by Zoe York
I didn’t think that particular trip was worth mentioning. Mainly because I’d run away from him, and he’d had to rescue me from the deadly cartel. Where his daughter was holding me captive and torturing me.
It was one of those awkward family memories. Best to not bring it up.
The second thing that was on my mind was that even though I knew it was true, I still didn’t actually believe Matthew was leaving the company. I understood his decision perfectly: he wanted to do what was right for his family. And clearly, getting shot at while chasing criminals around the globe was not the best thing for his family. But still. Everything was going to be different now—for him and for us. I couldn't imagine working without him.
But that was only part of what I was thinking, and that was the problem.
The thing was, I'd asked John to do the same. I'd asked him to quit so that he could lead a safe, long, and happy life, one that didn’t involve almost getting killed on a regular basis. But now that Matthew was actually taking the step, I only felt worried for him. Trouble was Matthew's natural environment. He excelled at covert operations, hand-to-hand combat, and lying on dirt floors with a scope, waiting to catch someone, and then beating the crap out of them when he inevitably did.
What the hell was he going to do for a day job? After having spent years like that?
I looked over at John, who was staring out the window at the enormous infinity pool and the skyline behind it. He’d been quiet since we’d checked in, probably thinking about Matthew and how he was going to handle the business in his absence. In that instant, I knew I couldn't ask him to leave his company behind again. Sometimes the thing chooses you, I remember Matthew saying to me. He’d been trying to convince me that I liked our dangerous missions more than I cared to admit.
Matthew had been right, of course. But where was that going to leave him?
“Are you okay?” I asked John. I went up behind him and wrapped my arms around his chest.
“About Matthew? Yeah,” he said. “It’s been a long time coming.”
“It won’t be the same though, huh?” I asked.
“Nope,” John said. “But you can’t stop change. It’s a natural part of life. And sometimes change is what you need to find your way forward.”
“Meaning what?”
“Meaning I have a lot to think about,” he said. He turned and wrapped his powerful arms around me, and I relaxed against him, even though his words made me curious.
“Like…what sorts of things?” I asked.
He smiled and shook his head at me. “You don’t leave things alone well, babe.”
“I never have.”
Just then there was a knock at the door. John’s face broke into a smile. “I guess we don’t have time to talk,” he said. “I love it when that happens.”
“It’s not like I’m going to forget about it,” I said.
“Awesome, as you would say,” John said good-naturedly and opened the door. Outside was a leathery-looking man with a large, bald head and a Hawaiian shirt.
“Leo,” John said. He reached out and hugged him.
“Hey, man,” Leo said and clapped him on the back. He spied me over John’s shoulder and raised his eyebrows, doing a double take. “John, you old dog. Is this gorgeous young creature your wife?”
John laughed and grabbed me, pulling me protectively to his side. “Leo, this is Liberty. My wife.”
I held out my hand to shake Leo’s, but he kissed it instead. He smiled at me, deep fissures crisscrossing his face. Then he turned to John. “Life isn’t fair,” he said, shaking his head.
“Yes, it is,” John assured him.
“Ha!” He walked into our room and flopped down on the couch. “Well, it’s good to see you, old friend. It’s been a long time.”
“I’ve been busy,” John said as we sat down across from him.
“I can see that,” Leo said, looking at me wistfully.
“What about you, Leo? Have you been staying out of trouble?”
“For the most part,” Leo said. He gestured at the room. “This resort’s been lucrative for me. I sold off a few of the other properties I had. Mexico hasn’t been great for diversification lately. So I’ve put some things behind me. Started fresh. There are only a few places where I feel comfortable doing business here, now.”
“And Chichen Itza’s one of them?”
Leo nodded. “This is an old place, a powerful place. Even the cartels and the gangs respect its power. No one’s given me trouble here. I feel like I’ve got the gods on my side.”
“I’m not sure how you managed that,” John said. “Last time we met, lots of people were giving you trouble.”
“But you showed them, didn’t you?” Leo’s tanned face split into a grin.
“I did,” John said, but the teasing quality was gone from his voice. “Have you heard from…any of our old friends?”
“Nah,” Leo said. “I’m pretty sure they’ve made their peace and forgotten about me.”
“How could anyone ever forget about you? You fucked over too many people.” John smiled.
“I did.” Leo laughed. “And I’ve never forgotten that you helped me, anyway. So please—eat and drink this week. Feast. Get massages.” He winked at me. “Relax. Liberty, can you get John to relax?”
“No,” I admitted. “It’s not really his thing.”
“Never has been,” Leo agreed.
“Lucky for you,” John quipped.
Leo rubbed his bald head. “Lucky for me is right.”
— SIX —
MATTHEW
“I still can’t believe you actually told him,” Mer said.
“I can’t believe it, either,” I said, rubbing my face.
“You didn’t want to wait? And think it through some more?”
“Nah,” I said and stuffed a chip loaded with fresh guacamole into my mouth. One thing I definitely didn’t want to do was think about it some more. Because then I would probably change my mind, and my wife would want to put me on a spike and shish-kebab me.
We were sitting underneath one of the cabanas near the infinity pool, drinking watermelon aqua frescas served to us by a cabana boy. He’d also brought us the chips, guacamole, and a delicious shrimp ceviche I’d been busy devouring. I could get used to the appetizers, the refreshing watermelon drinks, the infinity pool, and the cabana boy. But the fact that I was no longer a retaliation operative? That was another story.
I was still reeling from my decision. But I had my game face squarely in place, where it would remain until further notice.
“Do you think he’s taking it okay?” she asked.
“John can handle pretty much anything,” I said. “I’ve known him a long time. This is just another blip on the radar.”
“Matthew, you’re hardly a blip.”
I smiled at her. “You’re sweet—complimenting me like that.”
She swatted me and then laced her fingers through mine. “It means a lot to me. The sacrifice you’re making.”
“I know,” I said. The fact that it meant a lot to her was the thing I needed to remind myself of, again and again. I saw John and Liberty heading towards us, followed by a man with the roundest, tannest head I’d ever seen. “That’s gotta be Leo,” I told Mer. “He’s one of John’s old clients.”
“You must be Matthew,” Leo said, coming up and shaking my hand. “And this must be your beautiful wife, Meredith. So great to have you here. Any friend of John’s is a friend of mine.”
“Matthew’s actually my best employee,” John said. “We’re celebrating his retirement this week.”
“You’re retiring?” Leo asked, looking me up and down. “What’s your secret, young man?”
“Family,” I said, squeezing Mer’s hand again. “Family keeps you on the right track.”
“I wouldn’t know,” Leo said, squinting at me and Mer. “You’re a lucky guy.”
“I know,” I said, even though discussing my impending retirement made me
feel a little queasy.
Leo smiled at us again and gestured to the pool. “I’m glad you’re all here. And even though it’s a shame to ever leave the Estrella, I’ve arranged for you to visit a special site today. A very beautiful cenote.”
“What’s that?” I asked.
“A cenote is a sinkhole formed from an underground river. There’s a local one that’s just beautiful. I’ve arranged a car to take you—it’s close by—it’s called Ik Kil. It’s an eco-archeological park. A Yucatan treasure. Bring your swimsuits. Swimming in the cenote is a magical experience. You will enjoy it.”
“Swimming in a sinkhole?” I asked John after Leo had taken his leave.
“There’s a first time for everything,” John said and shrugged.
***
“You’re lucky to be visiting Ik Kil today,” our driver told us on the way to the eco-archeological park. “No crowds on a day like this.” He pulled up next to a sign written in both English and Spanish, which read: Swim in the Blue Sacred Well.
“Is there a religious connection to the site?” John asked the driver.
“The cenote is believed by many to be the womb of the earth goddess,” the driver said. “When you swim in the water, you are going back to mother earth. It’s like you’re being reborn—it gives you a second chance, as they say. Enjoy your time here. I’ll be waiting to take you back to the resort whenever you like.”
Outside the car, the sun was beginning to feel punishing. “I hope this sinkhole’s cool,” I said under my breath. All I could picture was an uninviting, muddy pond.
We checked in at the desk, and the attendant waved our money away. “You have the place to yourselves. Mr. Leo made a special reservation,” she said, gesturing to the entrance, which was carved into rock. We thanked her and descended hundreds of slick, cool steps deep into a cave, following the signs, relieved to be out of the heat.
When we reached the bottom of the stairs, I sucked my breath in. There was an enormous, almost unearthly blue lagoon, with sunlight streaming in through the top of the cave, reflecting off the eerily beautiful water. There were long jungle vines trailing from the entrance of the cave and grazing the top of the cenote. The water was so clear that you could see the dozens of fish swimming in it.
“Wow,” Meredith said, staring out at it. “Just…wow.”
“And you said it was just a sinkhole,” John teased me.
“I was picturing mud,” I admitted. “Not anything like this.” But that was because I’d never seen something like this before. It was a secret, underground paradise. There were wooden ladders leading down to the water, as well as a rock platform to jump from. We had the entire place to ourselves.
“My opinion of Leo is improving,” Liberty said. She peered down at the water. “What type of fish are those?”
“They look like catfish,” John said. “They aren’t going to hurt you, babe.”
“Oh, I know,” she said quickly. “I’m just sort of hoping that they don’t…touch me, either.”
Meredith nodded. “I hear you, Liberty.”
I snorted at them. “I’ll take care of the fish,” I said, stripping off my tank top and handing it to Mer. I ran to the platform and climbed up. “Follow me, ladies,” I called. “Once I do this cannonball, the fish are going to swim for their lives.” I took a running start and vaulted off the platform into the air, bringing my knees up and wrapping my arms around them. Boom. I hit the water hard, causing an explosive splash. The water was cool and refreshing, the perfect antidote to the heat from the climbing sun.
I came up and took a deep breath. “Clear for fish!” I called.
“Take it easy on poor mother earth’s womb,” Meredith called. And then, “Does it feel good?”
“It’s incredible. Take the ladder, though, so you can ease your way in.” Where I was adventurous, Mer was cautious. I was always jumping in. Mer was always calculating the risks. I was pretty lucky she’d married me in the first place—that was the riskiest thing she’d ever done. I watched as she removed her clothes and headed tentatively towards the ladder. I was glad that we were different; we balanced each other out. I don’t think we’d known it when we fell in love, but I believed it was that balance that made our marriage work.
“It’s so nice,” Mer said, paddling over to me. She came into the part of the lagoon where the sunlight hit the water, and I sucked in a deep breath at how beautiful she looked.
“What?” she asked.
I must have been staring at her. “You look beautiful.”
“Matthew,” she said self-consciously and splashed some water at me.
“I mean it.” I swam to her and kissed her as we treaded water.
“Stop,” she whispered, and I could see her blushing underneath her freckles.
“You have to be nice if you want me to keep the fish away,” I teased.
“You have to protect me,” she squealed. “Promise.”
“I promise,” I said and kissed her again. “Always.”
***
There were life jackets down there, and we all put them on and just floated for what felt like hours.
A strange sort of peace settled over me as I floated in the cenote, the sunlight on my face.
“You can still work for me, you know,” John offered. “You can start to run the business side of things. You can look for ways for us to grow into the civilian market. I’m not ready to say goodbye to you and your talents just yet.”
I smiled at him as I saw Mer’s eyes go wide with gratefulness. “You can’t just keep me on the payroll out of pity,” I said stubbornly. “I don’t even know how to do a spreadsheet.”
“Ian can teach you all that,” Liberty chimed in. “If he can teach me to do it, he can teach you to do it.”
“But I thought you two were thinking about moving over to the business side. I thought you were going to back off from the field assignments.”
John shot a quick look at Liberty and shrugged from underneath his life vest. “Maybe someday,” he said. “But for the imminent future, she and I are going to Minnesota for that case.”
“I could still go on that,” I said, too quickly. That case involved mafia informants. I’d been itching to get my hands on some mafia informants.
“I like the spreadsheet idea better,” Meredith blurted out. I turned to her, and she looked at me miserably. “I’m sorry, Matthew. But being so close to having you safe is making me greedy, I guess.”
“I can do one last mission.” My voice was still stubborn.
John looked at Meredith and frowned at me. “We’ll figure it out,” he said noncommittally.
“I’m pretty sure a fish just touched me,” Liberty said, wrinkling her nose.
“That’s all I needed to hear,” Meredith said, swimming to the ladder. “I’m out of here.”
“I mean it, John,” I said lowly to him as I watched Meredith climb out and start to dry off. She quickly pulled on her clothes. “I can do the Minnesota deal. I’m not ready to say goodbye just yet.”
“You don’t have to say goodbye,” John said. He motioned with his chin towards my wife. “But you might want to say something besides what you’re saying.”
“I might have been a little premature in all this,” I said. I squinted up at the sun.
“There’s never a good time to grow up,” John said and smiled at me. “It just happens. And then you can’t undo it.”
“What do you know about growing up?” I asked.
“You’ve got a point.” We both laughed, but it was interrupted by the sound of feet on the stairs. More people were coming down to our private sanctuary.
“Sounds like our time’s up,” I said, wistfully looking around. “It was fun while it lasted.”
“It was,” John said, and I was pretty sure he wasn’t talking about our swim in the cenote.
— SEVEN —
LIBERTY
“Well, well, well,” a voice boomed from the stairs. “If it isn’t another u
npleasant group of Americans.”
I was still in the water at the bottom of the ladder. “I beg your pardon,” Meredith said, straightening up. She sounded appalled by his insult.
The man who’d spoken finally became visible at the bottom of the stairs. He was tall, with a broad chest, a shock of black hair, and, I noticed to my complete and utter horror, a very large gun. Pointed right at Meredith.
Now she not only looked appalled, she looked petrified.
I clung to the bottom of the ladder, just out of sight.
“You can beg all you like,” he said.
Five men hustled down the stairs behind him, all of them also armed. For once in my life, I just shut my mouth.
I could barely see Meredith standing on the platform above me, frozen in fear. Matthew and John were out in the middle of the cenote, too far away and way too vulnerable for my liking, unarmed and treading water.
The man was watching Meredith as she stood there, frozen, saying nothing. “What, no begging? A pity,” he said. “That’s probably the only thing I’d enjoy hearing come out of your mouth.”
I watched as they just stared at each other for a beat, the hunter and his prey.
“Matthew! John!” Meredith finally screamed.
He seemed to wince at her wailing. “I certainly didn’t enjoy that,” he said. He motioned towards her. “Grab her. And keep her quiet,” he said to his men.
In an instant, they had Meredith. I watched, still hidden, as her wrists were taken roughly behind her back and a cloth was tied around her mouth. She struggled and was rewarded with an elbow in her back. I cringed as she cried out, her voice muffled by the cloth, and then I noticed that Matthew and John were no longer in the middle of the cenote. They’d swum closer to the ladder but didn’t acknowledge me. They were protecting me. The man was watching them carefully, his gun aimed at them almost casually.
“I don’t expect that you’ll be stupid enough to try and attack us from there. Seeing as we have your woman, and that we’re armed. And you’re wearing…floaties.” He looked down at them coolly. “I don’t suppose you can recognize me from down there.” He peered at them from the ledge.