Malo: An Age Gap Romance

“What’s up?” Beast asks, clocking at once that there’s something wrong. I glance back toward the door, wondering if I should come clean. Last chance to back out…

“There’s something I need to tell you about,” I reply, figuring honesty is the best policy. “Someone, actually.”

“Sit down,” Beast orders, as he juts his chin at the seat opposite him. I slide down into the seat, and recount what’s happened in the last day or so. I leave out the part about snatching up the baggie from the crackhouse we were in the day before, and focus on the hook up with the girl. I know it’s not something they can exactly hold against me, given that most of us have been caught hooking up with someone we likely shouldn’t have before.

I catch them up on what she said to me, about working for Las Rosas and El Serpiente, that they have her father, and she’s clearly terrified, with no idea how to navigate this situation. Beast takes it in, his face carefully neutral, not giving anything away. He’s the boss here, and he knows he needs to consider the gravity of every situation before he makes any calls.

“What do you think?” I ask, leaning forward with interest. “What should we do with her?”

“She could be a mole,” Beast mutters, clearly doubtful about this. He’s got good reason to be. He knows just how far El Serpiente will go to get what he wants, and using a girl like this to lure us into thinking she’s in some real trouble wouldn’t be beyond him.

“Could be,” Thor agrees, leaning against the door. “Or she could be in real trouble. And willing to work with us.”

“What do you think?” Beast asks me, narrowing his eyes. I pause for a moment, considering our interactions earlier—how scared she looked, the tears in her eyes, the way she stumbled over her words as she told me about what they did to her father. If she’s an actor, she’s a damn good one.

“I think she’s being straight with us,” I reply. “And I think we could make good use of her. Use her as a double-agent, get under the skin of what’s going on with Las Rosas.”

“I guess it wouldn’t hurt to keep her around for a while, get an idea of just how much we can trust her,” he agrees, nodding. “Is she here with you now?”

“Right outside,” I reply, nodding to the door.

“What kind of state is she in?”

“Pretty shaken,” I remark, shaking my head. “I don’t know how long they’ve been keeping her, or what they’ve been using her for exactly, if she was sent out to hook up with me as part of her work. Who knows what else they’ve been making her do?”

All three men grimace. The Ruthless Kings might not have the best reputation, but we draw the line at exploiting women for their bodies like that. The mere thought of it sets my teeth on edge.

“Get her cleaned up and find a room for her for the night,” Beast shoots back, rising to his feet, the decision made. Nobody dares argue with him, even though I can see Sin has some doubts about this.

“We’ll figure out what we can use her for tomorrow,” Beast adds, and opens the door once more, gesturing for me to get out there and look after her. I step outside, and she glances up at me from her spot on the bench, eyes wide.

And, despite how pissed I am about what she did, I can’t help but feel a pang of sympathy for her.

CHAPTER 10

MARIA

Ilay back on the bed and stare at the ceiling, trying to figure out just what I’ve gotten myself into and whether or not this is going to turn out to be a good idea.

Working with the Ruthless Kings, it’s… it’s a lot. I don’t know if I’ve taken on something more than I can handle, but I’m not willing to pass up the chance to get out from under Las Rosas thumb, even just for a little while. I’m sure they’re going to notice that I’m gone soon enough, but hopefully I’ll have a plan by then. They did send me to get information on the Kings so I can always use that to my advantage. If they figure out I’m working with the very people they’ve been trying to take down, I’m sure there’ll be backlash, but I can’t keep going along with their demands.

Besides, now that I’ve spilled everything to the Kings, they’re not going to let me walk out of here and go back to Rayo and his demands for me, they’d be crazy to let that happen. No, I can tell they want to use me, make me into some double-agent, playing both sides to get what they so clearly want from me. I don’t know if I can play both sides like that without getting caught, but I can’t keep going along with what El Serpiente wants.

Besides, the Kings have already treated me better than Rayo and his men ever have. Beast, the leader, told me that I had a place in his house as long as I played by his rules—and that meant not leaving without an escort, not stepping outside this place without someone there to keep an eye on me. Given how I stole from them, I figure it’s to be expected. I know I really should be grateful for their kindness in the face of what’s going on, but I can’t help but wonder if they’re going to twist me to their whims just the same way Las Rosas did.

All of this is such a mess, and I can’t figure out how I’m meant to navigate it. Is this the best thing for my father? I don’t know. I figure that, with the help of these men behind me, I stand a better chance of getting him free than to play along with whatever horrible plan Rayo and his crew want me for.

I know I need to be more careful. I shouldn’t have spilled everything to Malo the way I did, but there’s something about him that tells me he’s not like the other men here, something that draws me in, despite my better judgement. Maybe it’s just the intensity of the moment we shared that night, maybe it’s knowing that he was sneaking off to take drugs and probably has plenty of reason to want to keep that hidden from the rest of the guys here. It’s something I have over him, at least, some leverage I can use to get what I need should the time call for it.

I don’t know where this side of me is coming from, this part of me that’s so willing to double-cross and scheme to get what I need. I suppose it’s not as though I had much of a choice, since Rayo snatched me up from my father’s home and dragged me down here, telling me that I was going to work with them or my father was going to die. I’m still not even sure I actually believe that they would have killed him, but there’s no way in hell I was going to take that chance.

I feel like they need him, need his expertise to get what they want, but they’re ruthless— harming my father isn’t out of the equation, even if they will leave him alive.

The Kings have to help me. They hate Las Rosas as much as I do, right? I saw it written all over Malo’s face when I admitted that was who I was working for. I can tell the two groups have a history, and I’m not sure which one of them is in the right—hell, if either of them could be, given how dark this world is.

I can still feel the pressure of the gun that Malo pressed against my head, the coldness of it, the way he glared at me as though he wanted to end me right then and there. He was quick on the draw, like he’s used to using his weapons to get what he wants, and I’d be lying if I said it didn’t scare me. I’m here, in the compound of another criminal organization, being instructed that I can’t leave without someone there to keep an eye on me. Is this really any different, any better than what I had back with Las Rosas?

I get to my feet and pour myself a glass of water from the small sink next to the window. This room is a little nicer, at least. And I’m allowed to wander around the house, just not go outside. I stare out the window, where there are a few men down below, working on their bikes. They look rough in their leather jackets, their scars, the bulge of the guns beneath their clothes. I know it should scare me more, but I feel as though I’m numb to all of this, numb to all the terror that should be coursing through me right now.