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The rush of traffic outside the car window streams by as we transition from city streets to the freeway.
Nearly twenty minutes later, Zeb breaks the silence. His view shifts between his side mirror and the rearview mirror.
“Tan sedan.” He elbows the man beside him, Alec, getting his attention. “Five cars back. It’s made our last four turns.”
“How long?” Alec uses the passenger side mirror to check out the suspicious car.
“Been a few minutes,” Zeb says.
“Agree. Looks suspicious.”
A knot of fear bunches in my gut. A tail? How did Artemus Gonzales’ men find me? Hank Stafford’s last words ring through my head.There’s a leak.With his lifeblood bleeding out while I held him in my arms, my former handler and protector, gave me the number to a Guardian HRS hotline.
Artemus Gonzales is a filthy rich, middle-aged political power monger in Nicaragua. He’s more than a wealthy businessman. He’s connected to powerful men, like the President and the Minister of the Interior of Nicaragua. He’s also heavily vested in the cartels, but I didn’t think he had the resources to track me down this quickly.
How did he do it?
“Hold on.” The driver calls out a warning.
The others brace as we veer off the freeway. Sandwiched between Rafe and Hayes, I barely move. Zeb takes an offramp, slamming me against Rafe as we zoom around the cloverleaf at speeds far over the posted speed limit.
We take the first offramp, pass under the freeway, and take the next on-ramp heading north, directly opposite the direction of our previous travel. I think we’re headed back the way we came, but Zeb continues to the next offramp, and then the next. We take all four offramps at high speed and wind up back on the freeway, headed along our previous direction of travel.
“Did they follow?” Zeb scans the rearview mirror.
“Don’t see them.” Alec stares at the passenger mirror, looking back.
“If they’re in front of us, that’s where they’ll stay. Meanwhile, might I suggest changing our current rendezvous with Chase?” Zeb calls whoever he was speaking to earlier and reports what happened.
I blow out a breath and close my eyes. The rapid beating of my heart slows with yet another narrow escape. I wish I could say I was getting accustomed to living life in constant fear, but there’s no getting used to this.
After a few miles, we take another offramp and arrive at a small, unassuming hotel off the beaten path.
We pull around to the side and park next to a tricked out Jeep with a lift, a wench on the bumper, and a carrier strapped to the top. A mountain of a man, easily over six and a half feet tall, climbs out of the vehicle. With broad shoulders, tree trunk legs, wavy brown hair, and a face chiseled out of granite, the man is both beautifully stunning and uniquely terrifying.
The black tee-shirt he wears struggles to contain all his muscles, and well-worn blue jeans draw my eyes where they shouldn’t go. His black, steel-toed boots screamDon’t mess with me, and he looks mean enough to kick ass without breaking a sweat. He surveys the deserted parking lot before heading toward our vehicle.
“You have her?” His deep, modulated voice sends chills down my spine.
“We do.” Zeb doesn’t exit the vehicle.
“Thanks for the assist.” He opens the door to the backseat. Rafe climbs out, and the man extends his hand, speaking quietly to me. “It’s nice to meet you. Name’s Chase, Chase Lawson. If you’ll come with me, we can get going.”
His touch sears my skin, sending an electrical charge zinging through my body. Every cell in my body screams to run away, yet I find myself inexplicably drawn to this man. He’s intimidating and fierce, but dangerous to me for reasons that have nothing to do with protecting me.
The adventure continues…
