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Twenty minutes later, Cal turned off onto a farm-to-market road. He’d picked a small, out-of-the-way town for tonight’s stop. Nobody would look for them there, and Vic desperately needed the rest.
“Why don’t you lean back and relax, Vic? It’s about four hours to the place where we’ll be spending the night.”
Her eyes were already drooping. “I think I will.” She reclined the seat and positioned the ice packs against her cheeks before closing her eyes.
Her face was already starting to bruise heavily. He wanted to take her in his arms and make the past twenty-four hours go away. If only he could do that. He hated that she’d been tortured for information. That he hadn’t been there to protect her. If only he’d taken the night shift instead of her.
Five minutes later, he heard a delicate snore and smiled. He absolutely loved it that she did that. She was so much in control when awake, and he found it endearing that her body allowed what she would consider an indignity while she slept.
During the long drive, he had time to consider their situation. The fact that the safe house had been breached so quickly after Hector had disclosed his lieutenant’s information had to be a clue. They’d both told their bosses, and Cal had entered it into his report. Vic had still been working on her report and hadn’t sent it. But she’d emailed her ASAC with the lieutenant’s name and details. Surely a link could be found with that information.
He’d called the tiny hotel where they’d be staying, and the proprietor was expecting a late check-in. He’d gotten a description of the place when he’d called, and as he arrived in the small town, it wasn’t hard to locate. The old, two-story brick building looked as if it had been built in the early 1900s. There were probably ten rooms, at the most. A tiny, vertical lighted sign above the door read “Hotel.”
He parked along the street and gently shook Vic’s shoulder. She’d been sound asleep the whole way except when they’d stopped at a small town for fast food. “We’re here, honey.”
Her eyes opened, and she looked confused for a moment. Then she groaned and raised her seat up. “Lord, I hurt. It’s a good thing you filled those pain pills for me, or I’d really be miserable.”
“It’s time to take another one. You can do that after we get checked in.”
There was a note by a phone at the desk with a phone number to call. Cal did so, and soon a woman came down the stairs, looking sleepy but with a smile on her face. “Mr. Adams?”
“Yes, ma’am. And this is my wife.”
The woman took one look at Vic and gave him a dirty look. He suddenly realized that she thought he’d beaten Vic. He said quickly, “It’s not what you think, ma’am.”
The woman’s look didn’t change. “That’ll be $70.36.”
He gave her eighty dollars. “Keep the change.”
She handed over an old-fashioned room key to number five. “Checkout’s at noon.”
Cal could feel her disapproving eyes on him until he disappeared down the hall. He opened the room door and let Vic precede him. He wasn’t surprised to find that there was no ensuite bathroom. In a building this old, rooms would share one. But the hotel wasn’t computerized, and that was a huge plus at this point in the game. And this would be the last place the cartel would look for them.
“I’ll go check out the bathroom. I assume you want to bathe.”
She tried to smile and then thought better of it. “You assume correctly, cowboy.”
He came back a moment later. “There’s an old clawfoot tub, and it has a shower curtain around it. You can bathe or shower.”
“A clawfoot. Those things are deep. I think I’ll take a bath. A hot soak would feel wonderful.”
“I’ll go start the water.” He paused. “By the way, we’re sharing a room because it was the only one they had available. The others are rented monthly by the locals.”
“Don’t worry. I’m glad we’re together. The last thing I want to do is have nightmares all by myself.”
He smiled. “I’ll keep the boogeyman away. I promise.”
She eased her shirt up and groaned. “God, every muscle in my body hurts.”
“Hang on. Let me get the bath started, and I’ll help you.” He strode from the room, hating the fact that she was in pain.
When he came back, she was still standing there, looking exhausted. He lifted her shirt up. It was a mess, all spattered with her blood.
“My arms and wrists hurt because of the way they zip-tied them behind my back.” She winced as she raised her arms so he could pull it over her head.
He was relieved to see the small bar of soap and two bottles of shampoo on the dresser by the bed. There were also towels and washcloths. They were all set. The only thing that worried him was Vic’s hair. With her arms so sore, washing it would be painful for her.
“Hey Vic?”
