Page 15 of Mace

She stated quietly, “I feel like I’m between a rock and hard place here. I’m worried about my mom and what my father is going to do if he ever gets his hands on me. Let’s just say it’s a lot.”

“Do you feel like you need someone to talk to, like a professional therapist?”

She laughed, but it wasn’t mocking, “I’m not in any kind of situation where I can keep a therapy appointment. I’m under lock and key in an underground bunker at the moment.”

I pushed my food around on my plate and tried to eat a few bites, feeling like an idiot for even suggesting it. Before I could think of what to say, Grit came bolting through the door. I guessed that Storm had decided I wasn’t up to the job of protecting Alicia right now, “We’ve got big problems.”

I got to my feet and took a step in his direction. “What’s going on, brother?”

“We located that compound you were talking about. There were five men, all dead.”

Shock lanced through my chest. “What do you mean they were all dead?”

“Dead. As in not breathing anymore. It looked like there’d been a gunfight of some kind. There were five bodies, no evidence of drugs or gun running that I could see.”

“Wait,” I said as I tried to get my head around what he was telling me. “You’re saying they were dead, but we didn’t kill them?”

Grit didn’t bother answering and pulled out his cell phone and gestured towards Alicia. “Storm wanted Alicia to have a look at the faces and see if she recognized any of them. Maybe to let us know if her father is among them.”

I opened my mouth to object, but Grit cut me off, “Look prospect, figuring out if the ringleader of a cartel wound up dead is an important part of understanding the situation.”

Alicia immediately spoke up, “I get it. I’ll have a look. If I’m honest, I’m hoping one of them is the asshole my father wanted me to marry.”

I’m shocked that she came right out and said that. In the short time I’ve known her, Alicia had always seemed so kind and gentle that’s it hard to believe she would wish someone dead.

Grit pulled up the images on his cell phone and showed her one after another. Her eyes went wide, and she snatched the phone out of his hand and went through the five images several times. “I don’t recognize any of them. None of them are my father’s men.”

Grit shot me a dark look before asking Alicia, “Are you entirely certain of this?”

“Of course!” Alicia exclaimed. “I cooked and cleaned after his men day in day out for three damn months.”

“If what you’re saying it true, it looks an awful lot like your father went on a killing spree and then bailed.”

The color drained from her face. “What do you mean by bailed?”

Grit gave his cell phone a little wave, like he didn’t quite know what words to use. “You know, fucked off to parts unknown.”

I suddenly got with the program. “Yeah, like a drug deal gone wrong. The important thing is they’re no long here and posing a danger to you.”

Alicia stammered, “That would sure be nice but something about this feels off.”

I agreed. There was something going on here, but I couldn’t put my finger on it.

Grit added, “Storm thinks you two should sit tight for a few more days until we can figure out what’s going on here.”

When Grit wandered off, Alicia and I sat there looking at each other for a brief moment. “This was the last thing I expected,” I told her.

“Me too,” she admitted. “I can’t help but wonder who those men were. They didn’t look like the kind of men who associate with my father. It makes me wonder if it was a hunting party or some campers that showed up at the wrong place at the wrong time and saw something they shouldn’t have.

“Our IT guy is good at tracking down shit like this. I’d bet my bottom dollar that he’ll solve this mystery within a matter of hours.” I thought the situation over. “Once we get the all-clear toleave, if you want, we can go to the clubhouse, or you can stay with my family.”

Alicia gave me a worried smile. “I think your mom and grandmother actually hate me for thinking you were a serial killer.”

I waved away her concern with a joke. “It gave them something to be outraged about, and that alone probably made their day.”

“Have you called your mom since you got shot?”

“No. I’m not stupid. They’ll lose their minds and talk my ear off.” I came to my feet and looked down into her sweet, upturned face. “I’m supposed to be resting. I think I’ll get right on that.”

---