Never Give You Up (2 page)

He couldn’t help imagining little Mary with her caramel hair all in disarray and wearing a pair of those same spectacles—every teenage boy’s dream to unfold the pages of the mysterious librarian.

Terry punched the keypad and the elevator descended into the basement, only accessible by certain staff members. When the door opened, his gaze moved directly to the man secured to the metal chair centered in the room. Terry adjusted his shirtsleeves and squared his shoulders before stepping inside.

“Adolfo Montesano. It’s been a long time, old friend.”

Adolfo lifted his face. Blood oozed from his busted nose. Dried blood covered his face and hair, and the wide slit from upper lip to ear looked painfully gruesome. Terry cringed at the view, glad he wasn’t in Adolfo’s shoes.

The traitor’s head bobbed and he groaned beneath the duct tape covering his mouth as he tried focusing bloodshot eyes on Terry.

Duct tape perfected crime. With Adolfo’s wrists taped to the chair arms, he’d never free himself. It didn’t matter how strong a person was. Wrapped three times around wrists and ankles, even the biggest man couldn’t wriggle free as he could with rope.

It took three months to locate Montesano’s son after the disaster Ben caused in the mountains. Now the traitor was about to meet his maker as well. He promised Ben the world if he took out Terry and Gabe, and stole the stash of Peruvian flake. Adolfo was the bones behind Benjamin Cain.

They’d almost lost it all, including Terry and Gabe’s life.

Terry’s shoulder still ached from the bullet Ben slammed him with. Now it was time to take out the trash and get the business back on the straightaway.

On the other side of the room the eerie sound of steel on stone invaded the silence as Gabriel Miller sharpened his hatchet. Terry studied his partner in crime with a mixture of emotions.

How could he be so calm at a time like this? He should be enjoying retirement with a good woman like Mima and leaving this crazy bullshit behind. If Terry had even a scrap of the life Gabe accidentally found in those mountains, he’d never set foot back here again. As much as he loved his hotel, he didn’t want it to be a place of crime. He wanted his guests to feel happy and secure. To know that when they set foot in here, they had a decorative, safe room to stay in, a classy restaurant to dine in, and staff to wait on them hand and foot for all the
right
reasons.

But a wrong reason sat in front of him right now while Gabe sharpened his hatchet.

Having a Montesano tied up and bleeding in the basement was testament to business taking a new turn. Terry didn’t want to be in this position, it was beyond dangerous, but when Colton McCoy gave an order, everybody listened.

He focused his attention back to Gabe and released a deep breath. They may be the best of friends, but Terry and Gabe were the complete opposite of each other. Gabe, always cool and in control; Terry stressed about every little thing. Perhaps their differences made them such a good team.

“I didn’t even see you pull in.”

Gabe kept his back to him, still sharpening the hatchet. “Probably too busy yanking it in the parking lot. Thought I’d give him a few rounds on the house until you were done.”

He couldn’t help his rumble of laughter. “Smartass. I haven’t yanked it in months.” It was a total lie, but no way in hell would he ever admit to Gabe that when Mary’s face haunted him at night his hand automatically drifted down.

Adolfo groaned again. Terry shifted his gaze to the captive and actually felt a little sorry for him. As he stared at the man’s bruised and bloodied body he wondered why everyone had to suffer all the time. Why not shoot him in the forehead and get it over with? He knew well that nobody would dare betray the McCoy’s and get away with it, but why did everything have to lead to all this blood and chaos?

Adolfo was just another rung on a steep ladder, which could start an even bigger threat. They’d never really know until it was too late, because no matter how hard they tortured him, Adolfo would never talk.

Nobody worth their salt talked in this business, and Terry knew how far up the food chain Adolfo Montesano really was. Cocaine royalty bled on his chair right at that moment.

Terry focused back on Gabe. “You’re supposed to be enjoying retired life between your old lady’s thighs, or is making a man bleed more of a turn on for you?”

Gabe chuckled, not at all put off by Terry’s sick humor. “I wanted to be here because of what happened in the mountains. Besides, Sam’s on an errand for the old man so he can’t do it.”

Terry moved toward Gabe, slipped off his suit jacket and tossed it over the long metal table spanning the entire side wall, before rolling up his sleeves. “You’re gonna miss this, aren’t you?”

Gabe glanced over his shoulder and winked. “Nope.”

He was bullshitting and Terry knew it. Knew it like he knew a shot of vodka would be perfect right about now. Not once did Terry ever take pleasure in killing or torturing a man, it was just a job that had to be done. Maybe that’s why he’d taken to the bottle lately. He couldn’t be happy without being drunk most of the time.

Gabe on the other hand thrived in this lifestyle. He was born for this. Terry often wished he could switch places with Gabe, but he knew his old friend would never accept.

“Was Mima pissed about you leaving?”

“Yes and no. She knew I had some things to finish up before I was done for good. But I think she believes I’ll never return every time I have to leave.”

Terry chuckled. “Can’t blame her, I guess. She doesn’t understand what we do.”

“Speaking of women, how’s Mary?”

Terry shrugged, unsure how to answer him. But inside he cringed at the mention of her name. He wanted to see her again, face-to-face, but he was afraid she’d reject him because of who he was. She didn’t need a man like him in her life, and for that he felt ashamed.

Business always got in the way of personal life, and it was different for him than it was for Gabe. Terry was the boss’s son. Any relationship with a woman made him and the business vulnerable. He didn’t dare get in too deep with a broad or risk everything. He couldn’t handle another repeat of what happened to his mother. He couldn’t allow an innocent woman like Mary to suffer as his mother did.

And Mary still hadn’t changed her message on the damn answering machine.

He stared down at the leather satchel rolled out to expose Gabe’s toys, wanting to forget his twisted thoughts and the sexy caramel eyes that tormented him.

The ice pick was fast and efficient, easy to hide. The handsaw made dismemberment a breeze. Several other gadgets Terry knew nothing about looked grossly sophisticated, but the one that shocked him the most was the oversized eyelash curler used to slowly and painfully sever a man’s nut sack.

His balls shriveled at the thought.

“Mary’s too good for me. I haven’t spoken to her in a while.” His answer would have to be good enough.

Gabe grunted. “Mima’s too good for me too, but that didn’t stop me from moving in. Quit being a fucking dumbass and go take her out to dinner or something.”

Terry smacked Gabe’s shoulder, all in good fun of course. He knew Gabe could take him in a second. “Shut up about me. Soon enough you’ll have Mima knocked-up, buddy. Then you can worry about telling your kid what to do.” He cleared his throat, unable to stop himself from staring at Gabe’s profile. His long-time friend had the look of a happy man. He appeared more at ease these days. His smile was quick and sure, his eyes held a spark of something Terry didn’t recognize in his own. Terry looked tired and fed up, whereas Gabe had the happy face of a man who just got laid.

Terry was suddenly overcome with a pang of jealousy. “Do you have any regrets?”

Gabe turned with the razor sharp weapon in hand and studied him for a few breaths. “The only thing I regret is the lack of power and running water out there. First two things on my list as the man of the house. Oh, and adding a driveway. I’m tired of parking the truck a kilometer down the road. I’m getting too old for that much exercise.”

“What about Diana? Are you going to bring her there or have her parked here?”

Adolfo struggled but the restraints held him fast.

Gabe spun around and glared at him. “Do you mind? We’re having a conversation here. Just be thankful you’re not going to the pigs.”

Adolfo’s eyes widened and his body stilled.

Gabe turned to Terry with an annoyed look on his face. “I’ll keep Diana here for now until we have a proper driveway. Mima refuses to move to town even when I offered to buy the biggest house in Silver Creek. And she’ll never move here. I already let go of my apartment. But I know she loves her land. Maybe one day I’ll build her dream house right there...with a pool and a helipad and the whole shebang. My princess would need a new suspension if I brought her up there.”

Terry chuckled. He couldn’t picture Mima agreeing to a pool and a helipad, but he respected what Gabe wanted in life. He was like his big brother, and even though Ben had managed to trick them a few months back, Terry trusted Gabe with his life. His buddy deserved everything good, and that included Mima Etu.

Terry’s thoughts drifted to the incident when Gabe crashed his plane in her backyard. Even though his dad questioned Gabe’s motives, Terry never gave up on him. He wanted to be there with Ben, and he was right not to trust him. In his heart, Terry knew Gabe never would’ve taken off with all that blow. Besides, Colton promised Gabe a tidy retirement package for all his hard work over the years. Gabe didn’t need to steal to walk away big from the family business.

Fate had taken over and made Gabe a different man when he crashed his plane and Mima found him.

“Are you really happy with her? I have a hard time imagining you gutting a deer instead of a man.”

Gabe’s big shoulders lifted as he took a deep breath. “I’ve never felt more at peace out there. It’s so quiet in the mountains I can actually hear myself think.”

The weird smile on his face almost made Gabe look childish.

“Which must be boring as hell,” Terry added with a grin.

“Not really. I thought it would be at first, but all this—” Gabe waved the hatchet around and Adolfo shrieked beneath the duct tape, “makes me happy to live quietly for a change. You know what I mean? No more looking over my shoulder. No more doing what everyone else wants. Nice walks along the property. Outdoor sex. You should try it sometime instead of making your dick raw with your hand.”

“Fuck off.”

Terry knew right then Gabe was exactly where he needed to be. “God you’re pussy-whipped already, aren’t you?” He didn’t dare admit he was jealous. Before Gabe could respond he continued quickly, “I thought Dad wanted him to go to the pigs?”

After giving Terry a deadly glare about being pussy-whipped, Gabe walked over to Adolfo with all the calm in the world and ripped the duct tape from his mouth. Adolfo squinted hard as part of his thick black mustache tore off with the tape.

Terry cringed.
God, that must’ve hurt.

“Wanda put a stop to that after Ben. The pigs are on a diet.”

Adolfo’s eyes widened but he made no other sound, only pursed his lips shut and glared at them.

“Any last words, amigo?”

Terry’s heart hammered as a sly smile curved Adolfo’s bruised and bloodied mouth. His black eyes held no remorse. He wasn’t afraid to die. “Yeah. This is only the beginning . . .
amigo
. You boys are stupid if you think killing me is going to be the end of this.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Gabe blurted.

Adolfo smiled as he eyed Terry, completely ignoring Gabe hovering over him. “You kill me, everything you love will burn.”

Fear gripped Terry by the enemy’s stark threat. He rushed him, grabbed his blood-soaked hair, and violently yanked his head back. “What the fuck is that supposed to mean? Answer me!”

Adolfo’s evil laugh sounded hollow off the three-foot thick cement walls. He had nothing left to say and they weren’t going to waste any more time.

Gabe separated Adolfo’s baby finger from the rest. With a perverse calm he wielded the hatchet with brute force. The weapon slammed down with a distinct
thwack
on the chair’s metal arm. The finger fell to the floor, blood spurted from Adolfo’s fleshy knuckle.

His whimper of pain and pure terror made Terry’s blood pound in his ears. And just as quickly as his face contorted in horror as he looked down at his hand, Adolfo pursed his lips, lifted his chin high, and glared at Gabe then Terry. He was tough. He could probably lose his whole hand and still keep his shit together.

Disgusted, Terry turned away. Watching a man suffer didn’t give him any satisfaction, whether the guy deserved it or not. He didn’t want to kill him. He didn’t want any of this, but he couldn’t stand back and do nothing if everything he loved would burn.

“Colton wants his finger with the gold ring, then he’s going for a dip.” Gabe leaned down and smiled at Adolfo’s hazy eyes. Tears streamed down his high cheekbones. “You hear that,
amigo
? I hear the ocean is nice this time of year.” Gabe stood back and held up the bloody finger. “When your father gets this, he’ll be sure to play by the rules. No more jumping over the fence.”