“But what?” I asked, narrowing my eyes suspiciously as I tried to decipher his cryptic tone.
He shook his head, a flicker of caution crossing his face, as if he had almost revealed too much. “Nothing. Boss is making a few changes… starting with you.”
Marcos turned behind him and snagged a phone along with a couple of other items, placing them decisively on the table between us.
He picked up the phone first and handed it to me. “Keep this on you and charged atalltimes. This is your new lifeline. Lose this phone, and you might as well start writing your goodbye speech.”
I nodded, examining the phone.
“In most cases, these phones are used for runners to report in and out, check their route… things like that,” he continued. “But again… boss is switching things up a little. So sinceyou’llhave a schedule, that route won’t apply to you; you’ll basically just be checking in and out. As a matter of fact, that one will strictly be for communication between me and you. So if you saved my number in your personal phone… delete it.”
I nodded slowly.
“Next,” he moved on with a sense of urgency, sliding a small, unmarked device across the table.
I picked it up and turned it over in my hand. “What is this?”
“It’s a camera,” he replied, a slight glint in his eyes.
I blinked in surprise. “A camera?”
“A very expensive camera,” he clarified. “Small, discreet, but powerful as hell. That little thing can see inside a vehicle better than your own eyes. Sound, movement, everything.”
A knot formed in my stomach, a sense of dread creeping in.
“You’ll keep it with you during every run and clip it to the sun visor so we get a clear view,” he explained matter-of-factly.
“So you’ll be watching me the whole time?” I asked, trying to mask my rising anxiety.
“We’llbe watching you—me and boss—especially these first few runs.”
That revelation didnothingto ease my tension; in fact, it amplified it, making my heart race.
“If we see we can trust you, we’ll ease back… a little,” he continued, attempting to provide some reassurance. “But the camera stays on regardless. It records everything, so if something goes wrong, we can rewind and see exactly what happened.”
Great… a stranger watching me drive around like I’m in some twisted reality show called Cartel Uber.
Marcos studied me, gauging my reaction, then reached under the table again. "Last thing.”
He pulled out a small black case and slid it across the table toward me with an unsettling calm.
I stared at it, unsure of what to expect.
“Open it,” Marcos instructed.
I hesitated momentarily, heart pounding in my chest, before flipping the latches.
Inside was a gun, glinting ominously under the overhead light.
I immediately looked up at him, shock etched across my features. “A gun?” I shrilled, my voice leaping an octave before I could rein it in. “W-What do I need this for?”
Marcos leaned back calmly, like he had just handed me a set of car keys, and replied, “Protection.”
“Protection from what? Is this jobthatdangerous?”
For the first time since I’d met him, Marcos didn’t dodge the truth. “It can be.”
Marcos must’ve seen the shift in my face because his voice softened just a little.
