While I'd anticipated anger from Elena, after hearing all that Winston had done, she'd barely even mentioned his name. I couldn't lie that I was glad the asshole was out of her life and I felt absolutely no guilt. I'd also found his buddies who'd pulled the trigger in the parking garage, thanks to Castillo's help. They'd been handled in an entirely different way, establishing life far removed from Miami. They had one chance to keep the fuck away from me.
As far as the alliance Santiago and John had mentioned, I'd been called to my parents' house only two hours before they were to leave for the airport. The story should at least be interesting.
"Come sit by the pool, son. Beautiful day. I took the liberty of making you a drink." My father looked the epitome of good health, his skin glowing in the afternoon sun.
I sat down, accepting the drink and staring at the water.
"I know you have a lot of questions," my father finally said.
"I do. Let's start with why you didn't tell me everything."
He sighed and took several sips of his drink before answering. "I knew how you'd feel about Santiago and the truth is I wasn't entirely certain he could be trusted after all these years. We were kids when we made this alliance together." He laughed and pulled out his sunglasses. "If our fathers would have found out we were working together, they would have disowned us. We thought it was a good idea and it helped on several occasions. Some good work we all did together."
"The friends you mentioned," I said absently.
He chuckled. "I had a feeling you'd remember. That was a very important time of my life and I enjoyed what we shared. Perhaps it was a weakness, but I did consider them friends. Or so I thought at the time."
"Why did you disband?"
"We were all going in separate directions, some of us already taking the reins of the various organizations. Just didn't seem right at that point."
"I don't believe that's the full truth. What happened to Marcus Wallace, President Wallace's son all those years ago?"
His face fell, his hand shaking as he attempted to take another sip of his drink. "A tragedy."
"The very regret you talked about," I whispered.
"My very smart son. Yes, a regret I would give anything to go back and change."
"What happened?"
"We were all basically friends at that point. Marcus knew who our fathers were and didn't care, even though he was truly one of the good guys. The group of us often met in Cuba and he wanted to go along. I shouldn't have allowed it but figured he could enjoy the country while the alliance met. We went out one night and had too much to drink. Curvy roads. Speed. I was... I was driving. He was the only one killed."
"And so you kept the secret together for all these years."
He glanced in my direction, nodding. "Yes. What else could we do?"
"Interesting. How far reaching is this alliance?"
My father leaned over. "You might be surprised, son." When he laughed, he fell into a coughing spell.
"Be truthful with me, Father. How long do you have?"
"A few months. Maybe a year. I really do want to enjoy it with my lovely bride. You're more than capable of handling every job, including keeping Santiago in line."
"As long as he's not double crossing us."
"I don't think you have to worry." He nodded toward the set of French doors. "That's why I invited him here today. I wanted to hear what he had to say about the person he found to be responsible for the shit that's gone down."
I tipped my head and watching Santiago and his men walk in, I had to admit, I bristled as I stood, helping my father to his feet.
"I can do this myself, son. I'm not dying yet," my father chastised then walked toward Santiago.
As both men shook hands then hugged, I wondered what he would think about the Sons of Darkness. I chuckled at the thought. Like father, like son.
Santiago approached, waving off a drink. "I owe you gentlemen an explanation." He pulled out what appeared to be a photograph from his pocket, handing it to me. "Does this man look familiar?"
"Rodriguez."
"Yes," he said, his eyes twinkling. "I did not lie with what I told you, but I didn't tell you the entire truth. He was part of the Black Dog cartel that had moved in on the island. They have been a problem for some time. Unfortunately, I had no way of knowing just how connected they were to various influencers in South America. Rodriguez had some information that he was using to blackmail all of us."
"Marcus Wallace's death," I said.
Santiago smiled. "You have been talking with your father. I'm glad. And yes. I thought he could be handled. When he started seeing my daughter, I couldn't allow that to happen."
"So you killed him."
"No, I did not. Rodriguez is behind this. The photo you have was doctored." Santiago glanced at my father. "He is still out there, but I have a lead on where he is."
"And that lead is?" my father asked.
"Philadelphia."
I laughed under my breath. "I know how to take care of him. This time, you need to trust me."
"That much I believe I can do," Santiago said, giving my father a look of respect.
As I left my father's office that day, there were two things left to do. I'd call Aleksei and allow him to handle the scumbag. That was easy. The second would tear me apart but had to be done.