Chapter Twenty-Four Seraphina
Chapter Twenty-Four
Seraphina
“ángel may turn on us—or already has for the right price.” Reed said what I refused to believe. “He could’ve told his family we’re with you as well. He saw Ryder and Alex at the club.”
“No.” I walked away from the breakfast bar, facing away from everyone. “I don’t believe that. If he was turning on me, he’d have told me I had to come alone.” Plus, Martín trusted he was safe, and I trusted Martín.
“All possibilities have to be on the table, including assuming he double-crossed you or that he will.” Ryder’s deep voice had me turning around, and I acknowledged his remark in the only way I could think of for now.
I conceded with a nod of surrender. As much as I wanted to believe there was no way Martín’s judgment about someone could be wrong, it was better to be safe than sorry.
“So what do we do now? We’re going to Costa Rica, right?
” Why’d I phrase that as a question? I should have been firm and put my foot down.
Ryder looked over at Reed. “Talk to me about Costa Rica. Bullet points,” he requested.
Is that a yes? I did my best not to run over and throw my arms around the growly man, thanking him for not making me fight him on it.
He hadn’t technically agreed or answered me, so I’d wait.
I was also the one who’d just said we shouldn’t get physical.
So hands to myself it is. Not my favorite idea, but it was probably needed.
Reed twisted on his barstool to look back and forth between everyone, then took point on answering Ryder.
“Limited extradition treaties there. Makes it a safe haven for fugitives. High number of tourists, so it’s easy to blend in.
Law enforcement has limited resources there.
Dense rainforests and remote areas make it easy to hide evidence.
Then you have coastal access to both the Pacific and the Caribbean to smuggle goods.
” He didn’t even need to pause for a breath as he sped through more details.
“Plenty of jungle hideaways. Underwater stashes near the Nicoya Peninsula are known dumping grounds for evidence. And as for San José, you could easily bribe a local official to look the other way.”
“Also, neutral territory for the Sokolovs and Moraleses to meet. Martín can’t go there, either,” I let them know. “He’d be arrested the second the plane landed.”
“Why?” Ryder asked.
“He may or may not ...” Cue awkward pause.
“... have killed their police commissioner a few years ago.” I lifted my hand and patted the air.
“In his defense, the commissioner worked for an arms dealer, so he was just taking out the trash. I don’t know if Ezra or the cartel has even connected me to Martín, but regardless, it’d make sense Ezra wouldn’t want to come to hostile Morales-controlled territory here in Mexico. ”
Ryder stroked his jawline, smoothing his fingertips along the scruff, eyes on the floor. Thinking-mode activated?
“Who do we know in Costa Rica?” Alex asked. “We’re going to need a safe house, access to a helo, an armory.”
“Same man who helped us locate Seraphina is probably our best bet in helping set us up in San José,” Ryder said.
Who was this mystery person who was a mutual friend of Martín’s?
Also, I really needed to take a moment and text Martín, let him know what was going on. Had Ryder and his teammates not come to my rescue down here, what would I have done? Plan B wouldn’t have worked if it meant I had to go to Costa Rica alone. I’d have zero chance of survival.
“Carter’s in Switzerland right now at a hotel he acquired last year, but I’ll see if he can help again.
He might be able to arrange safe transport for us as well, so we don’t need to fly commercial,” Ryder responded, and this was sounding more and more like a definite yes.
“I also have a Seal friend I bumped into the other day who specializes in hunting drug traffickers. I’m going to reach out and see what he knows and if he can help. ”
I looked out the window at the view of the city. So much for exploring the town. Not that Ryder had planned to let me, anyway. “We’re leaving today, right?”
Ryder retrieved his phone, keeping his eyes on it instead of me. “I don’t know if you should come with us.”
I probably skipped about three steps in my rush to get to him, also banging my knee into the furniture on my way, so that was great. I concealed a wince from the pain, waiting for him to acknowledge that I was standing in front of him.
“If Ezra and the cartel are in Costa Rica, it’s safer for you to stay in Mexico.” Ryder’s intense eyes breezed up to mine. “We’ll take you to Martín’s before we head there. He can protect you.”
“Like hell you’re doing that,” I rasped. “I’m coming. Ezra won’t show up unless I’m there, and you know it.”
“I’ll find them without you. All of them. It’s what I do. I find people.” His tone wasn’t authoritative or harsh—it was worse. It was numb and detached.
Two emotions I knew well, so I recognized them in others immediately. He was trying to do exactly what I asked him to do so we could focus on the mission: build a wall between us. “I’m not staying behind. You know I’ll never agree to that plan. You have to know that.”
He pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes. Yeah, numb and detached weren’t easy to maintain if they weren’t coming from a place of pain. He was already failing.
“What if they did connect me to Martín and they send a hit team to his place when they realize I’m not in Costa Rica? How will you feel if innocent people are killed so they can get to me? How will you feel if I die?” I swallowed the moment his hand fell and eye contact was made.
“Don’t do this to me.” His voice was rough and a little broken. Like shards of glass had scraped across both our bodies and we’d bleed out together. Right on this floor.
“Who do you trust the most to keep me safe?” I couldn’t back down—and in truth, as much as I loved Martín like family, I hadn’t felt as safe as I did being with Ryder since my father was alive to watch over me.
He quietly stared at me before saying in a low, deep voice, “You know the answer to that.”
“I hate to say this, because I don’t want to piss you off, but I think she should come with us.” Alex corralled Ryder’s attention right along with mine, and his words also helped break the staring contest we’d been engaged in. A battle of wills and stubbornness.
“I agree,” Reed tossed out without looking away from the screen. “She started this whole thing, and she should be part of it when it finishes. It’s not our place to take her revenge away from her. She knew the risks thirteen months ago, and she knows them now.”
For not being a people person, he just became my favorite one. “Thank you.”
“But for the record,” Reed continued, slowly shifting on his stool to look over at us, “the odds anything bad will happen to you have drastically decreased now that you have that man in your corner.”
“Reed’s right,” Alex said to Ryder. “You know he is. You’re a control freak for a reason, and it’s kept us all alive so far. Now, control freak your way through this new problem and find a solution that involves her coming with us.”
And I love you, too. Thank you. I couldn’t believe it, but I had his teammates on my side. Now I just needed this stubborn man to get over here, too.
Ryder’s jaw visibly clenched as he lifted his eyes to the ceiling, his arms remaining rigid blocks of muscles at his sides. “So help me ...”
“I’ll take that as a yes, that I’m coming with you.” Not waiting for him to acknowledge me, I spun around toward my two unlikely heroes and smiled my gratitude.
“Not so fast, miss.” Ryder banded an arm around my stomach and swiftly, but somehow still gentlemanly, had me about-facing his way.
“Yes?” I breathed, meeting his eyes.
He lightly shook his head. “ If you come with us, then consider yourself part of the team. Delta Four.”
“And that means?” I whispered, because I knew he wasn’t asking me to hold a rifle and engage in direct battle. Hell would have to freeze over, then the sky would have to rain puppies, before he’d allow me into a gunfight.
“It means you have to take orders from the team leader and do what he says without objection,” Reed interpreted for me in a matter-of-fact voice.
This was truly our meet-in-the-middle moment. I supposed I could place my trust in this Delta operator if he was willing to let me join his team. “Fine, you have my word.”
“You broke your word before,” he was quick to remind me.
“That was different. I’ll keep it this time.” This next part took effort, but I managed to get it out. “I’ll behave and follow orders.”
I wasn’t sure if he was ready to believe me, but instead of protesting, he took things in an unexpected route. “Alex, you’re now Delta One for this mission.” He straightened his posture, stepping away from me, putting eyes on him. “Consider yourself in charge.”
“What? Why?” Alex came over, looking back and forth between us.
“Because I ...” Ryder shook his head. “I’m not in control of ...” He cleared his throat. This wasn’t easy for him to say or do. “I don’t trust myself to make the right decisions, got it?” He leveled his friend with a hard look, one that said Don’t make me tell you twice or explain more.
“Yeah, okay.” Alex blinked a few times. “Well, then, my first order as your boss is to go call Carter so we can exfil out of here and get to Costa Rica A-S-A-fucking-P.”
“You’re going to enjoy this, aren’t you?” Ryder asked, a gruff tone to his voice.
Alex smirked, winked at me, then focused back on Ryder. “Absolutely.”