Stand Of Redemption(46)

Ria hoped she could find out who’d killed her brothers. She had to know who they were to know if and when they would come after her next. She understood Alejandro’s murder, but Matthew was young; he didn’t deserve to die before seeing his twentieth birthday. Whomever that person was deserved to pay for his actions.

“Who killed my brothers?” Ria asked.

“Alejandro’s grief over Matthew continued to get worse over the years. It was clouding his judgment, and his decisions were more about punishing people for their mistakes instead of making smart business moves to expand the empire he had lost all respect. His last decision was to kidnap the girlfriend of a loyal employee who wanted to quit the cartel. He was a good employee who had completed all tasks asked of him. Alejandro could have let him go—he had no fear of the man reporting him. Instead, your brother put all his energy into kidnapping the girl as punishment. That is the man that killed your brother.”

“What’s his name?”

Mitchell barked a short laugh in her face. “I will not give you his name. He did the cartel a favor by killing your brother. We’re all glad he’s dead.” He stared hard at her with no remorse.

Ria nodded her head. She could only imagine how many people he had hurt for so many to want him dead. “Mitchell, I’m no threat to the cartel. I won’t report anything because it would hurt Mom. I’ll do what it takes to earn my freedom.” Ria put as much strength into her voice as she could.

He handed her the folder. “Then you know what you have to do, Ariel.”

* * *

Nicholas called as she was getting out of the shower. She had missed him while he was away, but they had talked on the phone until late in the evenings. Nicholas only hung up to catch a few hours sleep before he had to be at his commercial shoot.

“What are you doing?”

“Nothing right now.”

“Meet me downtown at the arena. Ty’s fighting today.”

“How’s Ty?”

“We’re cool. Emiliano isn’t going to come between our friendship.” Ria was relieved.

“Give me thirty minutes.” She hung up, feeling a burst of excitement. He had flown in this morning and was asking to see her this afternoon.

She didn’t regret having sex with him. She had wanted to experience her first time spontaneously and full of passion with a desire to please one another. And that was what she had been given. She knew each day with him was precious with her future so uncertain.

She pulled into the parking lot of the arena. This was her first time coming to a cage fight willingly. The last time she had come was as on-site medical staff in case of an injury.

She checked her make-up in the mirror, touched up her lip gloss, and fluffed her hair for good measure. She had dressed in jean shorts and a pretty, blue ribbed shirt. It was muggy today, and she wanted to feel comfortable. The looks Nicholas gave her made her want to look her best. She knew he found her desirable, and she loved the way he made her feel.

She frowned at herself in the mirror. Actually, Emiliano forcing her to go out with different men had boosted her self-confidence in dealing with the opposite sex.

She picked up the ticket waiting for her, looking at it to confirm her seat location. Nicholas had told her she would be sitting next to his sister and Zane. She was looking forward to seeing Melanie, and although Zane seemed hard, he had been nice to her and was friendly.

She could hear the roars from the crowd as she walked in. There was a fight already going on, and when Ria looked at the cage and saw a fighter throw a punch then watched the blood gush out of his opponent’s nose. She covered her face and quickly turned away.

What the hell am I doing here?

She kept her face turned away from the cage as she looked for her seat. She scooted past some men yelling, “Kick his ass,” and other obscenities. She was getting used to normal people turning bloodthirsty when they were goading their fighters on.

She finally found her seat, and saw Melanie and Zane watching her maneuver through the crowd. She also saw the quick glance of worry they gave one another before they both pasted smiles on their faces.

“Hi, Ria!” Melanie exclaimed. She jumped up to give Ria a hug. Ria felt awkward, but hugged her back. She wasn’t used to being greeted so warmly by anyone. Lacey was her best friend, but she would never hug her.

Melanie was attractive in a green top and shorts. Melanie seemed nice, but she also looked like a woman that would beat the hell out of a male or female to get her way. Zane was probably one of the few men that could handle a strong woman like her.

Ria nodded her head. “Hi, Melanie, Zane.”

“Ria,” Zane greeted her with a head nod.