Page 29 of Rebel Protector

First, the affair. Now this. It was too much, too fast.

“How... how did it happen?”

“I don’t have all the details yet,” Markov barked, clearly hating the uncertainty. He was a man who thrived on control, and this was beyond him. “When I do, I’ll let you know.”

Becca rose to her feet, her limbs shaky. That was her cue to leave, to give them space to handle the fallout. As she walked towards the door, she couldn’t shake the words that Markov had muttered when she entered.“The stupid bastard.”

What the hell did that mean?

A flicker of suspicion darted through her mind, but she pushed it aside. Ramirez wouldn’t have... not Chrissy. He had his faults—plenty of them—but he wouldn’t do something like that. Would he?

She closed the door behind her and collapsed into her desk chair, her hands trembling. Chrissy. Dead. It was surreal. The woman had been a wreck the night before—drunk, angry, spiraling—but dead? She hadn’t soundedthatfar gone.

Becca’s mind raced, conjuring up images of Chrissy, red-eyed and reckless, behind the wheel of her car. Had she been drinking? Driving erratically in a fit of rage? The pieces were scattered, but no matter how hard Becca tried to force them into place, the picture didn’t make sense.

Then there was Markov. His cold, businesslike demeanor told her everything she needed to know about where his priorities lay. Chrissy’s death didn’t affect him personally—it was all about Ramirez. His long-time associate would either be more useful or more volatile after this. It was all about calculating the next move, keeping everything smooth for the business.

Becca sat at her desk for a long time, staring into space as the weight of it all pressed down on her. Ramirez’s wife, a friend—gone. And those girls. Their lives had just been shattered.

After a while, Carlos slinked out of the study, his usual leering glance absent. He stalked past her without a word, and not long after, Markov left the villa as well. Probably headed to Adriana’s place. He hadn’t spent much time with his girlfriendsince Dom had arrived and this business with the Colombians had ramped up.

The villa was eerily quiet now, and for the first time, Becca allowed herself to cry. Silent tears slid down her cheeks, her chest tight with the weight of the loss. She hadn’t beenthatclose to Chrissy, but she’d been a friend. A mom. And now, two teenage girls would grow up without their mother.

The thought made her stomach churn. Ramirez wasn’t exactly parent material, and with Chrissy gone, Becca didn’t doubt for a second that the au pair would take her place—whether she wanted to or not.

God, she hoped she was wrong.

But the more she thought about it, the more suspicious it all seemed. Chrissy had been angry, sure, but running a red light in a fit of rage? Something didn’t sit right. Unable to shake the feeling, she picked up the phone and called an old contact from the American embassy.

“Hi, Robert, it’s Becca. Long time, eh?” She kept her voice light, despite the nerves gnawing at her. After a few minutes of catching up, she got to the point. “I was hoping you could help me with something.”

She filled him in on what she needed, and Robert promised to look into it. He had connections with the local authorities and could access police reports when necessary. Becca knew she could trust him to find out what happened.

She tried to focus on work after the call, but her mind was spinning. Eventually, she gave up and headed back to her apartment, where she let the emotions wash over her in a long, hot bath.

Chrissy had sounded desperate last night. Desperate enough to do something reckless. Maybe shehaddriven too fast, blinded by anger. Maybe it really was nothing more than a tragic accident.

She was drying off when her phone rang again.

Robert.

“Hey, Rob. What did you find out?”

“Well, Becca, it looks like an accident on paper. Your friend ran a red light, and a truck hit her broadside. She didn’t stand a chance.”

Becca’s heart sank. “Was she drinking?”

“She had a blood alcohol level well above the legal limit,” Robert confirmed. “It’s pretty cut and dry.”

Becca nodded, even though he couldn’t see her.That explained it then.

But Robert paused.

“There is something else, though. I don’t know if it’s relevant, but she was booked on a flight out to LAX later tonight. Three seats.”

Becca’s blood ran cold.Chrissy had been preparing to run.

CHAPTER 11