Page 19 of Stolen By the Hit Man
But there’s no need.
I place a hand on Joaquin’s arm. “Wait,” I say calmly. “I just remembered something.”
“Can it wait?”
“I’ve never been married to that man,” I say.
Joaquin knits his brows together. “Yeah, I know. That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you, girl. The whole thing is a construct?—”
“No, that’s not what I meant! Well, yes, it is, but there’s more…”
Joaquin is not listening. He’s too worked up and begins to exit the car.
I could vomit at the thought of him getting hurt, but I force myself to keep it together.
I tug at his arm.
“Don’t go out there!” I hiss. “They’re here to talk to me, not you! I told you how this works!”
“You did,” he says calmly. “And now that I know all that, I’m going to expedite things.”
“How?”
Joaquin leans into me and brushes back my hair, speaking low and directly into my ear, “It’s what I do, baby. I’m an expediter.”
“What does that mean?"
He kisses my forehead. “I’ll be right back.”
Joaquin opens the door and gives my hand a squeeze one last time. I refuse to let him go.
“I need to talk to them.”
“That’s not an option.”
“Listen to me. They’re not going to do anything once they hear what I have to say.”
“Do I gotta handcuff you to the steering wheel? Because I will,” Joaquin growls.
I smirk. “Thanks for the warning.”
I’m too fast for Joaquin, propelled by everything I remember. I keep my ugly mom purse clutched to my side.
Out on the dirt path, I face the six heavily armed men—with Joaquin’s tank of a body stepping in front of me.
“This is quite the welcoming party,” he says.
Stepping around him, I see one of the men step forward. It’s Braydon. “Hand Jasmyn over nicely and you walk away instead of leaving on a stretcher.”
“Aw, come on now, Braydon. We both know your kind isn’t in the habit of calling emergency services after you make people disappear.”
A couple of the men exchange glances.
“Hand her over!” Braydon barks.
“Why don’t you be nice and give her a choice in the matter?”
“All of you, shut your mouths and let’s get this over with,” snarls the oldest man in the bunch, Uncle Charlie. Well, not my uncle anymore.
