by Ali Vali
“Look,” Walter said, and from his tone Levi knew he was about to get the brush-off. “I don’t have a lot of time so listen carefully. I need you in Almoloya de Juárez before morning. The brass ordered a cleaner, and I want to make sure the job’s done right.”
“When’s this supposedly happening?” Would it fucking kill these people to put a soda in the fridge? The hot drink fizzed up all over his hand and sleeve. “Pombo’s the Mexican government’s problem now. The well of information is dry.”
“Levi, I don’t need your goddamn opinion or insight. I need you to be at the airport in the morning. The place has one runway, so it should be easy to spot any arriving American.”
“Calm down, Wally, I’ll be there. I figure it’s not worth the effort, but if the boss wants this done I’ll send you pictures of the show.” Levi ripped open his honey bun and put some money under the glass filled with melting ice. He’d been here for three years, but his stomach refused to acclimate to the food or water, and he was fucking tired of having diarrhea. If the heat didn’t kill him, the chafing on his ass cheeks from the frequent bathroom trips would.
“What’s up?” Kevin Marshal asked.
Kevin was a new kid who looked like he’d won a contest from the back of a cereal box and the prize was a job with the CIA. His enthusiasm was starting to work on Levi’s nerves more than his red ass.
“Go pack a bag. We get to babysit Pombo again.” He shoved the rest of his pastry into his mouth and put his hands up. “Not the time for questions,” he said as a shower of crumbs fell out of his mouth.
*
The building was quiet when Wiley got home, so she made it into the shower without having to talk to anyone. She took her time to make sure everyone was asleep. Though Juliana was supplying her weapons, she wanted something from the dragon’s lair and didn’t need anyone to see her going in to get it.
She leaned forward with her hands against the tile of the shower and let the hot water hit the back of her neck. All the stress from both her guests and Walter had made the muscles in her neck and shoulders knot up, but she still had things to do before she could get some sleep.
The labs hadn’t finished analyzing whatever drug Walter’s men had tried on her, but Don had come through with the specs of the prison where Roth was being held, as well as pictures of the town. The best place to shoot from was the bell tower of the Catholic church, but that’d be the easiest, most obvious place to get caught. The town wasn’t huge, so this one would take more thought.
She dried off and put on a pair of sleep pants and a T-shirt. If the house was still quiet she could retrieve the scope she always used for distance shots. She wouldn’t have either time or opportunity to calibrate a new one.
She used the steps to the third floor and stopped when she heard the soft crying. With only the kitchen lights on dim, she tried to locate the person in the den.
“Aubrey?” It had been a while, but she hadn’t forgotten that night when she walked away. Aubrey didn’t cry often, and she could remember every occasion. “Are you okay?”
“Compared to what?” Aubrey laughed as she sat up. She was still dressed, so Wiley guessed she had been sitting here when she’d gotten back.
“The last few days couldn’t have been easy to get through.”
“I don’t really measure my life in days, more like in moments, and some have been much harder than others.” Aubrey rubbed her eyes with the back of her hands. “You don’t need to stay up with me. I know you’re leaving early.”
“You probably think I’m heartless for what I did, but all the sacrifices haven’t completely killed my humanity.” After turning the lamp on the side table on, she understood the meaning of regret. Her chest hurt from the what-ifs she associated with this woman. Wiley wasn’t sad often. Fear and exhilaration she knew, but her mood was different now.
“I’ve never thought of you as heartless.” Aubrey looked at her and combed her hair behind her ears. “And I’m not trying to get rid of you. I want you well rested since whatever you’re doing tomorrow needs your full attention. Your errands seldom had anything to do with picking up loaves of bread from the market.”
She nodded, trying her best to return Aubrey’s weak smile. “Why the tears?”
“It’s still my pressure valve.” Aubrey wiped impatiently at her face and tried to widen her smile. It held for only a moment.
“You haven’t had time to decompress, so don’t beat yourself up like this. What happened isn’t your fault.”
“You don’t have to be so nice. I wanted so much for us, for Tanith, but this situation never crossed my mind, and it should’ve. I planned to get out before Tanith knew the truth I’d discovered a few months ago. She’s young but probably already thinks I’m an idiot.”
“I’m not in any position to give advice, but you have to take care of yourself. Whatever happens, Tanith’s going to need you.”
“Do you know what’s wonderful?” Aubrey drew her legs up and rested her head on her raised knees. “You haven’t changed all that much. Not really.”
“You’re wrong.” She sat a few cushions over and leaned back. “I’ve changed as much as you have.”
“You’ve become a brain-dead mother with no ambition except taking care of your child?” Aubrey moved slowly and reached over to take her hand. “You’re the same where it counts.” Wiley moved closer so Aubrey wouldn’t have to stretch, but the touch made her body temperature rise. “The core of that kid I met all those years ago is still intact.”
Aubrey’s touch suddenly turned cold, but it wasn’t Aubrey’s hand that’d become frigid. Wiley’s body was like ice as the realities she’d tried to bury stormed up, refusing to be ignored. Her life had been so empty, and it was too late for any kind of happiness. This safe existence she’d share with the Black Dragon would be all she’d ever have.
Perhaps her father was right and she could decide to get back something she thought she’d lost forever. Only that trail still ended at the same dangerous place for Aubrey. “Why do you think so?” she couldn’t help but ask.
“You returned my call and didn’t hesitate to come when I told you where I was.” Aubrey put her other hand on her bicep. “The way you treat Tanith makes a huge difference as well.”
“To you?” This close, with Aubrey’s perfume and her warmth, Wiley’s brain became an active beehive. Her shattered discipline allowed a logjam of thoughts to flood in and dull her into forgetting the things she had to do.
“Yes.” Aubrey moved her hand higher. “But more importantly, it made a difference to her. You’ll never believe me, but I knew from her first breath that the two of you would like each other.”
“Tell me about her.”
“I’ll tell you whatever you want to know.” Aubrey brushed her fingers through the hair at the base of Wiley’s neck. The first time she’d done that, Wiley had found the courage to kiss her. “But you have to know the answer lies with the same reason I fell in love with you. The reason I gave you my heart.”
“Tell me,” she said, sounding winded. Aubrey’s smile, like now, had always drawn her in and captivated her.
“It was the goodness that’s at the core of you. Not one time from the moment I fell in love did I worry about you hurting me or lying to me. And you didn’t, not until that split second when you left me. We both knew you were lying, and losing you almost killed me.”
“That wasn’t easy,” she said, and closed her eyes as Aubrey caressed her neck. “Surely you know that.”
“I tried to hate you, Wiley, I tried for a really long time, but I kept thinking about that kid under the dragon tree. She grew up to slay monsters that are all too real, but you didn’t lose yourself to the horror. Eventually I figured out that you were too damn noble to put me in any type of danger, so you left me instead. That’s what I chose to believe, anyway. It’s nice to know I was right, but it’s not much consolation.” Aubrey moved closer and placed her head on Wiley’s shoulder, moving so tenta
tively she seemed to fear Wiley might push her away.
“Those monsters are still lurking, waiting to take what’s most precious to me. If I allow that to happen, I’ll give them what they want most by putting a gun to my head.” She put her arm around Aubrey and drew her closer, wanting to remember the feel of her. “I can live with the pain as long as you’re whole.”
Aubrey stayed quiet, but from the way she was shaking, she was crying again. “That’s why Tanith reminds me so much of you. She’s selfless when it comes to the people she loves. Maria wasn’t good with her, but she stood it for me, so how lucky I’ve been to have you both looking out for me.”
“I’m happy you have her.”
“Wiley, can I ask you something even if it totally wears out my welcome?” Aubrey said in a voice slightly above a whisper.
“Sure.” She pressed her cheek to the top of Aubrey’s head.
“These people who killed Maria and want their money, they aren’t going to stop. If you have to make a choice in all of this between me or Tanith…let me go.” Aubrey still had tears in her eyes but her smile hadn’t failed.
“If I haven’t changed that much, then you have to know I’ll never accept that as a viable option.”
“That’s a given, but life holds no guarantees, so if something happens to me I want Tanith to stay with you.”
“On the off chance something does go wrong, your mother’s never going to agree to that.” The back of her neck and the muscles in her entire body tightened again. That was her body’s warning to leave or escape a perilous situation. Having this conversation was as dangerous as anything she’d ever done, and she had to stretch her fingers and fan them out before she reached for Aubrey’s hand. “Tanith has a parent, and you have to trust me to keep you safe.”
“I’ve questioned myself plenty but never you, Wiley.”
“We have a chance to be friends again.” She squeezed Aubrey’s hand, recalling her younger self and how incredibly lucky she’d been to have shared herself with Aubrey. “So how about we’re honest with each other?”
“I want your promise you’ll do what I’m asking.” Aubrey moved closer to her and Wiley held her breath. She’d stuffed her desire for Aubrey down as far as she could shove it without total amnesia, but having her this close would make it impossible to let her go. “If I’m not here, I want Tanith to have what I did. I want you to take care of her and love her. Maria was my mistake, but Tanith wasn’t. If you really look at her, you have to know why I had her.”
“Aubrey, please,” she said, Aubrey’s tears tearing at her heart.
“I’m so very tired of missing you.”
“I’ve missed you too, and sometimes the memories of us back then completely swamp me. What happened was so unfair, but we can’t go back…no matter how much I want to or how easy it would be. Especially now, because of Tanith. If something happens to you I wouldn’t be much good to her.” She opened her hand, but Aubrey didn’t let go. “So you should reconsider your request. Tanith deserves better than me.”
“She’s yours, baby. I didn’t think I had to say that out loud. Tanith is as close to you as I could manage, and the main reason I called for you.” Aubrey pressed her hand to her cheek again. “It’s a lot to take in, I know, but she’s missed so much with you already. Don’t rob her of the future as well.”
“I’m so sorry,” Wiley said, her voice raspy. Her eyes burned and she was nauseous from the massive amount of emotions that Aubrey’s words conveyed. “You have every reason to hate me, but I didn’t have a choice. I don’t deserve everything you’ve given me after I ran.”
“My heart made its choice so long ago, and that hasn’t changed,” Aubrey said as she now wiped Wiley’s tears. “Right now we both have to bury the past. You’re leaving in the morning and I need you to be sharp, not worrying about ancient history.”
“I just wanted to keep you safe and alive.”
“I know that,” Aubrey said, before kissing her cheek, “and it’s a given that’s what you’ll do until you clean up all this mess. I wanted to talk to you before anything else happened so you’d know how I felt and what I want.”
“Did you remember something else? You can be honest even if you think it’ll upset me.”
“I told you everything, so I’m not cracking up on you. I just have a sense I’m going to be rewarded for all my sins and not even you’ll be able to stop it.”
“By leaving you I made you think you couldn’t count on me.” She pressed her fingers to Aubrey’s lips when she tried to interrupt. “You don’t have to pretend that’s not true.”
The memories of the men she’d killed from her perch in the trees came to her, as well as the satisfaction it’d given her. She didn’t feel any emotion during an assignment, but those guys had killed so many innocents she didn’t suffer a bit of guilt for carrying out her duty. Unfortunately the sense of honor lasted only a second compared to what it’d cost her.
“I can’t change what I did and how much I hurt you, but you have my word I’ll get you and your family through this.”
“Go to bed.” Aubrey pulled Wiley’s fingers away to speak. “You need to rest and stay safe. You’ve got a lot to come home to.”
“We can’t go back.”
“I’m not interested in going back,” Aubrey said, kissing her palm. “I’m interested in moving forward.”
This wasn’t the moment to argue about it. “You still believe in fairy tales.”
“Why wouldn’t I?” Aubrey pressed her hand to Wiley’s chest. “I know white knights really do exist. Mine is tall and strong, and she carries me and my daughter on her shoulder to remind her that when the fight is over, she’s got a place to come home to.” She slid her hand to Wiley’s shoulder and moved her sleeve up so the bottom of her tattoo was visible. “A place that’s been yours from the first time you accepted that I belonged with you and to you.”
“Isn’t that an overly simplified way of looking at it?”
“You have a beautiful place,” Aubrey said, confusing her.
“Thanks.”
“Would you trade it to be with me? To never have had to leave me?”
“Yes.” No hesitation, no attempt to hide her exposed heart.
Aubrey touched her face gently, closing her eyes when she placed her fingers against her lips. “Then it’s simple. You’re mine, Wiley, and I want all the childhood dreams back. I refuse to let you go this time, so don’t keep running from me. I’ll keep coming unless you tell me you don’t want me anymore.” She pressed her hands to Wiley’s cheeks, forcing eye contact. “Can you say that?”
“I could, but you know me well enough to realize when I’m trying to hide something.”
“Thank you.” Aubrey laid her head back on Wiley’s shoulder. “I could spend the rest of my life here, but you need to go to bed.”
“Remember to stay inside, and if you can, make a list of anyone Maria might’ve mentioned.” She stood, pulling Aubrey up with her. “The amount of money that’s missing will keep these guys coming until it turns up, so you either have to figure out where she hid it or develop a list I can work from to eliminate the threat.”
“I’m so ashamed it’d have to go that far. You shouldn’t have to kill for me.”
“Persuasion doesn’t always end in death. If you can think of any leads, I’ll give them a choice.” She thought of Dr. Dupre and his decision. Sitting in a cell was to him a fate a hundred times worse than death, but choices made in the heat of the moment were the worst. Dying was preferable to having to live in a hell of your own making.
Dr. Dupre was too weak to pick what in essence would’ve set him free. She hoped she had a stronger spine when her turn came.
Chapter Thirteen
Wiley stood in her kitchen with her eyes closed, listening for anomalies. She needed everyone asleep so she could get in to get the equipment she needed. Her skin was still highly sensitized from her time with Juliana and Aubrey, so she sat on the counter with
her legs folded and took long, deep breaths. She let her mind wander as a way to relax.
The highlight reel of her mind flew back to her teens and the anticipation that always built when she got a letter from Aubrey. She opened her eyes and smiled at the romantic mush probably driving up her insulin levels. Being frivolous seemed so foreign to her now, that capacity rusted, frozen.
She didn’t hear any sound except the hum of the refrigerator and the air conditioner, so she jumped down and quickly ducked into the dragon’s lair. The room was dark except for the computer screens and the low lights in the gun cabinets near the desk. She moved the mouse, and the middle screen was the only one with a blinking message icon.
When she’d retired she’d researched the best way to take private contracts without too many complications. The wisest course, she’d decided, was to take out two ads in national publications for investigative services. That’s how their connection, like the one with Jerry Dupre’s soon-to-be ex-wife, had started. She hadn’t decided Jerry’s fate until she had definite proof he’d committed numerous rapes and that Mrs. Dupre was in no way involved with law enforcement.
The punishment provided Mrs. Dupre’s clean break from the monster she’d lived with, and an appropriate ending for Jerry. All along he’d thought himself too good and smart to get caught. His arrogance had cost him, and he wouldn’t be the last to make the same mistakes.
She’d never bothered with cheating spouses or other cases like that, so sometimes she had to cull through the list to find the Jerrys of the world. She really didn’t have time for the blinking message icon, but she opened it anyway. With everything she had to do, she felt normal here at her computer and wanted to enjoy it as long as she could.
She deleted the first twenty e-mails, hoping the disgruntled wives and a few husbands found someone to follow around their disloyal spouses. The next two were from the same guy, and each word dripped with agony at the loss of his sixteen-year-old daughter. Tammy Culver was, according to her father, Sheriff Wilbert Culver, an honor student and cheerleader at her high school in Brownsville, Texas. Wilbert wrote that she’d been popular and happy until the last three months of her life. It had spiraled out of control until it ended in an overdose, and he blamed a guy named Mitch Surpass. Only Mitch would never pay in the legal system Wilbert was paid to uphold—he had obviously learned to navigate the system.