Chapter Six
Jake sat next to an adobe hut with a thatched roof as Ana conversed on the iridium phone with Captain Maya Stevenson back at Black Jaguar base. He was stuffed from the heavy lunch that the campesinos had shared with them. Children sat around them, their dark brown faces and shining black eyes filled with curiosity about him. Many times they would shyly approach Jake, smiling softly, their hands extended to touch the white flesh of his arm.
No one could remain immune to these children, Jake decided, as he held out his hand and allowed six or seven of them to crowd around him to lightly touch and explore his skin. They spoke excitedly in Quechua, so he had no idea what they were saying. The looks of delight, awe and curiosity, though, were easy to read on their innocent faces. He kept on ear on Ana’s conversation with Captain Stevenson as she spoke in rapid Spanish. As Ana stood out in the direct, hot sunlight, other children crowded around and gazed longingly up at her, their tiny brown hands extended and begging. She smiled and dug into one of her pockets as she talked.
Leaning over, Ana opened her hand, filled with colorfully wrapped hard candy. Instantly, the children dived for it, their small hands snatching pieces of it. Those that had surrounded Jake instantly left to see if they could get their share. Smiling down at them, Ana dug once more into her pocket. By the time she was done, all twelve children had a piece of hard candy in their mouths. Jake grinned up at her. Ana smiled back.
Instantly, his body tightened, because the curve of her lush lips reminded him of the tender, heated kiss they’d shared earlier that morning in their tent. The rainbow-colored chalina rested around her neck, the ends of the scarf dangling near her waist. She looked strong, capable and beautiful as she stood there, her eyes fastened on the hills above the village, where Rojas had his villa. Where Tal was.
Worried, Jake studied the rugged landscape. It wasn’t going to be easy to get up there. The elder, Don Hector, had warned them that, beside the cow path, there was only one other route up to that villa, just wide enough for Rojas’s cars and trucks to traverse.
Jake tried to suppress his fears over the fact that Ana was going up there with him. His conscience ate at him.
Getting off the phone, Ana tucked it away in her knapsack. She moved to the side of the hut and stood beneath the roof, where there was some shade. The children gathered around them, sitting in the dirt, their brown feet bare.
Ana reached out and brought one little girl in a bright red-and-orange dress into her arms. She was barely four years old, her nose running. Digging into her pocket, Ana produced a tissue and sat the child on her knee to gently wipe her nose.
Jake smiled to himself. Ana would be a good mother, he could tell. The little girl, her hair shining and black, smiled adoringly up at her.
The child snuggled into Ana’s arms, content to be held by her. Placing a kiss on the girl’s hair, Ana turned and looked over at Jake. He had a strange, tender light burning in his eyes.
“What’s that look for?” she demanded.
“Oh, nothing…”
“Jake?” She raised an eyebrow. A dull red flush crept into his cheeks. He looked endearing to her as he lowered his eyes and stared at the ground. When he did speak, it was a mumble.
“Just watching you with the kids…I thought you’d make a terrific mother, was all….” He tried to steel himself for her reaction. Ana probably didn’t want to hear that kind of sexist remark from him, a man. When he lifted his head and forced himself to meet her gaze, he saw that she was giving him a tender look.
“You’re a pushover with kids, too, Travers. They like to hang around you.” She rocked the little girl in her arms. The child closed her eyes, content to be in Ana’s arms.
For a moment, Jake fantasized that Ana was his wife and that was their little girl in her arms. The thought was shocking. Stunning. He had no idea where it had come from. Compressing his lips, he muttered, embarrassed, “They were just interested in this white-skinned norteamericano.”
Chuckling, Ana said as best she could with a straight face, “Oh, sure! Right…”
Moving uncomfortably, Jake said, “The kids are all so good-looking. Not an ugly dog in the bunch. I find that amazing.”
“Jake!”
He gave her a nonplussed look. “What? What’d I say?”
Ana leaned against the wall, her arms around the little girl. “No child is ugly! Every mother thinks her baby is beautiful! It’s a good thing these kids don’t understand English. You could hurt their feelings.”
Grimacing, he raised his eyes toward the sky, still peppered with soft white clouds. “Geez, Ana, you know what I mean. Not all babies are created equal. But these kids…they’re all so beautiful….” He grasped for the right words, but they never came.
“Every mother thinks her baby is beautiful,” Ana repeated, and gave him a dark look of censure.
Jake raised his hands in surrender. “Okay, okay…”
Several of the boys shyly approached Jake and sat down around his feet, just to be near him. He had no candy to give the children. He had nothing except a pat on the shoulder or head, for each child. When he looked over at Ana, she had a pleased look on her face.
“You’re really father material. I can always tell if a man’s comfortable with children by whether he runs away from them or stays.”
Jake smiled. Then, as he glanced at the hill once more, his thoughts moved to Tal. “You were talking to Captain Stevenson. What does she say about all of this? Can she help us or do we have to climb those hills to reach Rojas?” He took the dark blue baseball cap that he’d stuck in his pack and settled it on his head. Adjusting the bill so it came low to shade his eyes, he tried to squelch his worry for Tal.
“She said that the latest intel she just received on Rojas is that he’s recently connected up with Faro Valentino, the drug lord we work so hard to try and stop over in our area.”
“What does that mean to us?”
Frowning, Ana eased the little girl out of her arms and smoothed her bright red dress down around her spindly legs. “It means that if Rojas sees us, or knows we’re coming for Tal, he could put in an emergency call to Valentino, and one of his Kamov Black Shark gunships would come our way.”
Grimly, Jake said, “Ouch.”
“Exactly. I don’t want to be blown up by a rocket, either. And those Kamovs can find you under the best kind of tree cover. They have IR—infrared—and can see body heat no matter where we try to hide.”
“We’ll be dead ducks.”
Her mouth crooked a little as she smoothed the child’s black hair. “Must be norteamericano slang. We’ll be dead, no matter what.”
“Yeah, it’s slang. But you got the bottom line right—a Kamov will hunt us down and kill us with no problem at all.”
“Not to mention, the only thing we’ve got on us are two 9 mm Berettas,” Ana said, smiling at the girl, who smiled shyly back at her. Directing her gaze to Jake, Ana added, “And using those pistols against the weaponry array on a Kamov would be like spitting at a fire-breathing dragon.”
Jake nodded unhappily. “I’m struggling a lot with you going on this mission, Ana.” He held up his hands. “Rightly or wrongly, I am.” He saw her eyes darken. “It’s…just…oh, hell…I worry that something will happen to you.”
She pursed her lips. “Are you saying you don’t trust me in this coming situation?”
Hanging his head, Jake nodded. “I trust you in a lot of ways, Ana, but yes, I have concerns.”
“You’re wondering if I can handle a pistol? If I can shoot to kill?” Her gaze was on his, a predatory look coming to her eyes.
Shrugging, Jake murmured, “Yes. I know I can. But can you? When the chips are down?”
“I’m able to pull the trigger when I’m in the Apache,” she said slowly. The pain and worry in Jake’s eyes touched her. Because she understood him better, his traditional leanings, Ana didn’t take umbrage at his questioning of her. He was thinking out loud. At least he shared
what was on his mind, when many men had real trouble communicating at all, so she felt hopeful about their dialogue. “Maybe we will assume this mission for different reasons, Jake. I’ll be there for you. I’ll guard your back. I’ll tell you what I think. We’ll work as a team, not separate from one another.”
Sighing, he held her firm, unblinking gaze. Now he was seeing a little of the warrior side of her, the no-nonsense woman who was realistic and pragmatic about the situation. “I don’t want you to get hurt. I don’t want Tal hurt, either.” He forced out the words, his voice filled with feeling.
“I don’t want to see any of us hurt.” Ana longed to reach out and touch Jake’s arm, but now was not the time. “I’m going with you, Jake. That’s the bottom line.” She managed a slight, twisted smile meant to lighten the moment. “You’re stuck with me.”
He saw the way her lovely mouth flexed, and hotly recalled their wild, unexpected kiss earlier that morning. “You’re a complex woman, Ana.”
It was her turn to shrug her shoulders. Her smile increased. She saw hope burning in Jake’s eyes. It was wonderful to know she could touch him with only a heartfelt smile. “And you’re not complex?” She chuckled. “We’ll get through this—together. You don’t need to worry about me not being there for you. I won’t leave you open to attack. I haven’t lost a partner yet, and I’m sure not going to start by leaving you undefended.”
Strong words from a strong woman, Jake decided. If a man had said those words, it would be plenty good enough to make him trust the guy. But the words were coming from a beautiful, feminine woman. Yet she was a warrior. Jake had to keep reminding himself of that. “Okay…” he murmured. “So, we’re going to hump those hills to the villa?”
“Yes. If we get in trouble, I’m to call Maya on the iridium phone. She’s going to keep an Apache on standby in case we need it pronto. But it would be a fifty-minute flight to get here, and that’s a long time when you need firepower right away.”
Nodding, Jake said, “Yeah. I can see we’re really on our own.” Studying Ana as she stood and brushed off the seat of her pants, his heart contracted with fear. Ana was too beautiful, too young to die. Jake didn’t fear what they would be attempting to do; he was trained for it. Ana wasn’t. He knew she wouldn’t want to hear that from him. She might be an excellent helicopter pilot, but now she was a ground pounder, like him, and her wings were clipped.
“What if you stay here, in the village, Ana, and I go after my sister up there at that villa?”
“What?” Ana stared at him in shock. Jake’s expression was dark and she saw worry in his eyes. “What are you muttering about? I won’t stay here. You’re going to need me up there.”
Holding up his hand, he said, “Look, this is partly selfish when I say it, but I don’t want you going in with me, Ana.”
Ana stared down at him. The breeze was warm and humid as it moved through the village. Strands of her hair lifted momentarily around her shoulders. “Selfish?” Ana demanded pointedly.
Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, Jake moved the little boys aside and carefully stood, not wanting to step on any of their small bare feet. “Yeah, selfish.” He put his hands on his hips and studied the second hill topped with thick vegetation. Somewhere in the midst of all of it was the villa—the place where Tal was being held against her will. “I worry about you getting hurt, Ana. You’re not a trained ground soldier like I am.”
Ana came over and stood a few feet from him. “I should be angry but I’m not, Jake. I know where you’re coming from.”
She might understand part, Jake conceded, but not all of it. His heart burst with agony over the thought that Ana might get captured, raped or killed. None of those options were pleasant for him to think about. He shouldn’t care about her, but he did. Plenty. How could that one soft, moist kiss shared so artlessly in the tent this morning have completely rearranged his head and heart? It blew him away. He was on unfamiliar ground. No woman had ever made him feel like this. Was this what they meant when they said a person was head over heels for someone? It must be, because all he could do was marvel at how his heart and body continually responded to Ana. Whether it was her smile, her eyes shining with such life or the way she touched that little girl’s flyaway hair, something about Ana made him ache to possess her. He ached to have her in every way possible, not just sexually. A huge part of him wanted to delve deeply into her mind and heart, to hear about her thoughts, her ideas, her experiences of what life had taught her thus far. Ana left him feeling starved. He was like a gaunt wolf whose ribs were sticking out from going too long without a meal, then seeing one right in front of him: her.
Ana studied Jake in the silence. The bright sunlight only emphasized his expression. He was avoiding eye contact. Why? And then she was struck by the knowledge that maybe he was being protective of her. Because of their beautiful, shared kiss this morning? Ana tried not to dwell on that delicious moment too often. Every time Jake gave her that smoldering look, her gaze settled on that strong, curved male mouth of his and she felt herself going hot with a longing she’d never known before. Not even Roberto had affected her in this way. Not ever. Yet Jake could give her that boyish look, that cockeyed half smile, and she melted inwardly, her heart crying out for renewed contact with him.
“Look,” Ana began haltingly, “let’s keep our eye on the ball—Tal. She needs our help now, Jake. I—I…” She saw him lift his chin, his eyes narrowed upon her. Opening her hands, Ana whispered, “This is complicated.”
“Us?”
Ana stared at him. So he was feeling the same way, about her, perhaps, as she was toward him? “Yes.”
Jake sighed. It was time to be honest. “I don’t want to see you hurt, Ana.” He was afraid to tell her anything else but that. Seeing the tenderness in her large, expressive eyes, he felt his heart thud strongly in his chest. “I’m guilty of being a caveman, okay?” He held up his hand. “You’re a woman. A beautiful woman. You’re not like anyone I’ve ever met and I…well, I just don’t want to see you hurt.” Scowling, Jake held her thoughtful gaze. “And where we’re going, getting hurt is the least of several options that can happen to us. Killed is more like it.”
Ana moved toward him, her hand coming to rest on his arm. Feeling the strong muscles beneath her fingertips, she had the maddening urge to slide her hand upward in exploration. Censuring that urge, she gave him a slight, coaxing smile as he met her anxious gaze. “Jake, you’re very sweet, but really, I can take care of myself. I’ve been shot at so many times I’ve lost count. Once I had to crash-land the Apache because we took a hit by a Kamov. I’ve seen my share of life-and-death situations, all right?” Her hand tightened briefly on his arm. “Your sister is going to need both of us to spring her, if we can at all. I won’t let you go up there alone. You don’t know the territory. I do. That’s why I’m along on this mission.”
Her hand was like a heated brand against his flesh. Jake squelched his desire to turn and simply lift his arms, place them around Ana’s proud shoulders and pull her into his embrace. Looking at the colorful chalina she wore, he strongly reminded himself that Ana, if she were truly interested in him, would have taken off that scarf and placed it around his neck. And she hadn’t. So maybe what he felt toward her was really one-sided.
Shrugging, Jake muttered, “Okay, I hear you.”
“Good.” Ana reluctantly removed her hand from his arm. “We need to get going.” She looked up, checking the position of the sun in the sky. “This is a good time to leave. It’s midafternoon. If we hike hard, we can reach the hill where the villa is located just before dark. Don Hector has told me where to find the old cattle trail that forks off from the main road up to the villa. He says that if we find it and follow it through the underbrush, there’s a small campesino hut that we can stay in overnight. He said it’s stocked with provisions, because they move their cows to a pasture on the other side of that hill in the summertime. We’d have food, a roof over our heads and be hidden fr
om Rojas’s men. What do you think?”
Jake liked the way Ana included him in the planning. She didn’t have to, but like a good leader, she did, and that made him like her even more. Leaning down, he picked up her pack and held it out toward her so she could put her arms through it. “Sounds like a plan to me. Let’s go.”
Giving him a relieved look, Ana quickly shrugged on her pack and belted it up around her waist. She watched as Jake climbed into his own large knapsack. He resettled his baseball cap on his head to shade his eyes from the sunlight. The children surrounded them, calling to them and waving goodbye. Ana smiled and told them in Quechua that they’d return soon.
The trail leading out of the village and up the grassy slope of the first hill was wide enough for two people. Ana swung into stride with Jake, their hands occasionally brushing. Jake found his heart soaring with happiness even though the soldier in him, the wary ex-ranger, was fully operational. Just the brief touch of Ana’s hand made him smile. Life was so funny, he decided. The chaotic, give-and-take of it left him feeling like a spinning top, unsure of what direction he was going. If someone had told him twenty-four hours ago he’d feel so strongly about a woman, he’d have laughed uproariously. Jake wasn’t laughing now. All of a sudden, one kiss had shaken his well-ordered world, and he was in a spin, unsure of what direction was right.
“Look!” Ana whispered excitedly as she halted on the overgrown cattle trail, “I found the hut!” She pointed away from the barely visible path. Dusk was deepening and night was almost upon them. A soft rain was just beginning to fall.
Man with a Mission Page 9