"His mama named him Head?" Talon snorted derisively. "Damn, that's cold. And here I thought this Cabeza had it bad."
"It was a nickname. His real name was Kukulcan Verastegui."
The Cabeza in front of her broke off into a fierce round of what sounded like Mayan cursing. She had no idea what he was saying, but it was raw and explosive as he gestured furiously to punctuate his tirade.
She turned her frown to Talon. "What's he saying?"
Talon shrugged. "I'm from Britain, not Mexico. No idea."
"That pendejo is not me." Cabeza broke off into a mixture of Mayan and Spanish and then returned to English, but this time his accent was much thicker and he rolled his Rs viciously. "His name, for the record, is Chacu. Ese cabron hijo de la gran puta, pretending to be me. I should have cut his throat for my Act of Vengeance!"
"The real question is, did you cut his throat today?"
Hands on hips, Cabeza glared at Talon for asking such a thing. "No. He got away, along with the ... what's the word? Uh ... Pigeon crap?"
"Chicken shit?" Talon offered.
"Si!... that was with him. They vanished before I could kill them."
"Why were they fighting?" Kateri asked. "And why were they after me?"
Cabeza arched a brow at her. "Don't you know?"
"Why would I ask if I knew?" She turned her attention to Talon. "And how did you get here so fast? Where were you?" Talon and Sunshine lived in New Orleans ... not here in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Last time she'd made that drive, it'd taken her four hours, and she didn't drive slowly.
"You'll want to sit down for this." Talon turned the chair in front of her desk around for her.
A sick feeling settled deep in her stomach. "Think I'll stand. Now, what's up?"
The men exchanged a solemn look as if they were silently willing the other to speak first.
"Did Chacu say anything to you, other than pretending to be me?"
"He said he wanted my stone."
A tic started in Cabeza's jaw. "And the other ... creature with him? What did he say?"
"Nothing. He showed up and Cab-" She broke the word off as his eyes snapped ebony fire at her. "Chacu attacked him."
"Any idea why he's handing out your name?" Talon asked.
"No idea. His hatred of me is legendary. But he's not exactly engraved in my heart either. My want-them-dead list, however, is another matter."
Kateri cleared her throat to get their attention. "And you're both avoiding my questions."
Talon let out a sarcastic laugh. "That's because you're going to freak and neither one of us wants to deal with it."
Well, at least Talon was honest.
"I'm not going to freak," she assured him.
It was now Cabeza's turn to mock her. "That's what they all say, chica. And then they all freak."
Talon laughed again-for real this time-as he met Cabeza's gaze. "You remember that time when..." He glanced at her. "Never mind."
She ignored that segue entirely. "Look, whatever it is, I can handle it. I'm not a child, and Talon, you know I don't ever overreact to anything."
Cabeza crossed his arms over his chest. "Is this true?"