Total pages in book: 37
Estimated words: 34381 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 172(@200wpm)___ 138(@250wpm)___ 115(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 34381 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 172(@200wpm)___ 138(@250wpm)___ 115(@300wpm)
Because no one targeted Alfonzo Aguado. Not a fucking soul. The man was dangerous, dark, and deadly. From what I knew of him, everything was a game to him, including life. And as I stared down at his file, on all the information Anatoly’s team had been able to gather on him—which admittedly wasn’t much—my gut twisted.
When Rurik pulled me off the streets and presented me to Anatoly, and Anatoly gave me a place to belong, I’d been grateful. Thought I would never have to worry about surviving another cold winter on the streets. Been under the impression life would be a little bit simpler. But the moment I said my oath, I realized how wrong I was.
Sure, I had a family now. But all of us were disposable when it came to Balakin. He’d even married his daughter off the president of the Ghost Born MC to ensure he always had a tie to them. For him, power came first, and family came second, including the family he had by blood. Me, a mere soldier, meant nothing to him in the grand scheme of things.
I stared down at Alfonzo’s picture. With warm, almost honey-like skin and dark eyes, the man was already deceptively gorgeous. A small smile played at the corners of his mouth, as if he knew a secret I didn’t, and honestly, he probably did. A beard, neatly trimmed and cropped close to his face, covered his jaw, and dark strands of hair fell over his forehead, while the sides were cropped close, much like his beard.
Tattoos covered his skin, and there, blatantly resting on the front of his throat, was the Rico family symbol—a lion wearing a crown. Built like a fucking tank, Alfonzo Aguado was terrifying when one actually knew what he was capable of.
And I knew. His stories preceded him. No one knew of Rico Martinez without knowing of Alfonzo as well and all the bodies he left in a trail behind him.
And I, someone who’d only been part of the Bratva for a mere few years, was expected to take out someone of this caliber.
It was fucking laughable.
“You look constipated,” a man drawled, but there was just the tiniest bit of insanity leeching into his voice that let me know who’d stepped into my room. Closing the folder, I looked up at Rurik, surprised to see him in Washington. He was usually out and about doing field work, despite being Anatoly’s right-hand man. Rurik Tarasov was downright terrifying. I’d seen him work. He got a gleeful little glint in his eyes when he was taking a life, almost like it sated something within him.
But then again, I’d come to find that most of the people Anatoly kept close had a couple of screws loose. Why he didn’t give this job to one of them, I had no clue.
“I get that a lot,” I grumbled, setting the file aside. “Surprised you’re here.”
He shrugged one shoulder and leaned against my doorjamb, crossing his arms over his chest. “Anatoly,” he explained, leaving it at that. I snorted because just the Pakhan’s name was enough to explain almost anything.
“You know anything about Alfonzo Aguado?” I asked him. I held up the folder I’d been given, wiggling it back and forth to show how thin it was. “There’s not much here.”
Rurik grunted. “No one knows much of anything about that man. Anytime something about him pops up in the system, it magically disappears. I imagine their head of security, Niran Chun, has something to do with that. Smart men keep their human weapons secure.” A smirk curved his lips. “I would know.”
That was true. Rurik was almost like a ghost. There was almost nothing on him if someone were to run his name. Anatoly kept him well-guarded, as he should. Rurik was his greatest asset… and his biggest weapon.
“I suggest you do recon before you try going after him,” Rurik said, standing straight once more. “But be careful. Alfonzo is a snake. I swear that man can sense heat and know someone is around that shouldn’t be.”
With that, he turned on his heel and disappeared once more. I sighed and opened the file folder once more, staring down at Alfonzo. His age wasn’t even listed. There was no birth place. No parents. Not a single family member. Just his name and his current address, which was listed as Rico’s compound.
Fuck.
I was going to die doing this mission. I knew it without a doubt in my mind.
Chapter Two
Maksim
Ipulled my hat low over my face, trying to remain invisible, as I slowly crept through the woods on the backside of Rico Martinez’s property. My intel had led me to believe that Rico wouldn’t be here tonight, that he’d taken his husband, Anurak, on a small trip. And also according to my intel, my target hadn’t gone with them.