no longer his problem.
El Bandido turns to her nephew.
“Make it happen,” she says, before walking off with her arm linked happily with her loving husband’s.
Diego and Vargas watch them walk away, smiling all the while.
“Disagree with me like that again, I’ll kill you right then and there,” Diego says, but Vargas doesn’t turn, he’s not afraid of the little nephew.
“Better watch what you wish for. Come at me and I’ll watch the life leave your eyes with a smile on my face.”
With their boss out of view, the two turn toward each other, each hoping the other will make the first move, knowing it would be their last. A moment passes, and another, their eyes locked, ready for action, but neither moves. Neither attacks. Neither needs to. Now, they both know, they simply have to wait.