Chapter 12
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LUCIANA BLINKED IN surprise, staring at Commander Madden. His jaw was set, his face rigid, but he looked almost as surprised by his sudden offer as she was. “What? I couldn’t possibly impose on you like that.”
Ryan was gaping at him like he’d grown two heads, and even the other two men in the back of the Humvee with them looked on in confusion.
Commander Madden ignored the stares from his men, keeping his focus solely on her.
“I’ve got the space. I have a home in Oahu that’s quiet and off the beaten path.
You’d be safe there,” he assured her. “I just meant that I wouldn’t be bothered.
Avery’s working again, but her schedule is such that she could check in on you when I’m busy on base.
You’d have time to heal and recover, then do what you choose with your life. ”
“But you’re saying it might not ever be safe to return to Panama,” she pointed out.
His jaw ticked. “Probably not. But you could remain in the United States or find somewhere the cartel’s clutches don’t reach. You’re from Colombia.” It wasn’t a question.
“Si,” she replied. “But I’m estranged from my relatives and haven’t seen my family in years.
I couldn’t return there either. Not happily, at any rate.
” A memory of the nightclub flashed through her mind, and she quickly brushed it aside, unwilling to consider what it meant that one of her father’s employees was there.
She’d have plenty of time to worry about that later.
Now, her only priority had to be her immediate future.
“What was that thought?” Commander Madden asked, missing nothing.
“I thought I recognized someone at the nightclub,” she told him.
“I’ll explain it more later,” she added, glancing out the window as they finally approached the airfield.
It was well-lit and staffed despite the late hour.
There was a U.S. military plane waiting on the runway, no one seeming surprised by this but her.
Of course they’d flown here. It boggled her mind that a U.S. Navy SEAL team from Hawaii had flown in just to rescue her. Surely, they had teams stationed in the continental U.S.
But Avery’s Ryan was in Hawaii. All of these men were here because of Luciana’s connection to her.
A small sigh of relief escaped her lips as they drove into the military base.
She was exhausted, and growing more tired by the moment.
Just thinking about the specifics of everything was overwhelming.
She was safe here in the Humvee with Avery’s boyfriend and his teammates.
Safe with Commander Madden. All the adrenaline from her escape earlier was wearing off, however, and right now, she simply wanted to sleep for hours and hours.
Days. Luciana hadn’t felt a moment of security in the past month, and she knew the only reason she did now was because of the U.S. military men surrounding her.
“That’s our ride,” Harrison told her, nodding toward the plane.
“I figured that was the case, but how will I be able to enter Hawaii? I know you’re on a military plane and probably not landing at a regular airport, but even so....”
“I’ve got a friend in Panama City who works for The State Department,” Commander Madden explained.
“He was able to facilitate things, and we already have a passport and the necessary papers ready. We can evacuate you from Panama City and bring you with us to Hawaii. I can’t offer to fly you CONUS, given we’re returning to Oahu, but we figured you’d want to spend some time with Avery and decompress before you figure out your next steps. ”
Luciana gaped at him. He’d clearly thought this through and had already arranged for it to happen.
Maybe she should be annoyed, but right now, she simply felt relieved.
Luciana didn’t know where else to go, and fleeing from the cartel seemed the logical thing to do, at least until she was certain they weren’t looking for her anymore.
It was possible she’d be forgotten after a while, and they’d stop their search.
She could identify several of the members though, which might pose problems. She’d have to continue her work as a nurse somewhere else in Central America.
Despite the needs of the migrants, she wasn’t sure she could work near the Darien Gap. She’d never feel safe there again.
The idea of leaving everything she’d known behind once more wasn’t something she necessarily wanted to consider either, but what choice did she have?
She could use the next few weeks as a stepping stone to eventually returning to Central or South America.
She’d ease back into life in the real world, getting used to doing simple things once more like choosing what she wanted to wear each day or fixing what she wanted to eat for dinner each night.
Inexplicably, she flushed. Would she be having meals with Commander Madden if she stayed in his home?
Why that made her blush, she wasn’t sure.
She’d been around angry, demanding men for weeks, and certainly had no interest in dating.
Commander Madden was, of course, one hundred percent different from her captors in every way imaginable.
He was honorable. Respectful. She recalled how he’d turned away when she’d changed into her clothes and felt a warmth filling her chest. No matter what, she felt safe with him.
She’d known Avery’s boyfriend was one of the few good guys, and she could sense that his commander and teammates were the same. Avery trusted them, and so could she.
They’d literally risked their lives to get to her.
“Ms. Rodriguez?” he prodded when she didn’t respond.
Luciana cleared her throat. She’d liked it better earlier when he’d said her full name. “You can call me Luciana.”
He nodded. “Will do, ma’am. Luciana,” he quickly added, and she heard the other men trying not to snicker. “You can call me Harrison, if you’d like. Commander Madden sounds too formal. That doesn’t apply to you,” he told his men.
She smiled, maybe for the first time in weeks.
While she wasn’t sure what had prompted him to make the offer to stay at his home, she could do so for a few days.
She’d find her own temporary place, of course.
Maybe an inexpensive hotel, although she assumed that might be hard to do in a touristy spot like Hawaii.
He hadn’t mentioned having a wife or girlfriend living with him, but he very well could.
Why disappointment suddenly flooded through her at that thought, she didn’t want to examine too closely.
Luciana would be a guest in his home—temporarily—and that would be that.
The Humvee they were riding in rolled down the road onto the airfield, heading to a building off to the side. There were military servicemembers working, even now in the dead of night. Commander Madden—Harrison—began giving instructions to his team.
She glanced over as he spoke. There hadn’t been much of a chance to study Harrison in the dim interior of the vehicle, especially not with him right at her side, but she could tell he was handsome.
He was older than her, perhaps in his early-to-mid forties.
He was big and broad, as she’d already noted, and had hard, masculine features—a broad nose and strong jaw.
A hint of light stubble across his face.
But those eyes. They crinkled slightly at the corners when he smiled, albeit rarely, and he looked at her with an intensity she couldn’t begin to understand.
He was still wearing body armor, and she couldn’t completely see all his features with the helmet he wore.
She imagined he had a closely cropped, short military hairstyle.
He was clearly in peak physical condition.
He was brave as could be, but she supposed anyone in his line of work would have to be.
His men respected him. They weren’t begrudgingly agreeing to his instructions.
They were a cohesive unit. A team. Briefly, she wondered why he was there on the mission to save her.
Didn’t the higher-ups usually send in their men and stay behind where it was safe?
Maybe she didn’t know exactly what a Navy SEAL commander did, she rationalized.
There was no time to ask questions, because they were suddenly coming to a stop and exiting the vehicle, with Harrison helping her down. She felt shaky as her boots crunched on the gravel, and she clung to him for a moment, overwhelmed.
As he looked down at her, she got that brief scent of pine trees and the sea again.
It was an interesting combination that didn’t make much sense.
He smelled good though—like freedom and safety.
He towered above her, but again, that just made her feel shielded from the world.
While she normally had no issue with facing things head on, given the circumstances, she appreciated his strength.
A trio of men were approaching, and Harrison handed her off to Ryan while he went to speak with them. “Are you okay?” Ryan asked quietly. “I know Av was overwhelmed when she was rescued. It’s a lot to take in.”
“I’m more than okay,” she said, tears smarting her eyes. “I’m free.”