by Serena Zane
***
Cindy took off into the trees. The animals made a lot of noise deep in the interior. Kevin immediately followed. If the noise provided any indication, then they would either find Lucy ahead of them, or Rivera and his men already took her.
Kevin kept stride alongside Cindy and tried not to think about what he would do if he found Lucy hurt. They’d beat Chase badly just for working the case from the outside. No way would they let Lucy off.
Eerie screeches from monkeys sounded nearby, and a scream ripped through the night. Kevin ran, crashing through the vines and trees. He barely registered Cindy beside him. A door slammed ahead of them and Kevin put on a burst of speed. They broke through the tree line onto a dirt road. Headlights flashed, and a car sped by, dust kicking up in its wake.
Kevin aimed his gun, bullets hit the car’s back window without going through. He stopped and pressed his palm against his forehead.
“Shit! God damn it!” Kevin paced for a moment, then turned sharply toward Cindy.
She stood at the tree line waiting. “Don’t worry Garrett, we’ll find her. We always do.” Cindy walked over to Kevin and placed a hand on his shoulder. “At least we know she’s still alive.”
“Rivera killed Conner. It’s likely he will kill Lucy. We need to get to her now. If he’s in that car then he’ll be back to collect his treasures. By that time she’ll be dead. We can’t take too long.” Kevin holstered his gun, and turned to go back through the forest.
Cindy stepped in front of him and looked him dead in the eye. “You’re right, we should focus and find him first, you know that better than anyone,” she turned and led the way into the forest, “We only need to see if our friends down here have a bead on him and his other locals.”
“Somehow I don’t think these South American boys let a mosquito fly around without knowing where it’s going to land,” Kevin’s respect for Cindy rose as he watched her trudge through the vegetation. She’s right, Avery would know where Rivera went to put down his feet, and Kevin planned to be there.
The forest remained quiet, the animals settled. The rasp of their clothes brushed against the leaves. The humid air thick, Kevin looked up, and the sky opened. Rain poured down instantly soaking both of them. Cindy picked up the pace, and he followed. He would find her.
Kevin and Cindy came out of the tree line onto the backyard of Rivera’s hacienda. They looked up at the sound of a helicopter landing with F.I.U.W. painted onto the tail rudder. Avery came out of the villa just as it touched down. Kevin caught his gaze and Avery nodded to them.
“Glad to see you’re not too much the worse for wear.”
Cindy returned his greeting, and Avery’s grin loaded with charm.
Kevin didn’t want to waste time. “I take it you’ve rounded up all the missing artifacts inside?”
“Yes, it was not hard to follow your trail to the stolen goods. They are being transported now. You didn’t find your teammate?” Avery’s gaze moved between the two of them.
“They’ve taken Montgomery. I’ve got a few questions for you concerning Rivera, and his holdings in your country. We intend to get her back.”
A flash of surprise crossed Avery’s face, but he quickly covered it. Kevin watched the man carefully; if he wasn’t with them, Kevin would take this to a whole new level. Understanding dawned in his eyes, and Avery nodded.
“We’re with you. There are several places he might take her, but likely it would be his most secure facility. He’s not a stupid man, and he knows we’re onto him. Even if he did have to leave here in a hurry, men like Rivera always have security measures in place.”
The retrieval of the stolen items had already begun, and agents were taking care to catalog all the items. With only one chopper Kevin would have to cool his heels until the team got ready for lift off.
“Damn it,” Kevin quickly followed them. “Avery, can your team handle it from here? I would prefer to get on with the retrieval of Montgomery.”
Avery stopped and turned back towards him. The man eyed him for a minute. “Right. Give me a moment, and I’ll call in help. They can wrap it up here, and we can take the other chopper they’ll bring back to base. The information we’ll need is there.”
Kevin released the breath he’d been holding. “Good.”
Avery walked away towards the pool area and pulled out a cell. Kevin watched as he paced back and forth and spoke rapidly in Spanish. Not knowing the language, he waited impatiently until Avery finished. A serious look on his face, he walked back to where Kevin waited.
“I’ve called it in and the Core is on its way to shut down the villa. Rivera won’t be able to come back here. The team will wrap this place up and send the evidence to the main locker until it can be processed and returned to the proper places.”
“Where’s this place in the city? And how soon can we move in?” Kevin paced impatiently. With no idea what Rivera was doing with Lucy, flashes of Conner laying in a pool of blood in the study ran through his head.
“We can start infiltration tomorrow. Any sooner than that would be a risk. We’ve got a system already in place with the housekeeping. We need to wait until their normal time for entry.” The rain came down, and Kevin wiped the water from his eyes.
“She might be dead by then,” he responded, his voice flat, trying to keep out the emotion. “You’re sure we can’t move any faster?”
Avery shook his head.
“If we do, and she’s still alive, they’ll kill her. Rivera’s known for the torture he inflicts on his victims. I won’t say she’ll be fine, but she should still be alive until then.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
A cold smile crossed Rivera’s face as he thought of the beautiful agent. Miss Montgomery had no idea what she’d gotten herself involved in. He picked up his phone when it sounded out the familiar tune of Beethoven’s Fifth. He loved the tune. So precise in its measurements and scales, heavy and melodic—like the things he’d left behind in his villa, it held a priceless quality that would never diminish. He regretted their loss, but alas, it appeared necessary.
“Yes,” Rivera’s thickly accented voice answered.
“I see you’ve gotten yourself into a bit of a situation.”
“Nothing I cannot handle.” Annoyance crept into his voice.
“Perhaps I need to send my men down to help with the transport of goods; I’m sure you will want to keep them safe.”
“Wouldn’t you just love that? When do I retrieve the items? I’m sure they’ve already been collected from my villa by your people.” Rivera never dealt well with subordinates. They cramped his style, but seemed to be a necessary evil in his line of business.
“They’ll be delivered to a secured location soon enough. I’ll inform you when I receive the information. It’s unfortunate you disposed of our mutual friend. He proved useful. Such a shame the woman got away.”
Rivera grimaced.
The man didn’t mean a word he said. “By the way Rivera, I’d watch my back. The team already knows you have her and they’re yearning to dish out some revenge. They want their girl back.”
Rivera contemplated that for a moment and nodded. “Yes, I relish my next meeting with the senorita. If that’s all, I must go. I need to switch my mode of transport at this time and I don’t want anyone to figure out to whom I’m speaking.”
“Wise of you.”
“Until later. Contact me with the information when it’s delivered.”
Rivera snapped his phone shut and prepared to step out of the car. A secret smile covered his features. Like he’d said, it would be a shame to lose a good man.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
A large hand came across her face with a slap. Blood trickled past
Lucy’s tongue, but she refused to scream. She wouldn’t give him the pleasure.
Rivera watched from a stool across the room, his black eyes glittering with menace. Her head snapped to the side as another blow landed. They couldn’t keep up the bea
tings forever. Lucy tried to relax her muscles and go with the punches. She’s learned a long time ago that if you didn’t tense up before a punch was thrown, it hurt a lot less.
The bulky man in front of her bulged with muscles. His arms corded with veins that seemed to stick out as he pulled back for another blow.
Shit, the wind knocked right out of her. She gasped for air. Damn that hurt. She swung back and forth on the hook she suspended from. The fingers on her hands lost feeling hours ago, and the pain shooting down her arms felt like sharp knives. Her left eye swelled shut, and the whole time Rivera just stood there watching with that grin on his face.
When I get out of this, he won’t grin for much longer, she thought trying to regain her breath for the next blow. I just need to hold out a little more, and he’ll come. He always does. She tried to hold the image of Kevin’s silver eyes in her mind, but spots of pain crossed her vision. Another meaty fist landed, and a groan escaped from her lips.
Rivera strode forward and held up a hand to his henchman as approached her. “Senorita, I find this difficult to watch.”
She didn’t believe him for a second.
“Perhaps if you would like to tell us about your organization we might find more pleasant ways to pass the time. Hmmm?” He ran a tanned finger down her arm.
Lucy turned her head and let loose, spitting blood all over his neat shirt. “Go to Hell,” she stated in a deadly quite voice, “You’re not getting anything from me— not today, or ever.”
Rivera glared at her through the slits of his obsidian eyes that reminded her of a snake. He sighed, “What a shame.” He turned to the thug beside him and shook his head, taking one last glance at her. He moved to the door. “Fine, we’ll do it your way. I’ll just leave Julio here with you. I’m sure that you will both have much to discuss.” His gaze landed on Julio. “Do what you will. There are other sources.” With that, he left the room, shutting the door quietly behind him.
Julio turned back to her with a cold merciless gleam in his eyes. Reaching down to his belt, he unsheathed a large hunting knife. Slowly, he began to advance from across the room.
***
Cindy and Kevin looked at each other over the computer screen they studied. It seemed almost impossible to tell where Rivera might be. He owned locations all over the country, the villa just one of his many secret hideaways. They studied the red dots around the screen.
“We’ve run out of luck, Garrett. It seems as though our man knows how to hide in the open.” She ran a hand through her hair and gave a frustrated sigh. Time fought against them. “We could always start with the closest location to the villa and hope Rivera’s confident enough in his own abilities to underestimate us.”
Kevin pointed to a spot in the center of the city, “According to Avery, he’s likely to head to his place in the city. That’s his most secure facility. We move soon. Security follows a set routine as housekeepers at this place. It’s our best chance to get in without getting her killed. If he’s not there, then we still might be able to track someone connected to him and glean some information.” Kevin smiled at the thought of making them talk.
Cindy’s gaze met his with concern. “Perhaps you’d better stay here, Garrett. We don’t want to chance losing a possible important contact.”
He laughed at the incredulous look on Cindy’s face and reached out to pat her shoulder. “I’ll be fine. You should stay behind. You’re not usually on the ground.”
“Stay behind? You know exactly what I think of that. We’re going after this man together. No way am I staying behind. Lucy’s my best friend.” She glared at him.
“Didn’t think you would.” He strode to the door, and turned his head for a moment. “She inspires loyalty, doesn’t she?”
Cindy dropped her gaze to the floor. “Yeah, she does.”
Kevin made his way to the rooms they’d been shown to earlier. He closed the door behind him, and leaning against the wood, Kevin pressed his hands to his head. He wasn’t okay. He knew what guys like Rivera did to lovely young agents.
He limped across the room and lay back on the bed. It would be several hours before they could leave to get Lucy back. After several moments of staring at the ceiling, Kevin knew he wouldn’t be able to sleep with Lucy held captive by some maniac.
He got up, strode to the door, and threw it open. If this place was anything like their headquarters in New York, there’d be a gun range somewhere in the complex. He felt a burning need to shoot something and it was a good way to spend his time while he waited.
Morning took forever to arrive. They’d loaded the little jeep with supplies and piled in. Impatience nagged at Kevin as he watched the road. As they passed, the forest took on a new perspective from the one he’d gathered by Rivera’s place. He felt akin to the rustling sounds, restless and edgy, the lush vegetation truly beautiful and dangerous at the same time. Perhaps he’d misjudged the wildness of this country. He knew the dangers and tried not to dismiss them out of hand. Rumors of ghost guerilla groups that inhabited the rainforests abounded, and stories of areas where you could easily disappear and never be heard from again passed from village to village. He wouldn’t let that happen to Lucy.
“We’re coming into civilization soon. You’d best prepare yourselves.” Kevin looked at Cindy with speculation. She embodied what a friend should be, sticking her neck out for Lucy like this. They weren’t your average F.I.U.W. agents. In F.I.U.W you didn’t make friends that you couldn’t easily let go. They could be a liability, but Cindy remained loyal, a rare thing among the agency. He couldn’t recall anyone he’d called friend for the past eight years.
Avery focused on the road, and Kevin noticed the dirt turn to pavement. Floods made the asphalt turn into deep groves and Avery’s brows drew together as he concentrated on keeping the bouncing jeep on the street.
The man spoke, his voice rising above the bouncing of the jeep. “Rivera, as you saw on the map, lives toward the other side of the city in the wealthier area. We’ll need to keep a close watch to make sure we are not observed. People in this area are used to having family members kidnapped and taken for ransom. They keep bodyguards and other personnel to ensure they’re not caught off guard. Rivera is no different, even more so.”
Colombia was rife with crime and they entered into the heart of many of these operations. Cindy pulled out her gun and loaded it and Kevin watched her methodically place bullets into the casing. His eyes narrowed as he noticed her leave the last place empty and snap the gun shut.
“Why did you do that?”
“I don’t want to accidentally shoot Rivera. I’ve got a feeling I’ll need the others for his guards.” Kevin nodded at this logic and conceded that as a woman, he’d probably never understand her.
Avery and Kevin passed a look that spoke volumes and Avery started to laugh.
“What?” Her eyebrow went up, daring Kevin to continue.
“Nothing. You just do what you need to do Cindy.”
Her chin lifted and Kevin tried hard not to laugh. “I will.”
Another hour passed before they arrived at Rivera’s home. Again, they could see the grand style in which the man lived, the gate leading into his home barred with cast iron fencing. The intercom system state of the art, Kevin ducked in the back seat so he could not be seen by the cameras.
The man on the other end spoke in Spanish and Avery answered him. It didn’t take long before the guard directed the jeep around to the servant’s entrance. Kevin stayed hidden until they passed the guards. Sweat trickled down his back as he waited, crouched low and hidden under a throw blanket. They parked in the back. Cindy and Avery got out with the cleaning supplies. Kevin waited about ten minutes before leaving the relative safety of the vehicle.
Avery would leave the back door open and he could sneak in that way. The guards followed Cindy and Avery as hoped. He didn’t expect anything else with her prancing around in the tight tank top and shorts she wore. Kevin gave a brief thought to the fact t
hat while she might be cute, she was no Lucy.
He shook his head at the gullibility of man. Kevin climbed out on his side of the jeep and crouched down to avoid being seen. He moved along the line of cars in the parking lot. It didn’t take much for him to find the door Avery left open for them to enter. As with the other villa, this was an opulent home with lush carpeting and high ceilings— not a place where one would think to look for a deadly menace like Rivera.
Kevin moved off to the room in front of him. He listened for voices for a moment. Not hearing anything inside, Kevin held his gun at the ready and entered. Nothing but an empty parlor lay in front of him. Everything seemed to be in place, so he moved on.
Silently, he left the room and headed down the hall a few feet more to the door on his right-hand side. Again he stood and listened. Kevin heard a rustling inside; at least one person then; it didn’t sound like more. About to enter, he heard the squeak of a shoe coming down the hall. Kevin looked and saw Cindy making her way toward him.
Kevin gave an imperceptible nod and gestured for her to go in with her gun concealed. She smiled, raised her fist to the door and knocked.
“Que?” The door opened slightly. Kevin could barely make out a Colombian man standing there looking at her with interest. Cindy fidgeted with her hair and let a coy smile play across her lips. She gestured for the guard to join her in the hall and backed up slightly. The guard followed, intrigued.
Cindy trailed a finger down the deep neckline of the tight tank top she wore. The guard stepped completely from the room and reached out to touch her. She gave nothing away as Kevin snuck up behind the guard and knocked him over the head with the handle of his gun.
The guard slumped to the floor soundlessly. Kevin immediately rushed into the room and immobilized the other occupant. It didn’t take long, and after a cursory glance they discovered that they’d stumbled on the security room. Maybe she’s ready for a solo op after all, Kevin thought. She’d certainly proved her worth so far.