Page 18 of Devlin (Lighthouse Security Investigations Montana #4)

Devlin sat on the edge of his bunk with maps and spreadsheets spread haphazardly across the bed.

His fingertips traced invisible lines over the paper, mapping out possible routes, trying to visualize where the thefts were happening and how the stolen supplies were transported.

But no matter how much he focused on the logistics, his mind drifted to Mia—back to the past and forward to the conversation he needed to have with her.

She was here, in this camp, working tirelessly to help people who had lost everything.

And despite all his training and all the years he’d spent shutting down distractions, she was the one thing he couldn’t push from his mind.

The door opened, and Todd and Cole stepped inside. Devlin looked up as Todd dropped onto his own bunk. “What kind of satellite view can Sadie get for us?”

“She’s good,” Cole answered. “But if we want a deep dive, we might need to loop in Mace’s team in Maine. He’s got a power couple on staff who can pull just about anything.”

“I forget you’ve got a tie-in with the other LSI locations,” Todd said.

“I worked with your brother Blake… well, William.”

Todd nodded, as he looked at Devlin. “My younger brother, William Blake, works for Mace in Maine. My younger sister now works for Carson in California and is married to another Keeper.”

Devlin pulled out his phone and dialed LSIMT. It was the middle of the night there, but LSI was a twenty-four-hour operation. Someone would pick up.

“Devlin? You’ve got Casper.”

“Now that we’re boots on the ground, it’s clear we won’t be able to pinpoint what’s happening without satellite support.

Cole thinks we might need to bring in Mace’s people.

Logan can make that call, but we need visuals on nighttime truck activity in the meantime—particularly heading west toward the Congo border.

Start with the refugee village of Sweswe, but expand to all the villages if possible.

We need to know who’s coming and going at night.

Especially if they’re heading to the west and the Congo border. ”

Casper let out a low whistle. “That’s a tall order, but I’ll get Sadie on it. Logan will be briefed first thing, and I’ll update you as soon as I have something.”

“That’s all I can ask,” Devlin said. “And I’ll check with the FSO here. I’ll pin down dates and times. That’ll give Sadie more specifics.”

Casper added, “Everything going okay there?”

Devlin hesitated, his eyes flicking to Todd and Cole, who watched him closely. They might not know everything, but they could sense when something personal weighed on a man.

“For now,” Devlin answered. “Nothing we can’t handle.”

Disconnecting the call, he leaned back against the wall, exhaling heavily as he gathered the maps and notes. The room remained silent, but he could feel the weight of his teammates’ stares. They were patient.

He clenched his jaw, hating talking about his history.

Hated the vulnerability of it. But this wasn’t just his past. This involved Mia, and whether he liked it or not, that meant his teammates deserved to know at least the basics.

Todd and Cole mirrored his posture—seated, forearms resting on their thighs, waiting until he was ready to speak.

Finally, Devlin sighed. “Alright. I’ll give you the short version so you know what I’m facing.”

“You don’t owe us anything,” Cole said, shaking his head.

Todd nodded. “Your past, your business.”

“I appreciate that,” Devlin admitted. “But when it comes to Mia, you need to understand. Especially since my mission here isn’t just about this case any longer. I need to protect her. And I also need to reconnect with her if she’ll let me.”

They nodded, giving him the space to continue.

“You already know the beginning… high school sweethearts. Dated all through college, stayed together after. I went into the Marines, then SEAL training. Mia went to grad school near the base. We made it work, even with the separations. By the time I finished BUD/S, we were living together and talking about marriage, kids, the whole thing.”

Todd let out a low whistle. “Sounds like the great American love story.”

Devlin held his gaze, surprised by how true the words felt. “It was. Until I blew it to hell.”

He exhaled slowly, rubbing a hand down his face.

The words were hard to say, even now. “We had a mission that went sideways. Two of my team members died. A few others were injured. One of the guys was married and had kids. When I got back, I had to watch his wife crumble. The team was given a few weeks off to deal with everything, and I spent most of them at the bottom of a bottle.”

He shook his head. “Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Mia getting that same knock on the door. I kept thinking about how she was at the point in her program when she was looking at jobs—figuring out where in the world she might want to work. And it got in my head. Messed me up. I convinced myself that maybe I should let her go, give her the freedom to make choices without me tying her down.”

A heavy blanket of silence settled between them. Todd was the first to speak, his expression dark. “I swear, man, the only thing I can think of that would’ve blown that apart was cheating. But I know you. And even though I didn’t know you back then, I know you wouldn’t do that.”

Devlin nodded, his throat tight. He had worried they might look at him differently, but neither man’s expression held judgment—only understanding.

“There are things I need to say to Mia first,” he admitted.

“She deserves the full truth before anyone else. But let’s just say that something happened, and I knew it would make her walk away.

” His voice dropped lower, thick with regret.

“Because I didn’t have the fucking strength to just let her go. ”

Cole and Todd exchanged a glance.

“You broke her heart,” Todd said quietly. “But you never betrayed her.”

Devlin nodded once. “Not even at my worst.”

Todd muttered a curse under his breath, and Cole simply shook his head.

Devlin didn’t want their sympathy. He just wanted a chance—one goddamn chance—to fix what he’d broken. A knock on the door shattered the heavy moment.

“Come in,” Cole called, sitting up straight.

Jonan poked his head in, grinning. “I was about to grab breakfast. Thought you might want to join me.”

Without hesitation, all three men stood. Enough dwelling on the past. It was time to move forward. It was time to protect Mia. And it was damn well time to figure out who was behind the black market operation.

As they walked, Jonan fell into step beside Devlin, his voice low. “I have someone I want you to meet.”

Devlin glanced at him, noting the way Cole and Todd kept their attention forward but were clearly listening. “Who?”

“A nurse. Works under Doc Elaine.” Jonan paused. “He’s Congolese.”

That was enough to stiffen Devlin’s spine.

Before he could ask more, they reached the dining hall.

His gaze swept the room automatically, searching for Mia.

She sat at a table across the room, engaged in conversation with others, and he was glad to see Robert wasn’t present.

Hustling through the breakfast line, he took a small tray and cup of coffee and started toward her.

Devlin's gaze landed on Mia as she turned and looked up at him. She simply stared with a thoughtful expression on her face. His breath caught in his lungs. For a moment, everything else faded. There was something in her eyes, something he couldn’t quite name.

But whatever it was, it wasn’t hate. And right now, he’d take any damn positive step he could get.

He gave her a small nod, a half smile playing at his lips before starting toward her.

Jonan interrupted as he nudged Devlin. "Come, sit over here."

Reluctantly, Devlin tore his gaze from Mia and followed Jonan. A man and woman seated at the table straightened as they approached.

“May we join you?” Jonan asked, a broad smile on his face.

“Of course,” the man said, his white teeth gleaming against his dark face.

Jonan made the introductions as the three Keepers slid into seats. “These are friends of mine. Alain Taty and his wife, Dena. Alain is one of the lead nurses here at the clinic, and Dena is a nurse’s aide.”

“Nice to meet you,” Devlin said as Cole and Todd echoed the same greeting. Dena was dark and pretty, her smile shy as she nodded at them.

“I told Alain that you would like to hear his story.”

Devlin wasn’t sure what information Alain had to impart but was willing to see what Jonan had for them.

Alain immediately nodded. “We are Congolese. I worked at a hospital in Goma, Congo. In the Kinshasa Providence?—”

"We know it," Devlin said softly, thinking of a SEAL mission he’d been on in the Congo years before.

Alain held his gaze, then nodded slowly. "We had… problems."

Devlin’s stomach tightened. Goma. The heart of the conflict.

Dena reached out, placing a hand on her husband’s arm. He covered it with his own before continuing.

"If you'd rather not talk here, we can go somewhere else. Somewhere more private," Cole offered.

"No, this is fine,” Alain said, shaking his head. “My story is not new, but I thank you all the same.”

Dena’s fingers twitched, and Alain rubbed her hand before continuing. "There is so much death and war in our country. At first, M23 insisted that we treat the wounded rebels first before anyone else who might have a need. Several of our medical team who disagreed with the edict disappeared.”

Devlin's chest ached for the man's plight. Alain was a healer, but being forced not to heal those who might've needed him the most.

"We had family in Beni, but there was little we could do to help them, being caught between the violence.

My father had already died, then we received word that my brother was killed in the uprising.

" He and Dena exchanged another glance before he added, "We knew we needed to leave.

So we asked to visit Beni to bring my mother back with us.

The story was she would look after our children so that Dena could work as a nurse's aide, providing more help for the insurgency.

Given permission, we drove to Beni but took our three children with us and had the car loaded with everything we could.

We picked up my mother, and then in the middle of the night, we drove back down through the pass that leads through the National Forests.

We got as close as we dared, then contacted another nurse who had made it into Uganda.

He gave us directions, and we were sent to a boat where we loaded our possessions and family.

We successfully crossed Lake Edward into Uganda.

We went first to a refugee camp near there, then we accepted the offer to come to this camp where we would all receive assistance and, in turn, be able to practice medicine the way we always wanted to. "

Devlin listened, the weight of Alain’s words settling in his chest. The story was all too familiar—ordinary people forced to make impossible choices just to survive.

Alain's eyes were now filled with tears, but he smiled. Dena reached out her other hand, clutching his as they lay on the table.

"It takes a helluva lot of courage to do what you did," Devlin said, admiration in his tone. "I'm glad for you and your family." Devlin glanced over at Jonan then, knowing there was more to Alain’s situation than hearing about his daring escape to freedom.

Now, with lowered voices as they finished their meal, Jonan whispered, "You are curious about the black market and the Congo.

You will find that Alain knows a great deal about medical supplies that find their way there.

With his knowledge, they were able to stem the flow of a lot of the products moving from a refugee camp across the border to be sold.

I thought you would find his story interesting. "

Devlin nodded, now understanding. He looked at Alain and Dena as they stood. "It'll be nice talking to you more at another time."

Alain dipped his head. "I look forward to it. Jonan will arrange a time.”

Jonan stood with his tray in his hand. "I'm going to drive Margarethe around this afternoon as she works on inventory. I know Mia will be at her office before visiting some of the villages. Alain will walk his wife to the medical clinic and meet us at Mia's office."

Devlin nodded, then watched as Jonan walked away. He glanced toward Cole and Todd. "He seems eager."

"Can't get a read on him," Cole said. "Can't tell if he's here to lead us in one direction or is working with us."

"We'll talk to Alain and find out what he has to say."

"Maybe Mia will have more information on him for us," Todd added.

Devlin agreed, but the more he thought of Mia in the middle of a black market investigation, the more his breakfast sat like a rock in his gut.