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“Fuck!” Hudson shouts. “I need some help here.”
I shrink back in my seat as droplets of blood splatter down my chin. Thundering footsteps barrel toward us.
“What the fuck happened?” Jaxson quickly leans down to wipe the blood off my face.
“I don?—”
“H-h-he didn’t do anything wrong,” I defend.
“I know. Hudson’s the best medic we got. I trust him and all my men with my life.” Jaxson says, gently. “So, what happened?”
“I accidentally bit the inside of my cheek,” I mumble.
“That’s one helluva a bite if you’re bleeding,” he counters.
I lower my head. “I’ve had worse.”
Jaxson tips my chin up. “Never again.”
I meet his intense stare. “You can’t promise that.”
Jaxson squares his jaw but says nothing because he knows I’m right. There’s so much evil in the world, and as much as thegood guysdo their best to prevent it, it spreads like cancer.
Luckily, we’re prevented from continuing this awkward conversation because Hudson returns with a bottle of water and a thick blanket, which he drapes over me.
“Here.” He hands me the water. “Very small sips.”
I follow his directions and take a small sip. Jaxson watches me like a hawk the entire time. It’s like he can see every vile thing that was done to me. I shudder under his scrutiny and pull the blanket up tight around my shoulders.
Even though it’s dark outside, I twist my head to stare out into the black sky. After a few minutes, my eyelids start to droop. I don’t remember the last time I could close my eyes without fear that I would be abused.
“You sure it was two weeks, Rivers?” someone asks.
“General Parks said Aurora was last seen by her boss, Hugh, at theBoston Heraldon the seventeenth. Hugh and Aurora made a deal that she could go meet an informant on a piece she was writing only if she checked in every thirty minutes. According to Hugh, everything was going well until after her meeting was over,” Jaxson pauses. “Aurora told him she had changed her mind about coming back to work and that she was heading to Quantico instead. She was making a pit stop at home. A quick in and out. When Hugh didn’t hear from her after repeatedly trying to call her for two hours, he went to her home.”
“Why didn’t he call General Parks right away?” a voice asks.
“The general said he didn’t want to cause a false alarm over nothing. When Hugh got to her house, he found Aurora’s car abandoned and her phone and purse lying in the driveway. Hugh called the general and told him everything about what she had been working on and that she was meeting someone who had escaped. Everything has been a covert operation. General Parks knew he had to assemble quickly. He searched high and low and followed every lead until he could get us back, which unfortunately took three fucking days. No one was informed she was missing except us, and Hugh told everyone she worked with she was visiting her father and then would be out undercover for a story.”
“Fucking sucks we were out of the country.” Hudson sighs next to me. “We might have found her sooner.”
“Maybe, but you guys know the Russians are a well-oiled machine,” someone whispers. “That’s why they’re still doing this shit right under everyone’s noses.”
“How does Hugh know the general?” a gruff voice asks.
“If your only daughter was an investigative reporter, running leads on some unsavory topics or people, wouldn’t you want to put the fear of god into her boss?” Jaxson asks. “Because I sure as hell would. From what I understand, General Parks doesn’t interfere in Aurora’s life, but Hugh has been instructed to reach out if he thinks she’s getting in too deep and could get hurt. Fortunately, it never happened.”
“Until now,” Hudson mumbles.
“Until now,” Jaxson agrees.
After the first couple of days, I lost faith that anyone would know I was gone, even though I told my boss I would check in on my way to Quantico. I should’ve known Hugh would sound the alarm, but I didn’t expect it to be as fast as it was.
I tune out the rest of their conversation and try to clear my mind. I recline my chair back and settle into the buttery leather seat.
The feeling of a few dozen bee stings under my hairline at my neck jolts me awake. I try to lift my head, but it’s being held down by some sort of strap.
“Someone help me, please!” I yell.