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Zorro barked for only a few seconds before settling down and I couldn’t help but notice the way he licked Crystal’s face and neck, trying to heal her wounds. The moment brought back far too many memories I’d tried to forget over the years, emotions that didn’t belong to a man like me.
I concentrated on the drive, keeping my eyes peeled for any sign of activity. I waited on a side street, studying the parking lot of the motel, before heading immediately to the back and parking under a bank of trees. The vehicle would be difficult to see until morning. “We’re going to do this again, Crystal. Stay here while I check the room.”
“What if they find us, Blade?” she asked. I sensed a rise in her level of confidence, even if her voice remained small. She clung onto Zorro, caressing his neck even as she hunkered as far into the seat as possible.
“Then we fight. I won’t allow them to hurt you. That I promise.” I only hoped this was one I could keep. The area was devoid of activity, only one car passing by the entrance to the motel. The stench of cologne lingered in my nostrils, creating bile in the back of my throat.
I took the back stairs, sweeping the parking lot as well as the open hallway with my eyes as I crept along the wall. There were no lights on in the room, just as I’d left it. There was also no sign of forced entry, but as soon as I unlocked the door, turning the knob, I kicked it in, waiting. I breathed a sigh of relief, at least for the moment, and flicked on the single light on the dresser.
We were in the room only two minutes later, the door locked and bolted. “Get settled as much as you can. It’s going to be a long night.” I immediately grabbed my weapon’s bag from under the bed, yanking out more useful firepower. The dog watched me intently, even as he laid on the bed, his tail flopping back and forth. I could also feel her eyes studying my every move, calculating what I was planning on doing.
“He likes you,” she said quietly.
“He shouldn’t.”
“Why do you do that? Why? You just risked your life to save me, yet you act as if you’re a terrible person.”
“I told you. I have my reasons.” After slapping a load of ammo into the Browning, I moved to the corner of the room, peering around the drapery every few seconds. But my senses were locked into the woman I cared about.
She grumbled and winced when she stood, panting as she struggled to remove a cell phone from her back pocket. “Fine. I don’t feel like arguing with you.”
“Keep that off. No matter what you do, don’t turn it back on,” I hissed. I knew well enough how easy it was to track her, just but homing in on GPS coordinates. When she hesitated, I snapped, “Turn it off!”
“Jesus!” Crystal was shaking but she did as she’d been directed.
“That’s the first thing they’ll do, check to see if they can pinpoint a location.”
“Yeah, I get it. I should have remembered,” she muttered and lumbering toward the bathroom.
The answer seemed out of place, but at this point I wasn’t going to drag her into any additional trauma.
“Bastards. They ruined everything. Everything.” Crystal sighed and continued on her path. “I had a good life here. Not perfect, but good enough anyway. You know? Fuck it. Who cares?”
I dared to glance in her direction as she stormed toward the bathroom sink, turning on the light and surveying the damage done by the fire. Even in her disheveled state, there was such grace and beauty about her, such utter strength. I found it difficult to take my eyes off her, even though I was the only line of protection she had.
Crystal washed her face, moaning only once when she cleaned the cut on her neck. All I wanted to do was wrap her in my arms, consoling the woman I was falling hard for. Swallowing nasty bile that had formed in my throat, I turned my attention back to the window. I saw visions of blood dancing in front of my eyes. What in the fuck was this really about?
“They aren’t going to stop. Are they?” Her words had no inflection, as if she was resigned to what was happening.
“No. They’ll keep on.”
“There has to be another reason. I just can’t imagine they’d waste this kind of time on me, even with your involvement.”
I stole another look, my cock swelling as she removed her top and bra, her actions stilted from her injuries. “Is there something you aren’t telling me?” Maybe Pappy had been alluding to a grand scheme of some kind. I thought about the other customers I’d seen. Not a single one of the drinking crowd had a criminal aura. Then again, looks could be deceiving. I would hunt Pappy down and have a lengthy as well as frank conversation.
She hesitated before answering. “I don’t know. Maybe.”
“What, Crystal? I have to know what I’m dealing with.”
After pushing a strand of hair out of her eye, she leaned against the wall. “An employee of the bar was kiting money, or at least attempted to do so. He tried to make the transactions small, and they didn’t make any sense, but I know various creative accounting techniques have gone on behind my back. I found evidence that I sent to my boss earlier today.”
“Was this employee affiliated with a gang?” The look of the bar didn’t indicate a real money maker. I highly doubted there was anything to do with whatever she’d found. Then again, what she found could be the tip of something much larger.
Exhaling, she shook her head. “That’s what I was wondering, but if he was, he hid it. The threeamigosdidn’t seem to know him either. A plant maybe? What if he was working for the Desperados?”
The news was interesting, but certainly not a reason to gun her down. “Might be a coincidence.”
“I don’t believe in them. Had a lifetime to know they aren’t possible. Still, gangs aren’t organized. Right? Just machines. I can’t imagine those kids putting a bomb together. Not that bright.” She laughed nervously.
