Page 24 of Dirty Gambit

Fuck, Jaxon, don’t…a voice whined at the back of her head, but he was already guzzling it back. Something in her twisted with every deep gulp he took. That part of her had to be restrained from snatching it back and tossing it into the ditch. Instead, all she could do was stand by and watch as he chugged down every last drop of laced water without batting an eye.

It won’t hurt him,she pacified herself when he passed the empty plastic back, but she couldn’t stave off the guilt when his eyes met hers.

“Get comfortable,” she murmured, taking a step back and shutting the door.

They were miles from anything. The nearest home was a tiny dot far into the horizon, surrounded by an ocean of swaying yellow. Dirt paved the road in both directions and ended in more isolation. There was no chance of anyone coming across the car, or finding Jaxon. All she had to do was wait for his eyes to start drooping and his head to lull, which didn’t take nearly as long as she’d expected. If anything, the rapidness of the drug unnerved her. A sense of fear coursed through her, making her wonder if she’d given him too much.

“Jaxon?”

In the front seat, Lena twisted around to get a better look at his face. It wasn’t pale, or blue. The coloring seemed normal. But his eyes kept rolling into the back of his skull and his neck was losing stability, occasionally slipping forward as if unable to support his head.

“Jaxon?” she said again, slipping a hand between the seats to touch the hand resting limply along the edge of Jessie’s car seat. Loosely bunched fingers flexed at her touch.

They were warm, giving her hope that she hadn’t accidentally killed him.

“I’m so sorry,” she whispered without thinking and realized with a start she meant it for more than just drugging him.

In a perfect world, she could have easily fallen for him, easily and without hesitation. He’d proven to be a lot more than she’d pegged him for based on his files. From the moment she’d caught him alone in the library, he’d been courteous, charming, and funny. He was incredible with Jessie, thoughtful, attentive, and gentle. He was the kind of guy any girl would have been delighted to find, but Lena knew he wasn’t meant for her. Even if she told him everything, too much had happened. How could she expect him to forgive her, especially after this?

But it had to be done. There was no other choice. She prayed he would understand one day and see that she was just trying to protect Jessie.

Waiting until he was truly out cold and his chin was brushing his chest, she turned back in her seat and put the car into drive.

The shack of a building wedged without a care in a clearing of dirt barely passed for safe, but it was the only roadside grocery store untouched by surveillance cameras and the internet. The toothless prune of a man behind the counter never even glanced away from the tiny, black and white TV perched on the makeshift counter; the flimsy sliver of plywood was held in place by cinderblocks and prayers. Filthy, plastic shelves haphazardly stuffed with chewing tobacco and papers were placed on either end to keep the board in place.

The place was the pits. The kind of place people should be forced to get their shots before entering, but Lena didn’t have very many other choices when it came to supplies.

Rusted bells tinkled above the door when she shouldered her way inside with Jessie perched on her hip. The sound momentarily muffled the creaking groan of the ceiling fan teetering in lethargic circles overhead like some dying vulture. Two of the blades were taped on, matching the frightening amount of duct tape keeping the wires pasted to the cracked plaster overhead.

Lena gave the death trap a wide birth and edged around the sides towards the coolers. She located a chipped basket along the way and hooked it over her left elbow and made a mental note to sanitize her hands with fire the first chance she got.

“Here?” Jessie garbled and extended one chubby finger towards the passing shelf. It was a sign announcing a two for one on bug spray. The six cans lined underneath were dented, faded, and rusted as if they’d been under someone’s bathroom sink for too long.

“I don’t think that’s going to help us,” she muttered to the girl, who cooed in what sounded like horrified agreement.

Pulling Jessie closer, she bypassed the cooler with the milk and juices and stopped when she found the slabs of water. Most of the bottles were crushed, a few were missing entirely, and what remained had a weird, yellow tinge that made her grimace and forget the idea entirely.

“Nope,” she mumbled, turning away and moving into the rows of shelves. “No mystery water for us.”

She ignored the dented cans dating back centuries, the suspicious looking pastries and sandwiches, and grabbed several bags of chips, jerky, and crackers. A few crushed Twinkies got tossed in as well before she made her way to the front.

The man squinted past the square inch of screen to her, then back. Whatever he was watching was on mute, or the box had no sound, but Lena couldn’t hear whatever was transpiring on the other end, nor did she care.

“Just these, please,” she said, scooping out the contents from the basket and dumping them on the counter.

One gnarled hand lifted and rifled carelessly amongst the items. He barked out a number and went back to his show.

“Can I get a bag, please?” Lena asked, dropping the basket to the ground by her feet with a noisy clatter and reaching with her free hand for the money in her back pocket.

With a grunt, a bag was tossed to her.

“Thanks,” she grumbled. “I can do it. Wouldn’t want you to strain yourself.”

She flicked the money at him and grabbed the plastic. She snapped it open and struggled to get her things inside, all the while glowering at the man ignoring her.

Jessie attempted to assist, mainly in the form of trying to pull out the things Lena put in, but it was keeping the mouth of the bag open.

With her things put away, she turned towards the door, but not before tossing a pithy, “Keep the change. Buy yourself some more duct tape.”

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