Canary by Tijan

54

Ash

Twelve hours later

We were in Nogales, on the Arizona side when the call came in.

I answered, knowing it was one of Raize’s burners. “Are you okay?”

Loud and harsh wind thundered over the phone first, then I heard him shouting. “You need to move. Now! Marco has men on the US side and they’re looking for you.”

I bolted upright from where I’d been sitting. The phone was clenched against my head, but I drew both Jake and Cavers’ attention. I stood. “What’s going on?” I didn’t wait, already waving to both of them and pointing to our bags. I said to them, “We have to go now.”

“Now?”

“Now!”

Jake clipped his head, but Cavers hadn’t questioned me. He immediately grabbed a bag and threw open the door, running the bags out. I needed to free up a hand, so I plugged in a bluetooth earpiece that Jake had insisted we buy and stuffed my phone into my pocket.

“I’m here,” I said to Raize as I ran to grab my things, and what items he left behind.

Gus started barking in the background.

I asked, “You got you—her?”

I winced, looking, but Cavers wasn’t in the room and Jake didn’t seem like he’d noticed I almost slipped. I didn’t know when or how or where or even if Raize was going to fill them in, but that was not my decision.

“We got her, but as soon as we went through the border, an alert sounded. Abram’s phone went crazy with texts. They know you’re in Nogales and I’m sure they’re thinking she’s with you.”

We had a cartel team heading our way. Lovely.

I was finishing grabbing the last of the weapons he’d left behind, my bag thrown over my back.

Cavers dashed in, grabbed what bags were left and Jake took Gus.

I stood in the opened doorway, and turned back. “We need to clean this room.”

Cavers came back in, throwing bleach everywhere. He yelled over his shoulder, “Go! Get in the truck.”

I did, hurrying in.

Jake was in the driver’s seat. He saw my bluetooth. “Is he still there?”

I nodded.

Jake ripped the earpiece from me and put it in his. “Boss. What’s going on?”

Since they were talking, I stashed my bags into the back area.

Gus was standing in the truck's bed, his head through the opened window. He started licking my face.

Then Cavers ran out, threw himself into the back with Gus, and pounded the side. “GO!”

Jake bit out a curse, but punched the acceleration and we were off.

He started yelling, driving at the same time. “Where?”

He swung through a parking lot, and soared over another one and then we were fishtailing and going in the opposite direction.

I cursed, seeing police. “Stop, Jake!” I pointed him out.

Jake cursed, too, but immediately hit another alley just as the cop was turning the corner. We were far enough up he might not have seen us, but just in case, Jake swung into another parking lot and turned onto the next street, going in the complete opposite direction. This time, he was moving at a more normal speed.

Cavers hit the window behind us.

I turned around to see him shooting Jake a glare. “What the fuck?” He had a tight hold on Gus, who was trying to break free.

“Cop,” I told him.

He nodded, moving back and settling in once more.

Jake mouthed to me, “Sorry” but he was still listening to Raize. Ten minutes later, he said, “Okay. We’re on the freeway.” He motioned for me to take the piece. “Boss wants you now.”

I fitted it back in my ear. “Where are you?”

“We’re outside of the city. You guys are meeting us north of town, at the second rest stop. It’s a drive so tell Cavers to settle in. No cops. Nothing. Got it?”

“Got it.”

He hung up as I was turning around to relay to Cavers what Raize said.

A moment later, he was sliding down so no passing cars could see a guy holding a dog in the back of a car and call it in for state patrol.

I put the bluetooth piece away, glaring at Jake. “Dude.”

He grimaced. “I know. I’m sorry. I heard Cartel and panicked.” He tossed Cavers a quick look. “You think he wiped that room down adequately?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know, but we didn’t do anything. Let’s hope it gets missed.”

He frowned. “Are we talking cops or cartel?”

“I don’t think cartels can wipe for any DNA traces.”

“You’d be surprised what they can do.”

True, but I didn’t want to know.

I said, sliding down and trying to get comfortable, “We’re in one piece. Raize said they’re in one piece. Let’s just get there and figure out what to do.”

“He said, ‘We got her.’”

“What?”

Jake was watching me, studying me before he turned back to the road. “He said ‘we’ when it should’ve been ‘I got her.’ Who’s with him?”

I got quiet. But, dammit. “Why are you asking?”

He frowned again, then his eyebrows shot up. “You kidding me? We’re back to this paranoia shit? I thought we were over that.”

“If it’s someone coming with Raize, then that’s all you need to know. So I gotta ask again, why are you asking?”

“I’m asking to see if you know, and it’s evident you do. You knew before he took off or are you just as surprised as me? Our boss isn’t one to work with someone random.”

I still didn’t know why he was asking. “Interrogate Raize when we see him. I might know who it is, but I don’t know any of the specifics and I don’t feel comfortable about you asking me all of this. You either trust Raize or you don’t.”

I was studying him as I said that last part, and he got tight around the mouth.

That was it.

He didn’t trust Raize.

Why didn’t he trust Raize? When had this changed?

Then a different thought occurred to me. “Is this because of your woman?”

He jerked, his head whipping to mine. “What?”

It was about his woman.

This wasn’t good, not at all.

“Are you not going to cut her loose?”

His jaw clenched, and his hand tightened over the steering wheel. He jerked up a shoulder, roughly. “I don’t know. It’s probably the wrong time to be having this conversation, considering we’re running from a cartel. You know?”

“Just don’t do anything stupid. Please talk to me or Cavers before you do?”

He sent me a restrained grin. “Gus count?”

I grinned. “Maybe.”

He chuckled, but it was strained.

We gotto the rest stop, parking on one side of the building.

Jake started to reach for Gus’ leash, but I got there first. “I’ll walk him. You guys go ahead.”

Cavers shot me a frown, but headed inside right away.

Jake was looking around. “Single woman looking like you out here isn’t a good idea.”

“Go. I’ll be fine.”

Jake had no clue what Gus was capable of. I did.

He nodded, his hand massaging the back of his neck as he went after Cavers.

I took Gus to a patch of grass, set up on a small hill so I could see who was coming in and out.

It wasn’t long before I saw Raize was heading toward me from the opposite side of the hill. I hadn’t noticed them parking.

Abram and a girl I was assuming was Raize’s sister were walking for the rest stop. Abram had his arm around her, tucked into his side.

I watched them, seeing how her head rested against his chest a second and his hand dipped, rubbing a spot on her back.

That was… interesting.

“Guys inside?” Raize got to me, and bent down, brushing a kiss over my lips before straightening, Gus’ leash now in his hand.

I nodded and went back to watching Abram and Raize’s sister.

She was tiny. Petite. Long black hair. She was in a dress and sandals.

I wouldn’t expect those kinds of clothes if she’d been planning on running.

Raize looked where I was looking, and guessed accurately what I was thinking. “You got extra clothes she could borrow?”

I had to laugh at that, too. “Yeah.”

“Why’s that funny?”

“Because not long ago, I was the girl you had to take shopping when I had nothing.”

“Oh. Yeah.”

I gave him an appraisal. He sounded tired, and he looked tired, but there was more. “What is it?”

He focused on me again, blinking a few times. “What?”

“Something extra is going on with you. What is it?”

He didn’t answer right away, his eyes trailing ahead even though Abram and his sister were inside by now. Cavers had come out, and he was heading our way.

“Just… we didn't have time to talk. We got her and took off right away. There was the car ride, but she was sobbing the whole time. And she wouldn’t let me comfort her so Abram held her while I drove. I have no clue how to handle her.”

Oh.

I reached for his hand, giving it a squeeze as Gus squatted to poop.

I ran my thumb over the back of his hand. “She’s not thinking clear. That’s all.”

He tried to smile back, but it was taking effort from him. He ran his thumb over the back of my hand instead, and our hands fell apart as Cavers got to us.

“Boss. Nice to see you alive.” He gestured to Gus. “Want me to take him?”

Raize handed over the leash. “We’ll be a bit.”

“Got it.”

I didn’t know if I should mention Jake, but then it didn’t matter. Jake was coming out of the restrooms. Seeing us, he headed right for us. He skimmed over Raize, then looked for his truck.

“Boss,” he greeted with a small upward chin lift.

Raize’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Give us a second.”

“Okay.”

That was the exchange, but I looked back, noting Jake’s tension. His shoulders were rigid. When I turned back, Raize had been watching me. “You want to fill me in?”

I opened my mouth, but then Abram was coming our way.

I shut it, just as he got to us, looking toward the women’s restroom.

“Hey,” he breezed, then did a slight twitch as he realized who I was. His eyebrows dipped in. “You look different.”

“Different hair.”

“Ah.” His eyes lit up with comprehension. “No offense, but I liked the blonde.”

I grinned. “Me, too. I’m going back.”

Raize gave me a soft grin, before losing it. He asked Abram, “How is she?”

Abram gave him a wary and tired look, a very tired look. “It was bad for her at times.”

“What do you mean?”

Abram was eyeing the women’s door. “Let’s talk later, yeah? Get to safety and then start debriefing all this shit because bruh, it’s a lot of shit we gotta digest.”

Raize grunted, then nodded to me. “Check on her, but don’t approach.”

“Got it.”

He went his way and I went mine, and when I went in, I almost walked into the wall.

The girl standing at the mirror, staring at herself, was Raize’s twin. Or the female version of him.

She was smaller, which I already knew. Her hair was dark and it hung limply down to the middle of her back, but her eyes were dead. Her cheekbones were gaunt. She had beautiful brown eyes, the same full lips as her brother, but her face was a little more rounded than Raize. His was hard with a firm and square jawline, but with the eyes, the mouth, the cheekbones, she was Raize’s blood.

The guys would figure it out the second they saw her. All hell would break loose after.

I suppressed a shiver, not wanting to get ahead of myself with those fireworks.

I forced myself to keep going, into a stall and sat, but I didn’t pee. I didn’t know why I was waiting, but she hadn’t moved when I went past her. She choked out a sob before the water turned on, but when she turned it off, she didn’t let out another sound. She washed her hands, grabbed a towel, and slipped outside. All quiet-like, or as quiet as she could be.

I thought back.

I had stopped and stared at her. She hadn’t noticed. Those eyes weren’t even seeing herself, I didn’t think.

Was the dead staring thing a family trait?

I was thinking it wasn’t.