Yara |18+|

40

VICO

I am losing my mind.

My knee bounced quickly and with my elbows perched on my desk, I tapped my fingers and thought of nothing except the fact that I didn't know where Yara was.

She was just gone—in an impossible second. How? Not only was I worried, but I was confused.

It had been at least two hours, and I have checked every single camera footage that we had. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. It almost felt...intentional. I ran my hands over my face and over my hair, calming myself down while I breathed in through my nose.

My heart hadn't known a single moment of peace since I discovered an empty room and I could feel the guilt starting to claw at my chest.

What if something happens to her?

What if he got to her head and she turned on me?

What if it was nothing but betrayal?

I didn't want to think about it—but the idea was there and it never left. I had to weigh all my options and on one hand, I doubted that Yara would be discreet about her vengeance.

No, she made it clear that she wanted this with me.

I couldn't stop thinking and I felt as if I were drowning. I can't just sit here. Standing up, I grabbed my keys and jacket. I shrugged my jacket on and double checked my ammo, already annoyed by the look on Kortez's face.

"No, boss. What if she comes back?" he asked, his face incredulous.

I didn't look at him, scared that I'd act out on the way I felt. For the first time since we started working together, it was hard to trust him. It was hard to know where he stood with me.

His actions were suspicious and I tried to tell myself I was imagining things. Again, it was hard to when he was right there—telling me to not look for Yara.

"Boss—"

"You can go home, Kortez," I murmured, realising that he didn't know I was two seconds away from strangling him to death.

His presence had my blood boiling in my veins. Could I trust him? In that moment, it didn't feel like it and I needed to get away from him. Kortez was my self-appointed brother—the one who fixed my messes and did better than anyone else. My mind was hazy and nothing could soothe it except finding Yara.

I didn't know where I was going, but I was going somewhere.

I walked over to my car, unlocking it while I rounded the hood. My men were already looking for her, but it felt wrong to sit and wait while I twiddled my thumbs.

No, I needed to be out there—despite the protest from Kortez because not only was Yara gone, the driver was too.

The thought was sickening but the vibration of my phone pulled me from it, the screen lighting up the interior of my dark car.

My initial thought was Kortez.

I looked anyway and found Yara calling me.

Immediately sitting up straight, I answered the call and said her name.

"Yara?" I was almost breathless, hoping to hear her voice on the other end of the line.

"Vico," she said, and the relief that washed over me felt like warm wave.

My head dropped onto the steering wheel and still holding the phone to my ear, I closed my eyes. It was only two hours, but it felt like a lifetime when anything could have happened. But hearing her voice amidst the chaos in my head, it resembled a calming hug that only Yara was capable of.

How is it possible to feel this way about someone?

"Where are you?" I asked, not driving yet but waiting for her response.

"I'm at a park. Can you come get me?" she asked, her voice steady.

She didn't sound nervous or scared or pissed the fuck off. It sounded like a regular Tuesday for her while my heart threatened to beat out of my chest. Was I the only one panicking? It started to feel like it.

"Yes, of course. Tell me where you are, amor and I'll come get you," I said, the urgency in tone going against my control.

"Uhm," Yara trailed off, and I could imagine her looking around.

"Yara?"

"Oh. Walton Park. It's the one with the—"

"I know where it is. That's only five minutes away," I said, already accelerating into the direction of the park. "Are you okay, Yara? What happened? Why are you not with me right now?" It felt strange. It felt concerning.

Alas, I felt relieved to hear her voice and not once did it occur to me that I needed to call for backup.

"I'm good. Just...get here. I'm freezing my ass off," she said, and a gust of wind flew against the phone.

What would have taken me a usual five minutes to get to the park, only took two minutes and a half. I quickly parked, frowning at the dark park while I glanced around the eerily empty parking lot.

It was daunting and unnerving and for a fleeting moment, I wondered if I was being set up.

Was this some elaborated scheme to get me alone?

The thought, however, was brief and passed the second I felt Yara's cold arms close around me. I looked down at her, almost feeling my eyes tear up from the insane amount of relief that came with her body against mine.

I cupped her cheeks, pulling her away from me to check her face. No bruises, or scratches. In fact, her hair was as neat as two hours ago. I ran my thumb over her skin, finding her eyes soft as she gazed up at me.

"You have so much explaining to do," I muttered, staring down at Yara.

"I know," she said, her arms tightening around me and I welcomed it. "I didn't plan this, okay? I don't want you to think I turned on you or I changed my mind or—"

"Hey," I breathed, seeing the unwavering truth on her face. "I believe you."

"Good," Yara said, nodding her head. "But we really need to talk."

The next question on my mind was; where the fuck was the driver?

• • •

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