“My name is Troy. I don’t want to hurt you, Libby.”
“How do you know her name?” Rob’s arm curled around Libby’s waist, and her body practically vibrated against his.
Troy licked his lips. “I contacted her in Rocky Point. I’m the one she was on her way to meet in Paradiso. I swear to you. I have texts and everything.”
Libby’s frame had stiffened. “Are you going to tell me you’re my husband, and I was coming to you for help? All you want to do now is take me back to Rocky Point and resume our happy life?”
Rob ground his teeth together, his muscles aching, his head throbbing.
Troy turned his head to the side and spit on the ground. “Oh, hell no. I’ve never met you before in my life, and I’ve already had two wives. I sure as hell don’t want any more...especially ones who kick.”
A flood of relief swept through Rob’s body so fast, he had to lock his knees to keep upright.
Libby needed him to keep upright. Her body sagged against his. “Wh-what do you want? Who are you, and why did you abduct me at gunpoint?”
Tipping his head at the building behind them, Troy said, “Can we go back into the restaurant and discuss this? My weapon’s on the ground, which you can take, and we’re gonna start attracting attention. I don’t want to explain myself to the police, and I’m guessing you don’t, either.”
Rob whispered in Libby’s ear, “Stay here.”
He crept toward Troy and the car, his gun still firmly clutched in his hand. “Kick your weapon toward me and don’t try anything, or else one of those ex-wives is going to collect on your life insurance policy.”
“That ain’t gonna happen. My daughter gets it all.” He nudged the weapon toward Rob with his toe. “Take it.”
Without removing his eyes from Troy, Rob stooped to snatch up the gun. Then he approached the man, turned him around and shoved him against the car. A pat-down didn’t reveal any more weapons.
“Start walking back to the restaurant, and remember...”
“Yeah, I know. My daughter’s gonna collect that life insurance.” He trudged past Rob, made a wide berth around Libby and plodded toward the restaurant.
If the hostess recognized any of them, she didn’t let on, waving them to a booth in the corner. Rob slid in first, letting Libby have the outside in case something went down and she had to make a quick getaway. He motioned Troy to the other side.
As Troy plopped down on the seat, Rob said, “I’ve got my gun pointed at you. One move and your daughter’s going to be an only child.”
Troy’s eyes widened for a second and then he chuckled. “You’re not so bad for a lawman, Valdez.”
Rob’s eye twitched. “How do you know me, and how’d you find us here? Nobody followed us from Paradiso. I’d bet my life on it.”
“I didn’t have to follow you.” Troy laced his fingers together and cracked his knuckles. “I put a GPS tracker on your truck.”
“Damn.” Rob smacked the table with his open hand, and the silverware jumped.
A waitress scurried over. “What would you like?”
“Coffee all around.” Rob swept his finger in a circle to encompass the table and then turned over his coffee cup.
Libby said, “Make mine a hot tea, herbal if you have it.”
“Chamomile okay?” The waitress filled Rob’s and Troy’s cups to the brim.
“Perfect.”
Rob pinned Troy with a stare. “When did you do that?”
“I’m not giving away all my tricks, lawman.” Troy formed his fingers into a gun and pointed at Rob.
“Stop with the quips, Troy, and tell us what you want with Libby.”
“Well, I wanted information.” Troy rubbed the graying stubble on his chin with his knuckles. “Libby James was supposed to meet me in Paradiso to give me some information, but it doesn’t look like that’s gonna happen. I figured out soon enough when I saw you in town that you had either changed your mind or had gotten a better deal. You didn’t show up at our meeting place, and when I walked straight at you in the street wearing my San Francisco Giants baseball cap and flashing a peace sign, you didn’t even blink. That’s when I started thinking you didn’t remember a thing.”
“Oh, God.” Libby squeezed her eyes closed and wrinkled her nose. “That was you. I remember now.”
“Yeah, I wish you remembered more than that.”
“Wait. This is all very clever, but why did you try to take Libby at gunpoint?” Rob drilled his finger into the table in front of Troy.
“You wouldn’t have believed me if I’d come up to you and explained who I was.” Troy snorted. “I saw what happened to the last guy who tried that.”
“Pablo Bustamante.” Libby crossed her arms on the table, rubbing at the gooseflesh on her skin. “What do you know about him?”
“Nada. Just that he works for the bad guys, and his name ain’t Pablo Bustamante. I figured he was coming on like a husband and was using that baby as a prop. Am I right?” Troy dropped his chin to his chest and raised his brows to his bald head.
“You seem to be right about an awful lot.” Libby drew back as the waitress placed her tea in front of her.
“Thanks.” She smiled at the waitress and then turned her attention back to Troy. “Who are you, and what information did you hope to get from me?”
“You two haven’t figured it out yet based on my slick moves?”
Rob grunted. “You’re a PI.”
“Bingo, lawman.” Troy slurped up his coffee and then dumped some sugar into the cup.
“A private investigator?” Libby ripped open her tea bag and swung it around her finger, pointing at Troy. “Investigating what?”
“I’m investigating El Gringo Viejo. He’s a...”
Rob sliced his hand through the air. “We know what he is.”
“I figured you did, Valdez, but what about her? I mean, I know she knew about
