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CHAPTER ONE

Río Seco, Mexico

April 1985

THE MEXICAN VILLAGE SLUMBERED UNDER THE LIGHT OF A WANING crescent moon In the empty plaza, windblown shadows flickered over the cobblestones The cantina was closed for the night, its outdoor tables and chairs locked away behind corrugated metal doors A bat fluttered from the tower of the old adobe church and s in the deserted marketplace

The night was almost peaceful But the stillness was heavy with tension—especially in one s in Río Seco was the way it had been before the Cabrera cartel took over the town And for Rose Landro, after tonight, nothing would be the saain

The click of a boot heel on the tiled patio startled Rose to full alertness Lying fully dressed in the dark, she checked the i aside the covers, and bolt out of bed She was a small woman Face-to-face, she’d be noher Her only chance of survival lay in surprise

The loaded Smith and Wesson 44 was a cold lump under her pillow As footsteps clicked across the patio, she closed her hand around the grip, cocked the hammer, and slid to the floor Her free hand bunched the pillows into a se body and covered them with the blanket

She kneas coer brother of the local cartel boss, was built like a short pile of bricks He wore high-heeled cowboy boots toacross the kitchen, chilled Rose’s blood

Gripping the heavy pistol, she crawled across the floor and pressed upward to stand against the wall, in the shadows behind the door Her breath caasps Her pulse hammered in her ears

The cartel would kill anyone who stood against thea, who’d taken Rose into their hoo Rose would have fled for her life before now, but she could not leave without avenging the couple who’d cared for her like their own daughter

Honor The Ortegas had lived by that code Noas Rose’s turn to carry on the tradition

The footsteps were co closer Would Lucho stand in the doorway and fire at the lu her first, as he’d done twohome alone after dark?

At the htened on the trigger If ever a , it was Lucho Cabrera Only his older brother, Refugio, orse

The bedroom door creaked open Rose held her breath as Lucho stepped into the rooh the high, barred , cast black shadows across his fleshy face As he neared the bed, he holstered the gun One hand fumbled with his belt buckle Good This was almost too easy She could shoot hi in her wanted more She wanted him to see her When the bullet tore into his body, she wanted him to knoho had fired it