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CHAPTER SIX

J enn froze as the ground underneath her shook again.

It was the second earthquake in the past hour, something she’d never experienced before.

Everyone who lived full-time at the commune didn’t seem shocked or bothered by them.

Neither did Tony, nor three of the volunteers who’d been there in previous years.

However, it was the first time for Jenn, Margie, Rachel, and Lexie, so the four women were a little freaked out.

Dr. Sanchez tried to assure them that the quakes were normal and almost always benign.

It was the “almost” part that Jenn found disconcerting.

When the mild tremor stopped after no more than ten seconds, she breathed a sigh of relief.

Hopefully, that was the last of them. It was the first day all week that rain wasn’t in the forecast, and she relished the sun shining down.

She’d missed getting her natural vitamin D for a few days.

However, the humidity was back in full force again.

Her T-shirt was already stuck to her. At least during the storms, the winds accompanying them cooled the temperatures to something more bearable.

She wished the shipment of supplies would arrive soon, as she was excited and couldn’t wait to see the children’s faces when she gave them the books and toys.

Uncle Ian had sent her an email yesterday morning explaining that a replacement order was on its way, and this time, it would have an armed escort from the airport to the commune.

She knew that Rich Parsons had driven down to Bogotá to help with the transport.

Dropping her head and shoulders to the ground, she tightened her core and restarted her sit-up count.

While the commune lacked the gym equipment and obstacle course she had access to at the TS compound, she found alternative ways to maintain her physical fitness routine.

Her uncles had taught her how to defend herself, and staying in shape was part of that training.

While she wasn’t overly buff, her muscles had definition on her slender frame.

On most days at home, she either ran three miles on a treadmill or the compound’s track around the O-course or used an elliptical machine.

That was usually followed by any combination of calisthenics, weights, Nautilus, yoga, kickboxing, or sparring with someone in the boxing ring at the gym.

And by someone, she meant any of the TS operatives, men and women, who all came from military or law enforcement backgrounds.

While they would never seriously hurt her, they didn’t take it easy on her either.

Not that she wanted them to. After her parents’ murders, being kidnapped with Aunt Angie, having a sniper attack the compound, Aunt Harper’s kidnapping, Uncle Brody almost being murdered—twice—and Grandma Marie’s abduction in the Philippines, Jenn swore she would never feel helpless again.

Wow, she hadn’t really thought about it before, but her extended family had been involved in a lot of kidnappings and attempted murders—and that wasn’t even all of them.

No wonder Uncle Ian kept threatening to insert tracking devices under everyone’s skin.

Instead, his extended family and the Trident employees all had electronic tags that Brody designed and installed in their cell phones and key rings.

The men also had trackers in their military-style watches, while the women were given watches and pieces of fashionable jewelry, allowing them to wear whatever they wanted.

Jenn had chosen to wear her leather bracelet to Colombia, so no one would be tempted to snatch it whenever she went into town.

Meanwhile, tracking tags were hidden in every pair of shoes the kids in the family wore.

They could only be traced by the six Trident co-owners or Nathan in the event of an emergency.

No one else had access to the program. Yes, it sounded like they were all paranoid.

Still, the devices had proven invaluable on several occasions over the years, and the men refused to take any chances with the safety of their employees and their families.

Last year, she was grateful for all the training the Alpha and Omega teams put her through when two gangbangers accosted her and tried to sexually assault her in the parking lot outside Donovan’s.

When Doug ran over and confronted them, the duo turned on him, attacking him with their fists and knives.

Instead of cowering, Jenn retrieved the expandable baton she kept in her vehicle’s driver door pocket and whacked one guy’s arm with it, causing him to drop his weapon before the next strike broke his kneecap, incapacitating him.

In the meantime, Doug took down the other guy.

At first, she’d been terrified, but after her training kicked in and paid off, she was thrilled and triumphant.

Those feelings quickly soured, though, when Doug yelled at her for putting herself in danger instead of running inside as he’d ordered.

As if she would’ve left him there, two against one, when she had the strength and courage to try to even the odds against him.

Later, after Uncle Ian took her to the police station to give her statement, she was alone in her apartment when the adrenaline crash hit.

Just as her tears started to ebb, there was a knock at her door.

Doug stopped by to make sure she was okay.

They ended up in an argument, and she stupidly blurted out that she loved him.

To make matters worse, she threw herself into his arms and kissed him.

Initially, he was shocked, but after a moment, he melted into the kiss.

It was the most glorious thirty to forty seconds of her life.

However, he then ripped his mouth from hers and told her it never should have happened and wouldn’t ever again.

Like she told Tony, Doug thought he was too old for her and that she had a case of “hero worship.” She knew in her heart that idolization was the last thing she felt for him. She wasn’t fifteen years old with a case of puppy love.

Once done with her sit-ups, she stood and headed for a nearby twenty-five-foot tree sturdy enough for her to climb three-quarters of the way up.

Two trips would complete her workout. Then, she would take a quick shower, have breakfast, and tackle her assigned chores for the day.

The first one was to take inventory in the clinic’s supply room with Tony—a task they’d done before.

It usually took about an hour to ensure there was enough of every item and medication that the doctor and nurses might need.

A long checklist and an organized supply room made the mundane but necessary job a little easier.

An hour later, showered and fed, she followed Tony into the supply room.

Surprisingly, nothing had fallen off the shelves during the mini earthquakes.

But that changed drastically before they were even halfway through the inventory.

The next quake that hit was much stronger than the first two.

Tremors reverberated through her body, and she lost her balance, bumping into Tony and then one of the shelf units.

The shock intensified. Boxes and packages flew off the shelves, pelting the two of them before hitting the ground, as the overhead light fixtures swayed wildly.

She kept waiting for the quake to stop as quickly as the earlier ones, but it continued.

A shelf tower tipped toward her, sending everything still on it tumbling down onto the floor.

Tony snagged her arm and yanked her out of the way before she could be crushed beneath the heavy metal.

“Let’s get out of here,” he yelled over the rumbling and crashing chaos, pulling her toward the door as another storage unit toppled over.

They were like two drunken college kids trying to walk a straight line and failing miserably.

Jenn was thrown against the door jamb, and pain flared in her right upper arm and shoulder, but she ignored it as Tony grabbed her around the waist and kept her moving out of harm’s way.

Once outside, they met others in the middle of the commune, away from any trees or structures.

It felt as if they were on a Tilt-a-Whirl, and a wave of nausea hit Jenn.

Wide-eyed, everyone squatted or sat, clutching each other, since it was impossible to stay balanced while standing upright.

Their gazes darted around, searching for signs of danger.

Jenn prayed the earth didn’t open up, creating bottomless canyons, as she’d seen in several natural disaster movies.

Hopefully, those were just exaggerations created by Hollywood and didn’t happen in real life.

After what seemed like hours, but in reality had only been a minute or so, the earth stilled.

On her knees, Jenn breathed a sigh of relief.

Her heart still pounded as if she’d run several miles, and she tried not to hyperventilate.

The others weren’t faring much better. Rachel and Lexie were in tears, and so were several of the children.

Jenn sat and pulled a hysterical Elena onto her lap, trying to soothe her, while Tony wrapped his arm around Matteo’s shoulders.

All around them, people started to calm down and reassure the children that they were safe.

Dr. Sanchez stood on wobbly legs. “Is everyone okay?” When not everyone replied, she repeated the question in Spanish.

It seemed they’d lucked out because no one claimed to be injured other than a few bumps and scratches.

Two of the men who lived in the cabins with their families got to their feet and ran to check on the animals.

Everyone else stood slowly, as if waiting for another quake to hit.