“I didnotmug you, so don’t you even go accusing me of that! Finlay and I found you that way. And just because a guy holds a door open for me doesn’t give you the right to get all pissy about it.”
Javi settled back against the booster seat, the tension in the van abating as he lowered his voice. “If you found me that way, then why’d you take my stuff?”
“Why do you keep so many condoms in your wallet?”
“Who’s pissy now?”
Vero’s mouth snapped shut. She turned around in her seat. “Weemptied your pockets on the way to the hospital in case the doctors needed to cut off your clothes.”
“For a concussion?”
“Happens all the time. If you watchedGrey’s Anatomy,you’d know.”
Javi shook his head. “Are you going to tell me what really happened last night?”
“Do I have to?”
“You want me to ask Ramón?”
Sleet pinged off the car as Javi and Vero stared at each other.
“You might as well tell him,” I suggested cautiously, hoping she’d read in my tone the details she should probably leave out. “We have to get rid of the car somehow. It can’t stay where it is.” Not anymore.
“What car?” Javi’s eyes glinted as I met them in the rearview mirror.
Vero threw up her hands, deferring to me.
“How long would it take you to strip and sell off an Aston MartinSuperleggera?” I asked him.
A low chuckle of disbelief started in Javi’s chest. It died as he looked from Vero to me, then back again. “What the hell are you doing with a car like that?”
“It’s a long story,” Vero said.
“Does your cousin know?”
“It’s in the shed in his scrapyard.”
“If he knows about the car, then why all the secrecy the other night?”
“Ramón made me promise not to tell anyone.” Javi slouched into the booster seat like the wind had been knocked out of him. He scrubbed a hand over his face, staring through the icy window beside him. “It’s not what you think, Javi. He just worries. He doesn’t want his garage tangled up with anything questionable.”
Javi’s laugh was cynical. “I’ve known Ramón my entire fucking life, V. I promise you, it’s not the garage he’s worried about.” His eyes found mine in the mirror. “How much do you need for it?”
“As much as you can get without raising any red flags,” I said. “We can’t have it traced.”
“I take ten percent off the top.”
“So do the people I owe,” Vero muttered.
Javi swore, shaking his head as if he was holding back a lecture. He leaned forward in his seat with a heavy sigh. “Give me the keys. I need to take a look at it before I make any calls.” He held up a hand when Vero started to protest. “I’ll go after hours. I won’t say anything to Ramón. I promise,” he added.
Vero unspooled the shed key from her key ring and passed it back to Javi with a quiet thanks. He slipped it in his pocket and pulled up his hood. “I’ll come by Finlay’s house in a couple of days and let you know how long it’ll take to unload it.”
“We won’t be home,” Vero said as he slid open the van door.
His face was unreadable under the shadow of his coat. He pulled his cell phone from his pocket and tossed it to her.
“Keep it on. I’ll know where to find you.” He got out and loped to his car before either of us could warn him not to come looking for us.
