"Okay, sounds good," he said into the phone. "Anything you can do to help, man." Then he ended the call.
"I just talked to your cousin Nico. He thinks he might have a lawyer connection back in Tennessee." Even though their marriage had ended, Ritchie had remained close to the Mayson family. Much closer than Madelyn had.
"Wait. Another lawyer? Why? Has something else happened?" I asked on the verge of a panic attack.
"Relax." He put a hand on my shoulder. "It might be time to change tactics. I want you to try to talk to Miguel again." Ritchie suggested as he settled into the chair beside me. "See if he'll let you take Bash to the States."
"He won't. Don't you think I've tried?"
"Fine, then go without his permission. That's what this new lawyer will do. An American lawyer who will help you get Bash back to the States. Though it would be easier if Miguel cooperates."
"He said he would have me killed if I tried to leave Mexico with his son."
"He said that?" Ritchie's eyes went cold as he sat forward. "He said he would kill you?"
"Well, he didn't come right out and say, 'I'm going to kill you, Carina,' but I knew what he meant."
"That little punk doesn't have the power to take a shit in private, how in the world could he get somebody to—"
"He was running with the Asesinos," I cut him off and stood. "I wouldn't put anything past him."
"So what are you going to do, huh? Keep having your brother make fake passports for you? What happens when you get caught? What happens to Bash?"
I sank back into my chair and looked at my son. Bash had turned his tricycle upside down in the grass and was spinning the wheels with his hands. I couldn't come up with answers to Ritchie's questions. What would happen? How long could I risk traveling with a fake passport? I'd been hiding under the protection of our little town. In fact, I relied on it. Was it only a matter of time before someone ratted me out? I hated that Miguel had the power to decide my fate and it was even worse knowing there was nothing I could do about it.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Brando
I stood and stretched as the client inspected my work in the mirror. A skull and flowers done entirely in new school style had been positioned along his calf.
"Badass, man." The client grinned and shook my hand.
"Great, Rosie will cash you out up front." I walked him to the front desk, giving him aftercare instructions along the way.
After the client left, Rosie wandered to the back office, where I'd been pulling cash from the safe and preparing it for deposit.
"Hey, Brando," she said from behind me, "it's dead tonight. How much longer are you going to stay open?" Her eyes weren't on me; they were on the safe.
"You can head out if you want," I replied, trying to use my body to shield what I could of the safe contents.
"Sweet. In that case, I was going to grab a beer across the street if you wanted to—"
"Do me a favor, go wait up front."
"Oh, okay," Rosie replied softly, her mouth turning into a frown before she walked away.
I knew I'd come off as an asshole, but I still had a potential thief working for me and I didn't know who it was yet. I'd been looking into getting cameras installed, though the staff made it very clear that they hated the idea, most of all Todd. I knew his gripes were for different reasons. His back office sexcapades would all be on tape.
I stuffed the stacks of bills into my backpack and zipped it up. I'd stopped leaving cash there overnight, and as long as Todd got his cut, he didn't care where I kept the rest of the money. After locking the office, I went to the front and was surprised to find the place empty, and Rosie's weird little purse that was designed to look like a Rubix cube was gone.
When I stepped outside, the only car in the lot was mine. I locked up the shop and shot a glance at the bar across the street. It was too dark to tell if Rosie was in there and honestly, I didn't have time to go after her. Instead, I drove over to Catch.
"She's not here, Brando," annoying ass Harley called casually over her shoulder as she sauntered past with a tray of drinks. It was like she loved being able to give me the bad news.
"Where is she?"
"Don't know." Harley shrugged and offered nothing more.