Page 26 of Married into the Mob
Stefan gulped and glanced around. “No, I’m fine. I’m not afraid of him.”
I wondered what Draven had on the poor guy.
“Thank you.” I clasped Stefan’s hand and considered sending him a message to help me escape this family. But me blinking furiously wouldn’t achieve anything, and besides, I didn’t know morse code. But he handed me his business card. “If you ever need my help.”
“Let me go with you, Odell,” my aunt begged. “We’re a team, we have been for years. I’m the only one who loves you and can keep you from harm.”
I hugged her. Our parting was painful, but I believed Flint when he said he’d protect them. That was one priority. The other was getting the heck out of here.
“I’ll call you as soon as I can.” I blew her another kiss and gulped back a sob. “Nothing bad will happen to you here. I love you.”
Hunter did the scanning of his eye retina, and when the one door and the other slid open, I rushed past him, shoving the guy aside as I wound around the corridors, searching for the stairs to get me out of the bowels of the earth.
Hunter caught up to me, saying I didn’t know the way. “Ranger and Flint need to check the area first. Make sure no one is here who shouldn’t be.”
There were security guards inside the club. It was late, and I guessed it’d be opening soon. They nodded and greeted the brothers. Flint snuck outside first, followed by Ranger. Hunter stayed with me until they gave the all-clear. Stefan said his car was parked down the street, and he said his goodbyes.
It was almost dusk and the air had cooled from this morning. I took huge gulps of fresh air, or rather, air laden with pollution. I didn’t care. It had never tasted so good. I wasn’t buried so many feet underground.
“Don’t take your vehicle, Hunter. It’s easily identifiable.” Flint threw his brother keys and pointed to a red sedan that had seen better days. The older brother nodded at the guard at the door, and he retrieved a long-handled thing with a mirror and stuck it under the car.
Yikes. They were searching for explosives.
“There’ll be bodyguards in front of and behind you.” Flint nodded and stalked toward a huge black car.
Ranger rattled off an address that I didn’t catch. My brain was frazzled, and I collapsed into the passenger seat. Hunterstarted the car but mustn’t have been familiar with a stick shift. We jerked down the road, stalled, and jerked some more.
“Do you want me to drive?” I snarked as I huddled in the corner and watched my husband grind the gears.
“No.” The car stalled a second time. “I can do it myself.”
I clapped, and he side-eyed me. “You’re doing a great toddler impression.” Our next-door neighbor had a two-year-old and that was his favorite line.
“And you can do better?”
“I know I can.”
He huffed. “I’ve got this.”
Folding my arms, I sank low in the seat. If there were any car lovers around, they might yank Hunter out of the vehicle and get in the driver’s seat, putting the car out of its misery. I was due for another kidnapping, my third.
“Okay, I’ve got this.” He put the car in second gear, but unless we caught every green light, both me and the car were in for more bunny-hopping. I patted the dashboard and whispered that it’d all be over soon.
“I think this is the place.” Being an old model, the car didn’t have GPS. Even this car’s grandkid didn’t have a guidance system.
Hunter parked in an alley behind a building, and I peered at the brick facade, covered in generations of pigeon poop and moss.
“There’s a grocery store nearby. I’ll grab some essentials,” he told me.
“I’ll come too.” If he bought tofu and Brussel sprouts, I’d starve. No offense to anyone who loved either item, but one made my stomach heave and the other gave me gas. Gross! Besides, I wasn’t staying with the bodyguards who gave off a vibe almost as scary as Draven.
“The whole point of this misadvised adventure was to put you in a place Draven won’t find you.”
“He’s hardly likely to be stalking supermarkets.”
“And if I say no?” He crossed his arms, his expression fierce. A little something twinged in my chest. He was gorgeous, with his brilliant green eyes and the scruff on his chin. His eyes twinkled as if holding the promise of something, and I had to look away and give myself a talking-to.
“Which way?” I pointed left and right, and he abruptly turned his head to the right. I stalked off, though I had no money or cards. Damn, I’d left my messenger bag in the panic room. He’d better follow me or it’d be a pointless exercise.
