arms propped behind me, tilting my head and enjoying the sun’s warmth. We both get lost in our thoughts for a while, acting as if nobody is looking for me, and we aren’t on the run. It feels nice to stop for a second and just be.
“We should think about getting back on the road now.” Rig squints over to me.
“Just another minute, please. I need this more than anything right now,” I admit. He doesn’t fight me on it, and I savor the last moments sitting here feeling weightless, like nobody can hurt me right now.
A few minutes later, I start grabbing the trash, putting it in the bags to throw away, not needing Rig to tell me my time is up. I know it is, and I don’t need it ruined by his bossiness. Even though I’m secretly loving his bossiness.
About a half hour into the drive, his phone rings, which is something that hasn’t happened yet. I haven’t seen him on his phone other than to use GPS. He quickly glances over, puts on his earphones, and accepts the call.
Everything he says is very curt, nothing I can try and catch on to. Just a bunch of Uh-huh and I see. He grips the steering wheel with white knuckles, making me sort of alarmed. He finishes up the call and rips the earphones out of his ears, letting out an aggressive fuck under his breath. If that’s not distressing, I don’t know what is.
“What’s going on?” I ask cautiously, not wanting to cause anymore irritation.
“Nothing you need to worry about. I have it under control.”
“I can see that. But if it has something to do with me and this trip, I would like to know so I can be prepared for anything.” He needs to know how hard it is to not be in control.
“Other than Steven hiring a top-notch P.I. to retrace all the steps you have taken leading up to the meeting with Andrew, nothing at all. Yes, we are secretive and most people don’t know a thing about us, but private investigators work way different than the authorities. They’re in it for the money, this is their job. They get paid to find hidden stuff. Police get paid to make an effort, and they still have a job as long as they’re writing tickets and arresting people.”
I freeze up, because I know whoever he has hired is an informant for the Cartel. They could find the littlest things anywhere because it’s their job to keep the boss happy, and since their life depends on it, they are damn good at it.
“We’re changing our course right now to throw them off. Please don’t wallow on this. Andrew and I know what to do.”
“I’ll try not to.” My voice is coated in sarcasm.
“There it is. I knew that attitude would be back soon.” Rig grins. “Welcome back, didn’t think the niceness would last too long.”
“The niceness? I’m a very likable person, and let’s remember it’s my life we are talking about here. You shouldn’t have told me.” I raise my voice.
“You told me to tell you. Let’s be very clear on one thing here: It’s not just your life. It’s my fucking life as well. You think they wouldn’t come after me first? He knows by now that you aren’t doing this alone; you haven’t successfully done it alone any of the other times,” Rig says matter-of-factly.
“Oh, nice jab there. Thanks for that.”
“It wasn’t meant for a jab, it was just a fact. Look, it’s pointless to argue with you over who is more in danger. Forget I even told you, and from now on, if you want to know things, don’t decide after you hear them that you don’t want to hear them.”
“Deal.”
We don’t say another word on the subject, and I know I need to chill out on the way I let words fly out of my mouth. It’s not a good trait, and I know I’m just letting out pent up anger and hurt, but I don’t need to let it affect other people in the process.
After a long, quiet drive we arrive at a hotel so Rig can get some rest for the night. We settle into our double-bed room, and have food brought up. Rig falls asleep right after we eat. Bored out of my mind, I soak in the tub. Then I’m left flipping through channels, finding nothing appealing to watch.
I turn the TV off and search the mini-fridge, hoping