Tell Me No Spies (16 page)

I stood and meandered
in the general direction of the door, forcing myself to stop and
examine a display of coffee mugs on the way. Trying not to jitter
from foot to foot, I casually lifted one to check the price, then
replaced it and made my way out the door.

Then I hustled back to
Dave’s truck, my bastion of safety. He eyed me with alarm when I
scrambled up into the cab. “Those cops looking for you?”

“I don’t think so.” I
took a few deep breaths, trying to stop shaking. “But let’s get the
hell out of here anyway.”

“Did it work?” Dave
demanded as we pulled away.

“Yes. I made
contact.”

“So did you get
help?”

“I hope so. But I had
to run before I knew for sure. I’ll have to check back with him
later.” I shot a glance behind us. “At a different cafe.”

“Okay.” He frowned.
“You’re still shaking.”

“I’m just hungry. I
missed lunch.”

“Oh.” He shifted in
his seat and rubbed the back of his neck, not meeting my eyes. “Do
you… uh, want to eat something a little nicer tonight? I’ll get
another hotel room, and we can get room service.”

“Thanks, Dave, but I
don’t want to take the chance. And anyway, it’s too expensive.”

“I don’t mind,” he
said quickly. His eyes stayed glued to the road, and a flush
climbed his neck. “I owe you, for hitting you. I’m really
sorry.”

“It’s okay, you were
just scared. I’d probably have done the same thing in your
place.”

“I feel bad, though.
Let me buy you a nice dinner.”

I opened my mouth to
argue, but changed my mind. I really couldn’t face another greasy
meal. “Thanks, Dave. That would be great.”

He flushed and nodded,
smiling.

Once again I sneaked
in the back door of the hotel, enveloped in Dave’s hooded jacket. I
gobbled a crisp, fresh chef’s salad with a delicious garlic
baguette, then leaned back in the chair with a long sigh,
stretching out my legs.

The small room was dim
and cozy, the heavy draperies drawn, and the peace and safety
soaked into my bones and made my eyelids droop.

Dave’s quiet voice
startled me out of a semi-doze. “Why don’t you lie down? You look
wiped.”

I roused myself and
sat up. “Thanks, but I better not.” I checked my watch. “Do you
think we can find another internet cafe?”

“Yeah.” He held out
the jacket, and I shrugged into it again. “Hold on, I’ll scout the
halls first,” he told me, and ducked out the door. He was back
within seconds, giving me a thumbs-up, and I scuttled back out to
the truck.

Parked near another
cafe, I scanned the surrounding area before reaching for the door
handle.

Dave reached out to
stop me. “Wait. Do you have a cell phone? I could just call you if
the police show up or if anything weird happens.”

“No, I don’t have
one.” I didn’t bother to explain why. “It’s okay, I won’t be
long.”

I climbed down and
made my way inside, finding a table that faced the door. Back in
the World of Warcraft interface, I located Spider again and engaged
the whisper mode.

“Spider.”

“r u ok?”

“Fine. Did you find
out anything about N?”

“gone. left work early
today, not home, not answering cell. where r u & what r u
doing? S thinks ur rogue.”

He would. That
suspicious bastard. I sighed. I was totally screwed if Stemp
decided I’d turned to the dark side. He’d have me shot, no
questions asked. But at least Spider didn’t seem inclined to turn
me in. Yet.

“I’m not. I’d never do
that. You know that.” At least I hoped he knew it.

“i know.”

I blew out a breath of
relief. Thank God.

“what r u doing tho?”
he persisted.

“Trying to save N.
Trying to find info about my family.” I pressed Send, and then
berated myself for telling him that. Then again, somebody had
obviously known I was in Victoria. Somehow. Hmmm.

I typed again. “Was
N’s phone bugged?”

“yes.”

That explained a lot.
I typed again. “Who else is bugged?”

“everybody. me, K, N,
dog from hell.”

Shit. I blew out a
sigh. On the upside, at least he was up to speed with Nichele’s
situation. Maybe I’d better confirm that…

“Then you know what’s
going on with N.”

“yes.”

“Can you save
her?”

“i’ll try.”

“Thanks, Spider.” I
shot a tense glance around the quiet cafe. I felt like I had a
glowing target painted on my back. Nerves seized me.

“Got to go,” I
typed.

“WAIT!!!”

“What?”

“how can i contact
u?”

“You can’t. Over &
out.”

I logged off, cleared
the cache, and got out of there.

Dave tried to talk me
into sleeping in the hotel room, but I eventually convinced him I’d
be safer in the truck. I didn’t know if that was actually the case
or not, but I could tell his back was hurting, and it seemed to me
the hotel bed was probably better for him than the narrow berth in
the sleeper.

Besides, I didn’t feel
right about making him sleep in the truck when he was paying for a
hotel, and I wasn’t about to propose sharing the room.

The next morning, we
hit the road loaded and started the long drive back to Calgary. We
chatted off and on, and I tried to encourage him to talk as much as
possible. The more he talked about himself, the less I had to tell
him.

After I’d deflected
his questions for the umpteenth time, he glanced over at me, his
brow furrowed.

“You really don’t want
to tell me anything about yourself, do you?” he asked
point-blank.

I sighed. “No, not
really. Sorry. The less you know, the safer we both are.”

“I knew it. You are a
spy.”

I clutched my head.
“No, Dave.”

He gave me a
conspiratorial smile and went back to watching the highway. But at
least he stopped asking personal questions.

We were on the home
stretch when an idea struck me. It was after five o’clock. Maybe
Spider had news. And if he still hadn’t managed to find Nichele, I
might be able to approach the problem from a different angle.

I turned to Dave. “Can
we go into Canmore for a few minutes?”

He frowned over at me.
“Yeah, as long it doesn’t take too long. I gotta have this load in
by eight.”

“How much time do I
have?”

He checked his watch
and returned his attention to the road. “Half an hour, tops. You
got a plan?”

“Maybe.”

“What do you want to
do?”

“Find another internet
cafe.”

After a short stop at
the visitor information centre, I gained fresh respect for Dave’s
driving ability as he manoeuvred the huge truck around the cramped
streets. When we pulled up near the cafe, he shot me a worried
glance. “What are you going to do this time?”

“Same thing.” I warily
surveyed the parking lot. “Back in a flash.”

Spider was in the game
again, and I heaved a sigh of relief.

“Spider.”

“where r u?”

I knew if he really
wanted to know where I was he’d trace my IP address, so I ignored
the question and typed, “Any news on N?”

“no. can’t find
her."

I swore quietly,
trying not to attract attention. Time for Plan B. I typed, “Need to
see dog from hell.”

“when &
where?”

“Tonight, Hotel
Village, eleven o’clock. Don’t tell anyone we’re meeting.”

“ok.”

“Thanks, Spider. Over
& out.”

I hoped Spider would
have more luck convincing Hellhound to talk to me than I’d had. And
I hoped Hellhound would be willing to help me if he did show
up.

Back in the truck, I
faced Dave’s expectant expression.

“I’m meeting my friend
tonight,” I told him with more confidence than I felt. “I think
he’ll be able to help me.”

“What’s the plan?”
Dave asked.

I hesitated.

“Come on, Aydan,” he
cajoled. “Two heads are better than one, right?”

I sighed. “There isn’t
a plan. Yet.”

“Thought you said you
talked to your friend.”

“No, I talked to a
different friend who’s going to get a message to him.”

His bushy eyebrows
met. “So you don’t even know if he’s coming.”

“He’ll come.”

Apparently I didn’t
sound any more convinced than I truly was. Dave’s scowl
deepened.

“You sure he’ll be
able to help you if he does show up?”

“Yeah. The guy who
kidnapped Nichele is his brother. He might know where to start
looking.”

Dave jerked back in
his seat. “Aydan, that’s nuts! You’re gonna trust this guy? When
it’s his own brother?”

“Don’t worry,” I
reassured him. “He’d love to see his brother back behind bars.”

“
Back
behind
bars,” Dave said, his scowl deepening. “So you’re gonna go looking
for a guy you already know is a dangerous criminal. With the guy’s
brother for backup.”

“No, I’m not going to
involve Arnie at all,” I told him. “I just want him to point me in
the right direction. I don’t want to drag him into this.”

Dave blew out a heavy
breath. “So you’re gonna go by yourself. Aydan, that’s nuts. I’ll
go with you. Got a layover for the weekend in Calgary anyway.”

“No, Dave, this is the
part where it gets really dangerous. You need to get clear.”

“Come on, I want to
help.”

“I know, and I
appreciate it. But I’ll be fine.”

He continued to argue
while we drove. When the unloading was finally complete, he turned
to me again in the parking lot at the freight depot. “Look, you’re
gonna need all the help you can get.”

“I really just need
you to drop me off.”

“Yeah, I’ll take you
there, but…”

“Thanks, Dave. Let’s
go. I have to be there at eleven.”

He unhitched the
trailer and left it in the lot before pulling out to thread the
highway tractor nimbly through the light evening traffic,
frowning.

In the parking lot at
Hotel Village, I spotted Hellhound immediately. He lounged against
his Harley Fatboy, the black beast on the back of his leather
jacket snarling in the glow of the streetlights.

“Thanks, Dave!” I
reached over to squeeze his hand. “I couldn’t have done this
without you. Take care.”

I grabbed my backpack
and swung out of the cab before he could protest.

Hellhound turned to
give me a quizzical look as I approached, and I jumped at the sound
of Dave’s voice from behind me.

“
This
is your
friend?”

I whirled to see the
disgust written plainly on his face.

Shit. Bikers and
truckers. Just like oil and water.

“Dave, thanks for all
you’ve done, but you should get going now,” I said without much
hope.

Hellhound eyed Dave
expressionlessly. The streetlights didn’t flatter his ugly, bearded
face. The leather jacket creaked as his bulky shoulders flexed.
“What’s up, darlin’?” he rasped. “I heard ya got a problem. This
it?”

“No, Dave’s part of
the solution. I’d probably be dead if not for him.”

“Oh.” Hellhound’s
posture relaxed, and he extended his hand to Dave. “Arnie Helmand.
Thanks for lookin’ after Aydan.”

“Dave Shore.” Dave
warily shook Hellhound’s hand.

“What now, darlin’?”
Hellhound asked, turning to me.

“Now Dave leaves, and
you and I have a talk.”

“Oh.” Hellhound eyed
me with poorly concealed trepidation.

“Look, does he know
the whole story?” Dave broke in.

“Dave, Arnie knows
more of the story than you do. But thanks for all you’ve done. You
need to get going now.”

“You shouldn’t do this
alone… he began.

“Dave…” I stopped,
realizing the futility of arguing. “Thanks, Dave,” I said instead.
“Right now, I need you to go so I can talk with Arnie, but I’ll
hang onto your card and call you before I do anything, okay?”

“Promise,” Dave
growled, still eyeing Hellhound with mistrust.

“I promise,” I lied
guiltily. If lying was the only way to keep him safe, my conscience
would just have to suck it up.

“Okay. You call me as
soon as you’re ready to move.” Dave squeezed my hand, and limped
reluctantly back to his truck. We watched him pull away before I
turned to Hellhound.

“Now, darlin’, ya know
I warned ya,” he muttered defensively.

“What?” I blinked at
him. “What are you talking about?”

“We talked about this.
I told ya not to get attached. We agreed, no possessive, needy
bullshit. Sorry you’re upset, but that’s the way it’s gotta be.” He
was edging away.

“Whoa! Hold on, not so
fast!” I grabbed his sleeve.

“Aw, come on, Aydan,
don’t make this ugly.” He scuffed a boot at the pavement, not
meeting my eyes. “I didn’t wanna hurt ya, but…”

“Jesus, Arnie, you
think I’m upset that you turned me down?”

“You chicks always get
all bent outta shape when I don’t call,” he mumbled. “An’ then
you’re pissed when I say I’m busy…”

“Hey!” I shook his
arm. “Hello! Earth to Arnie!”

He jerked startled
eyes to my face.

“Arnie, you know me
better than that!” I grabbed him by the shoulders to give him a
gentle shake, desperate to make him understand. “Jeez, you’re
talking to the one person on the planet that’s more phobic about
commitment than you are! You know damn well I don’t want to get
attached, to you or anybody else.”

He gazed at me,
apparently unconvinced. I bit back a hiss of frustration and tried
again. “Look, we promised not to lie to each other. If you say
you’re busy, I’m not going to take it personally. I figure if you
don’t want to see me again, you’ll tell me. Otherwise, I just
assume we’re good.”

“Ya mean ya ain’t
mad?”

“Of course not, why
would I be?”

He peered at me
uncertainly in the dim light. “Ya said we hadta have a talk. When
chicks say that, it’s always fuckin’ bad news.”