"You!" she blurted.
He was here, in front of her, real. It wasn't a dream, though she started pinching herself, trying to wake up. It had been years, and she wasn't expecting to ever see him again. The man she'd stalked on tabloids and the glossy pages of gossip magazines all these years, couldn't have suddenly materialized before her in such a time like this.
"Me," he murmured back, assuring her that he was indeed there and she wasn't hallucinating.
"How?" the confusion in that question was palpable. "What are you doing here?"
Angry shouts rang through the darkness of the night. She didn't wait for his answer; she simply bolted into the night like she was shot from a cannon. Mariano caught her in three strides, clamping a hand over her arm and spinning her around.
"This way," he said, hauling her down the path he'd taken up the hill.
"Let go of me!" she tried to wriggle her arm from his grip, but it was firm. "I'm not going anywhere with you, mr. I still don't understand how you got here. Shouldn't you be in Bali or something? I haven't seen you in years!" her rants continued as he hauled her on. "And then just like magic, viola! I bump into you on a night like this and then you think it's okay to drag me along like a rag doll. Do you even realize what you've walked into? My maid and cat are both dead. Their killers are out to get me, and...and...for all I know you might be one of them!"
His grip loosened and she yanked her hand free from it.
His expression was absolutely stony as he replied. "You had better come with me now if you want to survive this night."
"No!" she was rigid. "My husband--"
"--is wounded." he finished off for her. "I'm guessing the guys coming after you, got to him first."
"What?!" Her eyebrows shot toward her hairline.
"It doesn't look pretty. I came to bring you to him."
Her heart jumped to her throat and his mouth twisted disdainfully as she went on staring back in shock. "You can tag along or get caught up in this mess. Your choice."
"No, wait," she cried out as he turned from her and continued down the path on his own. When he stopped, she let out a harsh breath. "You'll take me to my husband. Take me to him."
Mariano held her gaze briefly before continuing on his way. There wasn't much to debate on as her assailants were fast approaching. She hurried closely behind him, desperate to find out more about Maximo.
He mustn't die. Her heart couldn't take it. This wasn't about love, oh, no. Her feelings for the man had only been platonic and even that had dwindled over the years. This was about her life. He couldn't die without giving the only thing she truly desired of him.
At the base of the hill, the path came to an end and the highway stretched out before them, promising escape from the horror behind. A tall bulky man held open the back door to a black SUV which awaited them. Mariano gestured her towards it as he made a turn for the other side. Aurora got in and turned both her face and body away, shrinking against the door the moment it was shut as if she might will herself right through it.
Mariano took advantage of the space she left, angling himself to stretch out his legs in the space between them, and even though she didn't look, he knew she was aware of every move he made, knew it in the way she shrank herself into an even smaller space. He was going out of his way to make her uncomfortable. And why not? She was a gold digger who'd lived off his late mother's sweat and labor for five years. Not anymore.
The driver got in his place, brought the powerful engine to life, and sped up the highway quickly. Aurora spared a glance at the direction they'd escaped from, and it was safe to say that they'd lost her assailants since the path was empty. She managed a deep sigh and tried to ease some tension in her bones.
Her gaze drifted to Mariano and she frowned. Why did he settle in the backseat if he needed so much legroom? The passenger's seat in front was vacant and spacious enough for him. It could even be reclined if he wanted to get comfortable enough to relax his eyes. She wedged herself harder against the very edge of the wide seat and squeezed tight against the door, much too bothered by this man who seemed to think he owned the entire world, if not the entire vehicle.
But, she couldn't lose focus. Getting to Maximo before anything bad happened to him was paramount. Her life depended on it.
Agony welled up inside her like a mushroom cloud, as a familiar pain tore at her heart and threatened to shred her sanity. How had things gotten this bad? Who were those men? What was going on, and how was Mariano involved in all this?
She watched his reflection in the window, his long legs sprawled out, his lean body so apparently at ease, while she grew even more tensed with worry.
"How did you know my husband was injured?" she asked, finally deciding to break the silence.
"I found him." his reply was bland. "Got him help. When I left to get you, he was in a pretty bad state."
Desperation sliced through her, deep and savage, old wounds ripped open so jaggedly that she had to bury her face in her hands and cover her mouth to stop herself from crying out. Maximo couldn't die. He just couldn't. "How far out are we from the hospital?"
Mariano studied the woman beside him.
Was she pretending not to know that in their line of business, injuries like these couldn't causally be treated in a hospital? Or perhaps Maximo never mentioned him to her, and so she still attempted to keep up appearances. It wouldn't be the first time.
"I have him at my base." He glanced impatiently at his watch. "We'll be there soon."
Aurora looked up at him again, her dark eyes shiny with unshed tears. "What do you mean he's at your base?" she pushed away from the door, anger brewing in her bones as she shifted closer to him.
"What the hell is he doing there? Polishing your fancy cushions? Why the hell didn't you get him to the hospital? Did you leave my husband to bleed out on your couch?!"
He got a little kick in the gut, the same one he felt earlier when he'd breathed in her scent in the woods. "Young lady, it might interest you to know that I have an in-house infirmary," he replied, unperturbed by her outburst. "As for your husband," he stressed the words since she couldn't go two sentences without reminding everyone of her marital status. "he should be in surgery right now. Any other questions you have should be directed to him....if he survives it."
She gasped softly, her teeth scraped her bottom lip worriedly and she pushed away from him again, back to the cold comfort of the door.
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