He looks tense as fuck, but his hands are up too as he rolls to a stop, he’s waving them back and forth to show that he’s empty handed.
“Move,” I tell Hozier and without a second thought we hurry to the car. Hozier stands at the front with his gun aimed at the man’s head, I move around to the door and pull it open, dragging him out.
“Wait, it’s not what you think. I’m not armed.”
He carries on yelling as I toss him on the ground. He lets out a shriek but keeps his hands where I can see them.
“Get on your stomach,” I yell at him. He complies and I check Hozier has him covered, then holster my gun and drop my knee on his back, making him grunt out in pain. I pat him down fast and don’t find any kind of weapon. “Don’t fucking move,” I warn him.
I don’t like the way Hozier is shifting his weight, the gun still pointed our way. If he does something stupid, like try to shoot the guy, he might hit me. Then I’ll be really pissed. I need to know what in the ever loving fuck is going on here.
“What does he want? Why is he here, does he have a gun?” he shouts.
“Check the car,” I tell him. “He’s clean.” Keeping one eye on him and all my weight on the man on the ground, I grab his wrists so they’re locked at the base of his spine. He grunts but doesn’t protest.
Hozier still has the gun aimed at us and hasn’t moved. Shit I’m more at risk from one of our own fucking men right now. He is caught up in something inside his head.
“Lower the gun,” I tell him in a low, firm voice. Something tells me yelling right now is not going to help. I’m not a yelling kind of guy, I’ll do whatever I can to diffuse a situation without causing harm but his eyes are wild.
“I need to cover him.”
“You need to check the car. He’s secured,” I tell him again, voice softer but no mistaking the intention. “I got him.”
“Hozier.”
The authority in the tone leaves no mistake who it is. I glance at Mace, but never take my focus off Hozier.
“We’re good,” Mace says, moving to stand between us.
Once Hozier sees the man blocking him and that he’s pointing his weapon at his Prez’s chest, it snaps him out of whatever state he’d gone into.
“Check the car,” Mace instructs him. Hozier goes to do it and confirms it’s empty.
“Why are you following us?” I ask him once I’m sure Hozier has put the gun in a safe place and I’m not at risk of getting shot.
“I had to be in Ohio. I needed to make sure the van got there. When you pulled off, I thought there was something wrong. I swear I’m not here to cause trouble.”
Mace turns to look down at him. He lifts his chin at me. I clamber back and drag the man to his feet, keeping his wrists locked at his back.
“What the fuck?” Mace snaps. “That is human cargo up there.”
“It’s not like that,” he says, his voice shaky, his body is trembling.
Mace snaps. “Tell me why I have a beaten woman in the back of that van.”
I don’t visibly react but that has my anger spiking.
“She’s… You weren’t supposed to look in the van.”
Mace steps up closer, behind him I see the woman and driver on their knees with a gun pointed at them. This is a volatile situation, anything could go wrong at any moment.
“Do you have any fucking idea what you’ve done,” Mace snarls at him.
“I should have told you. I’m sorry. I was scared-”
“Damn fucking right you should have told me. I don’t transport human cargo. Look up there,” he grabs the man’s throat and tugs him away from me, then shoves him to his knees. The man looks up and his face is stricken as he sees the guns trained on his driver and the woman.
“Please don’t hurt her. Please?”
