Free Fatal Fugue (The Deadlier Sex Book 1) by Maelani Page A

blood-soaked bandage on his cheek before exhaling hard into the cold night. “Yes, but I’ve frequented it a lot lately. We have to go to a place I rarely visit. These guys are good. I had no idea I had a tail. And for who knows how long.”
    “Do you have another safe house no one knows about?”
    “I can’t be sure of any of them now.”
    Hayley stepped closer, nudging his arm. He got the hint and pulled her into his embrace to let her siphon off his body heat. The cool air didn’t bother him; he was used to the dry desert winters. But she was so thin, he doubted she had any kind of insulation against the elements. He rubbed her arms and hoped it would be enough to keep her warm.
    “What should we do? We can’t stay out here….” Her voice trailed off and shook as her lips quivered. She was fighting to keep her teeth from chattering. He could hear it in the strain of her voice. Her lips were already turning a darker shade of pink against her stark-white skin.
    “I may not know of any, but you do.”
    Hayley’s eyes widened.
    “You told me something once. You made me promise to never go there unless I absolutely had to and to tell no one about it.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “You’re a complicated woman, Hayley. You never put all your eggs in one basket. There are several safe houses across North America you kept ready in case you needed to find a place to lie low. You never told anyone where they were or of their existence, except me. Even then, you never told me the exact locations of them.”
    “And this is helpful to us how? I don’t remember where they are.”
    “You don’t, but I know someone who can tell us where you hid the locations for yourself.”
    Impressed, Hayley peered up into Jay’s handsome face. His features were appealing, strong willed and sexy. The bandage on his face needed to be changed badly, but it had slowed the blood flow enough that it was no longer dripping.
    “How do I find this… person?”
    “I’ll take you there.”
    “How do you know they haven't gotten to them already?”
    Jay cupped her chin, boring his dark eyes into her. “Because you never told anyone about them besides me.”
    She nodded. There wasn’t much more to ask. They would find this person and maybe they would have answers for her. Something Jay no longer had.
    “Why are they trying to kill us?”
    Jay sighed, letting his head fall back onto the block wall. “I don’t know. I didn’t expect it. I’m pretty good at knowing these kinds of things and preventing them from happening. Not this time. I’ve been blindsided, and I have to do some digging to discover who’s behind this. If they want you dead, there’s no way we can return home now. If this person doesn’t know anything that can help us, we’re done here. On our own. We’ll have to leave the country.”
    The thought of running again made her blood heat up in a rage. Why would someone do this to her? Had she been such a horrible person before all this happened? Who had she let down to accrue such a wrath that they’d want her dead? On top of that, they wanted Jay dead too.
    They were on each other’s side no matter what now.
    “Who’s this person we have to see? Are they here in Vegas?” she asked. Her voice was no longer frantic but an eerie calm which caused her some discomfort. It was disorienting to hear herself talk so seriously, like she had a mission, and nothing was going to stand in her way. Not a bullet, not Jay. Not even the horde of killers on their tail.
    “Alejandro Mraz.”
    She racked her brain again to find any familiarity to that name, but found none. A man. She had trusted a man over a woman? Why did that sound strange to her? Did she not have any female friends?
    “Is he close?”
    “He’s on the other side of town, near Sunrise Mountain. He has a few acres there and keeps himself secluded.”
    She peered up at Jay, taking in his determination and hoping he didn’t have any hidden agendas.
    “And