Page 20 of Final Exit

She studied his eyes, the relaxed, friendly expression on his face, his smile. And then she glanced out the windshield. It was still dark, dawn a few hours away. And they were parked in an isolated location, with thick woods pressing in on them, no cars passing by. She’d known him for all of an hour, give or take. Did she really want to gamble her life that he didn’t mean her harm?

Her gaze fell to the gun just inches away in the console. She lunged for it. The pistol was snatched away before she could even reach it. Atwell made a show of holstering the gun and snapping the safety strap over the top of it.

Bracing one arm on the back of his seat, the other on the steering wheel, he effectively caged her in with her back to the passenger door. Her whole body flashed hot and cold. Was this it? Was he going to try to kill her now?

“Go for my gun again and that’s the last thing you’ll ever do, Bailey. I promise you that.” His lethal tone left no doubt that he meant every word. But if he was hoping to intimidate her, he was going about it all wrong. He was just pissing her off.

“I wouldn’t have shot you,” she said.

“You’re right. You wouldn’t have.”

His arrogant confidence made her bristle with irritation. “I’m sorry.” She forced the apology through clenched teeth. “I shouldn’t have tried to take your gun.”

“No. You shouldn’t have. Why did you?”

She frowned, genuinely surprised at his question. “Like you wouldn’t have done the same thing? You’ve parked us in the middle of nowhere and spouted off about Equalizers and Enforcers being on the same sidein theory, implying that the opposite is true, that we’re enemies. You somehow know my name even though we’ve never met. And you just happened to follow the Ghost tonight, of all nights, when I was cornered and needed help. Given all that, I think I have the right to be suspicious and proactive about my personal safety.”

His eyes had widened with each sentence, probably because she’d spoken faster and faster and was practically shouting by the time she’d finished. Heat flushed her cheeks, which had already been hot with anger. Now they were positively burning. Thank goodness the light wasn’t bright enough for him to notice.

“Your face is almost as red as your hair.”

She grabbed the door handle.

Strong fingers encircled her wrist, yanking her hand back. And just like that, she was a prisoner, just as surely as if she were still wearing the handcuffs.

“What do you want from me?” she snapped.

“I want you to listen. I didn’t have to rescue you tonight. But you’re right, my being there wasn’t a coincidence. I’ve been following Quinn and his men for weeks, scouting things out, passing information back to my team. It’s called surveillance. So, yeah, I’ve seen you a few times—this wasn’t the first night Quinn’s men tried to capture you. I’ve taken pictures, sent them to Devlin. He knows every Enforcer who ever worked for EXIT Inc., at least while he was there. And he told me your name.”

He started to turn away, then seemed to change his mind. “Oh, and the answer to your question is, no, Iwouldn’thave done the same thing. I wouldn’t pull a gun on a man who’d risked his life to save mine. I’d give him the benefit of the doubt,talkto him, especially since we’re both fighting the same enemy. If you’re going to survive, you need to start being nice and making friends. Otherwise those mercenaries will catch you and you’ll disappear just like everyone else seems to be doing.”

She’d been on the verge of another apology. But something he’d said caught her attention. It was the second time tonight he’d said something similar, and mirrored her own concerns.

“What do you mean, mercenaries?” she asked. “You said Kade Quinn is an FBI agent. His team wears FBI flak jackets. Are you saying his men aren’t FBI, that they’re hired guns?”

“It wouldn’t be the first time the government hired assassins to do its dirty work.” He cocked a brow.

The insult launched, and hit its target.

Because he had a point.

What was an Enforcer if not a hired gun when it came down to it?

Did that make her a mercenary? The idea put a sour taste in her mouth. Mercenaries had no loyalty to anything but money. And although working for EXIT had certainly been profitable, extremely profitable, that wasn’t what had driven her over the years. Okay, to be honest, she’d become an Enforcer to save her own hide. But it hadn’t taken long for her to realize the opportunity that had been given to her.

The money was great, but it wasn’t about the money. What drove her was her belief that the innocent should be protected and that it didn’t make sense to wait untilaftera mass murder to stop the person who was about to commit it.

Working for the government, even indirectly as she had at EXIT, had been a bitter pill to swallow for a woman who’d devoted her younger years to fighting “the man.” But it had been a way to continue her fight against injustice, without ending up in a Ruby Ridge standoff or burned to a crisp like Koresh’s nutty followers in Waco. Did that make her a mercenary? She’d never thought of herself that way before.

And she didn’t like it.

She gave another hard tug on the wrist he was still holding. “You obviously don’t hold people like me in high esteem. I’m surprised you didn’t leave me with Quinn to die. Whydidyou help me?”

He studied her for a full minute. Then he sighed heavily and let her go. Her sudden freedom surprised her enough to make her hesitate, then she popped the door handle.

“Wait.”

She hesitated, the door open.

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