“No,” Lennon said. All three heads swiveled to him.

“No?” Anna repeated.

“No. I still have a few hours. I’m going to get Maisie and help her secure the shipment, like I promised.”

“We have the shipment.”

“We have the shipment. Maisie doesn’t. I need to make sure it gets back to her so she can get it south.”

“Thanks for the trust,” Beto said dryly.

“Why would I trust you?”

Queso nodded. “That is the right attitude.”

“Hey!” Beto said, clearly insulted.

“Beto and I will help her with the shipment after you’re gone. Trust me, she’ll understand,” Anna said.

“She absolutely will understand. Answer is still no.”

“Val’s orders are to—”

“No disrespect to Val, but I don’t follow her orders. I’m helping Maisie. End of story.”

Anna put her hands on her hips. “Has anyone ever told you you’re a pain in the ass?”

“Just a few dozen times.”

MAISIE

“BOSS, THERE’S A problem.”

Maisie perked up, leaning forward to look at Vic, still driving the SUV.

Declan held up a finger, stopping him. “Not in front of her.”

The SUV came to a sudden stop, and she grunted as she fell against the front seat. Declan hopped out of the van and then reached back in and grabbed her by the ankle.

“Get off,” she said, kicking her foot and hitting him in the arm.

“Damn, Maisie,” he said, rubbing it.

She scooted out of the van, surveying the area. It was too dark to see much. The headlights of the SUV were pointed at a small wooden building with boarded-up windows. A faded sign said Bar. She spotted another van on the other side of the building.

Declan and Vic spoke in hushed tones a few feet from her, and she turned in a circle, considering if she should run. From what she could see in the moonlight, the area looked pretty flat. If she took off, Declan could watch her run for quite a while before lazily climbing into his truck to follow.

“All right, do you trust me?”

Maisie turned around to find Declan’s attention on her. She gave him a baffled look. “Are you talking to me? Of course I don’t trust you.”

“Maisie, come on, I’ve known you your whole—” He took a deep breath, shaking his head. “Never mind. Doesn’t matter. Just know that I’m coming back for you, okay?”

“Coming back for me?”

“We’ve had a situation with one of the other vehicles, and I can’t spare anyone to take you back right now. And I’m sure as hell not taking you with me.”

He took a step forward, grabbing her arms. She immediately squirmed in his grasp, and then stopped.

Wait. It sounded like he was going to leave her alone. He had to be, if he was saying he’d come back for her. She’d be much better off if he was gone, even if he was going to tie her up. She had a knife in her boot that he likely wouldn’t think to take from her. She might be able to get it and free herself from whatever restraints he was planning on using.