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Oh, God. I eyed the gun I still held in my lap and he smirked. “Nothing you’ll need your gun for, Nina, but you really are improving on awareness.” I let my shoulders slump as the calming effect of the Xanax kicked in. I gave him a What is it? look.
“I’ve been working with Devin to find the man who was hired to kill you.”
I snapped my attention to him. He lifted his fingers up and straightened them in an I know gesture. “At first I was suspicious, but when he gave me the number that Eileen texted to carry out the order, I followed up. That’s how we found him. It turned out to be some drunk living here in Savannah that Eileen knew from high school back in Charleston. He wasn’t a professional. He was just down on his luck, needed quick money.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because I wanted to make sure he was our only threat. I didn’t fully trust Devin, and I didn’t want you relieving me until I was sure.”
“And now?”
“He was found in his garage in his car last night, dead. Apparently, Eileen didn’t pay him, so he gassed out.”
I felt nauseated as I eyed him.
“Hang in there, Nina. The hard part is almost over.”
“Oh, there’s more,” I said as I opened the car door, retching onto the cement. When I finished emptying myself, I closed the door then locked it.
“Yes,” he said calmly. I hated that he was so calm, but one of us needed to be. “Isn’t there always?”
“Seldom, very seldom, does complete truth belong to any human disclosure; seldom can it happen that something is not a little disguised or a little mistaken.”
? Jane Austen
§§
A loud knock on my car window made me jump. It was Devin. He looked like hell and was ghastly white. I turned on Cedric.
“What the fuck are you doing?”
“Nina, I just had to tell him you were safe.”
“You son of a bitch!” I honked the horn, garnering the attention of the restaurant goers who turned to look at us as Devin got into the back seat.
Cedric addressed me with caution. “We are not going to hurt you.”
I pulled my gun from my lap, pointing it back and forth between both men.
Cedric spoke again. “Nina, you can exit the vehicle now, and neither of us will follow you. You are free to go.”
I looked at Cedric and then back at Devin, who looked at me with alarm before spouting off, “I really would love it if you would put that FUCKING GUN DOWN!”
“Don’t yell at me!”
“Stop shooting me!”
Cedric grinned at us then turned on my ignition.
“Where the fuck are you going?” I squeaked, suddenly sure I should’ve taken him up on his offer to exit the car. Cedric took the barrel of the gun and pointed it at him. “Keep it on me, Nina, okay?”
I was completely out of my mind as I lowered it, choosing to see how this night would play out.
“The Barracks,” Devin instructed.
“Sure you can make it, man?” Cedric looked in the rearview, concern written on his features.
“It’s just a deep scratch.” I looked back at Devin, who was already looking at me. “I never wanted you to see that.”
