Page 100 of No Questions Asked

She shook her head vigorously. “I brought Lexi on because we needed the best, and all my sources told me that X-Corp, but specifically she, was the best. I had no idea you’d be coming along. When I discovered you wanted to be a part of the project, I was equal parts terrified and elated. I admit to being curious about Lexi, and I welcomed the opportunity to meet her face to face with no expectations and no judgment. She’s a remarkable woman, Slash, although you already know that. She’s also fiercely loyal to you, and you should know she confronted me about being your mother. She initially thought it was Natelli, but I came clean to her.”

He didn’t think he could be more astonished by this conversation, but he was. “Lexi knew, too?”

“Only as of a couple of hours ago. Natelli let it slip that she knew you worked at the NSA and Lexi confronted her about it. I overheard them talking and told Lexi it was me. She was going to tell you, but she gave me the chance to speak to you first. I’m indebted to her for that.”

He was still trying to wrap his head around the fact that Lexi had figured it out when Lilith came to a sudden stop behind the men’s barracks. “I know we can’t turn back time, as much as I wish we could. But I hope someday you’ll be able to forgive me and figure out a way to let me be a small part of your future. I donotintend in any way to interfere with your relationship with Lexi, Father Armando or your wonderful adoptive family. I donotwant to interrupt or insert myself into yours or Lexi’s life. But I’d be lying if I didn’t say I’d like a second chance to know you, just as friends or acquaintances, if that’s more comfortable for you. If that isn’t something you’d like, you can walk away from me, no questions asked. Regardless of your response, know I’ll always wish the best for you. I want you to know I’ve never,everforgotten you and never will.”

He stood motionless, swamped with emotions he hadn’t expected and feeling like a bandage had been ripped off of an open wound. He needed time to process, to think over what he knew, what she’d revealed, and how he felt about it. None of it would be resolved in the next few minutes, if ever, and now he had other matters to attend to.

He gave her a brief nod and said the only thing he could. “I’ll think about it and get back to you.”

Chapter Fifty-Nine

Lexi

Slash and Vicente walked into the lab at the same time.

As soon as I saw Slash, I rose from my chair. To my surprise, he came directly for me, pulling me into his arms and giving me a hug and burying his face in my neck.

“How are you,cara?” he murmured.

“I’m fine. Where have you been? There’s so much to tell you.”

“I know.”

Before he could say more, Vicente spoke. “Lexi, I just wanted to let you know Martim Alves has been taken to Manaus kicking and screaming for his lawyer all the way. Doesn’t matter how much he complains, he’s going to get put away for a long time.”

Vicente gave me a brief rundown of what had happened at a hangar near the airport, detailing his crimes, which were extensive. Even given that, I barely heard anything after the part where Martim had tried to shoot Slash.

I looked at him with a mixture of disbelief and exasperation. “Seriously? You let him point a loaded gun at you?”

“A loaded gun without a firing pin,” Slash responded with a shrug. “It was completely safe.”

“Completely safe is no gun at all. Jeez.” I thought about belaboring the point, but realized there was no sense in that. It was over now, and all had ended well, thank goodness. Still I needed a bit more reassurance. “When you say Martim will be put away for a long time, what exactly does that mean in terms of years?”

“Thirty to forty years, maybe more when we add in the bribe taking. I should also mention Brazilian prisons aren’t nearly as nice as American prisons. He’ll be quite uncomfortable, especially having lived most of his life in an elite status. I promise to keep you updated on the sentencing.” He held out a hand to Slash, giving him more of a slap than a handshake. “I couldn’t have done it without you, man.”

“Anytime. I owe you. Thank you for coming with me to get Lexi.”

“Are you kidding me? That was the adventure of a lifetime.” He laughed and pulled out a cell phone from his pocket. “By the way, I snapped a couple of photos at your wedding. You want to see them?”

We crowded around him to see the photos. The first one was of Slash on his knee in front of me just as I was about to brand him with my engagement ring. The second one was of the two of us standing at the edge of the water ready to throw in our stone together. Slash had his arm around me while I rested my head on his shoulder. Two simple photos, two absolutely precious moments captured in time.

Slash raised his eyes to look at me. “Can you shoot those photos to me?” he asked.

“Of course,” Vicente responded. Slash gave him a number, so he sent them and put his phone away. “Next time we get back to civilization, they’re yours. So what’s next for you two newlyweds?”

“A real wedding, I guess,” I answered. “It’s time to make it legal.”

Vicente laughed, holding up his hands. “No need to do that. It’s already legal. According to Brazilian law, you are technically man and wife. Since international law recognizes Brazilian marriages, that means you’re officially hitched.”

“What?”Slash and I said at exactly the same time.

“Brazil has special provisions for the indigenous tribes because they technically do not fall under the administration of the Brazilian government,” he explained. “We needed a way to legitimize the marriages for those people who left the indigenous tribal regions to live in the cities, for example. So, a law was passed that made marriages between indigenous peoples legal under the Brazilian legal code.”

“Neither one of us is an indigenous person,” I pointed out.

“True, but there’s a special provision that accounts for marriages performed by an indigenous tribe member between a tribal member and an outsider. Those marriages are considered legal if a government representative is present.”

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