Page 13 of All The Way Under

“These groups aren’t notorious for torture. They just want money. You can fix engines?” I ask to distract her from her emotions. Selfishly, I don’t want to deal with them. “What do you do?”

“Why do you care about who I am and what I do now?” she fires back, laser gaze homing in on mine to see if I’m lying.

Her trust is what I need the most at this point. It would make my life a whole lot easier.

“I need to know what skills you have other than sailing and having a name to match that. These guys have some form of trust in me that they do not have in you, killer. Either you’re with me or against me.

How am I selling you, Saylor? What do you have to offer other than voice pipes that annoy the fuck out of them? ”

She winces. “There it is. There you are.”

I open my arms up. “What do you want? I’m trying here.”

“Trying to be an asshole?” she hisses.

“No, that comes naturally. I need to figure out how you can be useful and non-threatening outside of this. When I ask what you can do and who you are, it isn’t because I care, it’s because I’m trying to save your life.”

“You just said they don’t torture. Which is it? Now you’re trying to save my life?” Saylor asks.

I groan. “Do you want to stay locked in here? If you do, just say so.”

“Maybe I don’t want to share who I am with an absolute asshole stranger.

Did you ever think of that? Maybe I find it weird they just bust you out while I’m sleeping and return with some magical deal where we can both be free outside of this cage.

Maybe you’re one of them. You look like a warmonger.

You present like some backwoods killer who has no regard for societal norms. You seem like you belong here with them, Brody.

” Saylor says my name like a curse. “If that’s even your real name. ”

Rolling my eyes, I decide this is going to be a pain in the ass. The whole thing.

“This is why they want me to help them. You are difficult, and you killed their men, so you can’t be trusted. This is fairly easy to understand. You stay here, and I’ll go out alone. I don’t care, but I feel bad for you.”

She scoffs. “You feel bad for me? I was fine before you got here, and I’ll be fine if you leave.”

What a stubborn, jagged pill. This is why I avoid women—why I haven’t had a girlfriend for years. Why do they have to be so spiteful? I’m trying to help her, but of course, she assumes I have ulterior motives.

Don’t I, though? She’s seeing my lies without seeing them.

“Sounds like a plan,” I say.

“Why can’t you just be a kind human?”

“Why can’t you?” I counter.

She huffs and stands. “Because you’re incorrigible, and you can’t be trusted. The first moment I laid eyes on you, I knew something was off. What’s off, Brody? Tell me.”

“I’m not going to bend over backward for you.

That’s what’s off, I guess. I’m not one of those men who keeps trying to help after you push them away and refuse.

You tell me once you don’t trust me or want my help, that’s it.

This is who I am. I’m selfish and self-serving.

I’m kind when it’s deserved and earned. I’m not going to blow smoke up your skirt or say things I don’t mean. ”

I see Ravelo and Nery heading toward our cage, but she’s staring at me while I speak, so she doesn’t see them yet.

“If you don’t want my help, say that. I figured you’d want out of this cage, seeing how I hate it already, and you’ve been here longer. By all means, Saylor, make yourself at home. Don’t trust me.” I stand up and wait.

She nearly falls trying to stand up when she sees them.

“They’re letting us out,” she says to herself.

One guards and one unlocks, like usual.

“No, baby, they’re letting me out.”

Saylor shakes the bars when they let me out and go to put the lock back on. She nearly yells.

“I’m a software engineer. I can improve any computer systems or GPS devices you have here.

I helped invent the high-tech software that was on my sailboat.

I can show you how to use it. I know you’ve stripped my boat, and I know you probably don’t have any clue how any of it works.

I can help you. I won’t hurt anyone…else. I promise.”

Her blue eyes flash to mine. Ah, so I’m excluded from that little promise then.

“I can also work on engines and build anything you can come up with.” She said it all in Portuguese, so it sounds like she means it. I wonder if she did that on purpose.

I smile at her as she pours her heart out not only to me, but to our captors. She’d rather do it the hard way, then. Noted.

“I do think she’d be of help,” I add, then smile when she looks at me like she’s trying to strike me down dead.

Ravelo lets her out, and she looks like some sort of cave-dwelling animal seeing the sun for the first time. She shields her eyes and looks up at the sky.

“Thank God,” she says, wincing against the heat as she takes in her surroundings.

It’s the typical tropical climate. Hot during the day and cold at night, but the cave always stays a little cooler because it’s semi-underground.

“Thank God,” she repeats, taking in her surroundings, immediately eyeing the roads and paths. “I’ll do anything,” she says, looking at me, dark circles more apparent in the sunlight.

They lead us in a different direction from where I was this morning, and we walk side by side.

“Anything?” I ask, smiling.

“Anything,” she replies.

I whisper, “How about trust me?”

She lets out an exasperated breath.

“Yes. Yes. I trust you,” Saylor whispers.