Chapter Five
“Ready to get this shit-show on the road?” Hagan asked Chance as they flew over Syria in the back of the stealth copter.
“As I’ll ever be.” Chance peered out the open door of the copter. Night had fallen, but the orange glow of little bonfires occasionally lit up the ground below.
The night breeze whipped against his face, cooler than the oven of daytime. It felt good to be back in the saddle again, back in tactical gear, but he couldn’t say the last memories he had of Syria were pleasant ones.
Just as they’d expected, the exchange was falling apart. The kidnappers wanted more money, and now they were only willing to give up half the family. The plan had been all of them or nothing.
Hagan growled. “Could’ve called that one from half a world away.”
Chance tightened his gloves on his wrists and got ready for the drop. “Then let’s get to it.”
Jane jumped at the sound of more gunfire outside, just when things had been settling down.
They’d spent what felt like hours walking toward the compound. As the sun set, the men had led them into a crumbling building and left them in a room with a dirt floor and no furniture. That had to have been over an hour ago.
They sat, shivering, in total darkness, except for a slim shaft of moonlight that shone against the far wall. In quiet whispers, Gigi and Dax kept repeating more of the same: “This is fine. We’re okay. Everything will be all right.”
Jane had started to think they really were losing it. No job was worth this. How dare they risk her life like this? And their own son’s? She’d considered telling them both to go to hell, and she would have, if not for Teddy.
She’d just curled her body around Teddy, trying to make him comfortable, when a sound much closer than the gunfire cracked the air.
“What was that?” Gigi hissed.
Dax rose to his feet and pulled his wife next to him. Jane lifted Teddy’s sleepy body to hers. Joe didn’t move as fast. Jane assumed the poor lighting and anticipated picture quality made him slower.
“I can’t see a damn thing,” Joe complained.
“Figure it out. It’s your job,” Dax snapped.
Yeah, because who wouldn’t want to recall these happy memories of a family vacation… Jane held Teddy close and pushed herself from the floor.
“Janie,” Teddy mumbled against her neck.
Her ears hurt to make sense of the sound of footsteps shuffling in the corridor outside their locked door. “Everything’s okay.”
“They’re coming closer,” Gigi warned.
Dax put his arm over her shoulder. “Everything will be fine.”
Metallic clicks turned on their door, and it flew open. Jane jumped back. Gigi screamed. Dax and Joe shouted in surprise as several men poured into their cell.
“Dax! Dax! What’s happening?” Gigi screamed.
Their captors reached for Gigi. She clung to Dax’s arm as they pulled her away. Jane didn’t know what to do. Help Gigi? Protect Teddy? Joe and Dax stood like shocked statues as Gigi kicked and yelled, acting for the first time like she might be in danger. “Dax!”
Other men held Joe back as he lurched into action. Dax still didn’t move.
“This isn’t supposed to happen! Dax!”
As much as she hated Gigi and Dax, she couldn’t handle this. Jane covered Teddy’s ears and held him against the wall, promising that everything would be okay in a whisper-prayer against the back of his head.
“Gigi.” Dax jerked from his stupor. “It’s okay. All right? Everything’s good. Just listen and do as they—”
The door slammed shut. Gigi and the armed men were gone. Their cell was eerily quiet.