Page 67 of Shared By the Pilots

“You’re a paranoid man, Taylor,” I said, turning away from the door.

There was a beep outside the door, and then a familiar click. An electronic keycard unlocking the door. I spun around as the door began to open.

“Hey! You can’t just come in—”

I cut off as the man stepped inside, holding a matte black pistol ahead of him. He completely ignored me as I scrambled back against the wall; he was focused entirely on Taylor, who had dropped the phone and was now standing beside the bed. A moment later, a second man entered the room. He closed the door behind him and raised a pistol in my general direction.

Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh God, I’m going to die, I thought, raising my palms.

“Nice cock,” the first intruder said in a thick Mexican accent. “Not in Cabo, huh?”

“I misunderstood you,” Taylor said, holding his palms up in surrender. “I thought you meant Cancun, since that’s where I usually—”

“We’ve got men everywhere in this city. You think you can show up and we won’t find out?”

“Now listen, I wasn’t trying to hide anything from you. Me and the nice lady aren’t here on business, as you can see.”

“I don’t care why you’re here. Did you bring it with you or not?”

Taylor winced. “No, I did not.”

The man took another step forward. “You fly, you make a delivery. That’s how this works.”

Taylor was obviously scared, but he still stood proud despite his nudity. “I forgot. That’s all.”

“Because we’ve done business together, I’m going to choose to believe you. Maybe you’re just forgetful.” The man stepped forward and grabbed one of Taylor’s wrists. “My abuela used to forget things. She would tie a string around her finger. Every time she looked at the string, it helped her remember.”

The man placed Taylor’s hand on the bedside table, holding it down. Then he pressed the gun against Taylor’s middle finger.

Taylor glanced at me, then at the second man by the door. That’s when I realized:he can’t fight back because I’m here. If he tries anything, they’ll kill me.

“I don’t have any string,” the intruder said. “But maybe I have another way to make sure you never forget.” He leaned on the gun, pressing it painfully against Taylor’s finger. All the muscles in Taylor’s neck went tight, and he breathed in quick, shallow gasps.

“Please,” Taylor said. “No, please don’t, I won’t—”

The man pulled the trigger. But instead of a deafening gunshot, there was only a soft click. Taylor froze, and then the man began laughing heartily.

“The next time, I’ll turn the safety off,” the man said between fits of laughter. “But I think you’ll remember now, yes?”

Taylor bobbed his head in a nod. “Message received.”

The man took the gun away. As soon as he did, Taylor stood up straighter, with a defiant glimmer in his eyes.

The man struck him with the butt of the pistol, knocking Taylor to his knees.

“No!” I shrieked.

Taylor stood up again, proud but not resistant. The man raised his palm like he was going to strike Taylor again. Then, he gave him a patronizing pat on the cheek instead. “Put some clothes on, man. Nobody should have to look at that. Especially not the lady.”

He and his associate roared with laughter, then left the room.

37

Veronica

As soon as the door closed behind them, Taylor came running over to my side. “Are you okay?”

I couldn’t find the words to say yes, so I just nodded.

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