Chapter 15
Apprehension vibrated up and down Dallas’s body as he approached the men from the large SUV. Two guys fell back, standing closer to the vehicle, guns across their chests, while the driver approached him.
“You must be Dallas.” The man spoke English without a hint of an accent. As Dallas got closer, he took in the man’s light-brown hair and green eyes. “Carson,” he said, holding out his hand.
Dallas glanced at the man’s palm then shook it. “You know Cole?”
His mouth twitched. “Who?”
Dallas suppressed a grin. He must know Cole really well if he pretended he didn’t exist.
Carson gestured behind Dallas, who turned to see Gemma approaching. He’d told her to stay in the damn car, but there didn’t seem to be a threat. She folded her arms across her chest, her elbow bumping his.
“You’re the bomber?” Carson asked. “The woman everyone is after?”
Her face paled several shades. “No, I’m not. There’s been a mistake.”
Dallas nodded. “Silas’s men have been after her since the bombing. We need to get out of the country.”
“Well.” Carson extended a hand out to his side. “That’s why I’m here. But you both need to know that her face and name are all over the news. There’s a checkpoint about twenty minutes ahead, and another one a few hours down the road, where we cross into Ecuador. You’ll need to stay hidden in the back of the SUV,” he said, nodding at the vehicle. “If they want to search, we’ll need to offer a bribe.”
“I’ve got a thousand US on me,” Dallas said softly.
Carson shrugged. “That should do. Grab your bags.”
Gemma strode beside him as they walked to the jeep. “Do you think we can trust them? All of them?”
He handed over her backpack and grimaced. “Fuck if I know. But we really don’t have a choice.”
“What about our next step?” Her voice was small, repeating the echo of his thoughts.
He caught her hand and rubbed his thumb over the thin skin of her knuckles. The anxiety didn’t leave her blue eyes, and her forehead creased more. “I’m going to make some calls, okay? Don’t worry. Let’s take it one day at a time.”
She scoffed. “You mean an hour at a time.”
He didn’t disagree. The way things were going, they’d be lucky to make it to a motel in one piece—and not have their door blown in by money-hungry killers.
He dug out a grand in cash as they headed back to Carson. He slapped the bills in the guy’s hand, and then Carson led them to the back of the SUV and lifted the hatch. “I hope you don’t mind. We could fit you in the middle,” he said, gesturing to the two vacant seats, “but with the checkpoints coming up we might as well be cautious. It’s best if you stay down and cover yourselves with the blanket when we reach the authorities.”
Dallas tossed his bag inside and glanced at Gemma. Her lips were twisted to the side. He really couldn’t blame her for not liking the idea.
“Least there’s AC.” Carson laughed.
Gemma flashed him a less-than-amused smile and climbed into the back.
“There’s extra water and some food in the cooler,” Carson said. “We’ll give you a heads-up when we get close.”
Dallas hefted himself into the small area and settled back against the side of the vehicle. The hatch closed. Gemma scooted next to him as the other two men got into the passenger seats two rows ahead of them.
“I guess this isn’t the worst,” she said. “At least we have a bit of privacy and can stretch out.”
“Why don’t you rest?” He shook out the blanket.
She slid down, and he guided her head to his lap. As he pulled the blanket over her body, the SUV lurched and made a U-turn.
“Are you going to sleep?”
She yawned. “I don’t think so. I just need to rest my body.”
“Mmm.” Damn right. They both did. His muscles started to throb, but he pushed the discomfort away. If he let himself feel like shit now, it’d make the journey even longer. He glanced down as Gemma gingerly positioned her leg. He also needed to look at her wound, but it’d have to wait. One of the men turned on the radio, and music drummed through the speakers.
“Do you mind if I call my brother?” he asked her.
“Not at all.”
He dug his satellite phone from his pocket and brought the screen to life. They were still too far from cell-phone towers for his encrypted phone to work. Dare would be waiting for him to call and confirm he’d been picked up, but more than anything, Dallas felt the pull to call Cole.
He dialed the memorized number, and the line rang in his ear.
“Holy shit, you’re alive,” said Cole, in a monotone.
“Yeah. Guess I have you to thank for that.”
“Don’t mention it. You can trust Carson. He’s loyal. He knows I’m good for the money to keep you alive.”
“Well,” Dallas said, running his free hand over Gemma’s long, silky braid. “I’ll pay you back what you put up to get us out.”
“Don’t be dumb. You’d do the same for me. Good thing it’s you and not Nash or Dare—I wouldn’t pay a dime for those assholes.”
Dallas laughed. Cole’s dry humor never got old, but he was full of shit. Cole had come through more than once for their younger siblings, but he’d never admit he had a soft bone in his body. You had to read Cole’s actions, not his words. He didn’t make promises, didn’t wear his heart on his sleeve, and he sure as hell wouldn’t admit to feeling any kind of emotion—but in little ways, he showed that he cared.
Dallas understood Cole better than anyone else could. Maybe it was because they’d shared a womb.
“You going to tell me about the woman I’m also rescuing?”
Dallas smiled, and he glanced down at Gemma’s body, lying on his. Cole got laid, probably more than most, but he was a lone wolf. A man who couldn’t understand the bleeding heart of a guy who had it bad for a woman.
“Not right now. But thanks for that, too.”
“Figured it was a two-for-one deal. You going to be able to get out of Ecuador after this?”
Dallas squirmed. Leave it to Cole to go right to the heart of his dilemma. “Not with our current passports,” he said, his voice low. While Cole had said Carson could be trusted, that sentiment didn’t necessarily extend to the men two rows ahead of them.
“Mmm. Gimme until tomorrow. I’ll see what I can swing.”
Dallas thanked him again and disconnected. Returning his phone to his pocket, he settled back against the side of the SUV. The air inside the vehicle had cooled, and although stickiness still clung to his skin from spending days in the jungle, his body temperature was finally reaching a comfortable degree.
Gemma let out a little sigh.
Her words rang through his head and twisted his gut like a knife. If Cole could get them both out of the country, maybe he could convince her not to leave him...
Without sounding too desperate.
***
Gemma’s anxiety hadshot through the roof when the men told them to hide under the blanket as they approached the first blockade. They’d made it through without a search, but Carson had warned them that the border-entry check would be more thorough.
She’d drifted in and out of sleep before the first blockade. Now, a few hours later, there was no chance of rest. She peeled back the wrapper of another protein bar—this one coconut, a welcome change from the chocolate-and-peanut-butter ones she practically lived off now. She made a silent vow to never touch a protein bar for the rest of her life, if she made it out alive.
“Five minutes until we hit the border,” Carson bellowed over the music.
The gooey coconut curdled her stomach. She folded the wrapper and stuffed it inside her bag. Dallas shoved their backpacks under the seat and pulled out his gun. They got into position under the blanket. He hugged her to his middle, one hand under her body, holding her to him, his other arm rested over her hip, the gun in his palm.
He nudged her side. “Last one and we’re almost home.”
Thankfully he couldn’t see her grimace. “Barely,” she whispered, even though the vehicle still rolled along. “We’re still a long way from home.”
“Yeah.” His voice was brusque. “But we’re closer now.”
She sighed. They might not be lost in the middle of the Amazon jungle anymore, but once they emerged into society, they had a whole new danger to be aware of. As soon as they made it to a motel—if they made it to a motel—she’d call Charlene and clear up any misgivings. Surely a helping hand from the CIA would guarantee their safety to some degree. Heck, even just a new alias and passport would make all the difference.
The vehicle slowed and Gemma closed her eyes. The temperature was several degrees warmer under the blanket. She inhaled through her nose. Her heart rate rose. The men up front muttered, their words unintelligible. The music shut off and the sound of a window motoring down reached her ears.
Carson said something loudly in Spanish. A voice, the guard, she assumed, replied in the same tongue. He seemed to be asking questions.
Dallas’s breath stirred the hair at her temple, and she moved her palm to rest it on the outside of his hand holding the gun. Her pulse beat rapidly through her head, drowning out the words that came too quickly for her to translate.
Boots crunched on the dirt and rock outside the car. Gemma dug her nails into the thick skin of Dallas’s knuckles. His other arm pressed tighter to her belly, as if he could absorb her into his body and make them disappear.
The hatchback squeaked open and Gemma’s heart stalled in her chest. Her eyes flickered beneath her eyelids as panic took hold of her senses.
The blanket flew up.
She turned to stone. Her breath hissed through her nose... the last breath she’d take. She waited for the rough hands that would drag her away from Dallas, the bullet that would enter her head...
Silence.
She fluttered open her eyes and stared at a man dressed in cargo pants and a T-shirt. He wore a beret, and a cigarette hung from his mouth. He pulled down his sunglasses.
There were shouts in Spanish from a man—another guard?—as more footsteps echoed around the car.
The man snapped the blanket back over her head and shut the hatch.
Her breath spiraled out of her lungs. Air rushed in again immediately. Dallas’s abdomen moved rapidly, as if he’d been as close to having a heart attack as she’d been.
“What just happened?” she croaked, her voice well below a whisper.
“We just bribed our way into Ecuador.”
There was another exchange between Carson and the guard, followed by a jovial laugh. The SUV rumbled to life and started moving. Several beats passed.
“You can come out now,” one of the guys called.
Gemma tossed off the blanket and sat up. Dallas pushed into a sitting position.
“Keep low,” the same guy instructed. “We’ll be going through town soon and we don’t want your faces spotted.”
Gemma scootched back down to the floor and Dallas did the same. He brought his hand to her braid and stroked it. She swept her gaze to his eyes, which were studying her as if he’d forget her features the next second.
“You okay?” he asked.
She blew a breath through tight lips. “As good as can be expected.” She looked out the window at the setting sun.
“We’ll be in a bed tonight at least,” he said. “Decent food, too.”
“Anything will be decent after eating protein bars and canned goods for two days.”
He chuckled then caught her chin. “Almost through this.”
“Mmm. You’re a shitty liar.”
“Why do you say that?” he said, sounding affronted.
“I heard you talking to your brother... You didn’t sound confident we’d get out of Ecuador.”
He rocked his jaw back and forth. “Not going to lie, the odds are against us.”
She twiddled her thumbs over her belly. “I’m going to call Charlene once we get settled. Maybe she can get us passports and—”
“You, maybe. If we’re lucky. I’ll need another way out.”
“I’m not going anywhere without you,” she said sharply. The words had blurted out before she could stop them. Hours ago, she’d been ready to separate to keep him away from the flames that lit her life.
But doing that... actually leaving him in a foreign country after he’d done everything in his power to keep her safe... she couldn’t. Couldn’t leave and not know if he’d make it out. She was like a burr in his side, a stain he couldn’t wash away. But she had to see that he returned home.
Her stomach flipped over. There was one way she could keep him safe... one way to get him away from the target she’d put on their backs. And she had to try.
Even if it meant she’d never see him again.
***
“Whatever you’re having,”she told Dallas, as she tucked her tired feet under her legs. The fact that they’d actually made it to a motel made her brain buzz. An hour and a half prior, she hadn’t been so sure they’d even make it out of the back of the SUV.
The sounds of electricity, the fluorescent lights in particular, overpowered her dulled-down system. Nonetheless, her blood pressure felt normal for the first time since she’d jumped out of the plane. Scratch that. Since she’d heard the bombs go off.
“All right. I’m not sure what I’ll end up with, but lock the door and keep the gun close.”
“I know, I know.”
He winked and left, and she went to the door and secured the lock. Turning her attention to the satellite phone he’d left her, she scooped it up and wet her lips. Acid fizzled in her stomach. A warning.
It’d been two days since she spoke to Charlene—the night of the blast. Two days that the CIA had no clue where their informant was. No contact with them was as bad as giving them the finger.
Using Dallas’s phone would ensure the CIA couldn’t trace them. Her phone was encrypted, but encryption didn’t mean a damn thing when it came to the most powerful alphabet government in the world.
Dialing Charlene’s number, which she’d been forced to commit to memory, she sat on the side of the bed. Thankfully they were in the same time zone. It wasn’t even 8:00p.m. in Virginia.
“Hello?” Charlene’s greeting was clipped.
“Charlene. It’s me... Gemma.”
A sharp intake of breath met her ear. “Whose phone are you calling from? Where—”
“The one you gave me is dead and I needed to reach you.”
“I’ll say.” Her voice rose an octave. “You have a lot of nerve falling off the face of the earth like that.”
She cleared her throat. “Someone’s been trying to kill me... Silas’s men.”
A beat passed. “That’s impossible. Silas is dead.”
“I don’t think so. According to our sources, he’s alive and is after me because he believes I set off the bombs.” The word ‘our’ burned her tongue, slipping from her mouth like butter. She waited for the barrage of questions to assault her.
“Who’s ‘our’? Tell me where you are and we’ll bring you in while we figure this out.”
Knots formed in her chest, and she lifted her hand to rub her breastbone. “I want you to know that up until now, I planned to quit working for you—for the CIA.”
Silence fell like a sonic boom.
“Is that right?”
“However,” she continued, her throat practically sealing off the word, “I have a proposition for you instead.”
Another stretch of quiet. “I don’t know what you’re trying to do here, Gemma, but we’ve been good to you. You’re in no position to make demands.”
“It’s not a demand. It’s an exchange.”
“What kind of exchange?” Her tone turned downright steely.
Gemma’s next words left her mouth carefully. She had to watch what she said in case Charlene tried to turn any of this onto Dallas. “If it weren’t for an old friend I bumped into in Cali, I’d be dead. He’s stuck with me the last few days to ensure my safety, and I’d like to return the favor. He now has a hit on his head from Silas—as do I—and getting anywhere in one piece is going to be next to impossible, let alone leaving the country.” Her voice shook as the gravity of their situation closed in around her. Dallas would be pissed, but what choice did she have?
“I’ll continue to work for the CIA for another two years if you can get us out—and my friend safely back to the US. That’s all I’m asking.”
Tears stung her eyes. She and Dallas would be separated if Charlene agreed to this. Not only would she be forced right back to work, but also, Charlene would know who Dallas was. She’d know to keep an eye on any contact Gemma had with him. Her one slice of heaven, her safe haven and yearly hiatus, would be gone.
Not to mention their friendship. Dallas surely wouldn’t forgive her for returning to do the CIA’s bidding.
“All right,” Charlene finally said. “I don’t see why that arrangement can’t be made. He’s an American citizen?”
“Yes.”
“Fine. Now, charge your encrypted phone and I’ll call you first thing in the morning with more details.” She clicked off, and Gemma lowered the phone.
Her heart sank with it.