I sit at the kitchen table and blow on the black coffee. "I'm visiting Doctor Parker today."
"Troy will go. I'm sure a few other members of the team will too. The best time to grab you will be in the open. We'll make sure Locke doesn't succeed. No worries, okay?"
"Okay."
When I fall silent for too long, Minka strokes my hair. "Bad dream?"
"Yes. How did you know?"
"You look like the bad dream followed you."
I stare up at her as she continues to stroke my hair. Minka's beauty sometimes intimidates me. Yet her strength comforts, so I lean into her caress. The dream does linger in my thoughts. Remembering Troy's lifeless eyes, I rub my arms where Locke held me. The monster remains in my life despite my big escape. A part of me suspects my freedom is an illusion, and all I've done is put others in danger.
"I've killed many bad men," Minka says gently. "From the average criminal to the vilest freaks, I took their lives for money and never made it personal. I'm trying to do the same with Locke but spending time with you has made my feelings complicated. Either way, I can say in my professional experience that he will be a corpse when this job is done. Nothing less will do."
"What if his people kill you or Troy?"
"That's not your job to worry about. You take care of yourself. Get healthy so that you can enjoy Locke's eventual death."
Nodding, I sip my coffee while trying to wipe away the stain from my dream. Locke will lose, I tell myself. He will die, and I will live. I'm free, and he will never have another Rose.
With a bad case of bed head, Troy stumbles into the kitchen. He blinks a few times before frowning. I think he suspects Minka might be meddling in his love life. Her devious grin likely doesn't help matters. Yet when his gaze falls on me, he loses the frown and gives me a sleepy smile. Troy is what I have to lose, but he's also why I'll fight my way out of the darkness.
25
~~~
Troy
Driving Me to Distraction
Rafael calls around nine am to warn me about a possible threat. The trip to the shrink is now a four-man job. Minka offers to make it five, but she's been up all night, and Rafael wants everyone sharp. When I suggest we call off the trip, Rafael just says no. He doesn't have to explain. The professional in me knows Darla can't hide in the apartment forever. The killer in me also knows Locke will send his men into the building if there's no chance to grab her outside.
We need to catch one of these guys to get information. My heart refuses to put Darla in danger, but my head is currently running the show.
Darla trusts me. Even when she notices Rafael and Manny pull into the garage, she doesn't panic. Yet she knows something is up. Her gaze finding me, she waits for reassurance. I give her a small smile and a nod. Nothing more, not in front of the others. Nonetheless, these small gestures are all Darla needs to be calmed.
Saskia opens the back door of the small black SUV. "There's a blanket. You should cover yourself and lean down in the seat. Stay hidden."
"Why cover myself?" Darla asks with her gaze on me.
Always the charmer, Saskia answers, "In case the windows shatter from gunfire."
Darla frowns, looking at me for reassurance. I gesture for her get into the SUV, and she obeys. Trusting me means she'll follow our rules and play it safe. If I fail her, though, I have no one to blame except the man in the mirror.
"I'll be the lead car," Rafael says, standing next to the SUV while Darla gets comfortable. "Manny will bring up the rear."
"Do you know something concrete?"
"One of Saskia's buddies from Bosnia accepted the job from Locke. Locke's lackey Mister Punishment is talking with the contact. We haven't gotten anything on Locke's location, but the lackey indicated there's another player already in Houston."
"How do we know her buddy is telling the truth or won't take the job?"
"Would you want to piss off Saskia?"
I glance at the little redhead with her cold eyes. "No, I guess not." Shutting the car door so Darla can't hear our conversation, I step closer to Rafael. "Are we using her as bait?"
"No."
"You're lying."
Rafael gives me his nice guy smile. "If it were my woman, I'd think the same damn thing as you, but hiding doesn't work. They'll find a way in. We could send her into hiding, but eventually, Locke would find her. Or he'd go after her sister to find out where she is. The guy is sick in the head and won't give up. This way we control the situation in our town at our pace."
"So how is this going to go down?"
"You have a small SUV to get around traffic easier. We have the big ones to draw his attention."
"If it's a him."
"True but we know it's a single contractor. We also know the job is still to extract Darla from us and return her to Locke. With four of us out today, no decent contractor will make a move. We don't need him to. We just need to spot him, tag his info, and track him down."