“So he’s bringing her across the desert?” There was an edge to Marc’s voice now.
“If he doesn’t get her killed first.” Joaquin swallowed the bile that rose in his throat, anger like acid in his stomach.
Marc looked over at Julian. “They didn’t just tell us this to say, ‘Hey there. Having a great time. Call you when we get there.’ They told us this so that we can meet them, get them out of the desert, act as backup, be a welcome wagon.”
“Agreed.” Julian met first Joaquin’s gaze and then Marc’s, letting out a long, slow breath. “I can’t go. Tessa needs me. If she loses this baby . . .” He dropped his gaze to the floor. “We lost one six months ago. It tore her apart. I won’t leave her.”
Stunned silence.
“I’m sorry.” Marc stood, rested a hand on Julian’s shoulder. “I didn’t know.”
Joaquin thought back six months and realized that Tessa had dropped out of the picture for several weeks. At the time, he’d thought nothing of it. “Lo siento. I’m so sorry.”
“That must have been so hard for both of you.” Kat’s hand rested on her lower belly, a woman’s empathy for another woman’s loss.
“We hadn’t yet told anyone she was pregnant. She didn’t want anyone to know about the miscarriage. She thought she’d be able to deal with it better if no one knew.”
More silence.
“I’ll go.” Kat stood. “I have a friend in Sells whose brother is a Shadow Wolf.”
“You don’t have to go, Kat.” Marc stood, pushing his chair in. “You’ve got a baby girl at home who needs you. If you can help me connect with these Shadow Wolves, I’ll head down and—”
“You’re not going without me.” Joaquin rose to his feet, the words out before he realized he’d spoken.
Marc and Julian looked over at him as if sizing him up. Then Marc nodded. “Sure, Joaquin. You can come along.”
And Joaquin found himself feeling like someone’s kid brother. Marc would allow him to tag along but wasn’t expecting anything from him.
And why would he? What can you do besides get in the way?
Kat picked up her things. “I’ll call my friend first thing in the morning.”
Julian leaned back against the wall, crossed his arms over his chest, his brows furrowed, clearly trying to puzzle something out. “A man comes out of nowhere, connects with Natalie, maybe even helps her escape from cartel thugs. He’s familiar with Navajo code talk, knows Mexico, believes he can get her across the desert.” Then Julian looked up at Marc. “Whoisthis guy?”
CHAPTER 12
“IF YOU’D STARTED screaming, those cops would’ve heard. They’d have come over to investigate. That would’ve drawn a crowd, and our lives would suck right now.”
As Zach opened the first-aid kit, Natalie watched, heat rushing into her cheeks, mortified to the core by the way she’d just lost it. He’d been in the process of getting her out of the duffel bag, but some wild, terrified, frantic part of her had taken over, and she hadn’t been able to bear it a second longer.
“But I didn’t scream.” At least she could say that much for herself.
He motioned her to come over to the little table where the light was best. “I know you didn’t, and I know it couldn’t have been easy. But you weren’t far from it, either. Another few minutes and . . .”
He shrugged, his unspoken words left to hang in the air.
“Believe it or not, I was okay at first.” She felt some strange need to defend herself. “Then you were gone so long. I started wondering if something had happened, if you’d gotten arrested or hurt or if you’d forgotten about me—”
“Forgottenabout you?” He caught her chin, forced her to make eye contact, his gaze flashing anger, then slowly going gentle. “That would never happen.Never.”
And Natalie got the sense that she’d hurt him.
He released her, then tore open an antiseptic swab, the scent of rubbing alcohol wafting through the air. “You still don’t trust me.”
“Iwantto trust you, but . . .” There was no point in keeping her thoughts from him. “There’s a preponderance of evidence to suggest that you’re mixed up in drug dealing, Zach Black. Your conflict with the Zetas. Your refusal to answer questions. Your skill with guns and knives. Your ability to draw thousands in cash out of the thin air. Iwatchedyou hand weapons over to a criminal. And now you tell me you can smuggle me through the desert as well as a human trafficker. Tell me I’m wrong to worry about how those pieces fit together.”
She watched his face, but he gave away nothing.