Page 13 of Fighting for Mallory

Luca returned to the check-in counter and paid for one night in cash. He took his room key and headed back to the car. Fortunately, the room was in the rear of the motel.

After he let them in and set the bags on one of the double beds, Luca closed the drapes and turned to Mallory. “Stay here and don’t make any noise. I’m going to scope out a place to hide the Charger.”

Her eyes filled with fear. “What if those men find us again?”

“I don’t think they will so quickly. But if they do, you shoot to kill until you run out of bullets, Mallory. And if they take your life, I will take theirs. Or if they should take you alive, I won’t rest until I find you and kill every last one of them.” He kissed her with tender passion. “I love you. I always have and I always will.”

“I love you, too, Luca. Come back safe.”

He flashed a confident grin at her. “Always.”

Luca cautiously left the motel parking lot and cruised the main road looking for a convenient spot to leave the Charger. About a mile from the Super 8, he saw a fast-food chain restaurant next to an abandoned strip mall. Luca turned into the drive-thru lane and ordered two burgers with fries. After he received his order, he drove behind the boarded-up strip mall and parked the car in the farthest shadowy corner. He checked the glove compartment and the back seat to make sure he wasn’t leaving anything important behind, and as an afterthought, grabbed his tool bag from the trunk. On his trek back to the motel, he followed streets that ran parallel to the main road.

When he stepped across the threshold to their room, Mallory threw herself into his arms, crushing their burgers and fries. Luca dropped the food and the tool kit and held her close against him. The gravity of their situation and the terrifying events of the long day finally caught up to her, and she completely broke down. She couldn’t stop shaking and crying. Luca lifted Mallory and carried her to one of the double beds. He guided her head onto his chest and let her sob as he rubbed her back and murmured soothing words of comfort and love.

“Oh, my God, Luca! My husband is dead! Bentley is dead!” She raised her head and gripped fistfuls of his dirty, bloody shirt. Her deep brown eyes were wild like a feral animal’s. “So many times I wanted him dead! I wanted to kill him! I wanted to be set free! What if I did it? What if I did it, and I don’t remember? I’m so scared, Luca!”

“Mallory, listen to me. You heard what the ER doctor said. You were pumped so full of Rohypnol there’s no way you were conscious long enough to kill Bentley.” Luca cupped her face. “You didn’t do it, and you didn’t make it happen with wishing. I promise you, sweetheart, we’re going to figure out what happened and clear your name.” He pressed his lips against hers in a soft kiss that ignited his desire for the only woman he’d ever loved.

Luca wanted Mallory in his bed, but now wasn’t the time for rekindling their passion. She’d been traumatized and needed tender loving care. “Let’s get you cleaned up. Your wounds need tending.”

She nodded and he helped her off the bed. In the small bathroom, he turned on the shower and adjusted the temperature. “I’ll be right outside if you need me.”

“Thank you, Luca. For saving my life today.”

“I love you. As long as I’m alive, I’ll always protect you.”

While Mallory showered, Luca stripped off his standard white dress shirt and inventoried his ammunition. He didn’t have any spare magazines for either Glock, and his was out of bullets. The tool bag held a Swiss army knife, a K-BAR, and a wrench, among other items of use. They would come in handy during a sticky situation.

Luca’s stomach growled, and he popped a couple of cold fries in his mouth. He washed them down with a swig of bottled water provided by the motel. Curious about whether the destruction of the transport van and subsequent attack had made the news, Luca used the remote to turn on the TV and channel surf. Nothing yet. Growing hungrier by the moment, he wondered what was taking Mallory so long in the shower.

He waited a few moments before checking on her. Luca knocked on the bathroom door and called, “Mal, you okay? Mind if I come in?” When she didn’t answer, he pushed open the door and stepped inside.

Mallory sat huddled with her knees drawn up to her chest in the shower stall. She shivered uncontrollably from the now cold water raining down on her. “I – c – c – can’t move.”

Luca turned off the water. He wrapped Mallory in a bath towel and lifted her into his arms. “I’ve got you, baby. You’re safe.” He lowered the toilet seat lid and perched on it with his precious bundle. Mallory’s teeth chattered. Luca grabbed a second towel and draped it around her damp body.

When she stopped shivering, he said, “I’ll be right back.”

He returned with one of the T-shirts he’d bought in the gift shop, slipped it over her wet head, and tossed the bath towels aside. “Don’t move.” He retrieved a comb from one of the bags and ran it through the tangles in Mallory’s hair before he switched on the courtesy blow-dryer.

After he dried her hair, Luca cleansed the gash in her head with an alcohol wipe from the first aid kit and covered it with a large Band-Aid patch. He also tended to the multiple scratches on her arms and covered the deepest ones with Band-Aids. The burns on her hands required aloe, but they didn’t have any. Luca brought her sore hands up to his lips and gently caressed them.

“I’m so sorry, Mal. Do they hurt?”

“Not so much now.”

“Are you hungry? There’s a microwave hidden in the TV console so we can heat up the hamburgers I bought.”

“A little, but I’m also nauseous.”

“You’ll feel better with something in your stomach.”

Luca heated the hamburgers, but the fries were inedible. He handed Mallory a bottle of water, and they ate at a small round table in front of the large window. When they were finished, Luca insisted Mallory go to bed. He tucked her in and lay next to her until she fell asleep. Then he rose and headed into the bathroom to take a shower. He examined his gunshot wounds, treated them, and dressed in his dirty boxers and the extra T-shirt from the gift shop.

Too wired to fall asleep in the second double bed, Luca kept one eye on Mallory and one on the door to their room. He still wondered if the events of a few hours ago made the news, so he turned the TV back on and surfed through the local stations.

Channel 5 was broadcasting live from the scene.

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