Font Size
Line Height

Page 35 of Echoes and Oaths (Guardian Security Dynasty #4)

"They’re deploying a UAV," Brando added. "Give me sixty seconds, I’ll feed you a window to fire the jammer and blind it before it’s overhead."

"Copy," Jinx said. He panted, hard and even as they bounded over a rocky ledge slick with moss. He slid down the other side, boots digging in.

Z landed beside him with a thump, grinning like a lunatic. "So … want to do this again next weekend?"

Jinx gave him a flat look. "Only if I get to blow more things up next time."

"Fair."

Brando's voice returned faster now. "Okay, Jinx, that drone’s coming in low from the north. Fire the jammer in three … two … one … now."

Jinx pulled the device from his belt, flipped the cap, and pressed the trigger. A low hum vibrated the air, almost imperceptible, then it cut off just as quickly.

"Drone lost signal. They’ll think it’s an equipment fault for the next few minutes," Brando confirmed. "Go now."

The two men raced forward, weaving through the trees, ducking under the low-slung limbs of malformed trees. Birds startled into flight from their movement shrieked above them.

"Satellite shows heat signatures converging on your six," Brando warned. "You're being tracked. Looks like three, maybe four, men. They’re fanned out, moving fast. You need to disappear."

Jinx skidded to a stop near a narrow gully and motioned for Z.

"Down here."

They dropped into the wash, hidden from the sky. Z handed Jinx a smoke grenade. He pulled the pin and tossed it up onto the trail before they moved. Thick white fog floated out, masking their trail from any visual tracking.

"That’ll buy us thirty seconds," Jinx said.

"Which is about twenty-five more than I need," Z replied, already priming a small claymore and placing it behind a log.

They moved again, cutting right through a shallow stream to break their thermal trail as much as possible. The jungle was a blur of filtered moonlight, ferns, thick roots, and hanging vines .

And then … Light.

They emerged into a clearing. The moon broke free of cover to illuminate the abandoned hydroelectric site just like Brando said. Cracked cement channels, a fallen tower, and a half-buried generator box.

"We’re here," Jinx panted.

"Bird’s inbound," Brando said in their ears. "Ninety seconds. You’ll hear her before you see her."

Jinx turned, eyes scanning the jungle. He crouched, rifle up. Z did the same on the opposite flank, laser sight sweeping the trees.

"We’ve got movement!" Z said breathlessly, finger tensing on the trigger.

The first of Esteban’s surviving men broke into the clearing. Two came from the south, one circling from the west, lean and armed to the teeth.

They fired as one. Two bodies hit the ground in rapid succession. The third fired back, bullets screaming past Jinx’s head as he dove for cover.

Then a low rumble filled the air.

Womp-womp-womp.

The sound of helicopter blades cutting through the night.

"Guardian has a visual," Brando confirmed. "Ten seconds to touchdown. Clear the pad."

A black silhouette descended through the smoke like something out of a nightmare. The aircraft was sleek, unmarked, and the rotor wash kicked up debris.

The side door slid open, and a Guardian operator leaned out, waving.

"Let’s move!" Jinx shouted.

Z tossed one last flashbang into the jungle as cover, the explosion lighting up the night. They sprinted across the clearing, climbed aboard, and the helicopter lifted before their boots were fully inside.

Below, the jungle fell away. Jinx looked down at the aftermath. The trail they’d run was flaming and broken. A scar on the country left by Esteban’s demise.

Jinx exhaled as he dropped into a seat, body humming with adrenaline.

"Mission accomplished," Brando said through the headset, satisfaction in his voice.

Z clapped Jinx’s shoulder and leaned close. "You know, for a guy who doesn’t talk much, you throw one hell of a party."

In the cabin of the aircraft they’d transferred to, the inside buzzed with low light and the faint hum of aircraft systems. Outside, storm clouds rolled beneath the plane, but inside, the air was charged with the weight of finality.

Jinx stood at one end of the mission table, arms folded, boots planted, blood and smoke still marking him. Across from him, Fury, their handler, could be seen on the monitor. The silence was sharp enough to draw blood.

Z, casually leaning in a chair nearby with his boots kicked up on a metal crate, chewed a protein bar.

“Esteban Ortega is confirmed dead,” Fury said, breaking the silence. His tone was cool, clipped. “And with him, the man known as El Fantasma is gone, too. Tomás was also confirmed dead. The recording Brando sent us was enough to close the mission.”

Fury tapped the edge of a tablet. Satellite images flickered across the center screen. They saw scorched jungle, cratered walls, wrecked SUVs.

“The aftermath,” Fury continued. “Z, what you delivered was a full-scale incineration of a cartel stronghold and half its fighting force. Clean, yes. Loud as hell? Also, yes.”

Jinx didn’t blink. “We were thorough. Both targets are down. ”

“You were theatrical,” Fury snapped, though a ghost of a grin twitched at the corner of his mouth. “Somebody will be cleaning up the political fallout for weeks.”

Z raised a hand. “Just for the record, he pulled the trigger. I made the fireworks. And they were beautiful.” He flicked his fingers into the air, mimicking an explosion. “Gorgeous, mate. Simply gorgeous.”

Fury gave him a dry look. “I don’t care if you wrote a sonnet while you were at it. What matters is the blowback.” He shrugged. “Or so they told me to tell you.”

He zoomed in on thermal satellite footage from earlier.

“Half of Esteban’s men are dead. The others scattered.

Local militias are already poking around the ruins.

Every cartel within a thousand miles now knows there’s a leadership void.

However, the government has taken the initiative to move their asses into the area to protect the route from being used again. We’ll see how long that lasts.”

“Until someone wants their palms greased,” Jinx said.

Fury’s eyes narrowed, and he studied Jinx for a long moment, then slowly nodded.

“Esteban was the most elusive cartel tactician we’ve seen in a decade.

Politically untouchable. Invisible on paper.

You neutralized him and lit a fuse under his entire network.

” He paused, tapping the tablet again. “The Council is pleased. So is the brass.” He exhaled.

“Good work. Your report’s due in twenty-four hours. The debrief file’s already open.”

The screen went black, leaving a charged silence in his wake.

Z pulled his boots down and leaned forward, elbows on his knees. “You know, for an op, that was kinda poetic. Big boom. Bad guy down. You get the girl?”

“Not yet,” he said finally. “But I’m heading home, and I’m marrying her.”

The plane’s interior thrummed with a low, steady vibration. The quiet kind that seeped into your bones and dulled the edge of adrenaline, leaving only the fatigue beneath. Outside, the darkness was total. There were no stars, and no lights, just the long, invisible path home.

Jinx sat alone in the dim compartment near the rear bulkhead. His head was tilted back against the cool wall. He hadn’t moved in almost an hour. His eyes were open, but he wasn’t seeing anything .

“You know,” a voice said from the aisle, “you missed one hell of a birthday party.”

Jinx didn’t turn his head.

Z dropped into the seat across from him, uninvited but not unwelcome. He set a half-sandwich on the armrest and leaned forward, forearms on his knees, elbows wide.

“The whole team was there. Specter even showed up and brought that spiked Russian punch he makes. Viper got so drunk he tried to arm-wrestle Phantom.”

Jinx exhaled softly through his nose. “Hope someone filmed that.”

“Oh, we did. Played it on loop until the comms guys threatened to break the monitors.” Z’s grin faded slightly. “But you weren’t there.”

A long silence passed between them. The only sound was the distant murmur of engine turbines and the occasional metallic creak of the aircraft hull adjusting to altitude.

“Didn’t feel like celebrating,” Jinx finally said.

Z nodded slowly. “I figured. Still, I noticed.”

Jinx looked at him then. Not sharply. Just enough to acknowledge what wasn’t being said.

Z leaned back, dragging a hand through his short hair .

“You’ve gone non-comm before, man. We’ve all been down that road. But this time … this time was different. You vanished. For years.” He paused. “We all thought you were going to go dark on us.”

Jinx looked away again, jaw tight. “I was close,” he admitted. “Closer than I’ve ever been.”

Z let that hang for a beat, then spoke softer.

“So, what pulled you back?”

Jinx stared at the floor for a long moment, the jungle's green flickering through his mind, the sound of Eira’s voice, the weight of his son’s small hand wrapped around his finger.

“Someone I never stopped loving. And someone I didn’t know I had.”

Z’s eyes widened slightly. He straightened in his seat.

“Tell me about her. I met her for like ten seconds before Raven loaded them all on the plane.”

Jinx smiled softly. “Her name’s Eira. We were together when I was deep under. I left thinking I was keeping her safe. Turns out I left her pregnant. She didn’t know until after I completed my mission and walked.”

“Damn.” Z ran a hand over his mouth. “Jinx as a daddy. Wasn’t that a slap in the pants? He’s a cute little bugger, too. Looks like his mother, thank God. ”

“Yeah.” Jinx’s voice dipped, and he smiled. “His name’s Teo. He’s got her eyes. Her stubbornness, too.”

“No way that’s a coincidence.” A beat passed. “You’re marrying her, right? Giving that boy a dad. It’s fucking important. I know that better than anyone.”

Jinx looked him dead in the eye. “I already said I was.”

A slow smile crept across Z’s face, not mocking, but genuine. Maybe even proud.

“Well, I’ll be damned. Jinx the lone wolf, destroyer of drug lords, and now, a full-time daddy. Next thing you know, you’ll go ranching full-time. I’m going to need a room at your place.”

Jinx actually huffed a short laugh. “Why the hell is that?”

“Oh! I’m buying him a Nerf gun and teaching him how to short-circuit motion sensors by the time he’s five.”

Jinx chuckled softly, then fell quiet again. Z studied him for a moment, then said, voice lower now, serious, “I meant what I said back when we all thought you were gone. The team didn’t just lose a sharp trigger. We lost a brother. You going off-grid … it shook us. It shook me. ”

Jinx didn’t respond right away. But the way his posture softened just a little said he heard every word.

“I’m not gone anymore,” he said finally.

“Good.” Z nodded once. “'Cause I need you at my next birthday party. Rook swore he’d bring tequila, and I’m bringing the explosives.” He leaned in. “I want someone sober enough to remember not to blow us all up.”

Jinx looked over and finally smiled. Family, blood, and bond were the most important things in life. “I’ll be there. You have my word.”

Ad If ads affect your reading experience, click here to remove ads on this page.