“Good thing we’re not going there. Come on, pack it up.”
She took her sweet-ass time saying goodbye to the woman and then fussed with the straps on her shoulders.
Impatiently, I looked at her. “What’s the problem?”
“The straps are too long. I need to take my bag off. Hang on.”
I stepped in front of her and yanked her closer to me by the straps of her bag, liking her little gasp a bit too much. I focused on tightening the straps on her bag. “How’s that?”
She sounded breathless. “Fine, thank you.”
I motioned for her to walk.
Her look was glazed with reproach. “Are you always in a rush?”
“Are you always this slow?”
“I just did all my shopping for five days in thirteen minutes. I don’t think slow should be a word used to describe me.”
I grabbed her arm to move her along faster and tried not to notice how soft her upper arm was. “Walk and talk.”
“Bossy.”
When we got back to the room, I didn’t get undressed, nor did I remove my guns. I simply lay down on the top of my bed, with my boots still on, and shut my eyes.
“Are you sleeping like that?”
“Yes,” I lied.
“I wanted to get my bag organized.”
“Go for it.”
“Will you shoot me if I’m moving around?”
“Make it quick.”
I lay there with my eyes shut, listening as she rustled through her stuff. I cracked open my eyes and watched as she rolled her clothes and tucked her new purchases carefully into her bag. I figured someone like her would snub her nose at the clothes she had bought today, but she seemed to be taking care of the items. As long as I might live, I would never understand the opposite sex. I shut my eyes when she moved across the room to hang her bag on one of the hooks on the wall.
“Hit the lights,” I growled.
The lights went out, and I could hear her undress in the dark. Her bed springs creaked as she climbed into the small cot beside mine. “What happens tomorrow?”
“I need sleep,” I growled. “Quiet.”
She took her sweet-ass time falling asleep. I lay there, fighting my own fatigue, while she tossed and turned. Finally, her breath steadied and slowed. I waited fifteen minutes more before I used all my willpower to drag myself out of bed. Without making a sound, I grabbed my bag and silently let myself out of the room.
For her own protection, I needed to make sure that no one realized she was alone. Instead of going down to the lobby, I moved up the stairs and out onto the third-story roof. I looked over the edge. There was no easy way down, but the building next door was only two meters over and probably my best bet. Starting from the middle of the roof, I did a running leap over the edge. I felt my body fly down one story, and then the roof was coming up beneath my feet. Pure instinct made me tuck hard and roll into my landing. I rolled into a crouch and paused. I waited, listening, but there seemed to be no one around. I spotted an exterior fire escape. Another minute and I was down on street level.
I crossed the street and stood in the shadows for another twenty minutes and watched the front of our hotel. I saw no movements, no unsavory characters entering the hotel. I was almost certain that no one had seen me leave. Regardless, I was taking a risk leaving her alone in the room—I needed to move fast. I stuck to the shadows while I quickly walked down to the marina.
As expected, there was a small outdoor bar for the fishermen across the street from the wharf. Filled with locals only, the place fell silent as I walked across the courtyard and took a seat with my back to the other patrons.
The bartender moved over to me. “Can I help you?”
I slid him a hundred-dollar bill. “A round of drinks for everyone in your establishment.”
He eyed the money with suspicion. “What do you want?”
“If anyone is interested in giving me a private cruise to Vietnam, they should come talk to me. Otherwise, they should just enjoy their drink and I’ll leave.”
He gave a short nod. “Okay.”
Twenty minutes later he came back. “A lot of people enjoyed their drink.”
No one had come forward, but that didn’t mean no one was interested. I just needed to show I had money to spend. I pushed another hundred toward him. “Maybe they want a second round?”
This time he smiled. “I think that’s a good idea.”
It took three rounds of drinks before he came back to me. “Skipper might be interested. He has a boat at the end of the dock. You would do better if you brought him a gift.”
“Whatever you think best.”
I knew he was taking advantage of the situation, but that’s how the game was played. I didn’t take it personally. He charged me double for two big bottles of rum and then sent me on my way.
The rickety dock was long and narrow, and it bobbed with each wave swell. I lurched my way down to the end, toward the lone boat that still had a light on.
I moved toward the center of the dock and walked heavily. “Hello? Anyone there?”
A head popped up. The young blond guy stood with a revolver pointed at my chest.
“Nice gun,” I said and lifted the bottles into the air. “Bartender said you might be thirsty.”
He nodded and spoke with an Australian accent. “Put them down on my boat.”
I set them down on the edge of his boat and then lifted both of my hands above my head before I slowly stood up. “You’re all about security. I appreciate that.”
“Heard you needed something.”
“You heard correctly.”
“What do you need?”
“Safe passage to Vietnam. Food, water and a place to sleep.”
“How many?”
“Myself and a woman.”
“Are you carrying any contraband?”
“Just a few guns. We’re not smuggling anything. We’ve lost our passports.”
He stared at me for a long moment and then lowered his weapon. “Figured.”
“Can you help us out?”
“When do you want to leave?”
“Tomorrow morning.”
“Five thousand cash, which will include the cost of supplies and bribes, but I’m gonna need one thousand up front.”
I wasn’t in a position to negotiate, and we both knew it. I handed him a roll of hundreds and watched as he counted it. “How long will this trip take?”
“With the water levels the way they are now, and waiting for the right guard at the border, roughly eight hours, maybe a bit longer.”
“We need bottled water and decent food.”
“I’ll take care of you.”
The guy was a complete amateur, but I didn’t have a lot of options. “What time will you be ready?”
He looked at his watch. “I’ll be ready by 6 a.m.”
I checked my watch. That was four hours from now. “See you then.”
I silently let myself into the room. I stood and listened in the dark. Over the hum of the AC unit, I could hear Blaire’s steady breath.
My watch read 2:30 a.m. If I was lucky, I’d get a solid three hours of shut-eye before we had to move out.