Chapter 22
TWENTY-TWO
Across the courtyard, in the shade of the med tent, Petrov slumped in a lounger. Ford saw the details before he reached him: an IV line feeding clear fluid, sweat across his skin, the uneven rise and fall of his chest beneath the mask. He was holding on.
Ford crossed the courtyard toward him. Kieran and Tate followed, but they stayed behind him. Ford met him hours earlier when he came in with the pregnant girl, Maria.
Petrov noticed them and tried to sit up straighter. He failed. Ford watched the effort fade. It was good in a way. It meant there was no strength left for lies.
Ford folded his arms. “Well,” he glanced at Kieran and Tate, “you two want to relive old times and do an interrogation, or as Eira calls it, gentle questioning?”
Tate looked sideways at him. “What did Eira do to you?”
Ford shrugged. “She improved my bedside manner.”
Kieran let out an exasperated breath. “Let’s try it her way first.”
Ford pulled a chair closer and sat across from Petrov, close enough for clarity and truth.
“Petrov, I’m Ford; we met earlier. You said you worked security on Tevenne.” He kept his voice steady. “You brought a girl here. Maria.”
Petrov’s eyes shifted. “Yes.”
“Why?”
Petrov hesitated as a hard, deep cough came. It tore through him until he had to grip the armrest to stay upright.
Ford waited.
Petrov dragged in a breath. “A nurse asked me to.”
Ford’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Who?”
“Aurelia,” Petrov said. “She told me to take Maria and go.”
Ford processed it quickly. Aurelia had seen something coming or something already in motion. “Why did she send you?”
Petrov swallowed. “Because Maria would die there.”
Ford leaned forward slightly.“Why?”
Petrov looked past him toward the ocean. “Because Tevenne is not what you think.”
Ford didn’t react. He had started building the picture, but now he needed the rest.
“The resort is real,” Petrov said slowly. “But it is not the business.”
“What is the business?” Ford asked.
Petrov forced the word out: “Babies.”
No one spoke. Tate and Kieran took a closer step.
Ford held steady. “Babies, what do you mean?”
Petrov met his eyes. “Wealthy clients come there for children.”
Tate frowned. “Adoption?”
Petrov shook his head. “Surrogacy.”
Kieran folded his arms. “That is legal in some places.”
Petrov coughed again. “Not like this.”
Ford didn’t move. “Go on.”
“Some women volunteer.” Petrov’s voice dropped. “Others, like Maria, are brought in.”
Ford’s tone sharpened slightly. “Young girls?”
Petrov hesitated. “Too young.”
That settled cold in Ford’s chest. “How many girls?”
Petrov let out a faint, humorless breath. “You do not understand.”
“Well, explain it to us,” Kieran said.
Petrov gestured weakly toward the island. “There are entire wings.”
Ford leaned forward. “How many?”
“At least sixty pregnant girls.”
Tate went still. “Sixty?”
“Yes. Two wings. Underneath the resort.”
“Pregnant now?”
“Yes.”
When Petrov struggled for air, Ford switched him from nasal to mask oxygen. “Some early. Some close. There is antepartum. And postpartum. Two more wings,” he panted.
Kieran’s expression darkened. “And the babies?”
“Nursery.”
“How many?”
Petrov closed his eyes and opened them. “When I left, about twenty.”
Ford leaned back slightly as the island shifted into his mind. The gleaming villas. Then the illusion faded, replaced with something else. Rows of beds. Young girls. Newborns. And a virus was moving through all of it.
“And the clients?” Ford asked.
“They are still there,” Petrov said.
“Wealthy clients?” Kieran asked.
“Yes.”
That part made sense. They would not leave until they had what they came for.
Tate asked, “How many people total?”
Petrov’s voice was thin now. “Hundreds. Girls. Staff. Clients.” He took a deep breath.
“The director flew some out. Planes. Helicopters.”
Ford’s eyes sharpened.
“Some of the clients were sick. They wanted to leave.”
That changed the timeline. That meant spread had begun beyond the island.
Ford’s phone rang. “Cox.”
“Island patrol,” a deep voice said.
Ford straightened slightly. “What is it?”
“Another boat just came in from Tevenne.”
Ford went still. “How many?”
“Full crew. Four passengers and two neonates.”
“Where are they?” Ford asked.
“At the main dock.”
“You’re holding them?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Keep them there. Masks on everyone. No one steps off that boat until I say so.” Ford ended the call and slipped the phone back into his pocket. “Petrov, I’ll have our staff make you more comfortable. Thank you.”
OUTSIDE TENT 1
“Alright, another boat arrived from Tevenne.” Ford explained the situation and addressed the head of the Eagles Talon team, Rourke.
Adrian Rourke stepped forward immediately. “Mr. Cox.”
“Crew, four passengers, two neonates at the main dock.”
Rourke nodded. “Copy.”
“Island patrol is holding them. No one disembarks until we clear it.”
Dr. Nadia Rios stepped forward, already pulling on gloves. “We need to run fever checks and rapid screening. Anyone symptomatic stays isolated.”
Flynn nodded. “The babies go straight to the clinic.”
“Correct.” Ford looked between them. “Rourke, you secure the dock. We need to take six operators. Rios, you run medical.”
“Understood.”
Ford turned to Flynn. “You’re with me.”
Flynn did not hesitate.
“Alpha squad, masks up,” Rourke ordered.
Respirators snapped into place. Ford tightened his own mask and sealed it. He looked once toward the harbor and moved.
Kieran Chase stepped away with the satellite phone then walked toward the edge of the courtyard where reception was clearer. The call connected.
“Chase Legal.”
“This is Kieran Chase.”
“Yes, Mr. Chase.”
“I need senior legal on this call immediately.”
“Stand by.”
Kieran watched the horizon while he waited. The ocean stretched, blue and deceptively peaceful, beyond the trees.
The line clicked again. “Mr. Chase, this is Marta Greene. I’m taking the call for Mrs. Olivetti. She’s currently in court.”
Kieran spoke calmly, “Marta, I need you to bring Ian onto this call as well.”
“Your brother?” Her voice wobbled.
“Yes.” Kieran rolled his eyes. When this was over, he’d sit down with Ian to discuss why the staff always seemed afraid of them.
“Stand by.”
Another moment passed, then a second voice joined the line. “Kieran?”
Kieran exhaled slightly. “Ian, we’ve got a situation.”
“What kind?”
Kieran looked across the courtyard at the departing vehicles carrying Ford and the security team. “Tevenne.”
Ian was silent for an instant. “That’s the wellness resort.”
“Yes,” Kieran said. “But that’s not what it really is.”
“Go on.”
Kieran explained the situation, then added, “And now there’s an influenza outbreak moving through the island.”
“What does Eira say?”
Kieran’s voice grew thick. “She’s sick with the virus too, the same one that hit our Europe and Asia teams.
“Damn,” Ian cursed.
Marta Greene said, “You’re going to need international legal clearance if you’re talking about intervention.”
“We have to do something,” Kieran said.
Ian’s voice returned, steady now. “What do you need from us?”
Kieran looked toward the road where Ford’s vehicle disappeared toward the harbor. “For now?” He exhaled. “Figure out what we can do and fast.”