Vanessa
True to his word, the power and everything suddenly goes out. My screen flashes with an address I've never seen before, in a city I've never been to.
"Vanessa!" Danny shouts, his voice echoing through the darkness as I hear his heavy footsteps treading up the steps.
Fuck. How am I going to do this? Danny would never allow me to go save my sister, especially with Diego's constant death threats. His loyalty ultimately lies with Diego, not with me.
That's exactly why I need to do this. I grasp the heavy, gold lamp from the nightstand, holding it firmly in my head as I position myself behind the door.
"I'm so sorry about this, Danny," I whisper.
As he opens the door and steps into the room, I take a deep breath and swing the lamp as hard as I can against the back of his head. With a sickening thud, he falls to the ground, groaning in pain.
My heart pounds as I cautiously step around him, shaking his shoulders gently to see if he'll wake up. Then, with trembling hands, I reach for his wrist, feeling for his pulse to make sure I didn't kill him.
Good, he's still breathing.
Relief washes over me as I carefully place the bloodied lamp back on the dresser. I reach for Danny's gun, swiftly removing it from his holster and tucking it into the waistband of my jeans. Then, I go into the closet and pull on a blue sweater.
My nerves are on edge, but I'm willing to kill tonight if that means saving my sister. Knowing that there are two more of Diego's men downstairs, I let out a hysterical scream, "Help! Danny passed out and I can't wake him up!"
The two men charge into the room. Thankfully, they're not the same ones from the wedding, so there's a chance this may work. They suspiciously glance at me and then at Danny. Then, they exchange words in rapid Spanish, but I cut off whatever they're saying.
"Guys, there's no time," I plead. "Help me get him to the hospital."
"We will take him, you stay here," one of them tries to assert with a thick accent.
Panic surges through me, but I force myself to remain calm.
I can do this.
"No. Danny promised Diego he wouldn't leave my side until he returns. Do you want to get him killed?" I retort, glaring at them.
They glance at each other before the one trying to order me around grudgingly relents, "fine. Don't try any funny shit and stay where we can see you."
Okay, asshole.
But I nod obediently. "Of course. I just want to make sure Danny is okay," I reply with feigned sadness.
As they carry Danny to the car, I trail behind, managing to keep the fake tears flowing. Once we're away from the estate, heading to where I assume the hospital is, I begin to wonder how I'm going to get to the location the man texted me. I still have forty minutes left, but I have no idea about the distance between the hospital and where I need to go. I can't drive, and with no phone service, I can't call an Uber or anything.
There's only one other option I can think of. I just hope it works.
Once we arrive at the hospital, one of the men take Danny inside, who stirs in the car a few times but keeps slipping into unconsciousness, while the other man remains in the car with me.
As soon as I confirm that the first man isn't returning, I pull out the gun and press it against the asshole's temple. His body tenses, and he stares wide-eyed at me through the rear-view mirror.
"I need you to take me here," I say, showing him the address on my phone.
"Mrs. Reyes, put the gun down," he says between clenched teeth, "I bet you don't even know how to use that."
"Wanna bet?" I cock the gun, and he flinches. "That's what I thought. Now, take me here. You won't be punished by Diego. I'll make sure he knows that this was against your will."
Realizing he can't call his partner or Diego, his nostrils flare as he sighs and reluctantly starts the car, speeding out of the parking lot.
"I should fucking kill you puta, but Jefe would have me and my entire family killed. You're lucky," he says, venom in his words.
"Hey asshole, don't make me change my mind. I can tell him that you threatened me," I warn calmly.
That's if we even see each other again after tonight.