Page 11

M addox

“Change in plans.”

Gray’s voice was muffled by the roar of the plane’s slowing engines as the pilot continued descending.

Almost three days had passed since Gray had stepped foot into the bar asking for my help.

During that time, I’d spent hours creating a plan of action with two alternate scenarios.

I’d read as much on the woman from accomplishments to background information I’d been able to find.

I’d studied her itinerary and spoken to her editor at the Chicago Sun , who’d indicated Charmaine was stretching approved details of her assignment.

While he hadn’t called her rogue, I’d gotten the feeling her initial approved stories were possibly cover.

Did she honestly expect she had any hopes of bringing down the Alfaro Cartel?

After that, the man hadn’t proven helpful.

At least he’d been told point blank she and her colleagues were leaving the country.

I snorted from the thought. It was obvious the woman had balls. In my world, anyone who was arrogant was usually careless.

Still, the information Gray had provided on her had given me a better understanding of how driven she was.

She certainly wasn’t averse to putting herself in the middle of a difficult situation.

She’d held her own with high-ranking politicians, judges, and even the occasional movie star.

What I’d found most interesting was that she allowed them to slither their way into admitting a wrongdoing by allowing them to talk.

She knew exactly which buttons to push and how hard.

That’s why she’d won so many awards. That’s also why I’d venture a guess she had so many enemies. From what her editor and boss had told me, she’d experienced her share of threats.

However, the extraction was because of all the dangerous men and women she’d interviewed or provided an exposé on, messing with the El Salvadoran Cartel was by far the most treacherous assignment.

“What the fuck do you mean a change in plans?” I barked as I stared out the window.

Returning to El Salvador had put both my mind and body on edge.

While the country was considered ‘friendly’ to tourists from the United States, anyone known to be working for the military often had a target on their backs.

Plus, I had personal experience with Fernando Alfaro and his tactics when handling his enemies. It wasn’t something I wanted to repeat.

While Gray had done everything he could to disguise the reason for my appearance in the country, cartels controlled a portion of the government and the economy. That meant there wasn’t an entrance or exit into the country without the bastards knowing.

The lure of taking time to track down Alfaro weighed heavily on my mind. Gray wouldn’t have a care if I suddenly was forced to kill the man. However, hunting him wasn’t on the approved menu.

I had a short window to try to make the extraction work. Any complications whatsoever could spell the difference between success and absolute disaster.

And I didn’t like failing.

“Charmaine Douglas has been kidnapped.”

The reality of what I was dealing with hit me instantly. “What?”

“You heard me,” Gray said, sighing heavily.

“How?”

As the wheels touched down, my body was lurched forward. I didn’t like being strapped to a seat.

“The details are unclear at this point. She was visiting the orphanage listed on the extraction sheet and she and her group were ambushed. They made it back to the small village where they were staying before they were hit so the children were saved.”

“And?” I knew there was more to the story. There always was.

“And it was a massacre. Almost half the villagers were killed, the three members of her crew as well.”

Closing my eyes, I fisted my mouth. This was the worst possible outcome. “How do you know she was taken?”

“She’s not listed as one of the dead. We need to assume she was taken.”

“Has Alfaro or any of his men claimed responsibility?” The pilot rolled down the runway, slowing to the point of making a turn.

I shifted from one side of the fuselage to the other, checking for any armed soldiers.

At this point, there were none. That didn’t mean there wouldn’t be an ambush as soon as I stepped foot onto the tarmac.

“Not yet. That means he’s behind her kidnapping.”

“Undoubtedly.” I’d be goddamned. This was exactly what I’d been afraid of. “You fucking let me come down here knowing Alfaro was swirling the waters like the bloodthirsty piranha he is. He knew she was coming. Right? Fucking admit it, Gray.”

Gray’s hesitation pissed me off. While I understood I no longer carried a top-secret security clearance, which I assumed my ex-commander continued to carry, with a mission of this heightened level of danger, details were not just important.

They could mean the difference between life and death and he knew it.

“Fine. We suspected he had an inkling. You know how he operates. You managed to infiltrate his organization.”

My laughter was sharp and quick. “Infiltrate. If you mean I was captured by the fucker, then okay.”

“I’m just saying you know more about how he thinks.”

“One monster to another.”

“Stop playing the martyr card, Maddox. That’s beneath you and you know it. You’re the best chance that girl has of getting out alive.”

“If she’s not already dead. Whether it was you or someone else, you purposely allowed her to step in harm’s way.” I’d been right. They’d used up every other possibility of obtaining this mystery information.

“We can argue about this later. Thermal imaging tells us someone was taken. We think it was Ms. Douglas.”

I gritted my teeth, taking a deep breath as I heard the engines being cut.

This was going to be nothing but a shit show.

Why did I have the feeling I’d been tossed into the middle of a potential war on organized crime?

And why was it my instinct told me that Ms. Douglas held more importance than being some award-winning journalist?

“Since everything seems to be conjecture, is there anything concrete you can tell me?”

“We’re eighty percent certain we know the area she was taken. You do too.” The very location where I’d spent far too much time. At least I knew the area well.

“Eighty percent.” I laughed and immediately grabbed my duffle bags. “Let’s take that all the way to Vegas.”

“This is a serious development, Maddox.”

“Obviously, Commander Jenkins.” My snarl was as soft spoken as possible given the time spent in the Navy had changed me.

Some had said not for the better. Did I hold grudges?

You bet your sweet ass. However, a woman’s life was on the line.

I intended on following through with the assignment even if the situation had changed.

“How long has she been considered missing?” I asked as the pilot moved from the cockpit, swinging the lever and opening the door.

I kept a gaze on the surrounding area, calculating the distance to the barbed wire fence.

I’d been supplied with blueprints of the small airport as well as detailed imaging of the buildings in use.

I knew every road surrounding the acreage, every access point via land and water.

“Two days.”

“And I’m just hearing about this shit?”

“We only found out three hours ago,” Gray hissed in return.

Three hours. He’d waited until the plane was ready to touch down to tell me so I wouldn’t call forfeit and turn the plane around. “She’s at the compound where I escaped. Right?”

“It would appear so.”

Karma was coming back to kick my ass.

With the airstairs in place, I hesitated debarking until the conversation was finished. “You’re an asshole, Gray. What you’re telling me is bullshit and you know it.”

“That’s all we have, but it’s important to get her back. Now, I sent you the coordinates. The heat imaging shows one building houses multiple people. They don’t move around much.”

Meaning prisoners were locked down.

“Yeah, I think I can remember enough to get me started. Let me guess. Our method and plans of departure have changed.”

“We can’t hold the plane there. Your best bet is to get to Honduras. Find a place to stay the night. I’m sending another SEAL team to get you out.”

Great. The man was adding insult to injury. A brand new crop of SEALs determined to make names for themselves. The memory of being one of them was bittersweet.

“You already have this planned out. Right?”

Gray half laughed. “I know how you operate, Maddox. I have two plausible escape routes. One in Guatemala and the other in Honduras, but you need to leave El Salvador as soon as possible. Once you rescue Charmaine, you’ll have an hour, maybe two tops to create enough distance between you and the armed soldiers.

They’ll cover the borders into both countries.

You need to decide which option is better.

If you can’t get out right away, hole up somewhere and take the back roads into Honduras. ”

“Don’t worry about me, Commander. I’ll find my way. After I do, how fucking long before we can get the hell out of the shithole?”

“Hopefully one day. Just lay low. Contact me when you’re safe. You have cash, all the credentials you need.”

“And just what the hell am I supposed to do with her?”

The bastard laughed. “I’m sure you can think of something. There’s one more thing. It’s possible several of the women kidnapped are being held as well.”

“What do you want me to do with them?”

“There’s little you can do but to see if the information is accurate.”

In other words, leave them to die. Fabulous.

I gritted my teeth and stepped out into the waning sunshine. The fucking place smelled of mold and mildew. Every surface was drenched from recent rains, the humidity upwards of one thousand percent.

While I was only wearing a tee shirt and cargo pants, the damn material was already damp. This was going to be a shit day.

“Fine, Gray. But you owe me more than just a paycheck.”