Chapter Seven: Tomas
“You should be dead,” the doctor said. He had been saying a bunch of medical stuff that Tomas didn’t understand, but he knew that last sentence was the absolute truth.
Tomas looked over at Kyla. She hadn’t completely woken up from the surgery that had saved her life from Veto’s gunshot, but she had refused to calm down until the staff moved her into the same room with him.
“I know,” he whispered.
It hurt to take deep breaths and his shoulder blade was throbbing. Luckily his gunshot wound came from a small caliber pistol bullet or he would have died on his boat. He knew some cartel assassins favored small caliber pistols because they were quiet and easy to conceal. The bullets usually only had enough energy to penetrate once, leaving no exit wound and nasty bullet fragments bouncing all around.
“She’s gonna be okay,” the doctor said, seeing the direction of his stare. “The bullet didn’t hit anything important and came out in one piece, unlike yours. So is she your girlfriend?”
Tomas shook his head, but didn’t answer out loud.
“Yes,” Kyla murmured with her eyes closed. “I’m his and he’s mine.”
The possessive way she said it warmed his heart.
The doctor chuckled. “Both of you need rest, but press the call button if you need anything else.” He left the room and shut the door most of the way.
Kyla sighed and turned her head, opening her eyes to give Tomas a weak smile. “Hey.”
“Hey,” he replied as he drank in her face like a thirst-starved man.
His last clear memory was her jumping out of the boat and turning into something that looked like a splash of mercury. Nothing would convince him he had been hallucinating, but he also hadn’t mentioned what he’d seen to anyone else. Especially the Coast Guard investigators who were confused by how she beat their cutter back to shore to get shot in a bar.
“So are you a superhero or something?” he asked.
“Well, I’m obviously not bulletproof,” she sighed. “Not anymore, anyway.”
“But you can change into water. That was how you got out of Veto’s bathroom, wasn’t it?”
She weighed him with her eyes. “Yes.”
“Anything else?” he asked.
She nodded. “I used to be invulnerable, but something changed. I don’t know what happened, but I think it has everything to do with you.”
“Are you sure you’re not a superhero?” he asked with a playful smile, trying to lighten the mood.
“I’m an Ondine. A water spirit.” She looked down to pick at her fingernail. “This is all so confusing and overwhelming.”
Tomas sat up carefully, pulling himself up with his left arm. After getting his feet on the floor, he leaned on the IV stand to shuffle across the room to her bed. Sitting down, he reached over to touch her face and moved a few strands of her auburn hair.
A connection between them zapped like a static shock. He could feel her confusion inside his head and wrapped it in the love he felt for her. She gasped and looked with wide-eyed wonder at him.
“How did you do that?” she whispered.
“Do what?” he chuckled.
“I can feel you,” she whispered.
He leaned down and touched his lips to hers. The connection came again, stronger this time, and for Tomas it felt like coming home.
Chapter Eight: Veto
Veto was almost back to Miami after his business trip to Key West. He regretted killing the beautiful Kyla. He should have killed the old bartender for interfering, like he had Tomas, but things had gotten too complicated in the end to risk another murder. Besides, the old man didn’t really know anything.
His job had been to deal with the person who’d stolen from his employer. Killing the guy and recovering the money had been the easy part, as it turned out. He’d stopped at a bar near his resort to have a beer and relax when everything had gone to hell.
The woman had been a mystery he felt compelled to solve. Everyone feared Veto Quesada, but in one afternoon she had sought him out and driven him crazy until he had to possess her. He was certain she was the special one he’d been waiting for his whole life. So many women over the years, so many disappointments, but Kyla had a potential that none of the others showed.
After locking her in the bathroom, he’d taken a short nap and then prepared to take her back to Miami with him. There had been no way out of the bathroom, not even through air vents or the plumbing access panel, but she was gone just the same when he opened the door.
It was the little mysteries that bugged him the most. Why was the shower running? Why had she left her wet clothes in the bathtub? It drove him crazy trying to figure it out, especially when she later appeared at the bar, naked, looking like an avenging angel out of a movie.
He had overreacted at her refusal to stop. He should have just knocked her out, but some deep instinct made him shoot her instead. In the end it didn’t matter. She was just another dead woman now. Another disappointment. Nothing to fixate over anymore.
He turned up the radio and stuck his elbow out the driver’s side window of the car as he approached his beachside condominium. When the song ended, a news story caught his attention.
“This is radio Miami bringing the latin beat despite the heat. Breaking news out of Key West right now. A charter boat captain and a popular local musician have been shot by the same gunman. Both are currently in stable condition at the Keys Medical Center. Both the Coast Guard and local police are asking the public to be on the lookout for a Veto Quesada, a short-haired man of Hispanic descent, approximately five-foot ten. A sketch is available on our website. A reward has been offered for any information that leads to his capture.”
Veto pursed his lips as he slowed down to make a u-turn on US 1. It would take him some time to get back to Key West. His employer would be most upset; he hated loose ends.
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About the Author
Discover other titles by Anthony Awtrey
Letting Go: A Contemporary Romantic Thriller
When a widower and father of twins falls for a single mom, shadows from their past threaten until the former army sniper is forced to pull out her rifle to protect their new family.
Ragel’s Brood
In a world where dragons are predators and humans are prey, a greedy human king tries to destroy a family of dragons until Ragel rises up to protect his brood.
This middle-grade (for ages 8-13) short story is told from the point-of-view of both the dragon, Ragel, and the human, King Thorn. The Lexile measure is 830L, which is perfect for 4th to 5th grade readers.
Connect with Anthony Awtrey
Primary website: https://awtrey.com/
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When The Water Burns Page 7
