She of the Sea

27 of 53 - A Temporary Hideout

"What was that back there?" Rafe asked as he peeled out of the parking lot and drove them away from the restaurant.

Cassie couldn't control the trembling in her hands. It had been easy to forget the danger after being undiscovered and safe during the past five years. It had gotten to the point where she had taken her security for granted, and she had imagined the danger was no longer real. Now her illusion of safety had come crashing down in a spectacular way. Her fear that had gone into remission had suddenly blossomed into a nightmare of terror.

"I'll protect you," Rafe said, "but you owe me an explanation. Who was that man who grabbed you? Why did he say Nico wanted to kidnap and kill you? Nico works for my stepfather. He's trusted."

She tried to keep her voice from shaking. "As far as I know, I never met either of those men."

"Are you telling me the stranger was just some lunatic spouting nonsense? If that's the case, then there's nothing to worry about. We can turn around and talk to Nico, find out his version of things."

"No," Cassie shrieked. "We can't go back."

Rafe eyed her a moment before returning his gaze to the road. "There's more to it, isn't there? That's why you dragged me to the car in a panic. Start talking, Cassandra, or I swear I will turn around."

She was cornered with no way out. She had to tell him. "Five years ago, invaders broke into our house and killed my mother. I think they wanted to kidnap both her and me, but I got away. Can you remember when I first met you? Those men have been looking for me ever since."

"Invaders, you mean like a home invasion?"

"My mother called them hunters."

"I know in certain gangs, if one member snitches, retaliation includes killing not only the snitch, but also his entire family. Was your father involved in organized crime before he died? Is some cartel after you to settle old scores by your parents?"

Cassie realized the scenario Rafe painted would be a perfect out. She decided to not deny it. "I was supposed to keep my identity secret from everyone. Uncle Milos and Aunt Marnie were the only ones who knew."

"It all makes sense now. Your father and Milos are brothers, so of course he would hide you." Rafe said. "He'd know how to do it too. He has a feel for how things operate. He might even have a spy inside the cartel who would tell him if they were closing in on you."

He chuckled mirthlessly. "Your paranoia was getting to the point where I was beginning to question your sanity. I get it now."

He was buying into the deception which twisted Cassie's insides with guilt. She was lying to this wonderful guy, but would Rafe be able to handle the real version of things?

"Nico is one of us," Rafe said. "He'll deal with the stranger. He'll be able to overpower the old man. The cartel will never find out."

Cassie swallowed. "What do you mean by deal with?"

Rafe exchanged another glance with her. "C'mon, Cassandra. If it's your life or his there really is no choice, is there? If the stranger is a killer, then he'll get what's coming to him."

Intuition told her Rafe had things backward. "What if the stranger is right? What if Nico is the one who is after me?"

"That makes no sense. Nico is Greek. He's worked with my stepfather for a long time...unless."

"Unless what?"

"What I said about gangs having spies in each other's organizations. You could be right. We need to go see Milos right now and come clean about what happened. He knows Nico best."