Snow Blind - Lori G. Armstrong [123]
“Tony—”
“And then I heard the gunshots. Christ. If Bucket would’ve had a tranq gun, he would’ve used it on me. I fucking lost it, Julie, like I’ve never lost it . . . I didn’t know what I’d find when I got to you . . . how I’d ever 437
. . . if you weren’t . . .”
I cried. Mostly to keep him from breaking down. It worked. He used his fears to calm mine. “Ssh. Baby. It’s okay. I’m here.”
“Don’t go. Promise you won’t leave? Even if I fall back asleep?”
“I promise.”
“I thought I was a goner.”
He said nothing, just kept soothing me with long sweeping caresses down my spine.
“What happened to the handcuff around my
wrist?”
“I cut it off.”
“I don’t remember that.”
“Good.”
“I do remember Trina admitting she shot you. Did you know?”
“Yeah.”
“Jackal said he killed her because the Hombres would’ve done worse, torturing her and raping her before letting her die.”
Tony didn’t deny it; I hadn’t expected him to.
“I know that’s what the Hombres do to keep order. I don’t understand. I sure as hell don’t wanna know the details—ever—but at the same time, I’m not sorry Trina is dead. Just sorry I had to see it.” I waited a beat. “Does that make me callous?”
“No.”
Does that make me like you?
438
My dad’s voice chimed in. Gets easier to kill, don’t it?
If I had to choose, I’d rather be like Tony Martinez than Doug Collins.
And again, I did my ostrich imitation and yanked the covers over my head when I realized the truth of how far removed I was.
Tony gently peeled them back. “Don’t hide, especially not from me, blondie. I couldn’t stand it.”
“I’m not. I’m just cold.” I burrowed into him. After a while I said, “And Jackal?”
“Is a fucking dead man soon as we find him.”
Martinez twirled a hank of hair around his finger.
“After I discovered my Wonder Woman had escaped on her own again, and she was sacked out in her truck listening to that goat-yodeling shit—”
“Watch what you say about my boy Dwight.”
“I wanted to hide you at my place. Throw you in the hot tub, prop you by the fireplace, wrap you up, hell, tie you up, but it was too far, so I had to settle for putting you in the shower here.”
“I don’t remember that either. How long has it been since you . . .”
“Eight hours.”
“Were you in there with me?”
“Someone needed to hold you up.”
“Getting tired of that yet, Martinez?”
“Never.” He brought his mouth to mine and kissed me with all the seductive sweetness I craved. 439
My stomach rumbled.
He smiled against my mouth. “Hungry?”
“Yeah. Can any of those guys out there cook?”
“No. I’ll send someone for food. What do you want?”
“Steak. Fries. Bread. Brownies.”
“Done.” He whipped out his cell and sent a text message to the next room. Closed it and pulled me across his body. “Try to rest, okay? Food’ll be here when you wake up.”
Martinez probably had a million things to do, but he didn’t leave me. Not for a single second. I finally accepted he never would.
I scarcely had enough energy to eat and return to bed. Even the next morning I felt nowhere near normal. Martinez coddled me. I let him. Something had changed significantly between us once again. Two near-death experiences in a week will do that. Later in the afternoon, Big Mike knocked on the bedroom door. “There’s a kid here to see Julie. Claims she’s Julie’s sister?”
“Frizzy hair? Polite, but a little geeky?”
I whacked Martinez on the arm.
Big Mike nodded.
440
“Yeah, that’s Brittney. Tell her to hang out for a sec.” Tony pecked me on the forehead and slid off the bed. “Want me to stick around?”
“To protect me from an eleven-year-old girl?”
“Smart-ass. But you’re kidding yourself if you pretend she doesn’t have the power to hurt you.”
His insight made me squirm. “Thanks, but I’ll be okay.”
He opened the door. Brittney looked up at him and said, “Hola, Señor Martinez.”
“Hola, Señorita Collins. Como estas? ”
“Bueno.”
“I’ll be out here if you need anything, Julie.”
“Thanks.”
Brittney gave