“Makes you wonder what that means for the future. There’s still so much we don’t know about Oriceran, and it’s changing everything over here. I see it every day on my job. Fuck, that’s why every country needs bounty hunters like me now.”
Shay watched him for a moment, wondering if Brownstone thought of himself more as a do-gooder of justice than a simple man doing a job for money. If so, they might have problems even if he did trust her skills as much he’d claimed.
“Take the pyramids, for instance,” Brownstone offered. “Big-ass tombs for long-dead pharaohs? Not even fucking close.” He shrugged. “Well, okay, some were, but most of them were energy machines built by real Atlanteans hell-bent on maintaining power over twenty-fucking-thousand years ago. All that bullshit about how many years mankind has been smart?” He tapped his head. “Makes no damned sense when we have stone villages under the water in the Mediterranean Sea that are a lot older. And that lie was being questioned before the Oricerans showed up. Makes you wonder who was hiding the truth in plain fucking sight for so long, and why.”
“You truly are a world-class cynic.”
“I am,” Brownstone agreed.
Shay managed not to grin, even though she wanted to. A cynical attitude was one thing in life she could appreciate.
She tapped her fingers against the table. “Who knew?”
“Who knew what?”
“That you actually had something interesting to say, Brownstone. I kind of pegged you just as a give-a-punch-and-take-a-punch guy. That, and a grunter.”
“I’m all that, too.” He grunted.
Shay chuckled. The guy wouldn’t be totally obnoxious. She could hope.
Chapter Three
The first leg of their trip had been a comfortable jet ride down to Tapachula, Mexico. The second stage involved a smaller rickety turboprop to Peru.
Shay tried to get some rest, but it was hard in the cramped and often shaking plane. Faint tension lined Brownstone’s face and had been since they’d stepped onto the first plane. He didn’t say much other than some background on his bounty hunter procedures, and she didn’t press the issue. She didn’t want to really get into anything personal.
She also appreciated that he didn’t make a big deal of her kicking the ass of a man who groped her shortly after they’d finished up their main chat at the pub. That meant, at minimum, he didn’t want to try to keep her on a leash. Smart move.
Brownstone was there because the Professor insisted. It wasn’t as if she needed to get to know the man. They’d spend a couple of days together, and then she wouldn’t have to see him again for months, if ever.
That was the way things looked like they were playing out. Simple. Which is why Brownstone surprised Shay when he suddenly decided to talk about an hour into their second flight.
“What’s your deal?” the bounty hunter asked.
Shay glanced his way. “My deal?”
“Yeah. The Professor hasn’t mentioned you before, which means you’re probably new in town. Otherwise, he would have hired my ass to be your protection a long time ago.”
Shay’s face twitched. She kept wanting to underestimate Brownstone, but she’d already mistaken being laconic with being an idiot at the pub. The man might not say much, but he paid attention to a lot of small details. That made him dangerous.
His take on history also showed that he was a bigger-picture man than she would have suspected.
Accepting that, though, made irritation flare in Shay for a different reason. She’d noticed the man, but he didn’t seem to notice or care about her.
It wasn’t as if she demanded or wanted every man to hit on her or anything, but Shay had as much confidence in her appearance as she did her killing skills, and that made the bounty hunter’s blasé reaction a puzzle that poked at her mind.
He’s gay. That works, might even be easier. That would explain why Captain Muscles didn’t seem to notice her.
Brownstone kept staring at her, obviously waiting for a response.
Shay shrugged. “Whatever happened to the past being shit?”
“It is shit. But you might know more about me than I know about you.”
“Nothing’s different just because we’re on a plane instead of a bar. I don’t do bios on tomb raids, Brownstone.”
The bounty hunter gave her a slow nod then looked the opposite way. “Fair enough. We can talk about barbecue if you want.”
“Huh?”
“Barbecue. Do you have a favorite style?”
Shay stared at him for a moment. Is he screwing with me or is he serious?
“Barbecue? What the hell?”
Brownstone shrugged. “I like barbecue. I figured talking about barbecue isn’t like talking about your past.”
“Okay, sure. I’m gonna try and get some rest.” She turned the opposite way and leaned back into her seat.
“Suit yourself.”
Brownstone didn’t try and follow up, allowing Shay some small peace. Every conversation with the man left her more off-balance, unlike when she dealt with Peyton.
She might spar a bit with Peyton in conversation, but she never felt like she didn’t understand what was going on in his head. He was easy to read and the rest he had a habit of blurting out, anyway.
Shay kept herself from sighing. In the close quarters, Brownstone would notice.
Shay had no problems with lying to others, but never wanted to lie to herself. Brownstone got under her skin because he was messing with her life plan, even it wasn’t the most detailed.
Shay was supposed to build a rep as a tomb raider, save up a fortune, and if she made it that far, move away, or hell, buy an island, and disappear.
Noticing someone wasn’t in the plan, let alone someone like Brownstone.
This isn’t anything important. It’s just me being confused because some guy who is gay didn’t comment on my looks. Simple as that.
They’d made it.
The jeep rumbled down the dirt track, bouncing and
