Rulers of Deception (37 page)

Veronica’s upper lip curled. “You know I staged the kidnapping. What more do you want from me? You have all the evidence now so you can call off the hit and leave me the hell alone.”

“You convinced Daniel McAllister and Jimmy Moretti to go along with your plan,” Grant replied sternly. “How do we know you won’t do this again?”

“Daniel is an asshole. I only used him to get what I needed.”

“Just like you fucked my best friend to get what you needed?” Linc cut in heatedly, his hand tightening over the backrest of Madison’s chair.

Veronica met his eyes, showing him a side of her he hadn’t seen before. The side that was cold, calculating, and cruel. “Men are easy to toy with and often outlast their usefulness. And as far as Jimmy goes, I should have smelled a rat from the minute I met him.”

“He knows how to pick the winning side in a fight,” Madison said easily, waving off the comment. “Unfortunately for you, I made him a better offer.”

“Well, it’s all over now.” Veronica clutched her tote bag closer to her chest, feeling the weight of the handgun inside of it.

“There’s more though, isn’t there?” Madison asked. “I don’t think you’re done explaining yourself.”

Veronica grimaced. “Look, I just wanted a good story, that’s all. I’m sorry it went this far.”

“That’s a lie and we both know it,” Madison countered, one of her brows lifting as she smiled. Behind her, Grant and Linc looked at each other, confused. Apparently, Madison knew something more than she’d told them.

Veronica shifted her weight, itching to leave the room. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Madison set aside her pen and folded her hands in front of her face, resting her chin on her laced fingers. She leaned forward like a therapist absorbed in the nightmares of a patient. “You blame Marshall for your father’s death.”

Surprise flashed in Veronica’s eyes. Her hands began to shake uncontrollably as she held Madison’s gaze. “I never even knew my father.”

“Because he drank himself to death,” Madison added. She tilted her head to the side curiously. “After Marshall fired him. He was his driver, and the only other person who knew about Marshall’s affair with Maureen Gossinger.”

Silence hung heavy in the room for a long moment, the words floating in the air. Madison waited for them to sink in with everyone before she continued. “Marco Diaz died on the third of September in 1981, almost exactly one year after losing his job. You were two years old.”

Veronica’s knees weakened as she continued to stare into Madison’s eyes, unable to look away. The world around her seemed to close in as a hundred emotions barraged her all at once. Grief, pain, rage, regret. But most importantly, hatred. She clung to it as she regained her composure, struggling against the urge to run. If the truth was out, then she’d damn well make her stand and fight.

“My father spent a year trying to find work, but no one would hire him. Despite Marshall’s reference, it was like he’d been marked a traitor,” Veronica spat furiously, a crazed look in her eyes. “He told my mother about the affair when she no longer bought his excuses. They believed Cyrus made sure my father would never work again to keep him from speaking about it or the murder. It forced my family into the shadows, afraid of the repercussions of speaking about Marshall. Maureen was murdered to keep her silent, so who knew what could happen to us. My father became depressed and began to drink heavily, and eventually it became too much. He was driving drunk one night and hit a telephone pole. We had to pull him off life support a week later.”

She pointed her finger at them, a fire in her eyes. “Marshall may not have killed my father directly, but I hold him responsible. Just as I hold your entire family responsible. You are nothing but vile, awful people with no regard for anyone outside your inner family circle. You let everyone else suffer while you sit atop your throne. I wanted to put an end to all that. And you can rest assured that I will eventually find a way to do it.”

Grant and Linc exchanged looks again, surprised by her story. Yet they both knew it didn’t change anything.

“You put on quite the act, making us believe you wanted to do a real story on us,” Linc told her, shaking his head. “Why didn’t you just tell us this before?”

Veronica shot him a darkly amused look. “What would you have done for me, Linc? Patted my hand and offered me money as reparations? That’s not what I want. I want you all on your knees, cowering like the dogs you are.”

“Dogs, huh?” Linc chuckled. “And here I thought you were practically in love with me.”

“Please,” Veronica grimaced. “I just found it amusing to toy with you and see if I could get you to turn on that dingbat wife of yours.”

“Fat chance,” Linc replied.

Madison slowly eased back in her chair, eager to get to the grand finale. “Unfortunately, I won’t be able to call off the cartel.”

Fear passed over Veronica’s face in a rapid flash. “Why not?”

“Because they were never under my orders,” Madison said calmly, enjoying the confusion that softened her opponent’s face.

“So then who sent the man who tried to kill me last night?” Veronica demanded.

“I did,” Madison replied. “But he doesn’t work for the Costa Norte Cártel. He works for me.”

“I don’t understand.” Veronica looked to Grant and Linc, but neither gave her any clues as to what Madison was talking about.

Madison lifted her cell phone and quickly sent off a text message. A few moments later, Raoul walked into the office, dressed in his chef’s uniform.

He came up beside Veronica and nodded at her, saying nothing.

Veronica blinked and stepped back, brows creased as she recognized the man who’d assaulted her the night before. “What the hell is this? It wasn’t real?”

“Raoul is my chef and close friend,” Madison explained, smiling up at him.

“So you tricked me.” Veronica let out a sharp, high-pitched laugh, her hands diving into her hair. Relief shot through her, joining the fury she felt at having been fooled. “I can’t believe this.”

“There’s more.” Madison opened a file folder on her desk and lifted out a piece of paper. She glanced at it before handing it to Veronica. “You may find this interesting.”

Veronica hesitated before curiosity had her grabbing the paper and scouring it like a bloodthirsty hound. Her eyes widened and then turned to slits as her rage deepened. “This can’t be true.”

“Verify it yourself if you don’t believe me,” Madison said. “Though I’m surprised you missed this crucial detail during your own research.”

“So Franco’s dead?” Veronica asked, gripping the paper so hard it crumpled in her hand.

Madison nodded. “And the rest of the cartel is in prison. There was no way any of them could have been involved, which is why the police were so confused when threats popped up claiming to be from the Costa Norte Cártel.”

“But Jimmy said—”

“Jimmy lied to you and he lied to Wyatt,” Madison explained. “He wanted money and knew fear is a good motivator. He’s much more clever than you give him credit for.”

Veronica took a deep breath, needing to settle her raging heart. “I’m going to kill that little creep.”

“He’s someplace you can’t reach him.” Madison’s lips curved in a triumphant smile. “You see, darling, you should know better than to fuck with someone like me. I will slaughter you, every single time.”

Violence burned in Veronica’s eyes as she glared at Madison. She realized she no longer cared about Marshall and what happened to her father. She needed revenge on this latest transgression.

“You
bitch
.” Veronica let the tote bag slip from her shoulder as she reached for the gun. As the bag fell to the floor, she pointed the weapon squarely at Madison’s chest. Her finger found the trigger, madness in her eyes. “Say hi to Cyrus for me.”

The shots rang out in quick succession like the resounding explosion of fireworks. The sound echoed around the room long after the bullets left the barrel, and even longer after they found their target.

Madison’s eyes widened then closed, her hands flying up to her chest in an instinctive attempt to shield herself. She felt the impact of the bullet shudder through her body, quaking her chair as it ripped through the leather. A shock of cold numbness washed over her, encasing her in ice. For several long, earth-shattering seconds, she waited for the onslaught of red-hot pain.

When it didn’t come, she opened her eyes.

Veronica stumbled, a bloom of crimson forming on the side of her chest just below her left arm. She collapsed onto the floor, the gun loose in her lifeless hands. Her eyes stared unseeing, dark and empty, as blood pooled into the carpet.

Raoul stood, unmoving, his hands still vibrating from the sensation of firing the gun. He let out the breath he’d been holding only once he saw her fall to the ground. Kicking the gun from her hand as a precaution, he lowered his own weapon and turned to Madison. “Are you hurt,
cariño
?”

Madison shook her head as her brothers swooped in on her, examining her closely.

“Holy shit,” Linc cursed, inspecting the gaping hole in the chair just above Madison’s left shoulder. The bullet had passed through and buried itself in the wall behind them. “You sure you’re not hit?”

“Damnit, Linc, I’m fine.” She tried to stand, only to have her knees give out. Crumbling back into the chair, she tried desperately not to fall apart. Her hands fluttered up to rub her forehead, her eyes closing. “Just give me a second.”

Grant went to Veronica, kneeling down to check for a pulse. He looked up at Madison. “She’s dead.”

“Shit.” Linc rounded the desk, his hands in his hair as he stared down at Veronica’s body. After a moment, he turned to Raoul and held out his hand. “I owe you one, man. We could all be dead right now if it wasn’t for you.”

Raoul shook Linc’s hand, brushing off the compliment. He tucked the gun back into his waistband as his eyes met Madison’s. “I would die to protect you.”

Madison’s chest rose and fell as she struggled to calm herself, realizing how close she’d been to death. She couldn’t bring herself to look at the damage done to her chair, realizing if Veronica’s aim had been a few inches lower the bullet would have exploded through her heart. Her head bowed in a grateful nod, having no words.

Grant reached for the phone on Madison’s desk. “We need to call the police and tell them what’s happened.”

Madison slowly rose to her feet, feeling steadier. “Go ahead.” As she passed by Grant, she kissed his cheek and ran her hand over his arm. She hugged Linc, grateful neither of them had been hurt.

“I gotta call Lynette,” Linc murmured, glancing down one last time at Veronica. He shook his head. “I can’t believe she did all of this because of Marshall. She was willing to kill all of us for revenge.”

“You’ve been known to make that threat too, darling,” Madison reminded him, attempting a smile.

He dug his cell phone out of his pocket, already dialing Lynette’s number. “Yeah, but I never meant it.”

When he disappeared from the room, Madison turned to Raoul. She wrapped her arms around him and exhaled, her cheek resting against his chest. He held her close, his hand running over her hair. “It’s over,
cariño
.”

“The war is never over.” She lifted her head to look at him, a sad smile softening her face. “But at least this battle is.”

I
don’t even know what to say.” Marshall eased down into the armchair in his living room, his eyes glassy with shock. His head shook slowly in disbelief. “Veronica was Marco’s daughter?”

“My mother was the one who put two and two together,” Grant told him, preferring to stand by the window. He didn’t think he could bear to sit still at a time like this. The police had already taken his statement, so he’d offered to pay Marshall a visit to let him in on what happened. “When you told her that Marco’s last name was Diaz, she realized it couldn’t just be a coincidence. So she told Madison and after a few phone calls, she was able to confirm that Marco was Veronica’s father. She also learned about his death and had a hunch that Veronica blamed you.”

Marshall let out a long, troubled exhale, mortified that it all came back to him. His family had been in danger because of something he had done. He didn’t think he would ever forgive himself. “I never knew Marco wasn’t able to find work. I gave him a glowing reference.”