Out of the Shadows (Falcon) (12 page)

“Bullshit.
If Brody doesn’t get me out of here, the government will eventually come for me.”

“
Ha. Don’t you know most American diplomats want to believe what people like me say?”

“Y
ou mean killers, drug lords and arms dealers?”

Chavez laughed. “No. M
en of great wealth and power.”

“I think some of that
great wealth
is now in the hands of the United States government.”

The smile slipped
from Chavez’s face faster than snow sliding off a hot roof. “You think your little Falcon Securities team hurt me? You are mistaken.”

A.J. shrugged.
“Okay, if you say so.”

“I do.”

“So why am I here? And why didn’t you take Brody and the girl? You had the manpower.”

“Do not worry about your friends. Their time will come.
I promise. I have plans for them. But you are the one I have to be careful with. You came on a mission for your government. Those other two are here of their own accord. No one even knows they are in Mexico.”

“Why are you keeping me alive?”

“You will learn soon enough. And since I keep telling Frank Hamilton I don’t know about your abduction, he probably thinks you are dead.”

A.J. spat. “
While I find it hard to believe, I think you’re a dumber asshole than I first imagined. You seriously think Frank doesn’t know exactly where I am? Well, he does. Brody Hawke being here proves that. And if anything happens to one of us, Hamilton will storm in here and destroy your whole fucking world.”

Chavez’s face glowed
red and his lips tightened. “My government has refused to even communicate with your people about obtaining any kind of release. Even your Department of Defense has been shut down.” Chavez stepped closer. “No one can confirm you are even here.”

A.J. folded his arms. “Frank isn’t sitting on his hands. You can bet your ass he’s working on getting me out of here.” A.J. shrugged. “When he does, I’m not sure I’d want to be you.”

“Nobody can touch me.”

“You’
re a cold blooded killer, Chavez. And one day Brody Hawke will put a bullet right between your eyes.”

Chavez laughed. “I don’t think so.”

A.J. straightened. “Tell me, Chavez, what kind of man sets fire to a tunnel with two people trapped?”

The drug lord
straightened and stepped forward, his eyes wide. “What fire?”

“Don’t pretend
you didn’t try to kill Kate and me in the tunnel.” A.J. turned and showed his burned shirt and back. “If Brody hadn’t blown the exit you sealed, we’d be extra crispy.”

Dark brows pulled together.
“I don’t know what you are talking about.” Chavez’s eyes darted around the cellar, and then he shook his head

“You’re a liar
and a cold-blooded murderer.”

“I...”

“The boogeyman is coming for you, Chavez.”

“But...”

A.J. shoved away
from the wall and grasped the bars. “Boo!”

***

Late that evening
, with the sky overhead a sapphire blue, Kate ate a small serving of beans. When they’d made it back to the village, Salina invited them to share her home.

After Kate ate, Salina
spread aloe Vera on her palms and wrapped them with strips of clean cloth.

Beating out the fire on A.J.’s back had left her
palms red, and strewn with small angry blisters.

As Kate tried to flex her fingers, p
ain sucked out her breath and the stinging agony spread across her hands. Her stiff, swollen fingers refused to move.

Gri
tting her teeth and swallowing tears of pain, she forced her fingers to bend, to curl and uncurl at her command. Brody needed her fit and able to help with the defense of the village and to free A.J.

If Brody smelled one hint of weakness from her
, it would boost his insistence she leave. Kate couldn’t let that happen. Not again.

As crazy as it sounded
, Kate had to stay and fight to help get A.J. back. He would eventually die at Oscar’s hands if they weren’t able to rescue him, and Kate couldn’t live with the stain of another man’s blood on her conscience.

She glanced out the door at Brody talking to the pa
dre. She wondered what they were planning. A teenage boy wandered up to them and joined the conversation. Soon the sound of a vehicle rousted the villagers. Kate stood, and darted outside.

A man
stepped out of an old Oldsmobile and walked toward them. A group of men followed. Her bandaged hands, holding out the gun she’d taken from one of the guards, Kate braced her feet.

She couldn’t
identify them as Oscar’s men, but she’d been away years. He could have hired new people.

Silently
Kate inched closer, and stood slightly behind and between Brody and the padre. To her surprise, Brody put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her against him. She looked into his smiling face and lowered the gun.

“
My name is Manuel, and this is Jorge, Lupe, José, Juan, Mario, and Paso. We have so little to offer, Señor Brody, but we want to help. This is my brother’s car. The only one in our village. Three of us have pistols, but very few bullets. We use them mostly for coyotes and snakes.”

“That’s okay. We’re going to need all the help we can get.”

Mario spoke. “Señior, we will do all in our power to rid this place of Chavez. He has ruined our lives.”

“The car will be useful. And I have a few guns in my bag, but not near
ly enough. Hopefully we’ll get more.”

The man named Juan
stepped closer. “What is the plan?”

“I
’m going to La Hacienda and demand Oscar Chavez release the man he’s holding.”

Manuel looked to
Juan then back at Brody. “But what if he refuses?”

“Then we go to war.”

Jorge shrugged. “We have so little to fight with.”

The padre spoke. “Manny
went to the nearby villages and asked for help.” Father Ayaaya ruffled Manny’s hair. “He told them a man needed their help to fight Señior Chavez.”

“M
ore will come,” Manny said proudly. “They promised.”

“Yes.” Manuel looked around
. “But how many will betray us and tell Chavez we are coming?”

“It’s best he knows anyway,
” Brody answered.

“But
then he will set a trap,” the padre said.

Brody grinned. “That’s what I’m counting on.”

“Okay, we are all with you,” the newly formed band of comrades shouted.

Th
e padre and other men dispersed, and Brody gazed at Kate. He pulled her into the shadows of Salina’s casita. “Listen, I’m sorry I got you into this. Stay here in the village. Jake won’t be late.” 

She
put the gun in her pocket and then folded her arms. “I’m not going home until Oscar is dead,” she said. “If I don’t go with you, then I go alone.”

Brody put his hands on his slender hips.
“That’s foolish talk.”

“As
foolish as you kidnapping me?”

“
Godammit. I never meant for you to get hurt.”

“But I did. Now I want my own revenge.”

He gently lifted her wrists and looked at her bandaged hands. “Can you even hold a weapon?”

She
pulled from his grasp, took out her gun, and squeezed the handle grip. “You bet your ass I can.”

He smiled, reached down
, and brushed his lips against hers. “I love it when you talk dirty.” Still he wondered how effective she’d be against the enemy with blistered hands.

Kate blinked several times befo
re realizing Brody was kissing her. Then her emotions thought it was the Fourth of July. Firecrackers went off, and bottle rockets sent her over the edge of reality.

Before she could react, he wrapped her in his strong arms and pressed his mouth
against hers for the second time, avoiding the worst bruise on her lip. Kate’s thoughts swirled like sky rockets, and her body trembled. He tasted of heat, danger, and sex. When his tongue edged its way into her mouth, Kate reacted by sucking, and allowed it free roaming privileges.

Lord, she’d never been kissed like this. Never completely lifted out of the biosphere and r
aised to such a level of desire.

She wanted him, flat and simple
. It went miles beyond sex, all the way to forever.

One of them moaned
, but it didn’t matter. Wanting more, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her body to his. His
interest
pressed hard against her stomach.

She tilted her head as his
tongue gently stroked her bruised bottom lip, and her heart skipped a beat. Taut and hard, her nipples pushed against her clothing’s rough material, escalating her craving. A need deep in her belly grew into a voracious yearning, awaking her heart’s secret. One she’d carefully kept hidden from the world.

In the entire universe, only the two of them existed. Only they matter
ed, and only this man could set her free.

Long before she wanted
him to, Brody broke off the kiss. He hugged her tight against his chest. “When this is over we’re going to spend a lot of alone time together.”

She rested her head against his neck and chuckled
before putting the gun back in her pocket. “Let’s hope we have the opportunity before you start making plans.”

“That
gives me more incentive to try harder.”

***

Dallas, Texas

With a
fierce scowl deep enough to make a rabid dog run, Frank snatched up the paper cup of coffee and took a sip.

Zoe
inwardly smiled. Frank Hamilton would bite his tongue off before admitting he enjoyed his Caramel Macchiato from Starbucks. The drink was much too
prissy
for a man of his stature and reputation.

Every morni
ng she picked up coffee on the way to the office. Frank had his usual while she settled for a Skinny Latte. Some of the other flavors looked delicious, but she never indulged. With a good fifteen pounds to lose, she didn’t believe in drinking calories.

T
oday was different, however Brody Hawke, one of Falcon Securities’ agents, had gone rogue. That called for an emergency afternoon coffee break.

Every morning
before the office officially opened, Zoe sat in her usual chair in front of Frank’s desk. She waited for him to discuss what he had on his mind, his plans for the day, things she’d have to rearrange on his calendar, and what every Falcon agent’s assignment was.

Meetings
this time of day rarely happened.

This late in the afternoon
, her day was usually over and she would be preparing to go home for the night. But today, Frank needed to vent since Brody hadn’t taken his calls. That meant she stayed until she knew Frank had calmed down and it was okay to leave him alone.

“I’ve
been expecting to hear from Vince sometime today. Hopefully he’s found out more about Chavez.”

“I can’t un
derstand what Brody’s thinking,” Zoe commented.

“He’s not. That’s why my guess is he’s ass deep in trouble.”

She smiled and said, “And yet he always lands on his feet.”

Zoe never argued
with Frank. She simply provided him a sounding board and advice when he asked. It bothered her when he worried about one of his agents. And in their business, there was always room for worry.

“Yeah.” Frank pinched the bridge
of his nose and then tipped his cup.

“I’m keeping him
surrounded with positive energy and wrapped in a white light. He’ll be fine.”

Frank put his cup down and
leaned back in his chair. “Do you honestly buy into all that mumbo jumbo?”

Zoe
blinked, not believing her ears. How, after all she’d been through, could he think such a thing? “Of course, I do. You of all people know where I’d be without the help of being positive.”

“Zoe, sweetheart
, you’re where you are because you’ve worked your ass off, stayed clean, and mingled with the right people.”

“But I didn’t know
how to do that until I attended that seminar you sent me to. I would still be working the streets and shooting heroin...if I was still alive” She tugged at the hem of her skirt. “It took a lot of influence to change my life. I had to believe it before I could live it.”

Frank c
huckled. “You’ve done that, Zoe.” He took a drink. “You’re a living, breathing billboard for turning one’s life around.”

“I’m glad I took that first step. But I couldn’t have done that without you
.”