I saw her put her elbow on the armrest and begin gnawing at her thumb nail absently, her mind obviously turning over the rapid change of events since our paths met.
“Penny for your thoughts?” I prodded.
“Hmm? I’m just wondering where Raul is and when the hell we’re going to stop long enough for you to tell me what is going on.” She didn’t look at me, but the tone of her voice let me know she was both worried and angry. “I mean, how do I know that anything you’ve told me is true? You could just be lying to me. To Raul too, for that matter.”
Her accusation made me furious, and I jerked the wheel and slammed on the brakes, pulling to a sudden stop by the side of the road, a cloud of dust rising from the gravel shoulder. “Listen to me, right now. I have had enough of you questioning my motives and my intelligence. If I’m going to keep us both safe and somehow manage to save Raul, you’re going to have to shut up and do what I tell you. I’ve been running from these monsters a long, long time. The only way I have survived is with my wits. You’re going to have to trust me or you will find yourself being tortured by them, and believe me when I tell you that the worst that you can imagine does not even begin to describe the horrors they will put you through if you’re caught by them. Am I clear?”
Eyes wide, she stared at me as though I’d slapped her in the face. I saw her gulp and then nod slowly.
“Good. And don’t ask me about what they might or might not be doing to Raul. I don’t want to think about it. If I stop for even a moment to be afraid for him, it will put us both in jeopardy. I’m going to save him. Period. And you are going to help me. Got it?”
“Yes,” she squeaked.
