Chapter 17
Ajori
The backroads heading to my destination felt like a maze; a labyrinth carved from the earth itself. There was hardly any traffic or any signs of life; just miles of winding asphalt stretching through endless woods and sunlight flickering through the branches like it was trying to guide me... or warn me. Every so often, I’d pass an old farmhouse sitting way back off the road, half-forgotten. Even in daylight, that route felt wrong. That was the kind of place where people could vanish without a whisper, leaving no clue behind for those who might search.
And the whole time, the guy Marcos called Dom calm and dangerous voice replayed in my mind.
She can’t afford to fuck it up. I’ll be the last face she sees.
I was in my zone—focused and calm—until red and blue lights flared in my rearview mirror.
Oh, shit!
My stomach clenched as I eased the car to the shoulder.
The phone lit up instantly.
Marcos.
“Remain calm and get your license out,” he instructed the second I answered.
“I’m calm,” I lied, already reaching into my wallet.
“Remember,” Marcos continued, “keep your hands where they can see them and look the officer in the eye. No sudden moves. No stuttering. And smile when you talk. Cops get curious when you look nervous.”
“Got it.”
A white officer approached, boots crunching on gravel.
I rolled the window down before he reached me, putting on myplease-don’t-shoot-me-I’m-friendlyface.
“Evening, young lady,” he greeted me, shining his flashlight into the car. “Where you headed?”
“Home,” I replied with a small, tired smile. “I got some bad news about my aunt earlier and needed to get back. Guess I wasn’t paying attention to anything but the road. Was I speeding?”
He tilted his head, still scanning my face. “Not speeding… just haven’t seen this car on this road before. License, please.”
I passed it over, keeping my movements slow.
Behind the phone, Marcos stayed silent, listening.
The cop glanced at it with an unreadable expression, then said, “Hold tight. I’ll be right back,” and he returned to his cruiser without another word.
The second he was out of earshot, Marcos’s voice sharpened. “Breathe, Ajori. He’s running you through the system right now. Don’t fidget. Look bored, not nervous.”
“Bored?!” I shot back. “How the hell am I supposed to look bored when my heartbeat is doing choreography?! I’m probably seconds away from meeting Jesus at this point!” I panicked in a low tone. “Just know, if I get any calmer, it’s because I passed out!”
He chuckled lightly. “Just make sure your face says you’ve got nothing to hide. You’ve got this.”
I sat back, forcing my shoulders to loosen, my eyes on the side mirror as the officer typed into his computer.
“You think he’s suspicious?” I asked quietly.
“I think he’s fishing, but the less bait you give, the quicker he moves on. If he wanted to search, he’d already have backup here.”
By the time the officer returned, I had perfected mymildly inconvenienced civilianexpression.
“Alright,” he said, handing back my license. “Your record’s clean. Just… be careful. We had reports of a car like this leaving a scene in another county. Not saying it was you, but you match the make and model.”