Page 38 of Sizzling Nights

She turned toward the door and Marco followed closely behind her. "That's a fact."

Marco held his hand on her shoulder and whispered, "Let me go first to make sure we have the all-clear."

She let him pass her. She could clear the hall too, but she didn't want to make him mad. And, it felt so good to have someone want to take care of her. This past year, she'd been on her own looking over her shoulder constantly. Then, she let herself feel safe and get complacent. Maybe if she had kept at these codes, she would have figured it all out sooner.

Marco took her hand and led her down the hallway. They took the stairs rather than the elevator. As they reached the bottom step, he turned them to a short hall behind the stairs. "There's a back door here."

They stepped into the night air, the smell of burning fabric and paint tainted the warm breeze that blew. He hurried them around the back of the building to where he'd parked his truck when he'd gotten home. He helped her inside the truck, taking her backpack as she climbed in, and setting it in her lap. "Buckle up."

She grinned, but it was forced. She was scared right now. Her fingers shook as she fastened the seatbelt. All the what-if scenarios crept into her head. What if she had to jump from the vehicle quickly? She'd be buckled in. What if they were shot at and she had to get down? She'd be buckled in. What if they had an accident? Well, she'd be buckled in.

Marco hurried around the front of the truck and jumped in, slinging his duffel bag over the back of the seat. That stopped her morbid thoughts.

He quickly fastened his seatbelt and started the truck. He slowly moved the truck through the parking area. He'd parked on the opposite side of the building where Mitch's car had been parked. They had easy access to Main Street. While turning onto Main Street, he watched his mirror often. She watched all around them to make sure they weren't being watched.

Her heart beat incredibly fast and her fingers still shook. That was close. Too close.

He turned his head and looked her way. "Are you okay?"

"Yes. Scared. But okay."

He nodded. "You don't have to keep releasing the exposés."

Her brows furrowed. She stared at him in disbelief. "Yes, I do."

"I just meant, you don't have to make a point. You can likely disappear as far as the Celtics are concerned. Though it may be too late for that now. But we could try to negotiate. You have the dead man's switch. We could always use that as leverage."

She shook her head. "I don't want to negotiate. These assholes are dirty. They kill people. They harm them in other ways. Threatening them or their families with harm if they don't do something. Usually making them break their own moral codes. They need to be found out. People need to know their elected officials are dirty."

He shrugged. "Don't you think most people already know that? I mean politicians have a bad reputation for a reason."

Her voice rose higher. "Right, but this is proof. Proof that they are bought and paid for!"

He reached over and took her hand. "Hey, I just wanted to point out that whatever you decide, either way, I'm with you."

She swallowed and took a deep breath. "Thank you." She closed her eyes a moment and reminded herself Marco was on her side. He was only playing devil's advocate. There was nothing wrong with another point of view.

He navigated the corner at the end of Main Street that put them on Sunset Beach Road. As they neared the Sandbar he slowed.

He nodded toward the edge of the parking lot. "There's Jace."

As if on cue, Jace pulled out in front of them. They followed him to the end of Sunset Beach Road, where there was a fork in the road. Right led to Sunset Beach Drive and left put them on Lake Street. Lake Street led them out of town where the scenery changed to lush vegetation and quiet beauty. She let her shoulders drop and rotated her head. She tried forcing the tension from her neck and shoulders, but it was stubborn.

Jace made a sharp right onto Middle Inlet and at another fork in the road, he took the right onto Nowhere Road. That's what this felt like. They were going nowhere. Or hopefully not anyplace that would get them found. A quick veer to the left put them onto Hidden Oasis.

The scenery changed again to woods of varying species of trees and tall ground cover. She shook her head and Marco asked, "What's wrong?"

She chuckled. "Nothing. I was just thinking that if anyone was willing to tuck themselves in that tall brush with all the crawly things hiding in there, they were braver than me."

He nodded. "Sometime I'll tell you about some of the dreadful places I've had to hide out."

She pressed her lips together. "That didn't help."

"I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking."

He pulled to a stop at the end of Hidden Oasis where there stood an amazing, cozy-looking cabin near the edge of a beach. It was secluded and private and so serene she nearly sighed.

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