Railed (Courage MC #2) (33 page)

“
A
nd stop
with the ma’am shit. It’s weird.” She sighed angrily and kept walking. “I’m going to need 3 of you to stay back and wait for the shipment from Jorge. Remember, this is a government deal. If those guns are lost in the shipment, or if money is taken, it’s your head that we’ll put on a stick.”

G
uns
? Money?
I thought to myself. What exactly was Jorge getting into? It must’ve been some kind of weapons deal. I had heard of stuff like that happening at the border. I just never thought I’d get this close to it.

I
heard
a car door open and I felt the men pick my body up and hoist it inside. The smell of leather and new car filled my nostrils and I suddenly felt a sense of nostalgia. I thought about the first time Adam and I set out on the open road, towards Oregon. We were so full of adventure and despair. Paranoia was creeping down our backs. And yet, we got through it with surefire agency and will. Everything was different now. Lines had been crossed. I messed everything up.

T
he drive went
by faster than I expected. After all, the highway had become a familiar home of sorts. Eventually Brianna reached over and pulled the mask off my face. “Sorry about that.” She shrugged. “These men are paranoid people.” I turned around and saw the line of SUV’s following us.

“
I
t’s
like we’re politicians or something…” I mumbled.

“
N
o
. The politicians get us to do their dirty work while they sit in their cushy mansions. They’ll never know what we go through for them.” She stared straight ahead at the moving road.

“
Y
eah
, I guess you’re right.” I muttered. Silence filled the car. “You ever listen to music?” I asked her.

“
N
o
. I prefer the silence.” She said.

“
W
e saw
you the other day, you know…at the bank. We saw you walk in. We were scoping the place out. We had this big plan. We were going to ransack the place. You know, take the money and run. Like you guys’ tried to years ago.”

S
he looked confused
. “But that plan failed last time. Why would he try and do it over again? That’s suicide…” She was running the scenario in her head, counting the number of ways it could go wrong. “Unless…”

I
looked
at her and smiled.

“
I
t’s just so
stupid it could work…” She whispered. “The construction. I’ll be damned. No cops are going to be able to get through even if the alarms were triggered. Adam, you son of a bitch.”

“
Y
eah
, and they’re doing work on the vault too. They’re making it more secure I think.” I added.

“…
w
hich means
the vault’s security would be disarmed at least a few times a day…” Her eyes widened. “Rose, is this where Adam is going to be?”

“
Y
es
.” I admitted. I was ashamed, but it was my only way back to him. There was nothing left for me to do but hang my head in sorrow.

“
I
knew I was close
. I guess I just didn’t know
how
close I was. When is this going down? Next week? Next month? I can’t imagine Adam taking too long to scope the place out. That’s not in his nature. He’s smart, but he takes risks.”

“
T
omorrow
.” I said. I couldn’t bear to look her in the eye. I watched as the desert changed back into pines and dark shades of green. The mountains were lush and alive.

A
dam
, are you out there? Can you hear my cries? Be careful, my love…

“
W
hat will
you do to him when you find him?” I asked her, while staring out the window. Truth was, I didn’t want to know. But I thought if I did, maybe I could change her mind.

“
K
ill him
, of course.” She smiled. My stomach dropped. I rolled down the window and vomited.

“
Y
ou disgust me
.” I said.

“
O
h
, come now. Here I thought we were finally getting along. Now you’re telling me I disgust you? You break my heart, Rose. You really do.” This was all in jest, of course. She wasn’t saddened one bit by my words. In fact, I believe she actually
enjoyed
them.

“
I
said
I’d take you to him. I didn’t say we were friends.” We were almost there. I watched as we passed the filling station where I bumped into the officer. We narrowly escaped that day.

“
O
nly a little bit longer
…” She practically sang the words. “Should we stop by Bruce’s house?” She winked. “It’s been a while since I saw the old man. I wonder how he’s doing. I heard he was kind of…
sick.
” When I first met her, I thought she was kind of pretty. But now, in the light from the sunrise, she looked disgusting. Like some demented witch. I said nothing. I knew she was just trying to get a rise out of me. This is what she did. Adam told me this not too long back and I believed it was the truth. She was an enigma and it was all so she could get her way. In my mind, she was an infant.

“
E
ven if you find him
, how will you kill him?” I asked her. I knew I needed to get as much information out of her as possible. If there was a way to save Adam, I was going to find out.

“
O
h
, my dear…you haven’t realized yet?
I’m
not going to kill him. You are.”

C
hapter
25

“
M
e
?” I asked her. I was filled with disgust and contempt. Filled with malice. How dare she think I’d kill the man I loved? I’d rather die.

“
Y
es
, you. This is what’s going to happen. You’re going to get out of the car a few blocks away and walk to the entrance of the parking lot. When he sees you, you’re going to get out your pistol and say these exact words: ‘Let’s do this.’ Can you repeat that back to me?” She asked me condescendingly.

“
L
et’s do this
.” I said angrily.

“
G
ood girl
. Adam’s clever but he’s also very easy to decipher. I’m guessing those words will be enough to pump some adrenaline into his blood. I assume he’ll be coming from the forest entranceway because that’s where he came from the last time he tried this plan.”

“
W
hat if I
don’t help you? It’s not like you can make me go in there.”

“
Y
ou forget
that I’m a federal agent. I can do whatever the hell I want. If you don’t go in there, I’ll go in there and shoot him myself. I’ll wave my badge around and play hero. You want that?” I stayed silent. “I didn’t think so. Now, where did you plan on escaping to?” She asked.

“
Y
ou mean
you don’t know?” I asked her.

S
he looked
at me with a look of distrust. “They never did tell me how they got out alive that day…” She said.

I
looked
at her as if to say,
please don’t make me tell.
But of course, I had to. She reached into her holster and took out her pistol. She pressed the cold barrel to my lips and ran it lightly across them. “Honey…now’s not the time to play hero.” She said, licking her lips. “You’re cute and all, but I honestly don’t give a shit whether you live or die. Either you tell me or I dump your body in the forest.” She cocked the pistol and released the safety. I heard myself gulp loudly.

“
I
n the forest
. There’s a cabin. Inside there’s a cellar door that leads to a tunnel. That’s all I know. I swear.”

S
he pressed
the gun further into my face before pushing the safety back on. “Good. See? That wasn’t so hard, was it?” She gave me an evil looking smile and brushed my hair with her hand. I shook with rage. “Now, where’s the getaway car going to be?”

I
looked
at her out of the side of my eye. “There isn’t a getaway car. He’s using a dirt bike to get to the tunnel.”

B
rianna started cracking up loudly
. “Adam riding dirt bike? That’s a first. I guess he really has changed. Poor guy. He used to be a man.”

H
earing
this come from her was the last straw. I couldn’t just let her say anything she wanted about Adam. This was the man I loved, not some scum of the earth traitor. Sure he changed, but he changed for the better. He changed to be with me. “He’s a better person now than you ever could be.” I muttered.

“
W
hat was that
? I’ll remind you that I’m the one with the gun in this situation.” She held the barrel against my lips and pushed lightly, spreading them apart. I felt the cold metal click against my teeth. I smiled.

“
P
ull the fucking trigger
, bitch.” I said confidently. “But if you do, you’ll never find him.” Her face turned into a frown. The creases above her eyebrows bent inwards and her wrinkles began to show. She was stressed and she couldn’t hide her slight fear. Even though Brianna took me captive, I held the power in this situation. Me. A young girl.

“
Y
eah
, that’s right.” I continued. “You know that Adam is much smarter than you think. He’ll do whatever it takes to kill you and he’ll most likely succeed, even if it comes with the price of his own death. He’s hated you for some time, hasn’t he? But you have me. And what a goldmine I am. Are you really willing to throw away the only thing Adam has left in this world?” I smiled again, feeling the heavy silence in the car.

S
he stared at me
, face growing red and hot. She took the butt of the pistol and slammed it down hard across my cheekbone. My head fell forward and a trickle of blood ran down past my lips. I tasted it and smiled again.

“
Y
ou little whore
…” she mumbled, unable to react. She was thinking again, trying to come up with a plan. “Alright, fine. You’ll bring me him. What did you have in mind?”

“
Y
ou let
us rob that bank. You let him think nothing is wrong. We go in there, get the cash and leave. 90 seconds. And when we get back to Daryl’s, you’ll be waiting for us. I’m warning you though, I don’t think Adam’s going to go without a fight. It could get bad.” I said.

S
he thought
some more to herself. “I’ll have one of my men intercept him from behind.” She suddenly said. “It’s an okay plan. Doable I guess. But what if you guys fuck up the job?”

“
W
e won’t
. Our plan is good. Plus, you’re with the Feds, right? If anything goes wrong, you take us into your custody and we leave in one piece.” I could tell she was on the fence about the whole thing, so I tried to convince her some more. “You get the money. All of it.”

“
A
nd what would
I want with that money? I already
have
money.” She retorted.

“
I
don’t care
. Do whatever you want with it. Go to Thailand, open a charity organization, become the leader of your own cult. For god’s sakes, we’re talking about millions of dollars here. All for you. Hide it from your men if you want to.” I smiled. I could tell she was about to budge.

“
Y
ou think
I wouldn’t pay my men that money?” She asked angrily. “You don’t think I’m honest with my crew?” I stayed silent. “It
does
sound nice though, doesn’t it? Enough money to leave…to start a new life somewhere. Alright, Rose. We have a plan.”

C
hapter
26

“
Y
ou'll wear this wire
.” She told me, lifting up my shirt. I was totally exposed.

“
H
ey
!” I yelled, covering myself.

“
C
alm down
.” She applied the wire, taping it onto my skin. It felt cold and awkward, and I couldn't help but feel ashamed for having sunk this low. “You head to the cabin first. You say you're sorry, tell him you love him, and go through with the plan. If at all during this phase you try anything, I'll have my men descend into the forest and hunt you down like dogs.” She said, pointing her gun at me. “Got it?”

I
shivered
against the cold and slipped my shirt back on. “Got it.” I said. I still had one question. “Brianna?”