Page 11

CHAPTER EIGHT

I t took Jenn, Tony, and Lindsey three hours to get the clinic’s supply room back in order and complete the inventory. Most of the supplies and medications were salvageable, but some were crushed under the weight of heavier items and fallen shelf units and had to be discarded.

Dr. Sanchez, Margie, and Roland had spent about the same amount of time restoring the exam rooms and medical records in proper order.

Thankfully, they only reported two pieces of equipment needed to be replaced, and those were readily available at a supply company in Bogotá and weren’t too expensive.

As soon as they could confirm the business hadn’t sustained any damage and was open, one of the guards would drive down and get what was needed.

Right then, regular cell and landline phone reception was spotty, with only a few calls getting through to various parts of the city and surrounding towns.

Everyone else at the commune had been busy too.

The wayward goats, sheep, chickens, and two donkeys were safely back in their respective enclosures.

The buildings were all inspected and suffered only minimal damage.

Things could’ve been much worse—at least all the structures there were only one-story, and no trees had fallen.

Rachael and Lexi had helped the kitchen staff clean up in there and the dining room, which were now in working order again.

Reports came in of heavily damaged areas and a few deaths in the region—at least one apartment building had collapsed in Bogotá.

Several injured people—none of whom were critical—arrived at the commune shortly after the clinic was operational again, and Dr. Sanchez and the nurses got to work tending to them.

The cooks threw together a simple lunch of empanadas and chimichurri rice.

All the hard work had made everyone hungry, and they took a break, wolfing down their meals.

Except Jenn. She ate a little, but her stomach was in knots just being in the same room as Doug.

The next few days would be her own private hell until he left.

As she sat with Tony, Lindsey, and Adam McKee, one of the other male volunteers, she tried to ignore Doug, who was sitting one table over with Rachel, Lexie, and Romeo.

The two women shamelessly flirted with the male newcomers, but didn’t seem to be making any progress with them.

Jenn knew Romeo wasn’t the manwhore some people thought he was just because of his handsome face, well-toned body, and outgoing personality.

In fact, she didn’t think he dated much at all.

He seemed hung up on renowned country singer Summer Hayes, who was a member of The Covenant and friends with Jenn’s extended family.

She didn’t know what was going on between the two but thought they’d make a cute couple if they ever hooked up.

Unfortunately, just because two people looked good together didn’t mean they belonged together.

Romeo did a good job of deflecting Rachel’s and Lexie’s advances while keeping things light and friendly.

The women weren’t capturing Doug’s attention either.

He kept glancing over at Jenn and glaring at Tony.

She didn’t know why and was afraid to ask.

Tony hadn’t mentioned anything to her earlier—they hadn’t had a moment alone while working in the supply room—but she didn’t miss the dirty looks he sent Doug’s way too.

It was apparent the two men didn’t like each other.

Tony probably recalled their conversation about Doug and was being overly protective.

But she had no clue why Doug seemed to want to pummel Tony like a punching bag.

The door to the dining hall swung open, and Rich and a short older man Jenn didn’t recognize hurried in.

“We need help,” Rich announced. “The village of Anjama suffered heavy damage.” He tilted his head toward the man standing next to him.

“Luis said they’ve got numerous people injured and some trapped in buildings that collapsed. ”

Everyone got to their feet, and Doug asked, “How far away is it?”

“It’s remote—about forty minutes up into the mountains.

Home to about eighty to a hundred people.

It took Luis a while to get his old truck started.

Otherwise, he would’ve been here sooner.

I’ve notified the federal authorities, but they don’t know when they’ll be able to get anyone up there.

They’ve got their hands full with the damage and injuries in the larger towns and the city.

We’re all the people of Anjama have right now. ”

“Then let’s go.”

They quickly gathered in the center of the commune, stocking several vehicles with the necessary supplies—ropes, chainsaws, tarps, shovels, work gloves, first aid and emergency kits, boxes of medical supplies, a few collapsible military-style stretchers, blankets, water jugs, and more.

Not everyone could go—some had to stay behind and help Dr. Sanchez and her staff with the injured people already there as more had arrived in the past hour.

Since Doug, Lindsey, and Romeo had medic training from their time in the military, they could assist Roland with triage in the village.

Rich and two other guards would drive the vehicles, while Jenn, Tony, Margie, and Adam offered to help as well.

When the vehicles were nearly stocked, the volunteers took a few moments to change into jeans and their hiking boots before grabbing sweatshirts.

Lindsey, Doug, and Romeo also retrieved their go-bags.

It would be a bit cooler up in the mountains, especially if they were still there after dark.

Doug told Jenn several times that she was to stay at the commune, but she ignored him, refusing to get into an argument in front of everyone.

She was going whether he liked it or not.

When she returned from getting changed, Doug stepped in front of her and opened his mouth, most likely to order her to stay behind again.

Her eyes narrowed, and she didn’t give him a chance to say more than her name before pointing at him.

“Enough! I stood up to Uncle Ian, and now I’m standing up to you.

I’m going, and that’s final. Get over it. ”

He clamped his mouth shut and scowled at her while Lindsey and Romeo tried to hide their smirks and laughter.

She skirted around him, marched over to one of the pickup trucks, and climbed in the passenger side before sliding to the middle of the bench seat.

Tony got in beside her, slammed the door shut, and tapped her thigh.

“So...would it be okay if I laughed at his expression when you told him off?”

“Yup.” She popped the P in aggravation before glancing at him. The look he gave her made her chuckle, and then she sighed loudly. “Why, out of all the men in the world, did I have to fall in love with a grumpy, domineering jackass?”

“Well, personally, I can see the physical attraction—girl, he’s hot and definitely all alpha. But you’re right, he is a grumpy, domineering jackass. But don’t worry—I’ve got your back.”

“You two had words earlier? I saw you both giving each other death glares at lunch.”

He shrugged. “A few. No big deal. I do get the feeling he just wants you safe, and so do I. It’s not that I don’t think you can’t handle yourself—you already proved that to me these past few weeks—but that doesn’t mean I can’t worry about you.

You’re my friend—a good one—and I care about my friends. ”

Smiling, she nudged her shoulder against his. “I care about you too.”

They dropped the subject when a guard got into the driver’s seat and started the engine.

A half-hour later, Doug’s jaw had been clenched so tightly since they left the commune that it ached, and he wasn’t sure it would unlock anytime soon.

Tension had seized his entire body, and he rubbed the bullet wound scar on his chest. At some point over the past few years, that had become an unconscious habit.

Most of the time, he didn’t realize he was doing it until his fingers had rubbed off a layer or two of skin around the area, causing it to become sore.

They left the flatlands behind about fifteen minutes ago and were on a well-traveled dirt road heading up into the mountains. The higher elevation brought with it lush vegetation, and they passed the occasional tapir, deer, and armadillo along the way.

He was in the passenger seat of an older model Chevy Suburban, which he swore was held together by nothing but duct tape and grease, following the pickup truck Jenn was in.

Parsons was driving, and Lindsey and Romeo were in the back seat.

Conversation flowed between the three, but Doug hadn’t listened to a word they said.

He was pissed and worried about Jenn. Why couldn’t she just stay back at the commune where it was safe?

She wasn’t trained for situations like this, which put her at risk, and in turn, put Doug at risk because he’d be too distracted while trying to keep her out of danger.

Damn that woman! She was stubborn as all hell. Doug never knew her parents, but from what he’d heard, her dad was a lot like her godfather, which was probably where she got her tenacity.

Lindsey smacked his shoulder. “Hey. What’s with you and Jenn?”

“Nothing,” he bit out too quickly. “She should’ve stayed at the commune, that’s all. She’s gonna get hurt or worse.”

“Seriously? Do you really think Ian would’ve let her come down here and now stay after an earthquake if he didn’t think she could handle herself? You don’t give her enough credit, Doug. She’s a strong woman, physically and mentally. She’ll be fine.”

He huffed but didn’t respond. Lindsey was right. He wasn’t being fair to Jenn—he knew that—but the urge to protect her was so powerful that he didn’t always think rationally when it came to her.

“Don’t worry,” Romeo said. “We’ll all keep an eye on her and each other. Just like any other detail. Think of her as the newest member of our team.”

“She doesn’t have the training we do.”

“She’s gone through a ton of training—maybe not military grade, but damn close.

Ever since her kidnap—” There was a long pause, but Doug knew what was coming.

“Oooh. That’s what’s going on here. Jesus.

” Romeo leaned forward. “Doug, man, listen. Lindsey and I weren’t at Trident then, but we know all about it.

You were fucking ambushed. I’m sorry you lost your partner, but from what I heard, there was nothing you could’ve done differently—especially with a hole in your goddamn chest. Bad shit happens to good people—we all saw it over in Iraq and A-stan.

If that weren’t true, none of us would’ve lost anyone over there.

But we did, and it wasn’t anyone’s fault but the enemy’s.

Ian doesn’t blame you for what happened.

None of her uncles do. Hell, Jenn doesn’t blame you ei?—”

“Shut up! Would you—” He ran a shaky hand through his hair. “Just fucking drop it, all right.”

Romeo let out a heavy breath and tapped Doug’s bicep lightly.

“All right. I’ve got one more thing to say, and then I’ll back off.

You’ve got to get past what happened. It’s been four years.

Jenn survived and is thriving. Let it go, and take a good look at her now.

You might be surprised by what you see.”

That was the last thing he wanted to do.

If he let the past go, he might forget why he wasn’t good enough for her.

The more he thought about it lately, the more he realized that the age thing wasn’t the big issue.

Hell, the fact that she was his boss’s goddaughter wasn’t it either.

It was because he had failed her once and never wanted to be in that situation again.

If that happened, he might lose her forever.