♛Cameron Dawson ♛
"So let me get this straight... if we manage to tear down Jack and his gang, we would be tearing down a three billion dollar syndicate?" I ask from where I'm hunched over in the bonnet of the car.
"When we take down the gang," Katalina corrects me, "yes."
I look up at her over the hood to see her still sucking on a lollipop while she sits cross-legged on the roof of the car.
"Well," she goes on and I wipe my hands that are covered in filth from the car on a cloth before I grab a wrench, "that's how much it's estimated at according to Vivienne. Could be a little less or a little more but not too far off."
"Vivienne?" I grunt as I pull at the gear box.
"Enrique's accountant."
"Oh."
"It would do Concord a lot of good to get rid of that gang." She grumbles and I stand up straight, wiping a bead of sweat off of my forehead.
"Who was here first? The Slithers or the Kings?"
Katalina pauses from placing the red lollipop back in her mouth as she ponders over my question.
"The Slithers. But the man before Jack was very different. Or so I've heard. He was more diplomatic than anything and after Jack was made his right hand man, he tried to get Gus- the leader- to be less persuasive and more demanding. Gus died in a car accident but we all think that Jack had a role to play in it because directly after, he took the throne, got new members and turned the gang into a bloodthirsty group of criminals instead of a well thought out empire."
"It can't be that badly thought out if it's a three billion dollar worth gang though." I counter and Katalina points the glistening sweet at me.
"That's a good point. But still. I think Jack has been lucky more than anything. His members are radicle and radicle members make good killers. Any threat or problem is dealt with like that. Jack wouldn't know what diplomacy was even if someone wrote the definition on a rock and threw it at him."
"Have you ever considered... maybe forming a partnership with Jack and then getting rid of him?"
Katalina rolls her eyes. "A partnership with that snake? Hell no. His members wouldn't cooperate even if we did become partners. Jack has selected his members well- especially his top dogs."
With that being said, I'm reminded of what I've been needing to ask Katalina but haven't had a chance to get to, so I wipe my hands once more before crossing them over my chest and leaning against the wall.
"At the last meeting with Enrique, he told Bruno to take out any top dogs he can get his hands on," I begin, "is Cyrus included?"
Katalina frowns, eyes narrowed slightly. "Well obviously, he's Jack's right hand man. Why? It only makes sense that we do-" she seems to understand why I've asked and she doesn't finish her sentence. Instead she runs a hand through her hair. "He's Harley's brother."
I purse my lips.
"But she hates him doesn't she? She sure makes it sound like she does so wouldn't us taking him out be doing her a favour?" Katalina asks with a raised eyebrow and I shake my head.
"She may hate him but that doesn't mean she wants him dead. You can hate someone and still be okay with them being happy because at the end of the day, they're still blood and a part of you will always care for them."
Katalina averts her gaze, looking down at her boots while chewing on her lip.
"Look, if you have to take him out, I get it. Business is business and he's a key player but I need to know. Harley needs to know. I can't sit back and let something that could possibly break her just happen. If it can't be prevented, at least give her the chance to be prepared." I explain and Katalina lets out a breath before shaking her head.
"I can't do that to Harley." She replies. "I'll speak to Bruno... we can work around Cyrus but I'm not killing her brother. I don't want to be partly responsible for tipping her off the edge if it happens."
I hate the way Katalina makes Harley sound so sensitive and unstable but I know I have no right to be because she is and there is a very good chance that something like that will throw her off the edge. I can't blame Katalina for not wanting to bear the burden of affecting Harley like that. I don't want to be the root to Harley's pain in any way whatsoever either.
"I know Harley doesn't want to hear it but Cyrus loves her." Katalina snaps me out of my thoughts and I glance up to her. "A lot more than she thinks."
"Why would you think that?" I say, a bit harshly. After everything that Cyrus has done, it's kind of hard to believe that he could love Harley. It's hard to believe that he's capable of being a good person.
"He asked me to look out for her since we're both racers." She tells me and my eyebrows raise in surprise. "And I could hear the love he had for her."
I shake my head to myself. "It doesn't count if you keep hurting that person and then saying sorry. Sorry doesn't fix it. He's fucked up her life and I can't blame her for hating him for that."
Katalina sighs, stretching out on the top of the roof so that I can't see her facial expression.
"I really like Harley." She mumbles and I pause with the wrench in hand, a soft smile coming to my face.
"She really likes you too Katalina." I reply and the Mexican girl sits up, leaning on her elbows.
"Why do you always call me by my full name?" I frown, shutting the hood of the car before shrugging as I begin packing up all the tools.
"Don't know."
I make sure the tools are arranged in the way that I found them before closing the toolbox and locking it up. Katalina needs to take the car for a spin to make sure the gearbox is up and running now because as far as I can tell, it looks like I've succeeded in fixing it.
"Well don't stop. I like it." Katalina adds and I smirk at her as I turn around.
"Sure thing Lina."
I feel something hit my forehead and when I look down, I see the white lollipop stick on the floor. Glancing back up to Katalina, I see the smug smile on her face and I raise an eyebrow before slowly rounding the car so that I can reach her on the roof.
"Cameron, what are you do-" before she can ask what I'm doing, I'm rubbing my hand across her face while the other rubs her calves, the oil and dirt I have on my hands moving onto her skin. "Cameron!" She shrieks and I laugh, pulling back to see streaks of black all over her face and along her legs while her hair is in a frenzy from her struggle. But the annoyed gleam in her eye makes me let out a loud hoot.
"Black is a good colour on you." I remark sarcastically, pretending to be observing her.
"Oh fuck off." She flips me off, wiping the dirt off of her face with the back of her hand but I can see the smile she's trying to hide.
"Is there any restaurant or something around here that we can grab something to eat?" I ask and she gives me a look of pure disbelief.
"You want me to go out looking like this?" She points a finger at her face. "Definitely not. If you want food, you're going to have to make it yourself."
"Fine then," I retort, "but I can't promise it will taste any good."
"No judging from my side considering I'm a horrible cook." She huffs out as she hops off of the roof. The slap of her shoes on the floor resonates through the room and I let out a breath of a laugh and she narrows her eyes, pausing from dusting off her jeans. "What are you laughing about?"
"You can't cook?" I ask in amusement and she shakes her head.
"No. What's so funny about that?"
I shake my head with a smile. Although it's an unfair stigma and generalisation, every woman I've ever met that comes from a strong Latina background can cook. And quite well, actually. So I kind of find it amusing that Katalina is so strongly rooted in her culture but can't cook well when it's something that is common amongst Mexican ladies. But good for her... breaking gender barriers and not having a care about it either.
"I was just expecting you to be a good cook with your Mexican background." Shrugging one shoulder, I see Katalina roll her eyes as she leads us out of the garage and into kitchen.
"Ramiro and my mom did all the cooking when we were kids. And now Ramiro still does the cooking when we're here. He's amazing at it." Katalina explains, before pointing to one cupboard and looking at me. "This is the pots and pans," she moves to another cupboard "and this is the spices. The pantry has ingredients and obviously the fridge too."
Nodding, I make my way over to the kitchen with knowledge that I will be making Gazpacho. I open the cupboard she said the pots were in and I pull one out before getting a few vegetables out.
"What are you making?"
"Gazpacho." I turn around to face her to see her nose slightly scrunched up. "What? Don't you like it?"
"Can you throw some meat in?"
I shrug, continuing to retrieve the ingredients. "Sure."
I rinse the potatoes and when I turn around, Katalina is at the counter with a wooden tray in front of her and knife in one hand. She takes the washed potatoes out of my hands and begins peeling them quietly while I start spicing the meat pieces.
"So you say Ramiro cooks when you guys are here. But when you're with Enrique? Who cooks then?" I glance at her to see her smiling to herself and I wonder what things are like between her and Enrique.
"Well Enrique does. He's great at cooking but not better than Ramiro. Although Ariela prefers his cooking over Ray's who can be pretty heavy on the spice sometimes. But what about you? Who cooks more at home? You or Harley?"
Pursing my lips in thought, I pull out a pan to fry the meat to throw into the soup. I pour olive oil into the pan and throw the meat into the pan to simmer. "Depends. We both do, I guess. I just cook breakfast because I make the best waffles."
"Waffles, huh?" Katalina remarks and even with her back to me I can hear the smile in her voice. The sound of the knife hitting the cutting board echoes around us. "I want to try them sometime."
"Sure." I reply and we lapse into silence while I rinse the other vegetables that I'll be using. I can imagine Enrique and Katalina cooking like a normal couple in a kitchen while Katalina demands that Enrique doesn't make the food spicy so that Ariela can eat it. "Wait, who is Ariela?" I suddenly blurt and Katalina pauses from cutting the potatoes and tomatoes before scratching her chin and turning to face me with one hip leaning against the counter. "Enrique and I's daughter."
"Daughter?" I echo, not sure I heard her right the first time. Katalina seems amused at my disbelief as she cocks her head to the side and watches me whose mouth is gawking open.
"Mmh-hmm." She hums. "Had her when I was twenty. She's two now." Casually, Katalina returns to the task at hand and picks the board up, pushing the cut up vegetables into a pot of boiling water. However, I cannot do anything but stare in utter shock at the girl before me. She's married to Enrique- the gang leader of the Kings- and has a child of two years with him? She has her life together even though she's in this world and I can barely keep mine and Harley's head above water.
After realising I haven't said anything and I'm still staring, Katalina glances at me and rolls her eyes.
"Oh come on. Are you really so shocked?"
"You have your whole life together Katalina. You're married with a child, obviously I would be shocked. You've covered these pieces of information so well... it's actually kind of terrifying." I reply, watching as Katalina hops up on the counter and faces me. She swings her feet in front of her and leans back on her hands.
"She wasn't planned. I would have preferred to have had kids later on but I love her with everything I am and everything I've got so I wouldn't want it any other way. It just makes it harder to protect her and spend time with her." She explains and I'm curious as to how Ariela looks. Does she have her mother's black mane? Her father's deep-set brown eyes?
"I don't understand." I frown. "If you've been keeping this secret, where is she when you and Enrique are dealing with gang business?"
"She has a full time nanny who thinks we're international estate agents."
A scoff leaves me mouth. "You two don't look very much like international estate agents."
"Yeah well, saying lawyers wouldn't work because she can't look us up or something. But Enrique makes sure people keep an eye on her. Ariela is always being watched."
While I'm so happy for Katalina that she's married to a man she loves and has a child who I'm sure is so beautiful, I don't see what's the point in having either of those things if I have to pretend like I don't. If I have to keep everything a secret and act like I haven't made some of the best decisions in my life then why bother? When I marry Harley, I don't want to have to hide it and I sure as hell don't want to pretend like I don't have a kid when I do. And I definitely don't want to have to put my child in the hands of a nanny. But I don't think Katalina really asked to have those things under these circumstances either- it was just what she was forced to deal with.
"You must be a really cool mom." I complement Katalina and she laughs.
"Oh trust me, I am." She remarks smugly, a big smirk on her face and I playfully roll my eyes at her.
"Okay, Miss Vanity. Let's finish this soup already." Katalina nods in agreement and hops off the counter and we continue to cook in silence. But a comfortable silence that I haven't ever experienced with anyone other than Harley and, well, Carla.
•••
I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. I'm genuinely curious as to what you guys think about Lina and Enrique being married and having a kid together?
Sorry for missing last week's update btw... things are just super hectic in my life at the moment. My family is emigrating and while that is happening, I'm busy writing my final exams so I can finish school.
Needless to say, I'm extremely stressed and honestly just trying to keep my head above water.
I hope that you are all doing great though <3
Thank you for all the support.
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