Master of the Game (Rush Series Book 3) (15 page)

Moving
quickly toward them, Alex set the flashlight down and opened his backpack
further. He removed an electric lantern and turned it on before extinguishing
the flashlight. Pulling tools from his pack, he opened the hatch on the side of
the first missile and carefully removed everything that would cause the missile
to detonate, including the payload; the homing device; and its computer. He
worked swiftly and within two hours, he had successfully deactivated all six
missiles. Now they were nothing but long, slender garbage cans. As he wouldn’t
be able to carry everything he’d removed back with him, he found a spot not far
from the waterfall to bury the missiles innards. Lastly, he hid two
motion-detector cameras in the cave.

Carefully
checking to ensure he was still alone, he moved to the road where he was able
to obtain phone service.

“I got
them,” he said without preamble when Jacob answered the phone.

“Thank
God!” Jacob exclaimed. “Where are they now?”

Alex
explained where he’d found them and what actions he’d taken.

“Good,
good,” Jacob said, “Let’s see how this plays out. We need to know who the
players are and who was ultimately responsible for the deaths of the service
personnel.
Any idea at this point?”

Alex
hesitated. Finally, he said emotionlessly, “Run a check on Roman and Devon
Alcazar, as well as Sara Daniels. Devon Alcazar was added to the team at the
last moment, I’m not sure if she’s involved or not, but I get the feeling she
knows something.”

“Okay,
okay… I got them. Call me back this time tomorrow and I’ll have the
information. Just stick tight and see who comes for them. I assume you’ve set
up some sort of surveillance?”

“Of course.
I’ll let you know if anything
turns up. But I need the info on the Alcazars sooner rather than later, I’ll
call you back tonight once the camp settles. Agreed?”

“I’ll
do what I can,” Jacob promised.

“Talk
to you soon,” Alex said as he snapped off his phone. He didn’t want to believe
Devon had anything to do with the missiles, but she obviously knew something.

~*M*~

Common
sense, not fear, kept her from returning to the falls alone to bathe. Instead,
Devon heated enough water from the nearby stream on the gas-stovetop to give
herself an unsatisfying sponge bath. How could she have let herself go like
that? She’d been a rambling, emotional mess. She really needed to pull herself
together.

Flashes
of them lying in the leaves slipped into her inner-vision no matter how much
she tried to keep them away: his hand on her ribcage; his lips pressed against
her breast, then surrounding her nipple with hot moisture; the feel of his
muscles under her hands; his forehead pressed against hers before he buried his
face in the crook of her neck; his tongue and mouth devouring hers; the feel of
his complete withdrawal from her afterwards; his anger; his frustration; his
recriminations… suddenly it all became too much. She couldn’t do this anymore.
She lifted a shaking hand to her lips and inhaled sharply. She had to get out
of here. She needed to talk to Roman. She had to end this. Too many people were
now involved – could be hurt, because of her. Her heart wretched at tearing herself
away from the man she’d begun to have such intense feelings for – feelings she
didn’t deserve to have – didn’t have any right to have.

She sat
on her cot in the tent without moving. She’d come to realize in the last couple
of hours that running from things wasn’t the answer… it was always best to meet
things head-on.

As lost
inside her head as she was, she jumped when the flap on the tent suddenly
opened and Roman walked in. He gave her the same strained smile he’d been
giving her since the night before. It was becoming too much for him as well.
This was Roman – the man she’d loved since he was a mere boy – the man who’d
stuck by her… defended her… and protected her, but now it was time to set him
free. He wasn’t going to like it. He was going to fight her over it, but
really, it was for the best. Maybe once she was out of the way, he wouldn’t
feel the need to sneak around with the other woman. He may have thought he’d
hidden it from her, but she’d always known – had known ever since she’d found him
at the restaurant having dinner with the young, perky blonde. She’d almost
ended it then, but fear of the unknown had stopped her.

“Hey,”
Roman said quietly.

She
cleared her throat in preparation of the battle to come. “I…we… Roman, we need
to talk.”

He gave
her a nervous glance.
“About what?”

She
expected a lot of different emotions from him, but not nervousness. “About us…
about this,” she replied softly.

He gave
her a nervous laugh, “Oh, well, umm, can it wait until after dinner? I’m
starved.”

“Roman,
I want to go home… no, I
need
to go
home.”

“What?”
he exclaimed.
“No, absolutely not!
You need to stay
here.”

This
had been what she’d expected – his fear of her leaving – not the nervousness.

“Roman,”
she said patiently, “you knew this was coming. I just think it’d be better for
everyone if I went back home. The longer I stay…” she trailed off.

“What
about Miguel? Jorge? What about
Lex
? His voice caught
and stumbled over the last name.

She
swallowed hard as she was once again forced to face her past. “It wasn’t fair
of me to put you and your life in the middle of my problems.”

“No!
Again, I say no. I don’t think it’s the right thing to do. You’re better off
here than at home. I mean, I still haven’t been able to reach your mother. That
can’t be good.”

She lifted
mournful eyes to his. “Did you try again today?”

He
blinked rapidly at the question then haltingly replied, “Of course, of course,
but still no answer.”

Devon’s
eyebrows rose fractionally. He… he sounded guilty or something. Something was
off, but she just couldn’t quite put her finger on it. With a little shake of
her head, she said, “That’s another reason I need to go home. I can’t stay here
in the jungle forever. Sooner or later, I’ll have to face whatever is waiting
for me at home. I… I have to make sure my mom is okay. What if she’s been hurt
in all this? I’d never forgive myself.”

“I
promised to take care of you. You have to let me do that,” he demanded. He
lifted a hand to gently cup her face where the bruises were now beginning to
fade. “Although, it doesn’t appear I’ve done a very good job. I wish you’d tell
me who did this. Was it the oilman? He’s the only one that makes sense to me.
I’ve seen how he watches you.”

She
flinched a little at the mention of the man she’d just had sex with. Guilt bloomed
red up her neck. She placed her hand over his that was still cupping her face
and leaned into it. “This wasn’t your fault and there’s nothing you could have
done. And no, it wasn’t Ben.”

He gave
her a crooked smile. “So, its Ben now is it?”

Color now
infused her face. “Well, that’s his name,” she said a tad too defensively.

His
lips twisted wryly at her ire, “I know. I’m just surprised you do.” Dropping
his hand, he stepped back. “Okay, so we’re good? It’s settled? You won’t be
leaving?”

“What
about Sara?” she asked softly.

He
brought his gaze back up to hers quickly. “What about her?”

“Roman,”
she said as she spread her hands out in front of her, “Come on, I know you’re
sneaking around to be with her. If I was gone… well, just imagine the
possibilities. Besides, she knows our secret. It’s not fair to her either.”

“We’re
just friends,” he said hotly.

Devon
heaved a sigh. “Roman… I know this is hard, but it’s the way it has to be.
Tomorrow, when everyone leaves, I’m going to catch a ride back with Jose when
he goes into town for supplies.”

“I need
you to stay… God, Devon! I… I just really need you to stay.”

She
reached a hand up to stroke his cheek. “I’m sorry I got you involved in all
this. You’ve been the best thing that’s ever happened to me. With one last
gentle pat on his cheek, she said, “Now, come on. Didn’t you say you were
starving? Let’s go eat.” She turned and stepped out through the tent’s flap.
She turned back when she realized he wasn’t behind her. Stepping back into the
tent, she wrapped his arm in hers and moved outside with him.

With
her head leaned against his, she smiled up at him and said quietly, “Come on
and spend my last night here with me. I’m
gonna
miss
you.”

He
faltered but she kept him moving, knowing she was going to have to be strong
for the both of them.

Alex
was sitting next to Hector Maldonado, forking Chile
Relleno
into his mouth, when Hector stopping in the middle of his sentence caused him
to look up. Devon and Roman Alcazar were exiting their tent arm and arm looking
at each other with such love and
devotion,
he couldn’t
help but stop and stare.

“
Ahh
, the lovely Devon appears to be joining us for dinner,”
Hector said softly for Alex’s ears only.

Alex
forced himself to stop staring. “Yes, it would appear so,” he answered.

“I’d
thought there might have been trouble in the young lovers’ lives, but they
certainly seem cozy now, don’t they?”

Alex
flicked his gaze back to them in time to see Devon lean her head onto Roman’s
shoulder and smile adoringly up at him. Anger seethed through him. She
certainly hadn’t been thinking about her loving husband when he was banging
into…
oh God! What was he doing
? Was
he really jealous because a wife was with her husband? Shame seared his belly
causing him to set his half-eaten plate down.

“Something wrong with Jose’s food?”
Hector
asked him.

“No, I
think I got too much sun.”

Alex
watched Devon and Roman take seats on the opposite end of the campfire. Roman
grabbed her hand and raised it to his lips before leaning over to whisper
something in her ear. She stilled and gave him a rueful smile and slowly shook
her head. Whatever he’d asked, Roman hadn’t gotten whatever answer he was
looking for because his lips drew into thin lines. His expression had Devon
sitting back in her seat and staring off pensively. As if Alex willed it, her
eyes skidded over to his. He held her stare for a long moment. She was
stunning, even with her hair pulled back in a sloppy ponytail. She gave him
what he perceived to be a sad smile before accepting the plate Jose had filled
for her.

Alex
glanced around the campfire and noticed several eyes on the unexpected guest.
He studied each one trying to figure out which one had crossed the line with
her. Irritation filled him as he realized where his thoughts had gone. He should
be studying the bastards to see which one had killed U.S. soldiers for six
missiles.

Devon
automatically swallowed the food that tasted like sawdust, just as she smiled
at whoever spoke to her. If asked later, she’d never be able to say what had
been said to her. Her mind was equally divided between the blonde man sitting
across the way from her and knowing now that she’d made a decision, her course
was set. She wished she had more time – time to invest in a relationship with
her Cowboy. But tomorrow she’d walk away with him thinking terrible things
about her. Things she wouldn’t be able to clear up. But maybe she could? She
inhaled silently at her folly. No, it was best to leave things as they were.
Tomorrow, she’d be gone before he was even aware of it. While he might have a
mild curiosity about where she’d gone, she had no illusion that he would dwell
on her for any length of time. It was good that she was leaving now. He made
her want things… things she couldn’t have.

As she
picked at her food, on one side of her, she heard but didn’t absorb the
conversation Roman was having with
Taggert
Lanier
about the dig – something about the significance of some find or other. On the
other, she was aware of Sara Daniels talking to Jose Sanchez about the history
of Mexican cooking or something of the sort. She glanced and met the lascivious
eyes of Professor Childers – the bastard! –
he
grinned
at her and licked his lips as he slowly crossed his legs.

She
remembered when she’d been a young girl of no more than eleven or twelve and a
bully at her private school had been unrelenting as day after day, she
tormented her. She remembered her Papa telling her, “Bullies are prairie dogs
who only bark loud. You see, the prairie dog wants to be viewed as fierce and
the only way he can do that is if he can convince you he is a coyote. Don’t let
him convince you. Be strong, ignore them, and remember they are only little
prairie dogs with big mouths.” She remembered laughing at his analogy at the
time and even later when the bully at school had started in on her again.

Now
internally, she smiled as she imagined the good professor as a yapping prairie
dog. She met his stare unwaveringly, keeping her face lax and her expression
calm for two reasons: one, she didn’t want Roman to know his mentor was an
abuser of women; and two, she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of thinking he
scared her at all. She’d taken care of him once, and now with her new skills,
she could really hurt him.