Chapter 21
––––––––
A VERY TIED HER HIKING boots and stood, walking across her empty bedroom that morning. Luciana had gone to breakfast early with some of the other nurses, and Avery was determined to check the tents for any unmarked packages being stored there before Walters arrived for the day. He tended to eat at seven a.m., and the nurses would be there watching. If the other women saw him getting up to leave the dining hall earlier than expected, they’d stall him. Avery would thoroughly search the tents before he got there, and hopefully they’d have some answers.
She ran a hand through her hair as she paused at the small mirror, grabbing her phone, ID, and keys. She had about thirty minutes to get to the tent area, check the supply cabinets, and disappear before Walters arrived.
Ada had thought she’d seen him last night, carrying several boxes in the dark, but he’d been too far away for her to see what was actually happening. He’d looked stressed yesterday afternoon, Avery had noted. Walters had been slightly pale and twitchy, which was unusual even for him. He’d also disappeared for more than an hour.
Something was going on, and she needed to find out what.
Nerves skittered through her, and Avery told herself she was being silly. She had every right to examine any supplies in the medical area as well as open the boxes. If anything was there that shouldn’t be—well, she’d deal with that when it happened.
Aaron had frequently told her she was headstrong, and she supposed he was right. Was it safe to head to the tents alone? Mostly. The other villagers and migrants milling about wouldn’t necessarily realize she was there alone. Just because the Doctors Without Borders employees and volunteers didn’t typically see patients at this hour didn’t mean staff wouldn’t be there getting set up for the day.
She’d be fine.
Avery squinted in the sunlight as she walked out of her building in the village, already feeling the sweltering heat of the morning. The sun shone brightly in the blue sky, and for a brief moment, she wondered what Ryan was doing right now. The team had PT early every day, and she supposed he was already heading into base after having gotten his workout in. Once again, she wished she could talk to him. They’d managed to stay in touch with emails well enough, but she really missed hearing his voice. And she couldn’t exactly tie up the landline in the office just because she missed her boyfriend.
Sighing, she mentally counted the months she’d have to wait before actually seeing him. Avery had been approved leave in November, but that was so far off.
She sucked in a breath, telling herself to toughen up. She’d picked this assignment. Dreamed about it. She’d deal with the reality of being here.
Avery strode confidently along the path toward the medical tents, nodding at a family she passed along the way. Every day was both alike and different here. The same weather. The same types of medical ailments. The same desperation.
Only the faces changed.
She forced herself not to look back, just in case Walters was somehow watching. There was no need for her to appear suspicious. But no, he was at breakfast. Luciana or Ada would’ve made a commotion if he was already on his way. She walked into the first tent a few minutes later, breathing a sigh of relief. Avery half felt like she was pulling off one of Ryan and his SEAL team’s secret operations. Sneaking around. Distracting the possible enemy. Not that she knew exactly what their missions entailed, but finding secret packages had to be among their scope of work at least some of the time. Except they knew they were walking into danger. Avery wasn’t sure what she’d discover, if anything.
She pulled her phone from her pocket, wishing her cell signal worked. It made her feel better to carry it with her, but even if she couldn’t make a call or text, she could photograph anything she discovered in the boxes.
Avery would need proof if Walters was up to something nefarious.
She’d confided in her recent email to Ryan that they suspected Walters was hiding something in packages intended for Doctors Without Borders. Ryan had been unhappy, to say the least, and he’d told her to stay away from the man. That was easier said than done given they worked in close quarters day in and day out, a fact that Ryan knew. He was worried about her, and she appreciated his support even from afar. He trusted her. He hadn’t said she was silly or likely imagining things. He’d genuinely been concerned.
Avery looked out through the opening of the tent, not seeing anyone coming down the path. The fenced-in area that held the migrants’ tent village was bustling with activity, but no one was heading directly to the medical area yet. Still, uneasiness coursed through her. She was a woman here alone, a situation she and the other female staff typically avoided. There was safety in numbers, and Avery knew she should’ve brought one of the nurses with her. She didn’t want them to get in any trouble though, especially if Walters somehow figured out what they were doing.
Striding quickly over to the medical lockers, she pulled out her key. There had to be another location Walters was hiding stuff, because there wasn’t much extra space here. That’s why the women would only notice an extra box or two in the lockers. There simply wasn’t room for more.
Would he really be so obvious as to put things in the storage area of the building where they were all housed? All of the staff had access to it. The tented area was more secure in a way given that fewer staff had keys to these lockers, but it was small.
Was he really hiding stuff in plain sight?
She’d have to check the storage closets in the building later, especially if nothing turned up here.
Her hands trembled as she turned the lock. Avery felt silly. She had every authority to open the locker. Just because Luciana usually got some of the supplies first thing while she did paperwork didn’t mean she was unauthorized to access it.
A sense of relief washed over her when the locker door swung open and she discovered nothing amiss. There were no new boxes here. Everything was properly labeled, the same as they’d inventoried last night. She shut the door, securing the lock, before moving to the second tent. Maybe Ada had been mistaken in what she’d seen.
Or maybe Avery would absolutely need to head to the storage closet in the main building next.
Ten minutes later, she was walking back to the main building. Disappointment and relief warred within her. She wanted answers, and she’d gotten none this morning, but at least she hadn’t found anything harmful.
Avery strode into the dining hall just as Walters was finishing eating and clearing his seat. Luciana and Ada were rising from their table, a look of relief flashing over both of their faces as Avery walked in. Both women sat back down, watching her from across the room.
“Nurse Nielsen,” Walters said, surprising her as he passed by on his way out. He’d always called her Avery in the past, referring to the other women as “nurse,” and she raised her eyebrows.
His lips quirked. “After seeing those photos of you the other day, I’ve started imagining you in a sexy nurse uniform,” he confided in a low voice.
She bristled. “That’s completely inappropriate, Dr. Walters.” Her was voice was cool and collected, nothing at all like the anger currently rising inside her.
He chuckled. “Inappropriate and yet the thought stays with me.”
“I suggest you remain professional before I report you for sexual harassment. There was absolutely nothing scandalous about those pictures.” It’s not like she’d sent Ryan photos of her dressed in sexy lingerie or something. She’d been fully clothed, simply blowing him a kiss.
Walters was a pig, plain and simple.
Her skin prickled as his cool gaze raked over her. When Ryan looked at her that way, she felt warm all over. But Walters? He made her blood run cold.
“I’ll imagine what I want, Nurse Nielsen. Whenever I want. I saw the others watching me this morning,” he added, his voice growing colder. “Funny how they happened to be eating breakfast at the same time as me, yet you were nowhere in sight.”
Ignoring him, she strode over to the table where her friends were. She could feel his eyes on her the entire way, and by the time she sank down into a chair, she was practically vibrating with anger.
“What happened?” Luciana asked.
“He was sexually harassing me is what happened. What a dick.”
The other women looked at her sympathetically. “He knows you have a boyfriend,” Luciana told her. “He’s just jealous you’re not giving him the attention he wants.”
“He’s disgusting is what he is,” Avery said, feeling some of her anger wash away now that she was seated with her friends. Her stomach rumbled. “And he’s suspicious now since you were both here without me this morning. I’m going to grab some breakfast and we can talk. Just give me a minute.”
“Did you find anything in the tents?” Luciana asked a few minutes later when Avery was back at the table with her tray of food.
Avery shook her head, taking a sip of her steaming cup of coffee. “Not a box out of place. Whatever you saw him with last night isn’t in the tents. I think we need to search the storage closet.”
Ada nodded. “Si. It’s a big space with lots of things inside. Some of it is organized on shelves, and some things are just stacked up haphazardly. It would be relatively easy to move boxes in and out without drawing too much attention. It’s not as secure though. Many people have keys.”
“Exactly. I think he was keeping some boxes in the tents’ storage cabinets until he realized we noticed.”
“You mentioned he was suspicious this morning. What did he say?” Luciana asked.
Avery eyed the other nurses. “He noticed you were both here earlier and without me. Walters seemed to think we were up to something.”
“Because he’s feeling guilty,” Luciana said knowingly.
“Probably, but we can’t prove anything. We don’t even know what he’s involved with. I can’t imagine what it is aside from drugs. Is he working with the cartels in some capacity?” Avery asked in a hushed tone.
“I don’t know,” Luciana said with a frown. “The cartels move a vast amount of merchandise. A few cardboard boxes left with Walters seems like more trouble than it’s worth for them. The cartels are large and don’t need an American to move goods, especially not here in their own turf.”
“Valid point. Unless he’s buying drugs from them,” Avery mused.
“Huh. Could be a possibility,” Luciana agreed. “But what’s he doing with them? Selling them here in the village? Using them?”
“Maybe he packs illegal narcotics in plain boxes to look more innocuous and then sends them somewhere,” Ada said.
“Maybe,” Avery said, feeling doubtful. “But if so, he’s not shipping them from the village. Why move them into our storage units at all? We do occasionally go back and forth to Panama City, but again, it doesn’t make sense. He was picking up boxes then, not shipping anything.
Ada frowned. “Maybe he has something they want, and he’s storing it for the cartels.”
“Cash?” Avery asked. “Other types of drugs? He looked a bit jumpy the other day, but I’m not sure if he’s using anything himself.” Avery wracked her brain, trying to remember what specifically they’d been doing when she’d noticed he’d gone pale the other day. Aside from that one moment, nothing had been out of the ordinary. Until he’d disappeared, that is.
“If he’s working with them, it must be mutually beneficial,” Luciana said.
“Then what are we missing?” Avery asked. “If not drugs or money, which are easy enough for the cartels to acquire without him, what is Walters involved with?”