Dangerous Flames (Mafia Hearts) (9 page)

“
Pull
over,” she ordered, pointed toward the gas station even though
the idea of being with in the environment sent pinpricks of fear
climbing over her arms. Gabrielle knew this was going to be tricky,
but she would just have to wing it. They needed gas, food, and even
though using the bathroom in this dump seemed less appealing, she
needed to get into some warmer clothes.

“
Okay,”
he said as he turned on the signal even though there were no cars on
the road behind them. “Where do you want me to park?”

“
At
the gas pump.”

Once
the SUV slowed to a stop at the only pump, she snatched the keys from
the ignition before climbing out. She quickly slipped her gun into
her tote bag hanging on her arm. The wind picked up, a sudden gust
pushed a discarded newspaper across the pavement startling her. Not
sure if the place could get anymore creepier, she walked over to his
side of the vehicle and motioned for him to get out.

“
Fill
up the tank while I get clothes out of the trunk.” She patted
the bag on her arm. “The gun is right here. Don’t try
anything.”

“
You
won’t shoot me.” His voice sounded a little cocky. Too
much for his own good.

“
Don’t
underestimate me, Mikolas Russo.” Her hand flung up to her open
mouth as she if could take the words back. Or prevent any more from
flopping out. Heat rushed to her cheeks as tears sprung to her eyes.
She whirled around to block his view of her reaction to what she’d
said. The words slid out so fluently, she had no other choice but to
question the truth in them. Had her father’s trust become more
important than the deep rooted love she had for Mik? It must be or
she wouldn’t have been able to say that sentence without much
effort.

Goosebumps
popped up all over her arms as she flipped the back open and began to
rummage through the clothes she had packed. Unless she could turn
things around in her favor, Mik would most likely hate her before
this whole ordeal ended.

Spotting
the black fabric of her favorite lounge shirt, she grabbed the sleeve
and yanked it out it out of the suitcase, planning to wear it under
an outfit to add extra warmth. She stuffed the outfit into her tote
and remembered the Glock hidden inside.

Damn,
what could she do with Mik’s gun? If she continued to carry it
in her tote, he was bound to get it back in his possession sooner or
later. He wouldn’t have the time to search through the
suitcases without her noticing him. While he had his back turned
toward her, she unzipped the nearest one and tucked it in a side
pocket.

“
Cold?”
she asked, slamming the trunk shut.

He
nodded his dark head, gave a squeeze to the gas nozzle before putting
it back into the holder on the tank.

“
I
have a sweatshirt for you. It’s mine from school, but I bought
it from the men’s department.” She tossed the shirt at
him and watched as he slipped it over his head. “Better?”

“
Thanks.”
He stuffed his fists in the pockets of his slacks. “It smells
like your perfume.”

Embarrassed,
she broke eye contact, and started toward the old building. “I
swear it’s clean.”

“
I
believe you.”

“
I
wanted to grab some clothes for you, and tried to figure out a way,
but couldn’t get into your house.” Gabrielle sighed. “I
don’t even know what you wear on weekends. I’ve only seen
you in business-casual.” Gabrielle felt her toughness quickly
disappear. Stop, she reminded herself, be tough like the tip sheet
had instructed. “Come on. I need to change.”

Mik
stopped walking and turned to her. His mouth dropped open, revealing
his bottom row of perfect white teeth. “Like us both in the
bathroom while you dress?”

“
Yes.”
She let out a bubbly laugh. “What do you think I meant?”

“
I
um… don’t think it’s a good… um…
idea,” he stammered as he took a step back in the direction of
the SUV.

His
reaction startled her, and left her to doubt his interest in her once
again. There wasn’t any time to stress over his attraction, or
lack of, to her at the moment. To keep the control, she said, “And
I’m the one with a gun so you’ll do it anyway. Let’s
go.”

She
walked a few steps behind him. The distance was far enough away,
she’d be able to whip the gun out if he tried to run. And
unless he ran into the woods, there weren’t many places to
hide. So far, the area seemed deserted, and she hoped it stayed that
way even though the blackness of night made her skin prick.

“
Um,
Gabi?” His steps slowed.

“
Please
don’t ask me one more question about where we’re going or
why we’re doing this. I’ll tell you everything later.”
She needed to keep him walking and quiet because she didn’t
know how long she’d be able to keep this amount of strength up
to get him to the cabin.

“
I
wasn’t going to ask about any of that.” He stopped
walking as he reached the edge of the building and glanced back at
her. “Don’t you think we should pay first? If we don’t
then we’ll look suspicious.”

Tears
of frustration and fatigue welled in her eyes again. Finding a way to
sleep needed to be next on her priority list or she’d be a
blubbering mess and might as well give this up now. No matter how
much she didn’t want to, she wiped the tears from her eyes, and
said, “You’re right. Let’s pay before we go back
there.”

A
bell chimed as Mik pulled the door open and held it open for
Gabrielle. She frowned as she stepped into the small convenience
store. Half of the florescent lights were burned out while several
flickered repeatedly threatening to leave them in total darkness at
any moment. She glanced at the racks of food and wondered if any
would even be safe to eat any of the items the store had for sale.
Beyond that, this dingy, over-stocked store would provide a perfect
opportunity for Mik to gain control of this situation.

“
Mik?”
She whispered as she followed him to the counter, trying to stay
close to him even though she was the armed one and would be perfectly
fine defending herself. But there was something about him that made
her feel secure.

“
Yeah?”
He half turned toward her.

“
I
don’t know how much food is at the cabin. Do you want anything
from here?” She glanced back to the racks of snacks, hoping he
didn’t try to escape. All he had to do was tip one flimsy rack
over onto her and make a run for the door, leaving her stranded in
the mountains.

A
curtain separating the store from a storage room slid aside for a
small, old man to come through. “Good evening,” he said
as he shuffled across the dirty linoleum floor to the cash register.

“
Good
evening, sir.” Mik grabbed three large bags of chips, a spicy
pepperoni stick, and a two liter bottle of cola while Gabrielle
continued to follow him around, making sure not to be on the opposite
side of any shelves.

The
man pushed his glasses up the bridge of his pointy nose and smiled a
big toothless grin. “Got some gas, did yah?”

“
We
sure did. Snacks, too.” Gabrielle grabbed some cheese sticks
from the refrigerated section along with her own bag of chips, but
tried to keep her eyes on Mik. As she approached the counter, she
asked, “Do you have a bathroom we can use?”

“
Not
from around here, are yah?” The man slowly pushed the prices
into the out-dated register.

“
Nope.
We didn’t realize how cold it would be up here and would like
to change into something a little warmer,” Mik explained.

She
inhaled, trying to calm her nerves, and slowly exhaled as she waited
for the clerk’s response. She had been trying to act normal but
had sticking to Mik like glue worked against her?

“
It’s
around back and unlocked. On a honeymoon or something?” One eye
squinted shut as he stared at them.

“
How
could you tell?” Mik pulled her to him, the tote holding the
gun crunched tightly between their bodies, making her pulse race.

“
It’s
clear as the stars in the sky that you two are in love. Couldn’t
miss it for nothing.” He looked at the register and then back
at them. “seventy-twenty-two.”

Mik
planted a kiss on her cheek before handing the man the total amount
of money due. “Have a nice night.”

Heat
pumped through Gabrielle from the physical contact between Mik and
herself. His embrace had been totally unexpected and she wanted more
of it. And him kissing her cheek? Nice touch even though it left her
rattled to the core. She pulled out of his arms to turn toward the
door.

“
Where
you headed?” The old man called as Mik and Gabrielle walked
away. “Did you hear the weather report?”

Ignoring
any further questions of the cashier, Gabrielle held the door open
for Mik as he carried the bags. “Damn, that guy sure was nosy,”
she said once the door shut behind him.

“
I
know. Gabi, did you check the weather report for this area?”

“
Don’t
worry. The weather will be fine.” She hadn’t checked and
now realized she should have but could never tell him that. No way.
She needed to pretend this whole thing had been thoroughly planned.
If he knew of one crack in the planning, he would twist it into his
favor, ending the entire plan.

Gabrielle
blinked her eyes, trying to adjust to the darkness, as they walked
around the side of the store. Her hands trembled as they stepped into
deeper darkness. She hated the black of night and reached for Mik’s
hand but drew back and crossed her arms over her chest instead. There
were no lights in the back even though the clerk had claimed the
bathroom as being located back here. She’d thought things had
turned to her advantage with the bathroom being located out of the
view of anyone, but in total darkness? Chills crept through her as
she took a step closer to Mik looking for a sense of protection from
him. The thought would’ve made her laugh if the place wasn’t
so creepy.

A
bare light bulb flickered and cast very little, but much appreciated,
light next to the bathroom door. Mik kicked at the pile of boxes
littering the walkway, sending a black creature skittering out from
under the box. Gabrielle screeched while grabbing a hold of Mik’s
arm.

Mik
let out a roar of laughter. “Scared of cats now, Gabi?”

“
It’s
not funny,” Gabrielle snapped, glaring at the red-eyed, mangy
feline watching her from under the tree. Her heart pounded as she
waited for it to jump out and bite her. She could picture herself
rushing into the nearest ER for a tetanus shot. Not good and
certainly against the plans.

Mikolas
twisted the knob. The rusty hinges screeched in protest with a groan
as he pushed the door open. He reached in to flick on the light.
“Might’ve been better to not be able to see this place,”
he mumbled.

He
stepped through the threshold first and crossed his arms over his
chest. Sticking her head in to have a peek, she scrunched up her face
at the foul odor. He was right, the place looked disgusting. The
toilet paper-clogged toilet threatened looked to overflow at any
second onto the dirt crusted linoleum floor. Either the sudden
intrusion of the light or their presence freaked out a giant
cockroach who tried to dig its way through a wall.

“
I
think I would rather freeze to death than step in there, Mik.”

“
No,
you’re not. Get it in here and shut the door. Lock it, too,”
he ordered. Obviously he forgot who the boss was here.

“
Why?
We’re in the middle of no-where,” she scoffed, shivering
as a gust of wind blew past her. “And I’m not coming in
until you squish that nasty bug.”

“
This
middle of no-where reminds me of the location horror movies are
filmed. Ever watch those?” he snapped back. He stomped over to
where the cockroach continued its task, raised his foot, and pressed
his black dress-shoe down on the gross creature. He turned back to
face her. “Happy now? Come inside.”

“
What
are you afraid of? We’re the bad guys, Mik,” she said
softly. Following his instructions anyway, she shut the door behind
her and pushed the button lock. The way the bathroom looked, the lock
probably didn’t have the ability to keep a person out anyway.

“
I
don’t want to see you get undressed, Gabi,” he said with
flushed cheeks. He walked over the corner of the room.

“
What?”
she blurted before she could stop the words from intruding into the
conversation. “Why not?”