Free All the Way by Kimberley White Page B

they’re trying to be inconspicuous, they’re doing a terrible job at it,” Adriano grumbled.
    He drove a wide circle around the formation of cars. He kept his eyes focused straight ahead, trying not to draw any attention. A car was posted near the lot entrance, blocking the pickup truck. The other was boldly parked in front of their motel-room door.
    As Adriano passed the cars, he stole a glance inside of each. One man in the first; two men in the car parked in front of the motel-room door. All the men were dressed in black.
    This looks like a hit—not a witness recovery, Adriano thought. He panicked when he considered he might be right. Payton could be lying dead inside the motel room. Instantly, his palms began to perspire. He never should have left her behind. With her sneezing and coughing, he had thought it better for her to wait instead of going out wearing only the tattered nightgown.
    Stay calm, he told himself.
    He maintained a steady speed until he reached the back of the motel, counting the windows until he knew he was at the right room. He coasted up to the back of the building, pulling the SUV up onto the crumbling sidewalk and stopping underneath the window to their room.
    He squatted next to the SUV and looked around. With it still being early morning, no one was visiting the gas station, which left the area deserted. None of the hit men had secured the back of the motel. Amateurs. Thinking quickly, Adriano jumped up on the hood of the Land Cruiser.
    â€œPayton,” he called, looking around to see if he had drawn any attention. He tapped the glass. “Payton. Come to the window.” He peered inside, looking down into the rusted tub. “Payton, it’s Adriano. Come to the window.”
    A shadow moved across the window.
    He tapped again. “Payton, open the window.”
    The shadow grew larger and soon the window opened a few inches. From this angle he could only see the rusted tub. “Payton, it’s me.” He fit his face into the crack of the window.
    â€œWhat are you doing at the window?”
    â€œWhatever you do, don’t open the door.”
    â€œWhat are you talking about?”
    He began to work the window open against old paint and rusted gears. “ Someone is outside in unmarked cars, and I hope for our sakes it’s the FBI.”
    â€œWhat are you talking about?” Payton disappeared from the window.
    â€œPayton,” he called, working frantically at opening the window. Like the victims in scary B movies, Payton didn’t heed his warning. He had lifted the window wide enough to see her silhouette leave the bathroom. “Payton, don’t open the door!”
    â€œWho’s there?” she shouted.
    â€œDamn.” He struggled with the window. “Payton!”
    He knew she would be headstrong by the nerve it must have taken to jump into his Land Cruiser. If they got out of this alive, he’d have to explain to her that she needed to follow his orders without question. He didn’t have time to negotiate.
    He had the window three quarters of the way up when he heard Payton scream. “Payton!”
    She reappeared in the bathroom, slamming the door behind her. Her fear-stricken face gave him the strength to shove the window open to its fullest.
    â€œClimb through the window.” He stuck his hand inside to aid her.
    â€œI can’t fit.”
    â€œYou have to fit. C’mon.”
    A crashing noise on the other side of the bathroom door pulled her attention away from his waiting hand.
    â€œHurry up, Payton.”
    He extended his arm as far as his body would allow. He would never fit his broad shoulders through the window frame, but Payton’s lithe body could squeeze out of the narrow opening.
    Payton clasped his hand. He balanced himself on the hood of the SUV while providing leverage for her climb. Her hands grabbed the window ledge, and he pulled her arms as she attempted to jettison herself