Sour Cherry(29)

I didn’t wait for his answer and turned my back on him. Cooper called my name several times as I slid further into the crowd, his voice tugging at the pain taking my heart’s place.

He’d made his way through the barrier I’d constructed specifically for non-committal situations. I’d gone soft and closed my eyes to the real world. I wished we’d never had sex. Now that I knew what I’d be missing, I had a sudden desire to go back to the moment when I didn’t know who he was, and the only thing between us was just lust. For a handful of moments, including those precious hours in each other’s arms, he’d been mine and we’d had a future.

Bastard.

I wasn’t paying attention to the people around me as I made my way off Freemont. The crowd had served its purpose and so had Cooper. I had to remember that. I’d gone to him for help and he’d lived up to it. Nothing more. I wiped the falling tears from my face and when I rounded the next corner, I froze.

“Cherry!” Big and Blonde smiled at me with a wide grin. Wrapping her arms around my gangly frame, she nearly squeezed me to death with a hug. She pulled away. The snot and tears she’d practically drowned me in upon our first meeting were gone, but I suddenly became very uncomfortable in her grasp. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”

I blinked twice to make sure I wasn’t seeing things. “What are you doing here?”

“I came to pay you the rest of your money.” She released me. It was hard to imagine the outfit Blondie wore could even hold her bright red lipstick, let alone a single dollar bill. The black Lycra pantsuit fit skin-tight against her curves. A pair of red pumps caught my eyes and I was instantly reminded of Olivia Newton John’s outfit in the last scene of Grease. Only Blondie didn’t have the jacket. It wouldn’t have helped to keep all that woman in, but it wouldn’t have hurt either.

The money she’d given me exactly a week ago warmed against my own chest as I thought her statement over. She’d paid me to beat Cooper to a pulp. Obviously I didn’t have it in me at the time. Now, however, I could imagine giving him a swift kick in the ass. “What are you talking about? I didn’t do anything.”

“Sure you did! I saw the whole thing.” Big and Blonde took hold of my hand, lacing her fingers through mine. “Come on, I’ll show you.”

Dread settled in the pit of my stomach. I tried to shake her hand off, but to no avail. Her grip was strong and I wasn’t. “Where are we going?”

“Over here.” She dragged me behind her into a side alley behind one of the hotels. About ten feet in, she stopped over a pile of clothing. The odor of rotting food and rats penetrated my nose and I could barely focus. Blondie kept hold of my hand, but motioned to the pile at my feet. I worked to concentrate and upon closer inspection, I realized it wasn’t just clothing.

I nearly screamed as recognition pushed through the haziness of the last few seconds. “Cooper!”

Blood trickled down one side of his head and I lunged toward him. Blondie held me back with an arm across my neck and another over my mouth.

“Do exactly as I say, and we’ll let you live,” she said in my ear.

My eyes remained glued on the man I’d turned my back on a little over ten minutes ago, the man I’d let myself fall in love with, and I shuddered with dread. A physical pain at the sight of his battered face made my stomach roll as I imagined what had happened to him after I left. Did he call out my name when they attacked him and I’d ignored it? Did they know he was CIA?

“You have no idea what you’ve done,” I whimpered through an ever-tightening grasp on my larynx. The tears I’d refused to shed moments ago slid down my face as my attacker pulled me away from Cooper. I had no idea where she’d take me or why she was doing this and I swung my fist into her face as hard as I could. My knuckles connected with her nose and she let go for a brief second. Pain radiated down my arm as I pivoted back toward Cooper. I couldn’t concentrate on how much my hand hurt. I had to get him out of here somehow.

Blondie dropped to one knee, her hands cradling her nose. “Stupid bitch! You broke my nose.”

“Yeah, payback’s a bitch,” I bit out. I tried to shake the pain off as I lunged toward the man pulling Cooper over his shoulder. Before I could get far, however, a black bag was pulled over my head and a strong grip pulled me back. I screamed into the fabric and kicked backward as hard as I could.

My foot missed the target and suddenly I couldn’t move my feet at all. Somebody grabbed my ankles. “Get her in the van,” a male voice ordered. Mexican from his accent.