Inevitable (Colombian Cartel Book 3) Read online

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  ©Inevitable

  ©Colombian Cartel Series

  Copyright © 2013 Suzanne Steele

  Published by Suzanne Steele

  All Rights Reserved

  This book is a work of Fiction. References to real people, events, establishments, organizations, or locales, are intended only to provide a sense of authenticity and are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. All other characters, incidents and dialogue are drawn from the author’s imagination and not to be construed as real. The author acknowledges the trademark status of various products and locales referenced in this fictional work, which have been used without permission. The use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners. All rights reserved. No part of this book can be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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  Cover Copyright © Suzanne Steele

  Edited by Eda Price Editing

  Cover Design by Mayhem Cover Creations

  Formatting by Suzanne Steele

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  All content herein is protected under copyright law.

  This e-book is Rated 17+

  To the reader

  The men I write about are Alpha males in every sense of the word. They are the men society warns us about. They are dominant males with controlling tendencies. They are the men you know you should stay away from but are drawn to like a moth to a flame.

  If you are looking for a sweet romance, you won't find it here. What you will find is dark passion. My heroes often carry what would be considered an obsession for the women they love. Each character I write about has demanded their voice be heard. I have been true to that calling and I have stayed true to their personalities, which the reader may not always agree with. They are dark, they are gritty, and often their love is dysfunctional but, nonetheless, it is real.

  Stalk Me…

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  Table of Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty One

  Chapter Twenty Two

  Chapter Twenty Three

  Chapter Twenty Four

  Chapter Twenty Five

  Chapter Twenty Six

  Chapter Twenty Seven

  Chapter Twenty Eight

  Chapter Twenty Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty One

  Chapter Thirty Two

  Epilogue

  Prologue

  His father’s massive frame filled the doorway, silently demanding Tony’s attention. Ricardo Ramirez’s muscular build and grim demeanor were already intimidating enough, but the fact that he was dressed in full military gear made him seem even more dangerous. Of course, his cold black eyes and the scar that ran down his cheek didn’t hurt either.

  “Anything yet?” Ricardo asked impatiently as he cocked an eyebrow and crossed his arms over his chest.

  “No, not yet,” Tony replied smoothly, “but she’s only been here one day. We rescued her from a deranged serial killer; it’s not unexpected that it will take time to find out what she knows. I’m making progress, but I’m not convinced she knows where Santiago’s headed next.”

  Tony sat at a simple desk in the spare office of the Ramirez main house, the domain of the infamous Ramirez brothers – his father, Ricardo, and his uncle, Antonio. He had been offered one of the other, more luxuriously appointed rooms for his work but he had declined. His needs were simple and he didn’t like clutter. Before his father had arrived, Tony had been going over his notes from the day’s debriefing session with Caden. The time with her had yielded more insight into Santiago’s obsession with her, but no leads on his whereabouts. He was betting Santiago had disappeared into the jungles of Colombia; it was the most obvious option he would choose. Of course, it was also the most difficult locale for them to contend with if they wanted to track him down.

  The only thing keeping Tony from feeling confident that Caden had indeed told him everything she knew, was Caden herself. Santiago had really done a number on her, messed with her head. Tony practically growled at the thought of how protective she was of the bastard, even after everything he’d put her through: kidnapping her and holding her against her will, slipping her drugs, and leaving her an emotional wreck. As far as Tony was concerned, Santiago Sanchez was nothing more than a serial killer dressed in cartel clothing. And, yeah, he needed to die.

  “How sweet,” his father drawled. “What are you going to do? Woo her with champagne and flowers? Your sweet disposition and good intentions are going to get her killed. Let me make myself clear. You wanted to come home and join the fold, earn your place in the cartel, yes?”

  “You know I do. I’ve told you that.”

  “Then do your job. Put your military training to work. Find out what she knows about his plans, then deprogram this woman thoroughly so she abandons her irrational concern for that Sinaloan animal. She will be considered a liability otherwise. Achieve your objectives or I will relieve you and let Antonio Wayne finish what you’ve started. He’ll find out what she knows, but she’ll likely be dead when he’s done.”

  In an unprecedented move, Tony stood and took a step toward him, fists clenched at his sides as his father’s threats rang in his ears.

  “That got your attention. Good.” Ricardo’s eyes narrowed as he regarded his son speculatively. “This woman matters to you. Interesting. Well,” he said decisively, “for now, I think your interest in her welfare works to the cartel’s advantage. But you’re running out of time, hijo. Cartel first, always. Do what needs doing.”

  With that, he turned and headed out the door, leaving Tony reeling from the implications of his threats.

  Caden hadn’t accepted it yet, but she was Tony’s now. Nobody threatened her on his watch, not even his own father – even if he happened to be the Colombian cartel boss. Nobody touched the woman except Tony.

  He had met Caden on his first night back home from his second tour of duty in the Middle East. She worked as a stripper at The Club, which was run by a business associate of his father’s. Tony had been fresh off the plane and had stopped off for a drink on the way home, feeling the need for some quiet before returning to his family. After a hellish tour of duty that had left him questioning his humanity, Louisville, Kentucky was a shock to his system. He had settled in at a corner table, nursing his beer and enjoying his own brand of solitude in the crowded room.

  The lights dim
med as the attention of the room shifted over to the main stage. Anticipation and sex sizzled on the air as the spotlight swept over to the far side of the stage. To the delight of the crowd, the beam of light captured a long, shapely leg extending coquettishly from behind the red velvet curtain. Tony smirked at the besotted reaction of the men on the front row. As the woman attached to said leg stepped out onto the stage, he lifted his beer, only to jolt to a stop and lower the glass to the table with a thud, oblivious to the beer that sloshed over onto his hand.

  The blonde bombshell sauntered seductively across the stage…and he was done. Game over. Those fuckers on the front row needed to back off because that shit was his. He had found The One.

  Santiago had occupied her time during her breaks that night, and the sight of her at the guy’s table had pissed him off to the point where he felt it best to hold off before staking his claim. But Tony didn’t let that stop him from pursuing her; he simply chose a less conventional approach. He did a little discreet digging and learned that when she wasn’t bringing grown men to their knees and relieving them of their hard-earned cash, Caden managed The Club’s website and social media. He could work with that; clearly, stealth was the way to go.

  He contacted her via The Club’s website with some stupid question about customer dress code. Over time, they struck up a flirty online friendship of sorts through a series of emails and, eventually, texts. For two people who had never met in person, they became pretty close.

  And then Santiago took things too far. She had only learned his identity the night before, after they rescued her from one of Santiago’s warehouses. She was still in shock, taking it all in. But Tony knew from the moment he saw her that there would be no other woman for him. However, recent events had forced him to step things up and it was time to do what he should have done months ago: stake his claim.

  Santiago had gone underground and the cartel’s interest in his whereabouts had thrown a wrench into Tony’s plans. His father was convinced Caden not only had information on Santiago’s location, but that he would be coming back for her.

  Caden was the Colombian cartel’s ticket to finding Santiago, or so his father thought. To Tony, she was just Caden Campbell—a flesh and blood woman, not a means to an end. But try telling Ricardo Ramirez that. If she was going to stand a chance of coming out of this ordeal alive, it was up to him to persuade her to cooperate. And he could be most persuasive, in ways far more pleasurable than what the cartel had planned.

  But karma was a bitch. Tony’s whole life, he did everything he could to avoid joining the cartel – the family business. But after his second tour of duty in the Middle East, he had come home a changed man and told his father he was ready. He wanted in.

  As a sniper, he had seen things and done things overseas that fucked with his head. He had never been a big believer in karma, but he sure as hell was now. When he thought of the darkness and personal demons he’d brought home with him from the desert, he wasn’t surprised to end up with a fight on his hands now.

  To claim his one shot at happiness with the only woman he had ever wanted, he might have to face off against everything and everyone he held dear. More and more, it looked like it was going to be inevitable…

  Chapter One

  Caden opened her eyes slowly, allowing herself the luxury of thinking that maybe it had all been an extraordinarily bad dream. But as she looked around the room, she couldn’t deny the fact that her reality hadn’t changed; she had simply gone from one dungeon to another. Well, a girl can dream.

  She couldn’t help but feel like she had been duped. Under the guise of rescuing her, Gorge Antonio Ramirez, better known as Tony, had personified kindness and even chivalry. Her own knight in shining armor – except knights didn’t rescue a woman only to hold her captive somewhere else, especially after months of misrepresenting himself. The bottom fell out of her world when she learned that her rescuer was her online friend, ‘Bootsontheground’. She felt so stupid. She had been so careless, and look where it got her. She cringed when she thought of all the personal, intimate things she had shared with him during countless hours of texting. But it was all bullshit; he had obviously been planning to move on her all along.

  She didn’t understand how her best friend, Diego, could allow her to be treated this way. Surely there was some sort of mix up. If he truly understood what had happened, he’d never stand for it. Of course not. He was her best friend. Somehow, she needed to get in touch with him. She would explain everything, then he would sort it all out and make Tony let her go. Simple.

  Oddly enough, she hadn’t been scared when Santiago had captured her and held her against her will. After all, she knew he was a killer; he didn’t lie to her about how fucked up he was and she could respect that. But this…she couldn’t wrap her brain around it. None of it made any sense. Why had Tony Ramirez basically stalked her for months, only to keep her here against her will when his grievances were with Sinaloan cartel? Somehow, she had been dragged into a Colombian cartel war. The thought of that scared her much more than Santiago Sanchez ever had.

  This was the exact reason she had made a point of not getting mixed up in cartel business at the club. It was too damn dangerous to be mixed up with organized crime. But despite everything she had done to avoid it, here she was in the middle of a huge mess.

  She ventured over to the backpack Tony had allowed her to keep. She opened it and rummaged around the contents within until she found what she wanted. She carefully lifted out a small china teacup and smiled as she studied the pattern. Sunflowers. She didn’t remember ever telling Santiago that they were her favorite flowers and yet he’d bought the teacup especially for her. Something about sunflowers made her feel good—no, they made her happy.

  Where are you, Santiago? And why didn’t you take me with you?

  It confused the hell out of her to have such conflicting feelings for a serial killer. Santiago had been ruthlessly killing women—creating a horrifying pile of dead bodies to rot in his old well. She knew instinctively she was the only woman he’d ever kidnapped and left alive. She didn’t know why, but he had.

  She had to admit she was impressed that, even though the cops couldn’t figure out who the serial killer was, the Colombian cartel had. It spoke to just how much danger she was in right now.

  The sound of keys jangling on the other side of the door pulled her from her thoughts. Her heart leapt at the prospect of human contact. Maybe Diego was coming to get her out of here. Surely, he wasn’t going to let them keep her here—whoever they were.

  She looked up to see Tony standing there with a tray of food. She met his penetrating gaze without flinching. His hazel eyes, sandy brown hair, and five o’clock shadow combined to remind her just how good-looking he was.

  “Are you just going to stare at me, or are you going to take this tray of food?”

  Her cheeks suddenly felt hot. She reached out, snatching the tray from him and sitting down on the cot with it in her lap. He seemed perplexed when she closed her eyes and silently prayed before she started eating.

  “So, Tony…do you feel good about holding me here?” She didn’t give him time to answer. “Or do you feel guilty?”

  “I don’t feel guilty about anything I’ve ever done. Do you feel guilty about letting a serial killer slip through our fingers without being held accountable for his sins? You should. If you know where he is and you don’t tell me, then any blood he sheds from here on out is on your hands.”

  She spooned some of the beans and rice in her mouth, unaffected by his words. “Really. Interesting. I was under the impression you were wooing me so you could fuck me, Boots, not lure Santiago out of hiding. You’re the liar, not me.” She pointed the fork in his direction, stabbing at the air.

  “I don’t think you understand how much trouble you’re in. I’m the only thing keeping you alive.”

  “Okay. I’ll bite. Who wants to kill me?”

  “Not want—will. My father and uncle are convinc
ed you know where Santiago is. They think he’s coming back for you.”

  “So, you’re using me to lure Santiago out of hiding. That’s so fucked up, Tony. And to think, I kind of liked you. Now? Not so much.”

  He studied her as she poured water into the china cup.

  “Where’d you get that?”

  “Santiago gave it to me.”

  He gestured for her to give it to him. She clutched it in her fingers as she frantically shook her head. “You can’t have it. It’s mine.”

  Her reaction troubled him and confirmed what he already suspected: she was suffering from Stockholm syndrome. She felt a misguided allegiance to a serial killer. Yeah, he’d done the right thing by keeping her here.

  He lunged for her and took the teacup out of her hand. Time to make things clear. “You’re in my house now,” he stated calmly. “I refuse to have you possess anything another man gave you. You think I’m trying to use you to lure that son of a bitch out of hiding, but I’m trying to save you.”

  “I don’t need you or any other man to save me.”

  His face was so close to hers she could feel his warm breath on her skin. Nothing could have prepared her for what he did next when he pulled her close and whispered in her ear, “You’re mine now. You’ll drink from the cup I give you and eat from the plate I bring you. It’s called deprogramming for a reason; any bonding you do will be with me now. As far as you’re concerned, Santiago Sanchez no longer exists; he’s dead to you. The sooner you get that through your head, the better off you’ll be.”

  “You can’t make me bond with you by holding me here against my will.”

  “Why can’t I? Santiago did, and I can assure you I’ll treat you a hell of a lot better than he ever did. You’ve got no choice. If you think I’m going to let you go so that bastard can come get you, you’re wrong. Don’t worry, baby, I’ll grow on you.”

  “Fuck you,” she screeched, barely able to stop herself from scratching his eyes out.

  “All good things in due time.”