“Are you okay, sir?”
Erin’s voice sounded tiny in the vast garage we’d eventually found on the outskirts of Hawkins’ lair.The entrance had been locked with a chain, but Erin had been able to slip through the slim gap and find a pair of bolt cutters Hawkins’ guys had left on the nearby shelving.Once she passed those to me, the main doors were open in moments.The thought occurred that there could be a sensor on those doors, sending a warning to anyone in the main compound that the garage had been opened, but it was placated by the memory of Hawkins sprawled out on the ground.Whoever was receiving those messages, it wouldn’t be him.That realization warmed me.
“Are you in pain?”Concern echoed in her voice.
“What?”Well, was I?Tuning into the ache in my shoulder, I accepted that there was considerable discomfort, but it was nothing I couldn’t manage.I’d been shot before.I knew how it went.The bullet had missed my vital organs, and so long as I eventually found a medic to dig the metal out of my shoulder and ensure there was no infection, everything would be fine.“No, I’m all right, little girl.”
“Right.”She pressed her lips into a hard line, as though suppressing her next comment.“It’s just that you seem… distracted.”
“Yeah.”It was harder to argue with that.Standing on the edge of the fleet of vehicles Hawkins had ‘accrued’, I’d found myself dwelling on how we’d ended up being there, in the middle of Hawkins’ circus, but she was right.That wasn’t the moment for self-reflection.“It’s been a long day.”
At that point, I wasn’t even sure how long we’d been held there.The hours had been meaningless in the dank cell with Baron, and time had been speeding up and lengthening ever since.
“But we made it.”Reaching for my wrist, she smiled.“And this fob must unlock one of these cars.”
“Exactly.”That was why we were there.“Give it a go, little girl.Let’s see where our ride is hiding.”
Flashing the fob in her delicate fingers, she pressed the button, her attention shifting with mine to the rows of shiny vehicles lined up before us.I dreaded to think where Hawkins had acquired them all from, but since I was about to steal one for our personal use, I was hardly in a position to question the idiot’s morality.
From the third row, the orange lights of a flashy dark sedan sprang to life.
“There!”She pointed excitedly, already heading toward it and leaving a trail of wet sock footprints on the concrete floor.
“Wait,” I called out, hurrying after her.
In theory, the space was used to house Hawkins’ no doubt stolen loot, but we didn’t know what else to expect.She might have taken Hawkins out of the equation—though we still didn’t know for certain that he was dead—but the asshole could still have a morbid surprise or two up his sleeve yet.
“I thought we were getting out of here.”She turned toward me, her brow creasing as I caught up.
“We are.”God, she was gorgeous.How had I stumbled along without her for so long?How had I found the beauty in any new day without her beside me?“But be careful, little girl.I don’t trust anything that slimy bugger has had his sweaty hands on.”
She wrinkled her nose at the, presumably, unwelcome reminder of our noxious host.“Okay.”
“Let me check the car out first.”Glancing into the vehicle’s dark interior, a thrum of paranoia whirred within me.
What if Hawkins had left the keys in his desk as a ruse for any unsuspecting traitors looking to steal from him?Would opening the doors trigger an explosion that would see him have the last laugh?What about starting the ignition?The apprehension twisting in my stomach was suddenly more painful than the bullet lodged in my flesh.I couldn’t risk anything that might see Erin harmed any more than she already had been.
“Step away.”I motioned for her to move.“Just in case.”
The crease in her brow deepened.“Just in case of what, sir?”
“Hawkins.”
I spat his name into the shadows, my attention darting to the corners of the garage.At the very least, Hawkins would have had cameras erected around the place, so sooner or later, someone would be viewing what happened next.I didn’t want to give the sick fucks anything to enjoy.
“Who knows what he had planned when he left those keys for someone to find?”I knew how suspicious I sounded, but there was no way around it.
“I found them in one of his desk drawers,” she explained.“I don’t think he intended for anyone to find them.”
“Humor me, please.”After everything she’d discovered about Hawkins, surely, she couldn’t query my mistrust of the reptile?
“Okay.”Retreating to the next line of cars, she tugged her lip between her teeth.“But what about you?Nothing can happen to you, either.”
“Oh, really?”My smile was wry as I met her eyes through the half-light.“And why would that be?”
It was hardly the time to torment her—stranded there in Hawkins’ garage while we waited for Baron—but she sounded so adorable that my worries were temporarily assuaged, and that old need to play with her began to unfurl.
“Because.”She flung her arms into the air, the gesture reminiscent of a woman half her age.
