Page 182 of Depths of Destruction

"Andre! Naomi! You have to get down here!" Blaise yells from downstairs.

The international news channel is on. A big announcement is made that Vanessa Castillo, girlfriend of the Belizean cabinet member, Carlos Garcia, has been rescued from the Guatemalan guerrillas. Carlos is on TV, giving a press conference about his relief Vanessa had been found and is requesting the media respect their privacy in this difficult time of recovery. He reports she has been severely traumatized and is receiving help from the best therapists in Belize but is expected to make a quick recovery based on the therapist’s preliminary thoughts.

"That's total crap," Sloane mutters. "A therapist would never say someone will make a quick recovery after any traumatic event. Everyone is different."

"Vanessa would never go back to Carlos!" Naomi cries out. "She was scared of him."

"Why haven't we heard from Hunter?" Blaise asks.

The pit in my stomach grows. "I don't know."

The rest of the day, I can't get my mind off the turn of events. Neither can Naomi or Blaise and we discuss it but come up with no more answers than earlier in the day. We go to bed. When I wake up, Naomi isn't in the room.

It's the first time I've fallen asleep and not woken up with her next to me. Dread fills me. I throw on my shorts to search the house. I finally find her in the office, on Blaise's laptop.

"You scared the crap out of me."

She looks up. "I'm sorry. I didn't want to wake you. I've only seen you asleep once before, and it was our first night in the jungle."

I lean against the desk. "I prefer waking up that way versus you missing from my bed."

She smiles, rubbing her hand on my thigh. "I guess I'll have to make up for it later today."

I grunt. "What are you doing?"

She licks her lips, and her eyes widen. "I'm piecing my old story back together."

My pulse stutters. "Are you going to publish it?"

"I... I'm not sure. Until Emilia returns, I don't think I should. It might put her in more danger. And I think Blaise is right. My story is about more than the acceptance of drug cartel money. I need to figure out the entire story. Plus, all my evidence is in Belize."

"Maybe that is what Emilia and Malin took from Ezra's office."

"But why? Emilia is the only one who knows about my safe-deposit box. All the evidence is in it. Why take the risk of raiding Ezra's office?"

There's a banging on the front door, and the doorbell rings several times in a row. "Andre."

"Axel." I swiftly move to the door. When I open it, he's breathless and looks panicky. "Where have you been?"

"Where's Penelope?" Naomi asks.

"They took her." Axel looks like a man on the edge of losing it. His eyes have a crazy glow to them, as if he could rip someones head off.

The hairs on my arms stand up. "Who?"

"Immigration. We got off the plane, and immigration stopped us. They said the British government has a warrant out for her arrest."

"For what?" I ask.

"Espionage."

"She's a spy?" Blaise says from behind us.

"No. She's not," Axel growls.

"How can you be sure?" Blaise questions.

It infuriates Axel more. He barks, "She isn't."