Dirty Money

by Ashley Bartlett

  It was also very clear very quickly that the place was totally trashed. Every drawer was open, clothes everywhere, with a few slashed cushions to complete the look. We had something someone wanted. No shit. We had something a lot of people wanted.

  Dejected, I returned to the car. Reese had turned the engine off.

  “It’s trashed,” I said.

  “Any sign of who it was?” Reese got out and started for the door. “Or what they wanted?”

  “Didn’t look that hard. I was just making sure they were gone.” I followed her through the useless door.

  She went straight to Ryan’s room and found his empty duffle bag on the floor. It looked like the contents had been upended on the bed. We started pawing through, but we already knew. The money was gone.

  “Fuck.” Reese tossed some more clothes aside. Her bottom lip started to tremble. “Fuck. They took it. I can’t believe they took it.” And then she started to cry. Which made me want to cry.

  “Hey, babe. It’s all right.” I reached for her. She started to let me, started to collapse in my arms, but then she pushed away.

  “No. I can’t,” she whispered. “It’s not all right.”

  For about half a second, I considered just letting her be, but then I pulled her into my chest and locked my arms around her. She struggled and pushed me away again.

  “Stop it. It’s not okay,” she managed to get out before sobbing some more. “They’re going to kill you. They won’t stop until they have you, until they have all of us.” It seemed for a moment like she’d gotten herself back under control, but then she started bawling all over again. “And now Ryan’s gone and we can’t get him back.”

  This was not the girl I knew.

  “We’re going to get him back, all right?” This time, I didn’t reach for her even though I still wanted to. Slow learner. “We’ll figure it out.”

  “You don’t know that,” she said. “You can’t know that.”

  “We will get Ryan back. I promise. We just need a plan, okay?”

  She nodded. I was just hoping I wasn’t lying to her.

  Chapter Three

  The cantina was more crowded, if that were possible, than it had been the first night. People fought for an opening at the bar, attempting to further fuel their alcohol-inspired emotions. Sex, freedom, deception. The weight of hot air and warm bodies made it seem darker than usual. Even the random flashes from an outdated colorful strobe light couldn’t outweigh the oppressive push from the shadows around us. Reese was drinking so I was drinking. Not in the manner I usually did. Tonight, I was at a two-drink limit. That was almost always Reese’s limit.

  We danced. For appearances. Reese was fucking malicious. She’d found that obnoxious badass attitude of hers and was directing it all at me. I was allowed to keep my hand on her thigh so no one would feel the Walther strapped under her skirt. Any other touching earned me a light slap and a smile. Bitch.

  She was allowed to touch all she wanted. My H&K was shoved into the waistband of my jeans, right into the curve of my hip. Reese kindly rested her palm against the gun, pushing it ever so slightly into my flesh. The pressure was driving me crazy. Yeah, it hurt. And yeah, it was turning me on like nothing else. Her other hand roamed freely from behind my neck, where she was pulling my hair just enough to make my spine shiver, down my chest, toying with my nipple briefly, to my stomach, then around to cup my ass and pull me into her harder. Fucking tease. All for appearances.

  I was so done with this shit. I slid my hand higher on her thigh and pulled her closer so my leg was pressed into her crotch. Reese gasped.

  “Back off,” she growled into my ear. That just made me wetter.

  “Uh-uh. Feels too good,” I murmured. Then I licked her neck from collarbone to ear.

  “I’m going to shoot you if you don’t stop.” She made it sound all sweet and teasing. Her eyes gave her away though. She was considering shooting me. Awesome.

  My hand moved of its own volition back down her thigh to cover the gun. Cover it and keep her from taking it out. Not that she’d actually shoot me. Hopefully.

  “Fine. I’ll stop if you stop.”

  “I’m just dancing.” Innocently, she rolled her hips.

  Now I was going to shoot myself. Or come.

  “Stop it,” I commanded with what was left of my breath and pride.

  “What?” She gazed at me with pure disdain.

  “Either let me touch you or stop fucking with me.”

  “Get over yourself.” A red strobe passed over her face and I caught a flash of steel from her eyes. “We have to act like a couple.”

  I stopped dancing.

  “Act?”

  “Come on, you know what I mean,” she said all flippant. Fuck that.

  “No, I don’t.” It seemed like a poor choice to let her know how hurt I was so I opted for anger. I was feeling plenty of that. “Explain.”

  “This isn’t the time to talk.” It was never the time to talk. “If we want to get Ryan out, we have to act normal.” Desperation leaked into her tone. “So please keep dancing.”

  That got me. Ryan was all I had left. I’d thought the twins were all I had left, but apparently, I was only going to get half. I’d take what I could and contemplate the emptiness in my chest later. I started dancing again.

  “Thank you,” Reese said. At least she kept her hands to herself. Sort of. Those slender fingers were still practically fucking me with my own gun. That, coupled with the look of disdain on her face, had me on edge. Why did her anger turn me on so much?

  “It’s getting late anyway,” I told her when I was in serious danger of coming. “I should go.”

  “Yeah, okay.” She didn’t even stop dancing when I moved away from her on shaking legs.

  I went down the dark hallway leading to the bathrooms. When I glanced back, she was still dancing alone with her eyes closed. I swore there were tears clinging to her long eyelashes, but I knew it was too dark for me to see something like that.

  I waited until the corridor was empty then continued out the back door. Next to the Dumpster, a piece of shit motorcycle was waiting for me. Just where it was supposed to be. It didn’t take long to drive to the outskirts of town, though it really didn’t help with the whole about to come thing. It was late, nearly midnight, so I wasn’t expecting company. I only saw one car. On the side of the road, I stopped the bike and stashed it so I could walk the rest of the way to the entrance.

  When I started to punch in the code at the gate, movement to my right made me stop. Stop moving, stop breathing, stop everything.

  “Hola. Can I help you?” His English was accented heavily.

  I started breathing again. It was the security guard.

  “No, I was just going to get something from my unit.”

  “It is late,” he said.

  “Yeah, sorry. Can I go in?”

  He nodded and asked for identification. At least our shit was well protected. I gave him one of my various driver’s licenses. The one that corresponded with the names on the unit. After that, he let me walk through the gate. Alone, thankfully.

  In under five minutes, I was back out on the dusty road with the three doors behind me locked securely and my cargo shorts heavily weighted on one side. Two cars drove by this time. One before I’d even started riding. The second right before I turned back into town. The first didn’t notice me, the second did. But neither was a Town Car, so that was a good sign. Right?

  A kid was waiting for me behind the Dumpster. He didn’t look much older than fifteen. I gave him his bike back along with fifty bucks. He thanked me and left. I wondered where the hell Reese had found him.

  The back hallway was thankfully quiet when I let myself back in. Reese wasn’t on the dance floor anymore, at least not that I could see. Panic started to take over when she wasn’t at the bar either. I pushed my hand under my shirt, ready to draw at any second. Trying to keep my breathing under control, I wove into the center of the dance floor. De
finitely not there. Right when I thought my heart was going to stop, I looked up and saw her. And then my heart did stop.

  Reese was lounging at a table in the darkest corner of the cantina. She looked relaxed. Reese, relaxed. One slender hand played up and down the outside of her thigh, fingering the gun underneath the cotton. A lazy, half-cocked smile was perched on her face. She looked like Ryan when he was high. Then I realized she was drunk.

  “Reese. You okay?” I used my best non-threatening, I’m-just-curious voice.

  “Hello.” The grin got wider. “I am wonderful.” Yep, drunk. She was doing that stupid thing where she only spoke in perfect English.

  “You want to get out of here?” I made my way around the table to help her up.

  “I am perfectly capable of standing on my own, thank you.” Reese yanked her arm away from my hand and immediately stumbled. “Fine. You may help me walk.” Head held high, she allowed me to lead her out the front door.

  On the street, I practically had to carry her to the car.

  “Why’d you get drunk, babe?” I asked as I held the door for her.

  “I am not entirely sure that I know what you are talking about.” She jerked away from me again.

  Climbing into the seat was apparently too much for her, though, so she just stared at it.

  “Do you need help up?”

  “Possibly.” How could she infuse one word with so much helplessness and contempt?

  “Fine.” I helped her into the seat and buckled her in.

  The drive back was awkward to say the least. Reese did her best to stay upright to maintain the whole sobriety claim. I pretended not to notice.

  “You do realize that you cannot stay with us, right?” Reese didn’t even look at me when she said it.

  “Not happening, buttercup.” My grip tightened on the steering wheel.

  “We are not safe.”

  “I don’t follow.” I blew her off.

  “They will continue to follow us. We will always be running away.” Tears began to quietly stream down her cheeks.

  “If you really want to save someone then give Ryan some money and let him go.” Logic seemed the best course. Even if she was trashed. “They don’t want him.”

  “What do you imagine they want then?” she scoffed.

  “You.” Reese gasped. “And the gold. I don’t really get why, but it’s you they’re after. Me and Ryan are just ways to follow you and the money.”

  “Fine. You are right.” She finally turned to look at me. “So go. Go with Ryan. Take the money.” The look in her eyes freaked me out. I’d never seen it before, and I didn’t know what it meant.

  “It’s not that easy and you know it,” I said. “We both know I’m on their list now. I killed two of them. When they find me, I’m dead.” There. I’d managed to say it without shaking or anything.

  “You will be safer without me.”

  “And you’ll be more vulnerable.” That was really it. The thing that scared me the most. Leaving her alone was as good as killing her myself.

  “No,” she responded to what I was actually saying. “I will not sacrifice you.”

  “Reese.” I reached across to take her hand.

  “No.” She moved farther away. “No.”

  She wouldn’t talk to me after that.

  *

  I left after four hours of sleep during which Reese was still careful not to touch me. That hurt. Even in her sleep, she kept her distance. I should have slept in Ryan’s bed.

  It was right before dawn, and as the sun came up, I couldn’t decide which was more beautiful, the sleeping woman I’d left behind or the empty desert highway with fingers of light stretching across it. Nope. The woman, even in her desperate rejection of me, was more beautiful.

  There was a long drive ahead of me. I didn’t register much of the road to Mexicali. All I could see, think about, feel, was Reese. There had to be something, some way to make her take me back because the alternative was unbearable. Ryan would make her understand. He had to. So I had to get him out.

  Once in town, I followed the directions I’d written on a napkin. They led me to a small restaurant in what appeared to be Mexico’s version of Chinatown. Before exiting the car, I took the H&K out of my backpack and shoved it into my waistband. I would have preferred a shoulder holster for draw time, but the heat made that impossible. It was already pushing one hundred. There was no way I was wearing another layer over my T-shirt.

  I ordered breakfast and a beer despite the hour. The young waitress stared, but brought it anyway. I mostly pushed the food around on my plate while I drank my beer. For once, I really wasn’t hungry. At precisely nine o’clock, a guy ten years my senior walked through the door wearing a red polo shirt. We made eye contact. He navigated his way through the restaurant to sit next to me.

  “Hello, I’m Tas,” he greeted me with a smile.

  I shook his extended hand. “Cooper. I recognize you from the shop.”

  “Yes, I thought so. I wore the shirt just in case.” Tas didn’t mention that my face was covered in yellowing bruises. That was nice. “I am glad you’re on time. My father expects me back by this afternoon.”

  “I really appreciate you coming down here to meet me.”

  “Your terms were quite generous.” He smiled. “It was worth the drive.”

  “Should we get this going?” I reached for my bag.

  He hesitated. “I chose this restaurant because they take little notice of what the patrons do, but I don’t want to give them cause to talk.”

  “Don’t worry.” I responded with a grin. From inside my backpack, I pulled a dictionary. “It was the best I could come up with on short notice. I wanted a Bible, but I couldn’t find one that was big enough.”

  Tas laughed when I handed the book to him. Carefully, he set it on the table and lifted the cover. Nestled inside was the gold bar. Cutting the hole had given me a surprising amount of sick pleasure. I’d always wanted to do that.

  “Rather old school.” He started laughing again. “I like it.”

  “I was pretty pleased with myself.” I couldn’t help but smile. “And your end?”

  “You understand that I can’t weigh it, right? That is why my father suggested the average of the previous sales you brought in.”

  Math made my head spin. “Yeah, I get three quarters and anything remaining is on your end.”

  “Perfect.” He reached into his pants pocket and extracted a thick envelope.

  I took it from him under the table. A quick glance inside showed that it was all hundreds.

  “Awesome. Thanks.” I shoved the envelope into my waistband opposite the handgun and pulled my shirt down over it.

  “I was going to order some food. You’re welcome to stay.”

  “Thanks, but I’ve got to get going.” I started to stand.

  “Feel free to call again if you need anything.” Tas smiled.

  “I’ll keep that in mind.”

  *

  Reese was pacing when I got back. She wasn’t the pacing type.

  “I got it,” I announced as I shut the door behind me.

  “Did you count it?” She crossed to where I was standing and held a hand out for the cash. Great, she was doing her whole detached thing. I hated when she was like that.

  “Not yet, but it looked right,” I said as I handed the envelope over.

  Reese took the cash to the table where she proceeded to count it out. After that, she separated out a hundred thousand.

  “Here.” She pushed the generous remainder at me.

  “Why am I holding it?” I asked as I shoved the money into my pockets.

  “In case something happens when I go to bail Ryan.” Reese pocketed her stack. “I’ll drop you at a bar or something in town and take the 4Runner to get Ryan. If they arrest me or anything, you can come bail both of us out.”

  That didn’t add up. “Why don’t you just take enough to get Ryan? We’ll put the remainder in the safe up at the hot
el office.”

  “Because we decided we didn’t trust the hotel to hold it.” She crossed to the window to look out at the beach.

  “There’s no reason for either of us to carry it though.” Walking around with hundreds of thousands in cash was never a good idea. “And it’s better than leaving it in the condo.”

  “I don’t trust it. I’d rather we held it,” Reese responded without looking at me.

  “I could just stay here with the cash if you’d rather.” We both knew I couldn’t bail Ryan out, but there was no reason for me to go into town to wait.

  “No. It’ll work better if we’re holding it.” Reese was adamant.

  “That doesn’t make any sense, babe.” She stiffened at the name. “What? I can’t call you that anymore?” I moved closer until I was right behind her.

  “I’d rather you didn’t.” Reese continued to stare out the window. “Are you ready to go? We shouldn’t keep Ryan waiting longer than necessary.”

  “No. We need to talk first.” I planted my hands on the window on either side of her.

  Slowly, she faced me. “I don’t want to talk, and I really don’t think this is the time.” Her face was stone. “Now let me go.”

  “Let me see if I’ve figured this out.” Instead of removing my arms from around her, I stepped closer. “You’re planning on bailing Ryan out, coming back here, packing up, and leaving me.” Her face went pale. I inched closer. “Maybe Ryan will convince you to call the bar after you’re on a plane to tell me you’re gone. Maybe not. Maybe you’ll just leave me there wondering if you’ve been arrested or abducted or are lying in a ditch somewhere. Does that sound about right?”

  Reese pulled in a labored breath and stared at me.

  “You’ve been trying to get rid of me. This seems like a good opportunity.” I shrugged and got even closer to her. Our noses were practically touching. “That’s why you’re trying so hard to give me cash. You didn’t want to leave me with nothing. That’s sweet.”

  “I was going to call,” she whispered. “I was going to leave your bags at the front desk here with a few bars stashed inside.” Her eyes left my face to dart around the room. Looking for an escape.