Pan's Salvation (Dueling Devils 5)

“They’re going to hurt her if I don’t do this. They might already—be.” Her voice cracked.

He walked over to her chair and quickly began to unbind her. “Listen to me, we don’t want trouble with a fucking cartel. You’re going to get your phone, call them up and tell them you got detained by a biker brawl, hid out until it died down and now, you’ll bring it to them tonight.”

“W-why would you do this?” she whispered, skeptical.

“Like I told you. We don’t want cartel problems. I’m not going to give them a chance to even suggest we took some of their product and get us caught up in their bullshit. They have the numbers, the soldiers willing to do whatever they say and weapons to back their shit up. Any war with them would be bloody and long.”

Blood rushed back to her limbs. She grabbed her left wrist and rubbed vigorously. Taking the time to glance around, she realized they were in a hotel room. The off-white walls, green carpets and tiny twin beds covered in bedspreads with funky patterns was straight out of the eighties. A stale scent filled the room.

“I need to make a phone call. Go clean yourself up and be ready to travel.”

“O-okay,” she whispered.

Pan walked out onto the patio of the hotel room. They faced a deserted parking lot. He

scanned the area and pulled out his cell phone. What started out as a simple run with Hell’s Minion to pick up a fresh batch of guns had turned into a cluster fuck. He dug out his phone out of his pocket and called Demon.

“What happened?” Demon asked.

“Shit went sideways. We found out their connection was taking a cut and they deiced to take action immediately.”

Demon sighed. “Loose ends were snipped?”

“Yeah, but that’s not the problem.”

“I don’t like the sound of it.”

“Someone got caught in the crossfire. I couldn’t let them kill her, so I took her on. Just until this shit is done and I can let her go on her way.”

“You sound like you got everything under control. What’s the problem?”

“She was running something that could get us into trouble because it didn’t get delivered.

The owners aren’t someone we don’t want to piss off.”

“Be less vague,” Demon snapped, all business. His words were clipped and short.

“Yayo and not in a small amount.”

“Fuck. Cartel?”

“Of course,” Pan replied wryly.

“Shit.”

“If we skip town, her sister’s life could be in the balance. I don’t want a woman’s blood on my hands, Pres. Not when it ain’t necessary.”

“I hear you. What do you want to do?”

“Personally deliver that shit, so we can’t be pinned on missing goods.”

“Sounds like a solid plan. You calling to get my blessing?”

“Yeah and backup, if necessary. We’re going to be crossing the border and Hell’s Minions have itchy trigger fingers.”

“I’m going to send some boys out.”

“That’s a good idea. But this can’t wait. Every minute that ticks by is another log being added to the fire. By now, I’m sure they’re chomping at the bit and searching for Lark.”