“One man down,” he said quietly into his mouthpiece.
The body slumped over, and Blake bristled. The leader of camp had to be here somewhere. Satellite imagery hadn’t shown anyone to have left during the previous day. The trucks arriving with weapons had all remained on site after they’d been unloaded.
Where the hell was he?
Blake moved out and toward the third and final tent in the center. If this asshole wasn’t here, he’d move back to the perimeter and continue searching with his men.
“There’s a larger tent on the southeast side,” Logan said over the headsets. “Jackson and I are heading that way.”
“Another empty tent,” Ethan muttered. “The southwest side of camp seems to be empty.”
“Roger that,” Blake said, his gaze narrowing as he moved toward the final tent in the center. Maybe he should’ve headed here first. If he was the leader, he’d want the most protection. Not that the sleeping men on the outskirts of the camp had done any good in preventing Blake and his team from entering.
Blake aimed his weapon directly in front of him, stealthily creeping toward the opening. He paused for a beat and then moved inside, his gaze sweeping the mostly empty area. He blinked in confusion as he saw a metal pole in the center and no cot or sleeping bag.
What the…?
There was a slight movement on the ground, and he nearly gasped in surprise as he realized the lump at the bottom was a woman bound to the pole. She jerked away in shock, fearful eyes looking up at him as she shook in fear.
“Don’t hurt me,” she whimpered, cowering away from him.
“Holy shit,” he muttered, taking a step closer. She’d only uttered one sentence but sounded American.
His gaze tracked over her as his jaw clenched in anger. Her wrists were bound, and she was tied to the damn metal pole so she couldn’t move more than a few feet in any direction. She looked frightened and exhausted, and he didn’t like the way her wrist was twisted at an awkward angle.
He spoke in a low voice into his headset. “This is Raptor. I found a hostage. Repeat. I found a hostage.”
Chapter 9
Clarissa shrank away from the man who’d entered her tent in the middle of the night. He’d looked larger than life in the brief moment she’d seen him in the moonlight, fully decked out in military gear and a gas mask. Plus, he’d been carrying one of the largest weapons she’d ever seen.
“Who are you?” he asked urgently as he came closer.
He knelt down in front of her, and she cringed away, pulling back. She couldn’t even see him anymore in the darkness, but a man entering her tent in the middle of the night couldn’t be good.
“You’re safe,” he assured her in a low voice. “I’m an American. I know you can’t see me in the dark. We’re here on a mission and sure the hell weren’t expecting you.”
He flipped on a flashlight, and she tried not to shake in fear as her eyes ran over him. This guy was massive—he looked like some full-on commando, with weapons and a helmet and bulletproof vest. There was an American flag patched on his uniform though, and the moment she noticed that, she wanted to cry in relief.
“They kidnapped me a few days ago,” she choked out.
He nodded, pulling a knife from a sheath. He seemed to be listening to someone over his headset. “Affirmative,” he said quietly. “What’s your name?” he asked, looking down at the rope connecting her to the pole.
“Clarissa.”
“You’re American,” he said, looking directly at her once more.
“Yes. I’m from Texas and am here conducting research. They found my guide and me near the river a day or so ago. They tied me up, and I can’t leave,” she said, tears welling in her eyes as she looked down at her bound wrists. “They might come in here!” she whispered frantically.
A few tears rolled down her cheeks, and the man stilled.
“No one’s coming in here,” he gruffly assured her. “My team is out there going from tent to tent searching for someone. You’re safe. I’m going to cut you free of these ropes and bring you with me. Are you injured at all?”
“I think my wrist is broken.”
He nodded, pursing his lips together as he examined her. His large gloved hands looked like they could break her in two, but she knew he wouldn’t hurt her. She’d been terrified seeing him come into her tent, but the moment she saw the flag on his uniform, she knew that she was safe with him.
“Anything else?” he asked, looking carefully over her.
“No.”
He spoke quietly into his headset. “There’s an American woman being held hostage in one of the center tents. I’m going to free her and move out.” He listened to whatever his teammates said. “Broken wrist. Shaken up.”
“Are you guys some kind of Delta Force team or something?” she asked.
His lips quirked as he lifted the knife to the rope tied to the pole. “Navy SEAL team.”
“They’ve got weapons here—I saw them unloading some in the huts. Wait—did you see the video?”
“Video?” he asked.
“They took a video of me—I think he was one of the leaders or something. They wanted to post it online and demand a ransom.”
“No,” he said, frowning. “Maybe he was just threatening you. I haven’t seen it or gotten any intelligence on a video. I’m Blake by the way.”
He sliced through the rope like it was nothing, and she gasped as she was suddenly free from the pole she’d been tied to. She looked wildly around, wanting to run, but the fact of the matter was she was probably safer here with him. “Let me get that one off your wrists,” he said gruffly.
She nodded, holding out her hands as her heart pounded. He easily gripped her wrists in one large hand, and she whimpered. “Easy,” he said. “I won’t hurt you. Your wrist is quite bruised and swollen.” He carefully sliced the rope between her wrists and then stood up, reaching down to help her up.
The ropes fell to the ground with her movement, and she saw where her skin had been rubbed raw.
She reached out her good hand, and Blake pulled her up like she weighed nothing. “Are you able to walk out of here?”
“Walk? I’m ready to run out and never look back.”
He chuffed out a quiet laugh and then spoke into his headset again. “The hostage is freed. We’re ready to move out. SITREP?”
“Damn,” he muttered, listening to whatever his teammates said over the headset. “Affirmative. Over and out.”
Her chest tightened with fear as he looked down at her. “What’s wrong?”
He shook his head. “Nothing. Stay right behind me. Nothing will happen to you, I promise. I’m turning the light back off, so hang onto me if you need to. We’re moving the hell out of here so I can get you to safety.”
She nodded and moved behind him, gripping onto his belt as they moved out of the tent in the darkness. She rested her other hand against his broad back, feeling the bulletproof vest beneath her, afraid to let go of him for even an instant.
Blake was massive, his large body in front of hers. Even though she was somewhat tall for a woman, she felt positively petite beside him. She only came up to his shoulder and wanted nothing more than to hide behind him the entire way as they rushed out of here.
She stumbled slightly in the darkness, hanging onto him. Blake could obviously see with his night-vision goggles, but she was practically helpless.
And what about those chemical weapons? He was wearing a gas mask. If something exploded or leaked, she’d have big problems.
Clarissa was thankful she still had on her boots so they could hurry. At this point she wanted to run as fast as she could, but this guy was on some sort of mission and she couldn’t exactly see much in the moonlight. She needed to stick with him to be safe.
“We’re heading back to the southeast side to wait for extraction,” Blake said into his headset. “Bring him in.”
Clarissa didn’t ask any questions, just moved with him in the dark
. Briefly, she felt guilty about distracting him from whatever mission he was on, but damn. His SEAL team was apparently hiding somewhere here, too. She just wanted to get the hell out of here.
The camp was eerily quiet, and she wondered where the men were. Had they been subdued or killed? What happened to the guys who’d kidnapped her?
She shuddered behind Blake.
“Are you okay?” he asked, briefly glancing back over his shoulder. She could barely see him in the moonlight, mostly just sensing the movement.
“Where is everyone?” she whispered. “It’s creepy walking around here at night.”
“Part of the camp was deserted. They might’ve gotten word we were coming.”
“But how?”
He lifted a shoulder. “The Colombian military is working in coordination with us. They could’ve been bribed. The men we found in tents have all been tended to, but one side of the camp was empty.”
Tended to. She wasn’t sure what he meant and wasn’t sure that she wanted to know the answer to that either. Had Blake killed those men? Had his teammates?
Or were they simply tied up and unable to harm them?
She jumped in surprise as she noticed some movement under the cover of night. “Easy,” Blake said, his voice deep. “Those are my teammates.”
Blake spoke in a low voice into his mouthpiece, but she was distracted looking around and didn’t hear what he said. She clung to him more tightly, hoping he wasn’t bothered by the way she was stuck to him like glue. Clarissa was scared out of her mind—all it would take was for one of those men to snatch her from Blake, and she’d be gone.
This was her one chance of escaping. Of survival. If they took her again, she feared she’d never get back home.
Blake stopped abruptly, and she gasped as her hand on his back was wrenched slightly. “I’m okay,” she said quickly. “It’s just my wrist.”
“We’ll wrap it up when we get out of this place.”
Gunfire suddenly erupted from the other side of camp, and she yelped in surprise. “Shit. Get down, get down,” Blake said, bodily pushing her to the ground. She was shaking in fear as she laid down in the grass, Blake’s massive body covering hers, but she knew Blake was protecting her, not planning to harm her.
He was nothing but pure muscle and hard lines, and his gloved hand rested atop her head as she whimpered beneath him. Clarissa heard someone running toward them, icy cold fear snaking down her spine as she trembled beneath Blake.
“Raptor, it’s Hurricane,” a male voice called out. “He’s on the north side of camp heading for the vehicles!”
“Fuck,” Blake muttered before barking into his mouthpiece. “Move to the north! Abboud is trying to make an escape.”
The man named Hurricane turned and ran as Blake jumped up, hauling her to her feet. “We’re heading back into the rainforest,” he said into his mouthpiece as more gunfire erupted, sounding closer than ever. “I’m not risking a civilian life over this asshole.”
Blake gripped her bicep with his large gloved hand and hauled her in front of him as they jogged toward the tree line. Clarissa realized he was still protecting her this way. The sound of gunfire was coming from behind them, and if they were hit, Blake would be the one to take the bullet. She ran faster, not wanting him to get hurt because of rescuing her.
It didn’t matter that she could barely see in the moonlight. Once they reached the tree line, she knew they’d be safe.
The rest of Blake’s team seemed to be headed in the opposite direction. Was Abboud the leader of this place? The man who’d videoed her and wanted a ransom?
She didn’t have time to wonder, because they cleared the tents on the outskirts of camp and were headed straight for the jungle. Even in the dark, it was a welcome respite. They could easily hide among the vines and trees, waiting for whoever Blake was with to come retrieve them. The moonlight disappeared entirely as they entered the dark forest, and she slowed, unable to see where she was going.
Blake gripped her arm, guiding her forward. “I’ve got night-vision goggles,” he said, his voice deep. “Let’s move further into the rainforest before I turn on a flashlight. I don’t think they came after us, but they could still shoot in this direction.”
“Okay,” she said, hating how her voice shook.
Clarissa tripped over a vine, and Blake steadied her. His firm grip on her arm was reassuring. He wouldn’t let anything happen to her—wouldn’t let those awful men harm her. “Keep moving forward,” he instructed. “We’ll hunker down here while those guys deal with the aftermath and call in for extraction when they’re done.”
“How did you even get here?” she asked in bewilderment.
“We had a drop point half a mile away. My men and I approached through the rainforest. They could extract us now if necessary, but my team needs to complete their mission.”
Their mission. She didn’t even need to wonder what that was anymore. The men who’d kidnapped her were harboring chemical weapons—no doubt they were intended for use against Americans. Would they be smuggled north to Mexico? Shipped out somewhere?
“It sounded like they were constantly trucking in more weapons,” she said quietly as they moved through the trees.
“That’s not a good sign. I think we’re far enough,” he said a moment later.
The air here was rich with scents of the rainforest and slightly damp. She’d never been so happy to be back in nature before. Being tied to that pole, helpless, was terrifying. The soft grass in the tent had been her only comfort. Now she could hear the quiet sounds of insects in the jungle, feel the leaves and vines brush against her as they moved, smell the damp earth beneath their feet.
They were free. Sure, those guys could chase after them, but they’d be hard to find here in the middle of the night. The freedom to move and run and do whatever she wanted was overwhelming.
Blake flicked on his flashlight, and she stared up at him as they stopped. He set his gear down and removed his gas mask, shaking his head slightly. “Damn, that’s better,” he muttered.
Clarissa watched as he readjusted his helmet, noticing how attractive he was—dark eyes, chiseled jaw. Muscles upon muscles. He was also tall, with broad shoulders and a confidence about him. He had to be self-assured, she supposed. After all, he’d literally charged in there in the middle of the night with his team.
She was used to academics, scholarly types who wrote for prestigious journals, published their research, and gave lectures to rooms full of students. Blake was clearly a man of action—who spent more time outdoors than in and was highly trained in weapons and combat. She couldn’t even begin to imagine whatever missions he went on as a SEAL.
Right now she was more thankful for him than he could ever imagine though.
Blake spoke into his headset. “This is Raptor. I’m in the rainforest with the hostage. I don’t think anyone followed us in, but they were shooting at us as we left the camp. Affirmative. God damn it. We’ll standby until then.”
“Raptor?” she asked as he looked back at her.
His lips quirked slightly. “All the guys on my team have nicknames.”
She nodded, remembering how the other man had called himself Hurricane. “Are you the leader or something?”
“Affirmative. And unfortunately, things have headed south. That asshole Abboud is still out there. My men are looking for him, but we’ll wait here before we circle back to meet up with them. I don’t want you getting caught in the crossfire.”
She shuddered. “Me either. I can wait out here if you need to work though.”
He raised his eyebrows. “I just got you out of a damn terrorist camp. You think I’m going to leave you alone here unprotected in the middle of the jungle?”
She shrugged, feeling somewhat foolish. “I don’t want to get in the way of your mission. It’s true, they captured me out here, somewhere.” She looked around, surrounded only by dark trees. She had no idea how far she was from her own camp. “We heard voices n
ear the river and didn’t hide quickly enough. Believe me when I say I’ve learned my lesson.”
Blake nodded, watching the way she was holding her wrist. “Let’s see if I can bind that wrist for you—at least get you a little more comfortable while we’re out here.”
“Thanks.”
He knelt down, leaning his gun against a tree, and looked through his rucksack. “How long were you held there?”
“Just a day or so. It felt like forever.”
He nodded. “You seem in relatively good condition. When I first saw you on the ground bound to that pole, I thought I was going to have to carry you out. How’d you break your wrist?”
She shuddered, watching as he pulled out a rolled-up bandage. “Someone snuck into my tent and tried—” She shook her head, suddenly getting choked up. “Well, anyway. He didn’t get far. He pushed me to the ground, but the leader burst in when I screamed and fought him. I guess he didn’t want me injured before he took the video,” she said bitterly.
“Jesus.”
“He didn’t—they didn’t rape me. Maybe they would’ve eventually, but they were mostly concerned with filming me making a statement and trying to get a hefty ransom for their trouble.”
“Assholes. Thank God we found you. I’ll ask my CO if any footage has turned up online. We don’t want your family and friends worried if they see the video.”
She nodded, taking a deep breath. No sense in telling him she didn’t have any family or close friends. He’d just feel sorry for her. As it was, she was grateful he’d come to her rescue. More than grateful. She didn’t need him to pity her.
“All right,” he said, his voice gruff. “Let’s see about your wrist. Sit down here,” he instructed, nodding toward the ground beside him.
She sank to the ground next to Blake, blowing out a shaky breath.
SEAL's Desire (Alpha SEALs Coronado Book 1) Page 5