by Stone, Piper
“And you’re avoiding the question.”
“There’s nothing to say. I shouldn’t have gotten involved with her and I did. It wasn’t fair to either one of us.”
Lindsey shook her head. “Does that mean you aren’t allowed to have a life outside of this mercenary gig?”
“We can, but not with clients.” I could tell my answer wasn’t going to go down easily.
“Was she a client, Jack? Is that what happened?”
“No. I was on hiatus. I needed some time.”
“Okay. I can see you’re not going to tell me. That’s fine. I’m supposed to place all my trust in you, including informing you about all my dirty laundry but you can’t trust me. How do you think that makes me feel, Jack? I care about you, more than I should.”
“You care about Diego as well.”
Huffing, she folded her arms and backed away from me. “Yeah, I do. I’m not entirely certain after a few intense days of being kidnapped, nearly blown to bits, and terrified for my life why I should, but I do. Call it the danger or the adrenaline rush. I’m also smart enough to realize that what we’re sharing is a fantasy and nothing more so don’t worry, Jack. I’ll stop giving a damn just like you want.”
When she turned to walk away, something inside of me broke wide open. I could no longer take holding the guilt buried deep inside. “Stop. Just wait, Lindsey. You have every right to be angry and the fact you look so much like Teresa allowed me to act unprofessionally.”
“Unprofessionally. You’re a hired mercenary paid by my father likely because he fucked up in his life. Now, when I return, I can fully expect to be forced into a life of servitude for a man from a mafia family. The last thing I care about is whether or not you acted professionally. What I do care about is that for a few minutes last night, the three of us were very close. Not just because of what we’re going through or because of the great sex. There was more. I know it.”
When she finished, she was barely whispering, reaching out for me to dare fill in the blanks. “I adore you, Lindsey. There isn’t anything that I want more than to spend the rest of my life with you, but I know that if I dare consider anything like that, the same thing will happen to you that happened to Teresa.”
“Yeah, disillusionment? The feeling of abandonment? Is that what you’re talking about?”
I inched closer, the rage of all the years of guilt and hatred of myself breaching the surface. “No, Lindsey. You will die.”
“What?”
The flash of color on the television screen grabbed my attention. “Shit.”
“No, don’t you dare do that, Jack,” she admonished.
“Hold on.” I grabbed the remote, turning up the volume just as Diego walked into the room.
“What’s going on?” he asked.
I threw out my hand as pictures of an intense fire were followed by the face of a reporter.
“This just in, there has been an explosion at the Plaza de Armas early this morning. There are reports of several casualties.”
“Wait a minute,” Diego said, moving closer to the television. “That looks like where we were last night.”
As the camera drew closer to several of the stores, Lindsey crept closer, suddenly touching her neck. “No. That can’t be. That’s…”
“What is it?” I demanded.
She shook her head over and over again as she continued to stare at the screen. “No way.”
“Lindsey, what the hell is going on?” Diego hissed. “You can’t hold anything back from us at this point. If you did something, we need to know.”
“You don’t understand.” As she raced toward the hallway, I dared look at Diego.
“This is far too coincidental,” I hissed then moved toward the set of open doors, peering outside, my hand on the gun.
“Yeah, I don’t like this at all. We need to contact Dante now,” he answered.
Lindsey raced back into the room, the bag she’d had with her the night before in her hands. “That’s the store where I bought these from. Remember, the same one you found me in last night after the restaurant?”
Diego yanked the bag from her hand, pulled out what appeared to be two copper bracelets. “I don’t get it.”
“I had them both engraved, but I had to go back for one of them. A present for the two of you. That’s why I disappeared. I was just going to pick it up. How could it be the same place?” Lindsey looked from one of us to the other.
Dante held the pieces into the light, waiting to see my reaction. I glanced at her, suddenly realizing that the necklace she’d been wearing wasn’t around her neck. “How did you buy these, Lindsey?”
“Money, of course,” she answered.
I stormed toward her, yanking her hair away from her shoulders and gripping her neck. “Something like that had to cost a great deal of money, funds you weren’t given.”
“You’re hurting me,” she hissed. “I didn’t steal them.”
Diego seemed to pick up on what I was doing, inching closer, his tone imploring. “Lindsey, what happened to your necklace?”
“I traded it. I didn’t want the damn thing, even though it was obviously worth some money according to the store clerk. Michael gave that to me just before I left. The bastard told me to stay safe and keep praying to whatever God I believed in.” Her eyes suddenly opened wide. “What was wrong with the necklace?”
“It was a tracking device,” I said quietly, releasing my hold.
As my anger turned into something else entirely.
The need for revenge.
Sweet, bloody revenge.
* * *
“I don’t give a shit, Dante. You will find us a way out of this fucking country from Lima,” I barked as I constantly scanned the busy road while Diego drove. It was dangerous as fuck to be taking out in the middle of the day but both Diego and I felt we had no choice.
Not if any of us wanted to live.
Lima was our only hope of getting out within a decent timeframe. What little we’d learned about the bombing told us in no uncertain terms that we had to get out now. There were no such things as coincidences in our world.
“You disappear without a word. You ignore calls and now you want a ride out of there. You better tell me what’s going on, Jack,” Dante commanded, cursing in Italian afterward.
“Hear me. We had a tracking system all along, a piece of jewelry given to the good doctor by her boyfriend. As in Michael Mancini? Ever hear of the guy?”
His silence told me far too many things. The bastard knew but had refused to tell us.
“I’ll get you out. There’s more to the story, but I’m glad you were able to keep her safe.”
“No thanks to you. You’re getting us on a one-way flight to Washington and then you and me, we’re gonna talk. Call me when you have specifics. Do not fuck with me, Dante.” I ended the communication before he had a chance to disagree with me. As if I cared.
“What the hell, Jack? We don’t want to piss him off,” Diego snapped.
“In case you haven’t figured out, it would appear that we are nothing but collateral damage, my friend.” I swung around in the seat, searching the area behind us. While it didn’t appear that we’d been followed, I knew it was only a matter of time. “Where the hell are you going?” We’d yet to leave the city limits. Although he’d taken backroads up to this point in his effort to get us out of town, I had the distinct feeling that his business in the city wasn’t completed.
“One stop. I have to do this,” he said in a far too quiet voice.
“Fuck. You’re going after Felipe, aren’t you?”
He threw me a look then swung around a curve. “He has the right to know.”
“You mean if he’s still alive.”
“At least we’ll learn if we are the intended targets,” he retorted.
“Are we getting out of here?” Lindsey asked as she scooted forward in her seat.
“Hell, yeah, we are.” My comment was dry, likely unbelievable. W
e drove in silence for a couple of minutes until Diego turned onto another street. I finally recognized the area. Felipe’s store was just up ahead.
As we neared the address, Diego began to slow. Another instinct kicked me in the gut. “Keep moving. Don’t stop, Diego. Go. Go!”
The flash of gunfire was easy to see even in the bright sunlight. As I turned my head, prepared to shoot if necessary, there was no doubt what I was seeing.
All the windows were blown out, glass covering the sidewalk and a portion of the street.
Along with blood.
Diego shifted into third and pressed on the accelerator, not bothering to take a good look at the carnage.
“Oh, my God,” Lindsey whispered, covering her face. “I’m so sorry about all the things I said before. The apartment. Trying to keep me safe.”
“Get down and stay down,” I instructed, making certain the safety was off my weapon. While it didn’t appear that our vehicle had been noticed, there were already plain-clothed soldiers combing the streets. I’d be able to recognize their actions anywhere.
Within five minutes, Diego had rolled out of town, flying past every other vehicle in an effort to get as far away as possible.
“How long until we reach Lima?” I finally asked.
“Less than two hours. Dante had better come through.”
Yeah, the man was right. We would have almost no recourse if he didn’t.
“Why would Michael do that? Why? Why track me? I don’t understand,” Lindsey moaned, although she continued to remain hidden behind the seats.
“It’s obvious he wanted to make certain you didn’t get away from the Serpent. The question is why.” I couldn’t wait to have a chance to spend time with Michael. I was certain one of us would find it enlightening.
“I will kill him,” she offered.
Only then did Diego react, looking me directly in the eyes. We all had our reasons to be pissed, seeking methods of revenge.
There was nothing from Dante for the next hour. When he finally did communicate, the coordinates came first. “We have our location.”
“Then let’s fucking get there. I have a bad feeling we’re getting ready to have company.” Diego shifted into fifth as he moved away from the main road, constantly searching the rearview mirror.
“Private runway. Small charter jet, Gulfstream 650. The people are trustworthy but you’re only going to have one chance at this. My guess is that the arrival has been tracked,” Dante stated in his usual perfunctory manner.
“You’re sure about this, Dante?”
“There is no doubt. We’ll call them friends of friends.”
I snorted as I glanced into the side mirror. That meant they were drug runners. Hell, yes, they’d be on the radar and not just with the Serpent. The planes usually flew in the middle of the night, often able to mask their approach. “I’ll call you when we arrive in DC. Just make certain the plane is ready to go. We won’t have any additional time.”
“It’ll be ready and waiting,” Dante stated. “Safe travels, Jack. For what it’s worth, you’ve both done a damn good job.”
This time, he ended the communication, likely calling the powers that be regarding my demand to learn all the information.
Twenty minutes later, the first set of vehicles appeared in the distance. I no longer had to worry about the communications unit being the source of a tracking device. One of its other capabilities was the ability to predetermine the distance of various heat sources. According to the device, there were six heated blips.
“How long until we reach our destination?” I asked as I reloaded both rifles, prepared for whatever the assholes had to bring to the party.
“Thirteen minutes.” Diego’s answer was clipped as he glanced into the rearview mirror.
“Better make that ten. We got serious company and they’re headed our way fast.”
Pressing down on the gas pedal, he gunned the engine, swerving around a curve in the road. The screech of tires forced Lindsey to moan.
“Fuck,” he hissed, shooting around another curve, the Jeep skidding.
Two minutes passed.
Three.
“They’re gaining on us. I’ll do what I can to stop them.” I crawled into the back, unzipping the plastic rear window. “Whatever happens, Lindsey, just stay down.” Hunkering down, I positioned the M4 out the window.
“Are you certain it’s the Serpent’s soldiers?” she asked.
“Oh, I’m certain all right. By the size of the heat source, I’d say they are heavily armed.”
We didn’t have to wait long for confirmation, the sound of gunfire popping off in the distance. This time, patience was needed.
Only when I could finally hear the roar of their engines did I take aim and shoot, getting off several rounds.
“Three minutes,” Diego called, zigging and zagging the Jeep as he continued the drive. “Hold on. It could get rough.”
I fired again, this time connecting with the lead vehicle. As it swerved off the road, I continued firing. The massive SUV’s engine revved seconds before going airborne. The explosion was horrific, a plume of smoke rolling in our direction.
“Christ,” Diego huffed.
I knew within seconds I’d be able to see the vehicles again. As they sped through the flames, flanking out to try to cut us off, I leaned out the window, spraying the rifle from one side to the other. The second at least two shots hit our Jeep, I jumped back inside, taking several deep breaths. “How much further?”
“We’re almost there.” Diego tipped his head back and roared as the Jeep began to shimmy. “Fuck. Fuck. Fuck!”
Shit. We were hit. “Just keep it going.” I moved back into position, firing off as many rounds as possible.
The hard thunking noise coming from underneath was one bad sign. As the vehicle began to slow, I shot off one last round, taking out at least one more of their SUVs.
“I see the plane. It’s going to be tight. Get ready to run as fast as you can, Lindsey,” Diego instructed.
She moved to a crouching position, her breathing ragged.
I glanced in her direction, able to see the fear in her eyes. I was also able to see her same defiance. She wasn’t going to go down without a fight.
“We’re getting ready to lose steering,” Diego announced. “I’ll get us as close as I can.”
Diego managed to maneuver the Jeep within a few hundred feet. When he jerked to a stop, immediately cutting the engine, I reached for Lindsey, dragging her out through the open window while Diego yanked the duffle, charging toward the plane.
The plane was waiting as promised, the engine running. As soon as someone inside the plane noticed our arrival, he opened the door, tossing down a set of portable stairs.
I grabbed her hand, pulled her in front of me as we raced forward. Within seconds, the sound of gunfire seemed to be coming from all around us.
She threw a look over her shoulder, a squeal erupting from her throat.
“Go!” I hissed, pushing her forward. We had one hundred fifty feet. One hundred.
Pop! Pop!
The instant blast of pain as the bullet struck was blinding. I stumbled forward, dropping the rifle, the wind knocked out of me.
“No! Jack’s been hit,” she screamed, her voice barely audible over the roar of the plane.
“Go without me!” I managed, stars floating in front of my eyes.
“We’re not leaving you. Never,” she insisted. “Diego.”
“No, Lindsey. Don’t. You need to…” The anguish crawled up my arm, yanking at my breath. The sound of gunfire continued, although every sound was now muffled. I tried to crawl forward but could no longer feel my legs.
“Jack. Jack!”
The sound of her voice was beautiful but as she dropped onto her knees beside me, I used the last bit of strength to push her away. “Get… her on… the… plane.”
“Go, Lindsey, goddammit. Go!” Diego roared as he yanked me into his arms, tossing me ov
er his shoulder. “Go. Go. Go!”
Pop! Pop!
I heard the ping of metal as several bullets hit the aircraft, could feel the vibrations as the troop of soldiers made their way toward the plane.
“You’re not going to die on me, buddy!” Diego insisted, stumbling forward as he raced toward a chance at survival.
No. No… this wasn’t the way it was supposed to end. This couldn’t be happening. I lifted my head, catching sight of the bastards racing toward us, could still hear Lindsey’s screams as she continued to try to get to me. I knew… There was no doubt in my mind that we’d failed our mission.
“We’re not going to… make…”
Chapter 15
Lindsey
A doctor.
All I’d ever wanted since I could remember was to follow in my father’s footsteps and become a surgeon. I’d been tested before, including the year of one nasty internship as well as the few months of work I’d been able to perform in the jungle.
This was entirely different.
I was treating a dying man and one I’d fallen in love with.
The realization that I could lose him had been debilitating and if it hadn’t been for the man on the plane who’d help Diego drag me to safety, I doubt any of us would be alive. While the plane had taken off safely, Diego continued to pace the cargo-style airplane, the weapon still firmly planted in his hand.
“Fuck. Fuck,” he snapped for the tenth time. “How could this have happened?”
The foreign-looking man stood guard, also carrying a weapon. I could tell he didn’t have any more trust in us than we did for him.
Now I was terrified. I had to save Jack’s life and I wasn’t entirely certain I could do it. “I need you, Diego. I need help here.”
Snarling, Diego jerked in my direction. “Can you save him, Doc?”
“I need towels and whatever medical supplies you have on this plane.” When no one responded, I snapped my head in the oblivious soldier’s direction. “Can you understand English? Do you have anything on this steel piece of shit that can help me?” I was exasperated, blinking away tears from hearing the wheezing sounds in Jack’s breathing.