47

Nova

It wasn’t just Anya I’d learned valuable underworld lessons from. I had my entire family to thank for everything they’d taught me over the years.

Case in point, if you’re going to kidnap someone and then fly away, don’t park your plane at an airport in the same city as the one you’re kidnapping the person from. If possible, use one in an entirely different state. Luckily for me, there was an airport in New Jersey that was on neutral ground. As far as I knew, no “family” used it as a base.

The pilot landed, and as soon as we were parked, I drove the Jeep off the cargo plane. It was the only vehicle in the vast garage back in Colombia that would fit a rolled-up body as big as my brother’s—if it came down to it. I was hoping it wouldn’t, though. I’d only brought two men with me, and until I scouted out the area, I told them to stay on the plane.

I didn’t really need to do much recon. I’d been watching the apartment Garret shared with Ryan since I left Colombia, as well as the other cameras. Once I reached the block where the apartment was, I parked and pulled up the feed once more. It was just after two in the morning. In the time it took me to get from the airport to where I was currently parked, they had gone from staring sightlessly like mindless robots at the television to lying in their beds.

Or at least, that was what I was going to assume my brother was doing since I couldn’t find him on any of the other cameras. But Ryan was in bed, with the lights off. The curtains weren’t drawn, letting the brightness of the city cast a soft glow across his bed. He was lying on his back, the covers pulled up to his waist. One arm was thrown over his eyes, his other hand lying on his hard stomach.

It wasn’t the first—or even the tenth—time I’d spied on Ryan like this late at night. I would lie in bed for hours, just watching him until I fell asleep. Each time, I would tell myself I was doing it because I was pissed and wanted to see him suffering. But the truth was, I couldn’t sleep until I saw him. Since my conversation with Mom in the hospital cantina, I’d been reconsidering everything, wondering if my anger was really warranted.

I didn’t know anymore, but this wasn’t the time to search my soul and decide if I forgave him or not. The only reason I was there was to pick up Garret and get him back to Bogotá. I’d waited until Cali was back in her room and alert before telling her I had to make a quick trip. She’d been in pain and worried about Justice, so I hadn’t explained further. With Mom, Maria, and Guzman at her side, she wasn’t as scared, but she begged me to return as quickly as possible.