Hard Bastard(46)

“We need to think of a plan. There are plenty of other shitty motels around that we can stop at. We’ll figure it out.”

I nodded, leaning back in my chair.

Of course, it was my stupid curiosity that got me in trouble. Of course, it was my own damn fault for digging too deeply, for getting too obsessed. I couldn’t just let it go and prosecute the guy I had in front of me, I had to be stupid and go after the whole damn mob. Rick was probably on their payroll and sold me out the second he could.

That bastard. He probably knew he was getting me killed, but he didn’t care so long as it protected his own ass and kept the payments coming. I was a pawn the whole time, and there was nothing I could do about it.

Except the feds were still interested in the Petrov family, and I did have a lot of proof that showed something shady was going down in the city. Maybe that was the key to all of this.

I didn’t really know. All I knew was that I had to follow Gage’s orders from now on. I couldn’t go off on my own or make stupid moves like I already did. He was clearly pissed off at me, and I deserved it. I dragged him into this and I was the one that kept fucking things up for him, making things worse.

I almost wished he’d take the half a million dollars and leave me. At least then I could feel okay about one good thing coming from all this.

Either way, I was going to have to live with my stupid mistakes, and try not to let them drag Gage down any further than they already had.





Chapter 18





Gage





We drove fast away from the motel, putting as much distance between us and those dead assholes as possible. I hadn’t recognized them, but I knew the kind of guys they were: young and desperate to get on Vadik’s good side.

I couldn’t believe they found us out there. According to Sadie’s story, she left the room to walk to the diner, and that was when the car passed her. It must have been freak luck, or maybe Vadik had hundreds of cars out on the roads just like that one looking for us. Either way, I was angry with Sadie and myself for being so sloppy.

I shouldn’t have left her alone. She wasn’t used to this kind of thing and couldn’t really understand how important it was that she stay hidden away in the motel room for the time being. I was annoyed that she didn’t think and left anyway, but it was probably more my own fault than hers. She was just a civilian trying to survive this fucking ordeal, and I needed to be better about protecting her.

It was a close fucking call. I got back just in time to kill those two bastards before they could get inside and get their hands on her. I didn’t like that I had to kill two guys like that, especially two more mafia guys that were just doing their jobs, but it didn’t matter anymore. I was way too far gone for any of that.

There was no chance that I’d take Vadik’s proposal. I wasn’t going to sell her out for any amount of money no matter what Vadik said or did. Not after everything we’d shared together so far. I never really thought I’d feel this way about a woman ever again, and yet I couldn’t help myself. I was willing to go further than I ever thought possible for her and then some.

We had to find a new place to lay low. Other men might have gotten in their car and driven as far as possible away from Ashertown, but I wasn’t that kind of person. We had unfinished business, and the mob had taken this to the extreme. I wasn’t going to run away without at least knowing that they were hurting because of what I did to them.

“Where are we going?” Sadie asked me after an hour of driving.

“Right now, nowhere.”

“We’re just driving in circles?”

“More or less. I’m making sure we’re not being followed.”

She nodded. “Is that how you think they found us?”

“No. I think they just got lucky.”

She went quiet for a second. “I’m sorry, Gage.”

“It’s okay.”

“Really. I shouldn’t have left the room.”

“You shouldn’t have, but it doesn’t matter now. You’re safe.”

“Where will we go?”

“There are plenty of ratholes around Ashertown. We’ll pick one.”

“But what then?”

I shook my head. “I’m not thinking that far right now. We need to get to safety, and then we can worry about it.”

She was quiet for a few minutes as I continued driving. I didn’t know what was going through her head, but I could see that she was nervous and angry.

She had every right to be. One day she was doing her job, and the next the mob was trying to kill her. She wasn’t equipped to handle this sort of fucking shit. Without me, she’d be dead in a ditch somewhere, and Vadik would continue rolling over Ashertown.