“Something like that. But after he was jailed, people got scared. He was only one man, but from the few people I managed to talk to when I was still in D.C., he was this larger than life superhero. Always fighting. Always challenging Farías, but doing it in a way that kept him…safe somehow.”
With a nod, Trevor checks behind us once more, then narrows his eyes. “There’s a car back there matching every lane change I make. The whole time we’ve been in the tunnel.”
“That doesn’t mean anything. It’s atunnel.Where are they going to go?” I crane my neck to try to see.
“They’re accelerating. Roll up your window, Dani. Now.” Slamming his foot down hard on the gas pedal, Trevor pushes the old car to its limit, and I keep watch in the side mirror. It doesn’t take me long to spot the car he’s talking about. It’s almost a twin of this one, only dirtier and with a crack in the windshield. I can’t see who’s behind the wheel, but they’re driving as aggressively as Trevor is, and passing everyone else on the road.
The temperature in the car climbs with each kilometer, and when we burst out of the tunnel, the sun’s finally set, and Trevor’s words echo in my ears.“The roads between here and Caracas are dangerous after dark.”
I’m about to ask what he’s planning on doing when he cuts across what’s now four lanes of heavy traffic and takes a left turn, hard. The wheels under me feel like they almost leave the ground, but as I crane my neck to check behind us, I don’t see the other Chevy Spark.
My heart’s racing, and until Trevor tells me I can roll down the window again, I don’t even know if I’m breathing. “We lost them, Dani. We’re okay.” Reaching across the small space, he rests his strong hand over mine and gives it a squeeze. “Another fifteen minutes, and we’ll be safe at the hotel.”
I nod and let my head fall back against the seat. Working the thinking putty faster and faster, I realize what frightened me. It wasn’t someone potentially chasing us. It wasn’t the possibility we were in danger. I’ve reported from half a dozen war zones in the past few years. I’ve covered everything from rioting in St. Louis to the cartel murders in Mexico. Danger doesn’t scare me.
Seeing fear in Trevor’s eyes? That scares me more than anything.
* * *
Trevor
The Hotel Diamonte is a bright, modern space with a view of the El Ávila mountains. Our adjoining rooms are on the fifth floor, and Dani stays by my side as I sweep them both for bugs and cameras. “Clean,” I say as I tuck Wren’s handheld scanner back into my pocket. Second Sight’s tech genius hid the scanner in an electronic, rechargeable lighter. The damn thing’s even approved to be carried on an airplane since it uses a plasma arc instead of actual fuel. The Customs agents didn’t look twice at it.
Dani relaxes a fraction and sinks down onto the king-sized bed in her room. I’m not ready to leave her. Not by a long shot. Sitting next to her all day…it brought back so many memories.
She still smells the same—jasmine and vanilla—though with her hair cropped, it’s harder to catch the scent. The humidity has left a gentle sheen to her cheeks, making her almost glow in the light from the bedside lamps.
I double-check the windows, the closets, and the bathrooms, then hesitate in the doorway between our two rooms. “I have to meet with my local contact. But I need you to promise me you’ll stay put.”
“If I don’t hit the gym, I won’t be able to focus at all tonight,” she says as she unzips her backpack and pulls out a pair of running shoes followed by her tablet. “After that, it’s nothing but research for the rest of the evening.”
“No. You’re staying in the room with the door locked.” I don’t want to leave her at all, but I need weapons and intel, and I can’t take her with me. It’s way too dangerous for her on the streets at night.
“Trevor, did you miss the big, beefy security guards at every exterior door? The keycard scanners on the elevators? No one’s going to come after me here.” A pair of running shorts and a sports bra in her hand, she heads for the bathroom and shuts the door in my face when I try to follow her.
“You don’t know that. I promised Austin I’d keep you safe, and I can’t do that if you’re wandering around without me.”
“I won’t bewandering,” she calls through the door. “I’ll be running. I have your number programmed into my phone. If you want me to check in every half hour, I will. But I’mgoingto the gym.”
When she emerges, I have to stop my jaw from hanging open. A small tattoo just above the waistband of her running shorts draws my gaze, which is good, because otherwise, I’d be staring directly at her breasts encased in the tight running bra. Because, fuck. This isn’t the girl I crushed on in high school. Or even the woman I’d wanted to make mine in our twenties.
Her abs flex as she huffs out a breath, making the delicate outlines of a compass rose move, almost as if the needle’s searching for its true north. And then I realize that’s exactly what the tattoo represents. Dani’s true north. Coordinates encircle the design, numbers that ping around at the back of my thoughts.
“Mind letting me get a shirt?” Hands on her hips, she tilts her head back to meet my gaze, and only then do I realize I’m blocking her way.
“Sorry.” I have to force the word out, then command my feet to move.Get your head in the game, asshole. You can’t protect her if you let your dick do all the thinking.
The bright red running shirt with Bermuda Half-Marathon printed across the front clings to her curves and does nothing to erase the sight of that damn tattoo from my memory.
Tucking her keycard and phone into her pocket, she heads for the door, but I cut her off, my hand covering hers as she goes for the knob. “Please, Danisaur. I know you’re a badass, but this country will eat you up and spit out your bones, and I…”
I don’t want to lose you.
“I’ve been all over the world, TJ.” She twists her hand so our fingers intertwine. “Afghanistan, Darfur, Argentina, Russia… I have pretty good instincts, and I know how to fight. Six years of Aikido training.” Her full lips curve, and she squeezes my hand. “You don’t have to protect me fromeverything.”
“Yes, I do.” We’re so close, the heat of her seeps into my chest, and my dick jerks behind my jeans. In any other circumstances, I’d press her against the wall and kiss her until she couldn’t remember why she ever wanted to walk out of this room, but Dani’s…off limits.
She levers up on the balls of her feet, then places both hands on my shoulders to steady herself. We’re almost eye to eye now, and her gaze holds so much power, I almost step back. “I’ll be fine. I’ll text you when I’m back in the room.”
