Part 19 (1/2)
”When I told Serrano, he cut me out of the loop. I'm no longer privy to his plans, so I won't be able to give you a heads-up when he hires someone new.”
”When,” she repeated. ”You're sure he won't cut his losses and let this go?”
Foster propped his elbows on the table. ”I told you how it went down. What do you you think?” think?”
”Unlikely,” she agreed. ”He has to save face.”
”You sound like you have experience with this kind of guy,” he said.
Her slim fingers traced a name on the tabletop. Without seeming to, Foster watched the letters shape up one after another. Mentally he flipped them, a.s.sembling on his end into a word: Sahir. Sahir. That must be a name, but it rang no bells with him. That must be a name, but it rang no bells with him.
”My grandfather was that kind of man,” she said quietly. ”His determination to keep my parents apart gives me a good understanding of what Kyra is going through right now. But you know Serrano better than I do . . . what can we expect next?”
He didn't even need to think about it. ”He'll hire a pro, someone with all the skills of the guy he hired before, but with none of the scruples. Serrano will make sure this next guy is only in it for the money.”
”And you're sure the man he hired first has walked?”
There was nothing so convenient as lying with the truth. ”He said he was done-he knew Serrano had lied to him, and that he was keeping the money as payment for wasting his time.”
”Pretty compelling,” she said. ”So we have a little time to locate her between the last guy quitting and the new guy finding her.”
”Best-case scenario. I'll do everything I can to help you.”
”Does that include quitting your job and going with me to Fargo to try and head her off? That's where she thinks I'll be.”
”No,” Foster said, still watching her graceful hands. This was a calculated gamble, revealing just enough of the truth to keep her docile and cooperative. ”I took the call for Serrano, and when I found out what the guy wanted, I told him you were here. He's supposed to tell Kyra you're with me. So just sit tight. She'll come to us.”
A brilliant smile lit her tired, worried features, and she spun out of the booth over to his side. Her hands felt hot as pokers as they framed his face. She leaned in, her lips soft, luscious, and red. Her face went vacant from the brief contact. No telling where her mind had gone.
Foster wrenched away, slamming his back against the wall. ”Don't do that again. I mean it. Don't touch me.”
Shock and confusion warred in her dark eyes, but she shook the disorientation faster than most. ”I . . . I'm sorry. I was just-”
”I don't care what you were. Not again, you understand me? Or I walk, and you can sort this mess out on your own. I've probably stuck my neck out too much as it is.”
”I'm sorry,” she said again. ”Are you gay? I didn't realize.”
”That would be a h.e.l.l of a lot easier for me, wouldn't it?” he muttered. ”No. I have to go.” He waited while she slid out of his way, her movements choppy with humiliation. ”Don't follow me. I'll be in touch.”
CHAPTER 22.
Kyra slept for a full day.
In sporadic bursts, she recognized that Rey was tending her, but she couldn't bring herself to object. She was too tired. When she woke for the last time into complete lucidity, she didn't recognize the room and panic echoed through her. The decor was plain and serviceable, but different than most motels: plain white walls and prefab furniture, no prints, no lamps.
A dirty window let daylight slip in through the faded blue curtains. From the angle, it had to be late afternoon. There were no clocks to confirm her guess, no ambient noise coming from beyond the bedroom. Had he left her? Alarm spiked through her. s.h.i.+t, if he'd taken the car-with effort, Kyra put that fear down hard. If he'd wanted to take the Marquis and dump her in a ditch, he'd had ample opportunity while she faded in and out yesterday.
”Safe house, my a.s.s,” she muttered. ”Who does it belong to?”
”I find it best not to dig too deep in certain matters,” he said from the doorway.
”n.o.body will find us here. There's no landline, no water lines, and enough gas in the generator to last us a week if we go easy on it and make use of candles. How are you feeling?”
”Better.” She pushed out of bed and found herself weak, dangerously depleted. ”At least I missed the migraine when I pa.s.sed out.”
”Always looking on the bright side. How's your leg?”
”Hurts. But I'll be fine. Is there anything to eat?” She took a step and her knee nearly buckled on her.
Rey moved so fast she almost missed it. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, another beneath her knees, and lifted. Kyra had rarely been carried, but she found she rather liked it. ”I'll get you settled in the living room. You need food.”
”Do I ever,” she agreed. ”I could eat a raw ox.”
”We're fresh out of ox, but I think I can fill you up.”
Her mouth curved into a smile. ”You know you can.”
He caught the double entendre as he headed to the kitchen, after settling her in a worn, brown armchair. ”Woman, please.”
”I aim to.” Was she actually flirting with him? Kyra enjoyed the mock-pained expression he wore as he rattled the pans.
”You do,” he said quietly.
Inexplicable warmth surged through her. Despite the ridiculous number of obstacles they faced, she felt almost giddy. She'd never gone through teenage crushes, but surely she had the mother of them all now. Just looking at him made her chest feel tight, like the bluebird of happiness could peck its way through her sternum any minute, just because he smiled at her.
Jesus, you've got it bad.
While he cooked, she admired the blue-black sheen on his hair, spilling down to his shoulders. With his hard face, he looked savage, completely at odds with his domestic task. Kyra drank him in. It wasn't just the way he looked or the way he touched her. No, his magic went deeper still. Until she met him, she hadn't realized how much she missed having someone always on her side, no questions asked.
Ten minutes later, he brought her a plate. She glanced down at it in surprise because he'd arrayed a choice of grilled cheese, M&Ms, and potato chips-to be washed down with an ultra-sweet c.o.ke. Better than anything else, the menu a.s.sured Kyra that he really understood. He'd made more healthful choices for himself, fruit instead of chips and candy.
”Good?” he asked, after she took a bite.
At some level, she understood he wasn't asking about the food. ”It's perfect.”
They ate in companionable silence. Kyra found herself uncharacteristically shy, unable to meet his gaze. Now it mattered too much what he thought of her. Instead she studied the living room, done in brown plaid. There were no pictures on the wall, nor any discolored paint to show there ever had been.
”n.o.body lives here,” she said then. ”It's just a place people hide.”
Rey didn't dispute it, merely continued with his meal. Since he didn't want to talk, she did the same, devouring every last M&M on her plate. As soon as she finished, she felt better almost at once. Kyra stretched and bent down to check her bandage.
”It should be clean,” he told her. ”I took care of it while you were sleeping.”
He was right. Kyra didn't bother swapping the gauze, as it only had a little discoloration and the wound was draining nicely as it sealed up. ”No red streaks, no swelling. Good work. I might think you treated gunshot wounds every day, doc.”
”I've dealt with my share. We were lucky he hit you in an extremity. I wouldn't have risked a torso shot.”