Raize rattled off something in Spanish.

She took the clothes from me, a returned smile back, then went to stand outside of the bathroom.

Cavers made quick work, and she slipped inside after.

Abram said something to Raize, and left the room.

“What was that?” I asked him.

He glanced at the closed bathroom door, but shook his head. “He’s just making sure.”

“What?” But I looked and … that didn’t make sense.

Make sure what?

Abram left…

A thought came to me and I almost gasped. “She’d leave?”

His words came out tight and clipped. “At this point, we don’t know what she’ll do.”

I touched his arm and moved in close, lowering my voice. “She knows you saved her.”

He paused, mid-packing his bag. “Did I, though?”

I squeezed his arm. “Yes.” Feeling his bicep bulge under my touch, I slid my hand down, touching his and sliding my fingers through his. “Give her a beat. She’ll come around.”

He moved into me. His hand went to the back of my neck before sliding up into my hair. He murmured, his words husky as his forehead bent to mine, “Not everyone’s you.” Then his lips touched mine before he stepped back.

Cavers had stopped whatever he was doing, staring behind us.

I whirled.

Raize lifted his head.

His sister was in the opened bathroom door, my clothes on her, and a towel wrapped around her hair. She was staring right at us, her eyes back to not blinking, but then she did and she lowered her towel. “Dónde está Abraham?”

The hotel door opened and Raize nodded toward it. “Aquí.”

Cavers took in the room and cleared his throat. “I’ll—uh—I’ll see if they have a vending machine.”

He started for the door.

Raize said, “Wait.” He bent, grabbed something from the bed, and tossed it to Cavers.

It was his wallet.

“There’s fast food next door. Grab as much as you can carry.”

He dipped his head. “Got it,” and was gone.

Raize spoke, “You guys should both try to sleep. As soon as they’re back, we’ll be taking off again.”

V congregated to the other bed, resuming her previous perch. She kept drying her hair, studying Raize, myself, and Abram, but she didn’t respond.

Abram sighed. “When are you thinking we’ll stop again?”

Raize didn’t comment right away, but I felt how tense he was. After he finished repacking his bag, he zipped it up and tossed it to the floor by the door and then regarded Abram. “When I feel like I can breathe a little easier. That’s when we’ll stop.”

Abram held his gaze for a long while.

I noticed that V had stopped drying her hair. She was now just holding the towel, but Raize was on the move again.

He went to the chair, tipped it back so he could see outside, and he tugged me with him. He pulled me on his lap, his gun on the table, and he moved the curtain to watch outside. He said without looking, his hand settling on my thigh, “You guys, sleep.” He said this and urged my own head down and onto his shoulder, so I was figuring he meant me as well.

I wasn’t going to argue.

I brought my legs up, curling into Raize’s lap more comfortably. His arm moved up around me, anchoring me securely to him.

It wasn’t long before I was sleeping.

The smell of fast food woke me up, making my stomach growl.

I was being carried and then lifted into the back of another vehicle. Blinking, pushing past drowsiness, I saw that we were in a Suburban. With seats. And no one was on the outside.

Praise to the Gus.

And speaking of, his wet nose pushed into my face and I was given a Gus bath.

I took stock.

Cavers was driving.

Raize was next to him, and going through something in his seat.

I was in the next seat. Gus was with me, his tail thumping my seat and leg.

I looked back and Raize’s sister and Abram were in the seat behind me. In the back was Jake, and with how he was sitting, I was betting the other guy was back there, too.

I went back to sleep.

We drove through the rest of the day and night.

At one point, V, who I overheard was actually Verónica, but she told me to call her V, and I were stretched out in the second seat. Her head was at one side, her feet toward me, and I was the opposite. Our feet intertwined, but after a few hours, it didn’t matter.

The ‘guy’ woke up a couple times, but he went unconscious right away.

When we stopped at a gas station, Raize brought me a coffee after I came back from using the bathroom.

I was sitting up, my coffee in hand, and I looked out.

Another car was just turning in, a few girls that looked like they were in college.

It took me back, to another time I saw another car with college girls inside, but I felt different this time. I was different. I was okay with where I was, who I was with.

If I’d lived that life, I wouldn’t have met Raize.

In that moment, with that acceptance, I knew I’d never see my father and sister again. There might be a situation where I could go and view her from afar, but going up and talking with her—that was done. I was now fully accepting it. Raize had a guy keeping tabs on them for us, and I’d gotten a report that her charges were changed.

She was getting help now. Counseling.

But there was no going back for me.

Yes.

I lifted my coffee for a sip.

I was okay now.

Raize was getting in behind the wheel. It was his turn to drive and he turned back to me. He gave me a look, asking if I was all right.

I gave him a smile, settling in and taking another sip.

I felt him continue to study me, but it was fine. I was used to it. I wanted it.

Jake got in the front seat and he took in the exchange. He flicked his eyes upward, but he had a soft smile on his face as he did so.

Cavers grunted from behind me.

I knew Verónica and Abram were witnessing all of this, but it didn’t matter.

I just kept sipping my coffee.

Gus jumped up and settled against me, stretching out and taking the rest of my seat.

No one argued with Gus.

58

Raize

“Where are you?”

We’d settled, finally, and I’d taken my phone outside with me as everyone was getting comfortable in a house that Jake rented for us.

I answered him now, “I was going to stop in Colorado, but we kept going. We’re in Montana.”

He was quiet for a beat. Then, a grating, “Where?! We’re in Boston. Why the fuck are you in Montana?”

“Because Marco is going to send men after me. He already sent one and I want my sister to have disappeared before his next crew gets to me.”

I was throwing a lot at him and I knew he was upset.

I got it. I did.

I was a soldier, but I was taking my own orders and I was explaining after the fact. Any other soldier, I’d be dead by morning.

I was banking on a whole lot that Roman wouldn’t do that to me.

“He sent one after you already?”

I told him about the highway, what happened and added, “We have the guy with us, but we’ve not questioned him. He has no ID, but his phone has an outgoing Mexican phone number. He had a police radio on him, too.”