Hate or Love?

Chapter Nineteen

Jayce didn't stop to rest, and when he came to a stop in Boa Vista, at the gas station they were meeting at, he had to wake Lucas up.

"We're here?" Lucas stretched, and Jayce nodded. He got out of the car, Lucas not far behind as they waited. A little red buggy pulled in, and a blonde woman came out, sunglasses and a white sundress, and red flip flops.

"Jayce? Is that you?" she called, and Jayce smiled in relief, waving her over. She approached them, and Jayce could see Lucas watching her curiously.

"Hey, Ella, long time no see." Jayce hugged her, and she hugged back.

"How've you been?" she asked, and he pulled away.

"So so. Everything's kind of crazy right now." Jayce turned to Lucas, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"I need you to protect Lucas." he looked at her, and she took her glasses off, looking at Jayce.

"I don't do that anymore." the friendly tone had dropped, and Jayce sighed softly.

"Come on, Echo-" he started, looking at her pleadingly.

"That's not my fucking name." she cut him off, a harsh glare accompanying her words. Her eyes were bright with fury, and he went quiet.

"Please, Ella." Jayce pleaded, and she went quiet.

"Echo?" Lucas questioned, and she looked at him, blinking a few times, her eyes glazing over momentarily.

"Ella, call her Ella." Jayce said softly, looking at the woman.

"What's his name?" she looked at Lucas, not moving.

"Lucas Ryder." Lucas answered before Jayce could, and Jayce was quiet, unsure of what was happening.

"He looks just like him, Jayce." Ella mumbled, studying Lucas. Lucas looked at Jayce nervously, and Jayce cleared his throat. Just like that, the glaze on her eyes vanished, and she looked at Jayce.

"I need you to protect him." Jayce repeated, and she went quiet for a moment.

"Fine. Is anyone after him?" she questioned, and Jayce turned to Lucas quickly.

"Go get your shit. Put it in her car." Jayce ordered, and Lucas left to do that. Jayce turned back to Ella, and she crossed her arms.

"Nobody is after him. Are you going to be okay?" Jayce put a hand on her arm, and she looked out at the parking lot, quiet for a moment.

"You know he looks like him, Jayce." Echo whispered, and Jayce was quiet, looking down at the ground.

"I'm sorry, I didn't think about him." Jayce hugged her, rubbing her back. She was quiet, leaning her head on his chest.

"It's been five years, you'd think I'd be over Hotel." she chuckled, and he frowned a little.

"It'll be okay." Jayce reassured her, and she pulled away. Lucas went back over to them.

"Everything's loaded up." he told them, and Jayce nodded.

"Alright. I'll be in the car. Take care, Jayce. I'll be in touch." Ella hugged him one more time, before going back to her car. Jayce turned to Lucas, smiling nervously.

"Alright, Mr. Ryder, this is it." Jayce leaned on his car, and Lucas chuckled softly, shaking his head a little.

"Man, I am definitely changing my last name after this shit." Lucas sighed, wiping his face with his hand.

"It's been really fun, even if I tried to be professional. This whole thing has been fun." Jayce held out a hand to shake, and Lucas hugged him tightly, putting his head on his shoulder.

"Thank you." Lucas said softly, and Jayce was quiet, hugging him back. They stood like that for a moment, before Lucas pulled away.

"Be safe okay? I wanna see you and Quinn again." Lucas joked, but Jayce could tell he was being dead serious.

"I will." Jayce nodded, and they started walking towards Ella's car.

"Tell Quinn to stay safe too, I can't have her dying." Lucas said, and Jayce nodded again.

"Take care, Lucas." Jayce patted his shoulder once again, and opened the door for him.

"You too. Seriously, I know your job is all... guns and blood and craziness but... if you save Andreas..." Lucas stopped, and Jayce's eyes went to the ground. That word, if he saved Andreas, it rang in his head, and he couldn't stop thinking about it.

"When you save him," Lucas corrected himself, and Jayce nodded.

"Will you come back for me? Or am I on my own now?" Lucas inquired, and Jayce let out a breath, running a hand through his hair as he considered his options. Leaving Lucas alone meant that if Jayce didn't get the job done, he was at risk, and Jayce's job was to protect Lucas.

"I'll come back for you. You have to know that the job is done." Jayce offered him what he prayed was a reassuring smile, and Lucas smiled back, relief on his face.

"See you then." Lucas nodded, getting in the car. Jayce closed the door, and took a step back. Lucas' window rolled down, and he looked at Jayce.

"What if you don't come back?" Lucas asked, and Jayce's smile vanished, remembering that it wasn't going to be all sunshine and rainbows.

"If I don't come back, don't look for me. Hide. Stay safe. Ella will keep you safe." Jayce looked in at the woman, who nodded in confirmation.

"Don't you have family or something that would want to know what happened?" Lucas questioned frantically, and Jayce sighed softly.

"In the event that something happens to me on the job, I have a plan set in place with my boss. He knows what to do." Jayce reassured him, and Lucas was quiet for a moment, before ducking back in the car. Ella pulled away, and Jayce watched as they left, leaving him alone with his thoughts. His phone buzzed in his pocket, and he looked at it. A new file, from the same number. He opened the file, waiting for the video to load and then pressing play.

"Mr. Leuth!" Arthur was on screen, and behind him, Jayce could see Andreas and Quinn.

"We almost hit our twelve hour mark when she showed up on our doorstep!" Arthur went back to Quinn, putting a hand on her shoulder. She flinched away, and Andreas glared at Arthur, looking like he was ready to murder him. Jayce looked at the duo, finding Andreas didn't seem to have any new injuries, but Quinn's nose was bleeding.

"You better hurry. Or we'll hunt you both down and make you watch us kill them. Then we'll kill you both ourselves." Arthur threatened, and he took a step back from the two tied to chairs.

"Go ahead, show Jayce what'll happen if we don't get him and Lucas." Arthur said to Barrett, and Barrett nodded at someone off screen. Jayce watched, holding his breath, as ten men walked on screen, and Arthur went towards the camera.

"Best not to be late." Arthur winked, and Jayce saw the men start swinging at Andreas. Arthur blocked Quinn, and Jayce felt ill as he thought of her getting hurt, which was funny because she truly irritated him. They both irritated him. The video ended, and Jayce turned his phone off, pinching the bridge of his nose.

He was all alone now, and it was almost overwhelming as he got back in the car. He tried to relax, tried to breath, putting his phone down and trying to decide what to do. Lucas was safe, so he no longer had to worry about that. Next was getting Andreas and Quinn to safety.

"God, I can't believe I'm doing this." Jayce muttered, starting the car and pulling away, determined to get to Peru.