Page 68 of Redemption in the Dark (The Righteous 5)
“Normally, yes, but I had to disable a lot of the AI capabilities, including removing a tracking device. I can't turn the AI on at the moment, other than bare essentials like auto-drive.” Wolf rested back in the driver’s seat and tried to think about all of this logically, but nothing came to mind.
“So where are we going,” Maeve asked as the minutes ticked past.
“A place way off the grid. It’s perfect since it’s not in my name or anyone in the family’s name. Only one other person knew of its location, and he’s dead.”
Wolf looked into the rear-view mirror at Duke, who was still sitting like they were chauffeuring him around and a little smile pulled at the corner of his mouth.
“We’re going to Jimmy’s cabin.”
Maeve had no idea when she fell asleep, but Wolf gently shook her and called her name. She lifted her head from where it lay on his arm and realized that she must have been cuddling it the entire time. His fingers were still linked with hers while she’d been using the rest of his arm like a body pillow. She blinked a few times and looked around as the sun lit up the inside of the vehicle.
“How long was I out?”
“A few hours.”
She didn’t want to think how good it felt to be still holding his hand, but the steady warmth of his fingers curled around her own seemed so right. If she was honest with herself, nothing had felt right until him.
Every person she’d slept with had been an empty shell of an experience that gave her the feeling of control in her mind. Control over her body to do whatever she wanted and maybe even prove to herself that the body was nothing more than skin and bones. A vessel to give herself pleasure, a thing to be used and used hard because life was short. Everyone died in the end. With him, it was different, she was different, and she saw the world through a different lens.
She flicked her gaze up to Wolf, and it was clear that she could tell herself whatever she wanted. But the truth was she’d been allowing what happened between them to affect everything she had done from that moment on, so she’d been playing make-believe with her own mind and body. Morry had tried to teach her that, but for whatever reason, the connection to this man and his calm spirit helped her to see the light for the first time.
“Are you okay,” Wolf asked. His voice was soft as he ran his thumb over her arm. Reaching up, he cupped her cheek and wiped away a tear sliding down her cheek. “Why are you crying?”
Her lip curled up in a small smile as she reluctantly moved away from his arm.
“I’m good.” Releasing his hand, she wiped at her face. She hated to cry, and she’d done a whole lot of that over the last month. A month and a handful of days, but it felt like a lifetime and a single breath at the same time. “I’m just having a moment. Probably, the whole being chased by trained killer’s thing.”
She looked at the dense trees surrounding the small cottage and it was like Wolf had taken them back in time to when dinosaurs roamed the earth. The green was very dense, and the light shining through the window was from a small hole in the tall canopy. If there were other cabins around, you couldn’t see them—not even when you looked down the driveway that was so overgrown that other than the Hummer’s tire tracks, you wouldn’t even know the entrance existed.
“When you said you were taking us some place safe, I didn’t think you meant the middle of nowhere. This is the kind of place where horror movies start.”
“Well, I’m not an ax murderer, so you’re a step ahead.” He smiled at her, and she couldn’t stop from smiling back. “If I’d been planning on killing you, you would already be dead. Would’ve been super easy when I took you from the bar and carried you to the motel. I could’ve easily sliced your throat and left you in an alley.”
Her smile fell as she stared into his eyes. “Wow, that went dark quickly.”
“Yeah, it kinda did.” He shrugged and rolled out his shoulders. “I guess it’s good they sent me after you instead of someone else.”
Wolf hopped out of the truck and let Duke out, but she sat there in shock. She hadn’t thought about it like that. If The Righteous had sent anyone else, she would already be buried in a hole or tossed in a lake, or… she shivered at the realization of just how close to death she’d really come.
Wolf opened the door for her and gave her a questioning look. Maeve knew he was wondering if she was alright but didn’t voice it this time. Stepping out, she stretched and realized that the cabin sat on the water’s edge.
“I wouldn’t go swimming. This area has a lot of alligators,” Wolf said as he calmly unpacked the Hummer. He’d brought a ton of weapons and what looked like a go-bag. “I also wouldn’t wander into the trees. There’s a lot of snakes.”
“So, in other words, stay inside or on the driveway?”
Wolf paused on his way up to the small porch and looked at her over his shoulder. “Yup, pretty much.”
“Why would someone want a cottage in a spot like this? I mean, isn’t the whole idea of a cabin to be able to swim, walk around, and relax?” Maeve followed Wolf up the two rickety wooden steps that creaked under her weight.
Wolf laughed.
“I asked the same thing when I first came here, but it has a strange mystic to it. Also, Jimmy loved to fish. He’d spend all day, every day, out on the water. Just him and his hovercraft boat.”
“You never talk about Jimmy. Will you tell me about him,” she asked, her tone tentative.
Wolf paused as he moved a ceramic alligator out of the way to uncover a key. “He was my best friend. Let me go in first, and I’ll make sure that no spiders have decided to move in.”
“Great. Trained assassins, alligators, snakes, and spiders, what’s next,” she mumbled under her breath.
