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“I can move faster alone.”
“Sí.” The old man nodded, but he appeared sad.
Alvarez pushed his chair back from the table. “I’ll get your key.”
As soon as he reached the second level, Oz checked out the floor. One communal bathroom without a lock. There was an occupied sign to hang on the knob and nothing else. The archaeologist’s room was secured, but the other doors opened easily. The rooms were small, clean and well-tended. He went to his room and sank down on the bed.
Before he could get his boots off, his phone vibrated. The Big Dog. Why was the captain calling him?
“Hello?”
“Hey, dude, what are you up to?”
In other circumstances, Oz might have grinned because the captain never spoke like that, but it was the team’s code for is it safe to talk? “I’m clear. What’s happening, BD?”
“Lurch is missing.”
“Shit.” He’d been afraid of that. “He didn’t check in after his meeting at the ruins?”
A short silence. “No. Ski and Baggs waited. No contact. They went out to the site and looked around but didn’t find anything there.”
The banging in Oz’s stomach became jackhammers. “BD, I’m staying at the inn in San Isidro because Vargas locked down his hacienda. I can’t get in.” The captain started to talk, but he cut him off. “I found out from Señor Alvarez that one of his guests went to the ruins today. She never returned to the inn.”
Nguyen rarely swore, not that Oz heard, but one word came loud and clear over the mobile. “Fuck.”
Chapter 9
Nyx tried to exude calmness because Lurch was pacing the suite from the sitting room to the bedroom and back again. She wanted to ask what had him on edge, but she wasn’t sure he would tell her the truth. After living with her dad and brother, she knew how protective Special Forces soldiers could be and he was in full guard-dog mode. She liked the way he moved. Graceful and athletic, but his inability to remain still made her nervous.
Breakfast had been cleared an hour ago. While she’d showered again, she was back in her grungy clothes. She didn’t feel clean, but there was nothing she could do about it.
Lurch’s route brought him back into the sitting room and she feigned interest in the television even though she had no idea what she was watching. Calm and serene was hard to pull off when she was on edge. And when she was relying on someone else.
Nyx took care of herself. She always had. Her father was out on ops for months at a time. Her mom had her hands full with four kids, three of whom had other fathers. Her sisters had been born when her mom was married to husband number one, and her brother while her mom was married to husband two.
Her family. If she didn’t get out of here, her dad was going to organize a rescue, and her brother would be leading it. She didn’t want anyone to die trying to free her, so she’d have to get herself out. And Lurch, too.
She hadn’t thought of a way to manage that yet. The guards remained on the balcony and there was another pair in the hallway. She’d seen them when the food had been wheeled in. All of them were armed with assault rifles.
Lurch made another appearance, but before he pivoted and left again, she wanted to ask a question. Not that he’d necessarily answer it. If her brother’s best friend was anything like Dylan, he’d try to protect her. If only Dill had told her more about his buddy, she might have some idea how Lurch would react.
“Hey, hon, is there something I should know about? You’ve been pacing pretty intensely since we finished eating.”
He stopped and shook his head. “No, sorry. Señor Vargas should have asked to talk to me by now. I’m trying to come up with why, and I think better when I move.”
“Maybe he’s busy with something else,” she suggested.
One side of his mouth quirked up. “That’s on the mental list.”
“Along with a dozen other items,” Nyx said, trying to ignore the way that sort-of smile made her heart beat faster.
“At least that many.” Lurch didn’t relax, but some of the tension left his face and it made his lips soften. She found herself wondering what it would feel like to kiss him. Really kiss him, not that fake goodnight brush of lips they’d done last night.
Clearing her throat, she got to her feet and stood in front of him. “What do you need me to do? I want to help.”
“You’re doing what I need—following orders, and not becoming overly emotional or demanding. That helps more than you realize.”
Nyx nodded. She understood more than he knew. Her dad told her all the time that emotional reactions got people killed. He’d also trained her to obey orders when the situation warranted it. Like now. Her dad would expect her to listen to Lurch, to follow his lead. And she would. If she came up with a plan to get them out of here, she’d run it by him. If he told her it wouldn’t work, she’d do more thinking.