She met his eyes with pain that he knew wasn't faked. "Me. I had to accept him as my owner until my son turned nineteen."
"Nineteen?"
Angela crushed out her butt, opened a flat, black case to pull out a thick, neatly rolled blunt. Outside, the wind howled in warning, but neither of them noticed. "He said the extra year was his bonus for being such a good citizen. He never let me forget he was caring for someone's bastard."
Fury filled Marc's heart, but he could say nothing. After all, it was true. "So what do you need me for?"
His voice was a bit more defensive than she cared for and Angela lit the weed, inhaled before answering. Getting mad here wouldn't help.
When she passed the joint, he saw how careful she was not to touch him at all.
"Help me get my son back. Clearly I'm not cut out for the trek."
"So just for the trip?"
She met his gaze, shaking her head. "No, probably not. Kenny's a Marine too. My son's a cadet. They're together now, in Western Utah, and Kenn can be… harsh when he doesn't get his way."
His worry confirmed, Marc didn't respond, mind busy running over what that confrontation might be like. She wanted him to challenge a fellow Marine. He could do that, but only for the right reasons.
"When he gets like that, I can't handle him alone. I need you to stay close once we find them, while we talk. Maybe we'll work things out."
Marc heard a mix of emotions in her words, but doubt was the clearest. "You don't think so?"
She took the smoldering blunt back, and again, made sure they didn't touch, drawing a deeper frown. Where was his Angie?
"No. Kenny doesn't know what a compromise is, never had to before, and unless the War changed him, he'll fight to keep what he considers his. I still owe him six years."
Marc knew trouble when he heard it. "So, I get you there and what? Keep an eye on you so you can tell your man you don't love him anymore?"
Her eyes blazed, and he knew it was at the accusing tone more than the words.
"It was never love! We made an unfair deal, and he's had over a decade of my life that I can't get back! You don't know, so don't sit there and think I'm playing games. Kenny will be furious I've left Ohio, and he won't care about my reasons or needs. When he finds out I want to change the terms of our deal, that just maybe, I want complete freedom, he'll do whatever it takes to hold me…unless he's changed."