Page 46 of Maddox

He slid down the wall just outside the bedroom, remaining quiet.

I don’t know why he was bothering. It had been obvious I was nothing but a burden to him, a blip in his retirement. A serious blip in his typical actions. The question remained as to why he’d bothered to come for me, but I would be a horrible martyr on top of being a shitty person if I tried to convince myself I wasn’t grateful.

The single bedroom had a bed, a dresser, and an overhead fan. At least I’d flicked the switch before heading into the bathroom. The cool breeze tingled my skin, but not nearly as much as his body’s closeness.

I took a deep breath and wiped my eyes.

“They all had families, Maddox. Amazing families. I don’t. I have no one any longer. Do you want to know something silly?”

He didn’t interrupt me.

“I signed the divorce papers less than two weeks before heading to El Salvador. My editor had just told me I needed to pick up my game. Maybe latching onto the story was a crazy midlife crisis or an attempt to relive my glory days.” My laugh sounded bitter even to me. “Don’t you think it’s some fucking twisted cruel fate that no one would miss me if I died, but their deaths will destroy dozens of people? I just…” I fisted my mouth, hating myself for feeling and being so weak. “It’s just not fair. You know? They had everything to live for. Everything!”

“You’re wrong,” he said in a much quieter voice than I was used to.

“Which aspect of my life or their lives are you referring to?”

He tilted his head. “You don’t deserve to die because of what happened. Your colleagues knew the risks they were taking. They weren’t forced to come with you. All four of you wanted to help find a way to help underprivileged children and possibly find a key to help free the kidnapped women. That’s honorable.”

“Some of those kids were sold. Can you believe that?”

“Yeah, I can. Alfaro is a pig.”

“Sounds like you know him well.”

“Well enough to understand the need to destroy him,” he admitted.

I laughed, the sound as lifeless as I felt. “There’s one problem with your summation, Lieutenant. I wasn’t there just to help the children or even those women.”

“Then why were you there?”

As I extended my arm, I felt a sense of relief. This wasn’t my secret to keep. “When I was at the orphanage, a man I’d never seen before appeared and handed me this, telling me I’d know what to do with it. A source who contacted me stateside mentioned if I accepted the offer, as if he had predicted it, someone would contact me with evidence to crucify Alfaro. That came in on the same day as signing the divorce papers and a hard push from my editor, so maybe you can understand why I jumped in with both feet. Anyway, I want you to have it. You have connections I don’t.”

He inhaled as he took the drive from my hand. I lolled my head in his direction, watching him as he flipped it over a couple of times.

“Hopefully, it’s not damaged.”

“Do you know what’s on it?”

“Not really.” That wasn’t a lie.

“But you suspect.” He slipped the drive into his pocket.

“Yeah. I think so.”

“Proof Fernando Alfaro is using Mercury Fulminate to assassinate his enemies.”

Nothing should shock me about the man. “I don’t know. The source I met with told me to look up the compound. I had, but had no clue what it meant. You already knew.”

“I was told there was a possibility Alfaro had gotten into explosives. The compound was mentioned. If what you have is indeed proof, your friends won’t have died in vain.”

“But that’s not what they signed up for. I left that part out from my editor and from my colleagues. I thought it best they didn’t know.”

“They knew you, Charmaine, and believed in you. It’s time for you to believe in yourself.” He rose to his feet, standing over me and holding out his hand.

I debated telling him I didn’t want to be around him, but that would just be another lie. I grasped his hand, holding my breath as he pulled me to my feet. With one hand wrapped around the edges of the towel, I offered a smile. “Thank you for caring.”

“You’re welcome.”

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