Daylight found Lash and Naomi sitting in the car in front of Welita’s house. Lash replayed the experience of having Naomi’s body pressed against his bare chest over and over again—how her body fit into his, the feel of her heartbeat, her soft hair as it brushed against him. He closed his eyes and replayed the memory of the last few minutes they’d had with each other before facing reality. One, Sal, the shooter, wanted her dead. Two, their time together was almost over. He pushed the thought aside, needing to focus on her safety first. He had to get her to New Mexico, and the fastest way to do it was to catch the next flight out. “We need to get your things packed. There’s a safe house in New Mexico. You’ll be safe there.”
Her eyes were raw with an emotion that made him want to forget his assignment, forget about going back home, and stay with her, whether or not it was forbidden. “Why didn’t you tell me before?”
“You probably would’ve reacted the same way you did just now, and you definitely wouldn’t have given me a chance to explain.”
“So you’re here to watch over me? Like a guardian angel?”
“You could say that.”
Naomi groaned. “Welita was right. I’ll never hear the end of it.”
Lash chuckled. He stepped out of the car, went to her side and opened the door. “Come on. We need to get moving. The sooner we leave, the sooner we can get you to safety.”
“What happens after that?”
“I’m not sure.” It wasn’t a lie. He didn’t know what would happen to her. He hated that he’d been given such limited information. What he did know was that, once he was done with his assignment, he would have fulfilled his obligation. That would mean he was free to go back home. The prospect of going home should have made him feel excited, but instead he felt empty—worse than he had during the last thirty-five years.
“I can’t leave. I don’t want to worry Welita.”
“Worry me about what?” Welita walked to the front yard with a water hose in her hand, Bear bouncing behind her. When she saw Lash, she sped to him, jumping up and down and running circles around his feet.
Naomi glanced down at Bear, then back up at him. “Now I get it.”
“Angel or not,” he whispered, “I had to bribe her to make her like me.”
“What is it, Naomi?” Welita shut off the water and wiped her hands on an apron.
“There’s something we have to tell you,” she said escorting Welita back into the house.
They sat on the living room sofa while Lash went to the kitchen to grab a chair. He sat down and Bear hopped onto his lap.
“Why are you so serious? Did something happen?”
“A few days ago a couple of Chuy’s students were shot in a drive-by shooting outside of the community center, and”—her eyes darted to Lash and he nodded—“and I was almost shot too.”
Welita pulled Naomi into her arms. “Thank God you’re safe. The Lord is watching over us.”
Lash winked.
“Wait a minute. Is that what happened to your head?” Welita touched the bandage, and Naomi winced. “You told me you scratched your head at the community center.”
“Well, the bullet just grazed it. So, it’s kind of a scratch.”
“Dios mío.” Welita squeezed tighter. “Don’t ever lie to me again.”
“I won’t. Um, there’s more.”
Welita pulled back. “More?”
“The person who shot Chuy’s students was not really after them. This morning at the grocery store, the same person tried to shoot me again.”
Welita gasped. “Are you hurt? Maybe we should take you to the hospital.”
“No. Lash was there and he pushed me into the trunk.”
Welita turned to Lash, confused. “The trunk of the car?”
“It’s a long story,” he said. “Needless to say, it worked.”
“Thank you so much for watching over her.”
“Where are you going?” Naomi asked as Welita crossed the room.
“To call the police. There’s someone after you and we need to make sure we get you some protection.”
Lash placed Bear on the floor and stood in front of Welita. “There’s more we need to tell you. Please sit down.”
“You two are acting very strange,” Welita said. “What’s going on?”
“First, I want to apologize for not sharing this information with you earlier. In my position, revealing this is not standard protocol.”
“Reveal what?”
He pulled a chair close to Welita. “Uh, you may want to sit for this.”
She eyed him suspiciously as she sat down. He knelt by her side.
“I know you’re a spiritual woman and you believe in angels.”
“Yes, I have Rebecca. Although she didn’t mention that anyone was going to hurt Naomi.”
“That’s because angels are limited in what they are allowed to share with others.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because …” Lash glanced over at Naomi then back to Welita and took a deep breath. “Because I am one.”
The room was silent for a moment.