Storm Surge (Delta Stevens Crime Logs Book 6)

by Alex Westmore

  “Same here.” Collapsing next to Delta, Taylor rolled on her back and looked at her leg. “Mind shining that light over here so I can assess the damage?” The moonlight trickling through the trees cast eerie shadows across Taylor’s face, and Delta shuddered at the thought of how close they had come to not making it out of there alive.

  Delta shone the six-cell on Taylor’s leg.

  Pulling the wet pant leg up, they could see the white bone of her lower leg, but it was hard to tell if it was broken or if the skin and muscle had been torn away. “Does it hurt much?”

  Taylor winced. “Sometimes. I can’t feel it, mostly.”

  “I think you’ve climbed your last building, Taylor.”

  Taylor sighed and lay back down. “I’d retired anyway.”

  After using a new tourniquet ripped from Taylor’s pant leg, Delta leaned over Taylor and touched her face softly. Facing death always brought people closer together, but Delta knew that the feelings she had for Taylor were there long before Taylor arrived to save her from a brutal rape and death. Delta had meant it when she said she loved Taylor, and though there was no place to go with that love, Delta was glad, at least, for having the opportunity to tell her.

  “Feel well enough to travel?”

  Taylor nodded slowly. “The real question is, do you feel strong enough to carry me?”

  Nodding, Delta started to rise when Taylor stopped her. “I don’t know what to say.”

  Delta smiled warmly into Taylor’s moonlit face. “How about ‘dinner’s on me when we get out of here’?”

  Taylor grinned weakly. “Dinner? Can I have you for dessert?”

  Delta laughed. “You never give up, do you?”

  Taylor shook her head. “I told you, love, we’re cut from the same cloth. It’s what sets us apart from the rest.”

  Taylor took Delta’s face in her hands and softly kissed her cheek. “Thank you.”

  Delta smiled. “No, Taylor, thank you.” Rising, Delta gently lifted the lithe Taylor up and wrapped her over her shoulders. “Let’s go home.”

  When Megan and her party of eight surviving hostages finally surfaced, she looked around and had no idea where they were. The only indication she had for navigation was the gunfire echoing through the forest. As much as she hated to admit it, her only hope of meeting up with Connie and the others was to head back toward camp, toward the shooters. If the Colombians were chasing the others back toward the shore, then it made sense to be moving in that direction.

  “Megan?” Siobhan’s voice was soft.

  Megan turned to her. “Yes?”

  “Thank you for coming back, for saving us.”

  “We’re far from safe, Siobhan. I’m afraid we’re going to have to follow the sound of the shooting. It’s our only hope.”

  A tall, blonde woman shook her head. “I am not going back there.”

  Tired, scared, and afraid to think of what had become of her lover, Megan snapped. She didn’t know how Delta had managed to save people from themselves for all these years, but Megan was tired of their suspicions, their opposition, and their lack of trust. If they didn’t want to return to their families, then fuck them. Fuck them all. “You know what? I don’t give a shit if any of you come with me. I left my lover back there! Stay or go, it really doesn’t matter to me anymore.”

  “Megan…”

  Megan turned on Siobhan, her rage erupting. “Don’t ‘Megan’ me, Siobhan. Our only, and I’ll emphasize that word; our only hope of getting out of here is to find my friends. I’m done playing heroine, Siobhan. I can’t do it, so don’t ask me to. Make your own choice, but I’m going.”

  As Megan turned, she felt Siobhan fall in behind her. “We need you, Megan.”

  “No,” Megan said, whipping around. “You need guts! Because, goddamn it, that’s what it’s going to take to get out of here, and frankly, I only have enough for myself right now.” As Megan turned to leave, Siobhan grabbed her, and Megan coldly peeled Siobhan’s hand off. “Siobhan, we probably have two hours before dawn, and I want to be far away from here by then. So, if you stop me again, I’m going to hurt you.”

  Megan forged through the bushes, only dimly aware that Siobhan and five others had fallen in behind her. The rest, it appeared, had had enough of this crazed woman and moved in the other direction.

  “You sure you know what you’re doing?” Siobhan whispered.

  Megan nodded. “Someone out here is on our side and is shooting back at those bastards. Once we find them, we can get help and go home.”

  “In that order?”

  “Yes, Siobhan. In that order.”

  It was dawn when Connie and Sal stumbled to the coast, the lavender light of the sky skipping across the water’s surface. They had not stopped moving for many hours, and they were fatigued, dehydrated, and scared. When they finally reached the sand, which lapped right up to the forest, Sal collapsed on her back, exhausted.

  “I sure hope Gina’s out there,” Sal said, looking up at the lightening sky. “Are we at the right beach?”

  “Close enough, Sal. She’s out there looking for us as we speak.” Connie reached into her bag and pulled out the flare gun. “It’s a risk to use this right now, with the others still so far behind, but I don’t know what else to do. We need help.”

  Sal stopped Connie from firing and pointed to their six-cell. “You shoot that thing off prematurely, and our boys are screwed. Use the mirror from the flashlight.”

  “What if she doesn’t get it?”

  “She might not, but Logan will. He ought to be expecting it. Trust me, Con. You give away our position too early, and we’re fucked.”

  Connie nodded and unscrewed the cap of the flashlight, carefully removing a round mirror. “God, I hope you’re right.”

  “There’s some things vets from a war like Vietnam will always remember, and hand-to-hand combat is one of them. Signalling for help is another.” Logan will be looking for it.” Sal rolled over and glanced back at the jungle. “How far behind do you think the guys are?”

  Connie shrugged as she maneuvered the mirror to catch the morning rays. “Hard to say. They should have laid enough cover and then gotten out before the general’s men had a chance to surround them or figure out how few opponents they were facing.”

  Sal sat quietly while Connie continued catching the dawn’s sun with the mirror. She had wanted a radio for communication, but the chances of their mission being overheard by any number of armed bands of drug dealers, cartel members, or government agencies was too high to risk it.

  “Con?” Sal asked, rolling on her side.

  “Yeah?”

  “What if they didn’t make it?”

  Connie did not turn from her task. “Who? Delta and Taylor?”

  “Yeah. What if we risk going back there for nothing?”

  Connie looked at Sal. It was time to tell the little soldier the truth. “We aren’t going back. I am.”

  Sal sat up quickly. “No way!”

  Connie nodded. “We’ve risked enough as it is. I want all of you on that boat safe and sound. I’ll take whoever answers our SOS back to the caverns, but the rest of you are done with this disaster.”

  “But you have a baby on the way.”

  Connie looked over at Sal and grinned. Sal’s face looked like someone had used it for a canvas, but instead of using a paintbrush, they’d used a razor. Branches had left their slash marks across her face as they’d plowed through the dark jungle. Even with blood on her face and fatigue in her eyes, Sal still looked like an army cherub.

  “I’m not leaving this jungle without her.”

  Wiping a drop of blood that was trickling down her temple, Sal nodded in understanding. “You really love her, don’t you?”

  “More than life itself.”

  “What I don’t get is if you two love each other so much, how come you’re not together?”

  This made Connie chuckle. “Oh, Sal, if I had a quarter for all the times people asked me that.
”

  “Well?”

  Connie brushed the wet hair off Sal’s forehead. “If Delta was my lover and did the shit she does, I’d kill her.”

  Sal laughed. “No foolin’?”

  “No foolin’. My bond with Delta runs deeper than that sort of relationship. We’re connected on a plane that transcends the physical realm.”

  “You love her more than Gina?”

  Connie sighed. “It’s a different kind of love. Delta makes me a complete person. I need her fire, her energy, and her strength. She needs my earth, my calm, and my rationality. We need each other.”

  “You’ve never wanted to go to bed with her?”

  Connie laughed. “Hell, no.”

  “I would. She’s something else.”

  Connie maneuvered the mirror once more and caught the sun just right. “Like I said, the physical aspect of relationships isn’t what we’re about. It’s about our spirits.”

  “Gina and Megan sure are understanding about the crap you two go through in the name of friendship.”

  “Yes, they are. But then, they’re both remarkable women in their own right. Gina is the most amazing woman, and although she isn’t a warrior like Delta, she has the biggest, kindest heart I have ever known.”

  “I guess you four are pretty lucky to have found each other.”

  Nodding, Connie looked back at the forest. “Yes, we are. And that family has extended to include you and Josh, Carducci, and even Taylor. I won’t risk losing any more of you by going back. I want you and Josh to see Gina home safely.”

  “But Zahn…”

  “Zahn will be long gone by the time help arrives. He may feel confident to clash with a bunch of wayward Americans, but the cartel frowns upon any sort of international incident. I’ll be fine.”

  “If it’s so safe, why can’t the rest of us go?”

  Connie lowered the mirror and stared at the sea. There was no getting around Sal’s probing questions, except to say the truth. “Whether she’s dead or alive, I’m not leaving here without her. It could take weeks to dig them out of there. I want the rest of you to go home and live your lives. Take care of Megan and Gina. There’s no need for all of us to wade through tons of boulders.”

  Sal’s mouth dropped open. “Are you telling me you think she’s dead?”

  Connie sighed. A tear dropped off her eyelash. “I don’t know what to think anymore, Sal. My head tells me not even Delta Stevens could have survived a blast like that, but my gut tells me it isn’t over until I see her corpse. And that’s something I will have to do myself.”

  Sal took Connie’s hand in hers. “Promise me you’ll come back, that you won’t do anything stupid.”

  Connie barely nodded. “My days of doing stupid things are over, Sal. After this, all I want is a quiet life with my lover and child and aunt Delta coming over to be a bad influence.”

  “Come on, Con, you’re scaring me! What about that native spirit shit? How come you can’t tell if she’s still alive?”

  Connie closed her eyes for a second and listened to the rhythm of the sea. She didn’t want to tell Sal that she was afraid to listen, afraid to hear the sound of a spirit no longer connected to Delta’s living being. Connie Rivera was too afraid, this time, to know the truth, so she had completely blocked her spirits, like drawing a curtain against the glare of the sun.

  Turning to Sal, Connie opened her eyes. “I can’t tell if she’s alive, Sal, because I’m too afraid of hearing the truth.”

  “And what truth is that, Connie?”

  Connie looked at the beautiful dawn and shrugged. “The only truth in the universe that scares me more than death.”

  Sal scooted closer to Connie and hugged her. “Living without Delta?”

  Connie shook her head. “No. Failing her.”

  “God, don’t fail me now,” Megan muttered as she ripped through the foliage toward the sounds of the gunfire. Pushing quickly through the forest, she followed the shots until she was right on top of them. She had managed to avoid two soldiers making their way through the jungle, but she knew there must be others searching for them as well. She figured that as long as there was gunfire, there were two sides still fighting. All she had to do was reach her side.

  When she did, Carducci whirled around at the sound of their approaching steps. He took one look at Megan, dropped his gun, and took her in his arms, holding on to her tightly.

  “How the hell did you get out?” he asked, seeing the party of women standing sheepishly behind Megan.

  “There was an underground river and…”

  “Did Delta make it?” Josh asked, pausing for only a moment to ask the question before continuing to fire at the men coming from the camp.

  Shaking her head slowly, Megan buried her face and tears in Carducci’s chest. “I… I don’t think so. She… stayed with Taylor.”

  Carducci squeezed his eyes closed. “You sure? Did you see her?”

  Pulling away, Megan wiped her eyes and tried to compose herself. “We keep expecting her to perform one miracle after another, Tony. This time, I’m afraid, she couldn’t pull it off. She and Taylor… There just wasn’t enough time.”

  Nodding slowly, Tony released her and retrieved his weapon.

  “Got no time for a memorial, either,” Josh announced. “It’ll be full daylight soon, and then they’re all comin’ after us. We gotta double-time outta here.”

  Carducci nodded. “Can those others travel?” He jerked toward Siobhan’s group with his head.

  “They’re going to have to.”

  Josh plucked several rounds of ammunition from the ground and tucked the night goggles back into his bag. “Wait a second,” he said, as he rummaged through the assorted debris in his bag. “I told Logan to put a few goodies in here. Let’s see if he ever figured out how to follow orders.” Pulling out a hand grenade, Josh smiled. “Can’t leave without sayin’ goodbye. Tony, you, Megan, and the others go on. I’ll catch up to you in a bit. Here’re the compass coordinates. Just continue southwest at that coordinate. I’ll meet up with you there.”

  Nodding, Carducci snagged the piece of paper from Josh and reached out to shake his hand. “You’re a hell of a soldier, man.”

  Grabbing Carducci’s hand, Josh grinned. “Yeah, but you can shoot the tits off a gnat. Take care of the girls, Tony.”

  “Will do.”

  With that, Carducci, Megan, and a handful of exhausted women headed southwest, toward freedom.

  “Megan?” Carducci asked as they shoved branches and bushes out of the way.

  “Yes, Tony?”

  “If you didn’t see her die, maybe she’s still alive.”

  Megan held back a large branch while the others followed Carducci.

  “With my Delta Stevens, anything is possible.”

  Delta had no idea where they were, but her instincts told her they were headed in the right direction, toward the beach. But she couldn’t tell for sure. If she could stay alive until sunrise, she would know which was east and which was west, but until then, her gut was the only compass to rely on. Once or twice, she’d heard the distant echo of gunshots, but she could not tell from which direction the sound came.

  Taylor had given Delta a brief rundown of the plan, but it didn’t help that neither of them could figure out the way to the water. What was worse, Taylor was beginning to fade in and out of consciousness, and as she made her way through the thick brush, Delta stopped every now and then to make sure Taylor was alive. The fear that Taylor would die from shock before they could reach help motivated Delta’s exhausted, aching legs. She was operating on adrenaline alone and knew it was only a matter of time before fatigue became her worst enemy.

  “Del?” Taylor’s voice came weakly from behind.

  Stopping, Delta gently lowered Taylor to the ground. It was hard to tell in the soft, early morning light, but Taylor’s face appeared pasty and lifeless. “You hurting?”

  Taylor nodded. “Been thinking.”

  Delta
looked around the forest floor for a moment, before finding the same type of bush Flora’s grandmother had shown her. The leaf, when chewed and mixed with saliva, had some sort of healing agents in it, and though Delta couldn’t remember what those were, she would eat dirt if she thought it would ease Taylor’s pain.

  “Are you gonna listen or not?”

  Delta jammed two of the bright green leaves in her mouth, chewed them to a paste, and then spit them out in her palm. “I need to put this on your leg.”

  Taylor looked into Delta’s palm and winced. “Eww. Do you know what you’re doing?”

  Delta grinned. “Sort of.”

  “Um, Delta? What exactly happened to you out here? I mean…” Taylor reached out and caressed the dark blue painted line running just beneath Delta’s collarbone. “You’re all tattooed, you’re chewing leaves and shit, and you’re… well… acting a lot like some kinda native.”

  Delta pressed the paste to the huge gash in Taylor’s leg before retying the tourniquet. “It’s a long story. What was it you were thinking?” Sitting down next to the injured woman, Delta wrapped her arms around Taylor and held her close. Two, maybe three hours had elapsed since they’d emerged from the caverns, and Delta feared she wouldn’t be able to get started again once they stopped.

  “About what?” Cradling Taylor in her arms, Delta lightly stroked Taylor’s hair. She was cold and sweaty at once; sure signs of shock.

  “In case I don’t make it…”

  “Taylor…”

  “No, let me finish.”

  Delta rocked Taylor gently as she waited. “Okay.”

  “In case I don’t make it out of here, I want you to know why I came.”

  Delta kissed Taylor’s temple and continued rocking her, trying to forget the time she’d held another dear friend in her arms as his warm blood drained onto the cold pavement. “I know why.”

  Taylor coughed as she shook her head. “Are you gonna let me talk or not?”

  “Sorry.”

  Shivering a little, Taylor put her arms around Delta’s waist. “I fell in love with you long before I met you. I romanticized who I thought Delta Stevens was in my head. There’s quite a bit of press about you and your exploits, you know.”