Page 25 of Marked for Execution

“Eliseo…”

My head snapped to the right, staring at her. “What?”

“Where are we going?”

Turning back to the main road, the Humvee bounced with the change in terrain. “We’re going to catch up with them another way.”

A few moments went by before she talked again. “You’re not going to tell them about me, are you?”

Her voice was so vulnerable, so broken, that it split my fucking heart in two. “Of course, I’m not going to fucking tell them! But youaregoing to tellmeeverything I need to know before I lose my damn mind trying to figure this out.What the hell are you?”

She turned her face toward the passenger window without answering me, and my rage transformed into full-blown fury. My mind replayed her dying in my arms and my mouth opened before I could filter anything I said.

“Sili!You’re going to do as I say or so help me…”

She turned to me with fire in her eyes, and I slammed on the brakes, parking us right where we were. Dust floated around outside of the vehicle, concealing us for a moment. It was as if the world had disappeared, and nothing existed except for this brat next to me.

“Sili. Answer me! What the hell are you?”

“I don’t know!”

“What the hell do you mean, you don’t know?” What game was she trying to play? Had she been planning this all along? To infiltrate my men? Was she planted in this community? Was that why she was pretending to be a boy?

“I. Don’t. Know! My memories are fragmented at best, coming at me randomly. Some things IthinkI know, only to be turned upside down with another memory that makes no fucking sense!”

My eyes narrowed in suspicion.

“Don’t look at me like that, you asshole!”

“How the hell am Isupposedto look at you?” The tension in this Humvee was ramping up hard and fast. The air was thick between us.What would Reed have done if this happened in front of him?Would he have tried to save her, too, or left her to rot the way I did with the men that came with us today?

Thoughts of Reed’s mouth on hers made me growl.

She exploded and shoved me, taking me by surprise with her extra strength, slamming me against the driver side door with a hard crash, sending pain up my back.

“You’re supposed to fucking look at me like you did yesterday and every other day. How does me healing fast change anything about me, huh? I’m tired of people trying to kill me for things that are out of my control!”

Kill her? Who the fuck?

“Who tried to kill you?” I grabbed the front of her bloody shirt and straightened up. “Tell me who they are!”

Does it have anything to do with the guy that got away?

“What does it matter?” She tried to pull away, but I’m too far gone. Images of my previous community flashed before my eyes. I couldn’t save them. I came home too late. I was fucking too late to save her.

“Fitri. Tell. Me!”

When her eyes faltered from rage to unshed tears, my body automatically moved on its own volition, pulling her into my lap to wrap my arms around her.

Her breaths were harsh and hiccupped as she shook in my arms.Fuck. I’m an asshole.Why did I fucking push her when she was clearly already in distress over what happened earlier? I was torn between shaking her for answers and comforting her in this moment as she broke apart before me.

After a few moments, I broke the silence. “Dammit,Sili. Stop crying. I can’t take that shit.”

She laughed into my shoulder, and my lips twitched into a smile.

“You’re such an asshole.”

“I know. This is nothing new. Now, stop your fucking crying so we can figure this shit out.”