“I can’t run. Where would I go, Dutch?”
“I won’t eat until you do.”
“That’s stupid. I told you before I wasn’t hungry.”
“When did you last eat?”
When she shrugged, Dutch walked over and held his hand out to her. “Come on, baby. Let’s go eat.”
“Don’t,” she snapped.
“Malin, you need to eat.”
“And you need to stop with this ‘baby’ bullshit.”
Dutch smiled. “I will if you eat.”
Malin studied him, but finally stood. “Fine,” he heard her mutter when she walked past him. He couldn’t help but put his hand on the small of her back as they walked down the hallway in the direction of the most delectable scent he’d ever smelled.
When they entered what looked like a crew break room, Dutch saw a feast laid out on one of the long tables.
“What’s all this?” he asked, walking over to the woman he guessed was Corazón. “Dutch Miller,” he said, holding his hand out.
“Sofia Descanso. Pleasure to meet you, sir,” she responded, shaking his hand.
Dutch met Onyx’s eyes, and the man nodded. He hoped to hell the man understood what Dutch was asking. Did he trust her enough to keep the identity of the woman they were transporting a secret?
“I’m Malin,” she said, taking away his ability to control the situation.
“Nice to meet you, ma’am,” the woman Onyx had called Corazón answered.
“Should I call you Sofia?”
“That works.”
He held up his phone and motioned to his teammate. “Got a minute?”
“Sure,” Onyx answered, following Dutch in the opposite direction of the food he was dying to dive into.
“Who is she?”
Onyx rolled his eyes. “Do you ever read your briefs?”
“Answer the question.”
“Descanso is a pilot who’s coming on board as a full-time contractor for K19. She’s been fully vetted by Doc, Gunner, and Razor.”
Three of the four original K19 partners had approved her employment, so Dutch wouldn’t question it further—at least not for now.
“Malin’s safety is paramount to me,” he mumbled.
“I know it is,” said Onyx. “We all do. That’s why we’re here, bro. Do you know how much money we’re burning in fuel alone?”
“You got a problem with K19 funding the safety of—”
“Knock it off, Miller. That’s not what I’m saying. I’m in, okay? I mean, Jesus. Do you somehow not realize that I’ve been with you since Bagram?”
“Sorry,” said Dutch. “I gotta eat.”