Chapter 10

CHAPTER TEN

February 8 th

12:17 A.M.

Ella was torn.

Part of her wanted to hide where she was at least relatively safe. At least safe for being stuck in the middle of the Mexican jungle, up a tree, with men with guns hunting them. The other part of her felt it was cowardly to hide and leave Miguel to fight for their lives alone. Especially since he was only there because of her.

These last twenty-four hours had actually been nice, and it was only because of the company.

Miguel had held her while she slept, making her feel secure in the knowledge she wasn’t going to fall out of the tree while asleep. When she was awake, he talked with her, sharing pieces of his life so she didn't lose her mind to the terror of being up in a tree so far off the ground with no choice but to endure something she hated.

She’d known it was because of her they were hiding out there. Because she was weak and exhausted and needed the rest. Because she wasn’t going to be any help as they made their way through the jungle.

As badly as she wanted to get to the exfil spot and get out of Mexico, there was also sadness at leaving Miguel behind. Just because he hadn't said the words didn't mean she wasn’t well aware of what was going to happen. Once he handed her off, he’d be gone, and she was going to miss him.

The fear she felt for him now, knowing he was down there, doing anything he had to to keep the men away from her, was almost more than she could handle. How would she deal with it if he was killed because of her?

That would have hurt enough twenty-four hours ago when they were shot at as they escaped. But now, after they’d bonded and gotten to know each other better, see each other as real people and not just the SEAL who was saving her, and the woman he’d come to arrest, it would make the loss so much deeper.

Which was silly because she still didn't really know him.

She just felt him.

Like an imprint on her soul or something.

Likely it wasn’t as romantic as she was making it out to be. He’d saved her life on several occasions now, of course she was going to feel an attachment to him. This was not an everyday occurrence for her, while for him saving victims was what he did for a living.

Only this time she was the one who needed saving, and it felt wrong just to sit there and let him risk his life for her.

The other team would come, she knew they would. While she was hazy on the details, hadn't felt the need to push because Miguel would have it under control, and she couldn’t handle another responsibility right now, she knew that the plan had been for them to meet at the extraction point. If she and Miguel didn't show up on time, she knew the team would follow the tracker until they found her.

But if she waited it could be too late for Miguel.

How far away were they from the exfil site?

How long had it been since Miguel left her?

How long would the team wait before coming looking for them?

So many questions and for each one that popped into her head and had no answer, her anxiety began to mount. She wanted to go home, hug her family, and forget all of this had happened. If there was one thing she had learned over the last few days, it was that she did not do well in a high-stress situation.

Too much anxiety.

It wound around her like a tangle of vines, squeezing her until she felt like there was nothing left, like she was just an empty bag of skin and bones, and anxiety and nothing else. It consumed her, overwhelmed her, and she wondered how she ever thought she could pull this off.

“Come back, Miguel. Please,” she whispered aloud, praying that he might hear her and suddenly appear out of thin air like he’d done when they escaped.

Only he didn't come.

The only thing to meet her murmured words was silence.

Silence she was beginning to hate.

She’d never really thought about just how scary silence could be. With three sisters their house had never been silent when she was growing up. Add in that all six people who lived in the house were musicians, and more often than not, at least one person was rehearsing. Even at night she usually played music in the background because it helped her sleep better. When working at the lab, if she wasn’t talking to one of her friends, she usually had her earbuds in and music playing.

Now the silence was freaking her out.

She didn't like it at all.

Yet when a sharp whistle suddenly cut through the air she yelped and almost fell right out of the tree.

Even though she wasn’t a field operative, she knew how military people worked and spent time around them every day. They had a whole series of whistles and sounds that they could use to communicate, and she would bet her life on the fact that that particular whistle was meant to alert Miguel that whoever was coming was not a threat to him.

Only Miguel wasn’t there right now and she didn't know what she was supposed to do.

It had to be the team coming in to get them, but what if she was wrong? What if it was Raul’s men trying to trick her?

Miguel should be back by now, Ella knew that. That he wasn’t meant only one thing. He was in trouble. He’d either been caught or killed. If he’d been caught, why hadn't one of Raul’s men come looking for her?

Surely they knew she was with him.

Unless …

No.

He wouldn't do that.

But she knew that was a lie. He would do that. Miguel would make any sacrifice to get her out of there, it was just the way he was wired.

Another whistle had her losing her grip on the branch she was clinging to, and Ella only just managed to regain a hold of it before she fell. If Miguel had done what she feared he had, then she had no choice but to call out and hope this was the good guys and not the bad ones. He had sacrificed for her, and she wasn’t going to let it be in vain.

“H-hello?” she called out, voice shaking despite her efforts to sound strong and sure of herself.

“Ella?”

She knew that voice. It belonged to Blake “Rocco” Wise, the leader of a SEAL team who had been working with Prey to find the mole, the weapon’s dealer, and keep the Reactivator safe. They’d played a part in saving Scarlett, Lucy, and Cassie, and now they’d come for her, too.

“I'm up here,” she called back.

“Can you get down?” Rocco asked.

“Yeah.” She hated it but she could do it. She had to do it because she needed to get to them and tell them they had to go and find Miguel before it was too late.

Quicker than she had any other time, Ella scampered down the tree, her fear for Miguel overriding her fear of heights. By the time she reached the ground she was breathing hard, and the sight of the six large men dressed in combat gear did nothing to soothe her.

Unlike Miguel who could soothe her just by being there.

“Miguel, I think he might have let himself be captured to draw Raul’s men away from me,” she blurted out without preamble. “We have to go and find him.”

“Not our orders,” Rocco informed her.

“But Miguel is in trouble,” she insisted. If they wanted to put her in handcuffs, then so be it. She had no idea what intel Miguel had been able to share with his team, so she didn't know if they knew the drug was safe, or if they had it if she was still considered a traitor. Right now, she didn't care either. Miguel was what was important.

“And we’ll go for him as soon as we get you safe,” Decker “Gumby” Kincade assured her, not unkindly, but also in a voice that told her their minds were made up.

Well, she was going to change their minds.

Nothing was making her leave behind a man who had saved her over and over again.

“No. Miguel needs us. We were coming to meet you, but Miguel saw or heard someone, or however you guys do that superpower sensing someone’s presence thing. He went to take care of it, but he should have been back already. Something’s wrong. I know it is, and I won't leave him behind. He saved me, he believed in me, I won't go without him.”

Before anyone could say anything else, a gunshot sounded, and without thinking about what she was doing, Ella was running toward the sound, positive that Miguel had just been shot.

February 8 th

12:58 A.M.

The bullet struck the ground millimeters from where he was down on his knees, surrounded by a dozen of Raul’s men.

Even though dirt kicked up as the bullet flew off close enough to hit him that he could have sworn he felt the heat of it, Miguel didn't flinch.

Wouldn't flinch.

So long as the men had their attention focused on him, they couldn’t be searching for Ella.

The exfil time was zero thirty, and they’d been less than a mile from the prearranged meeting point. The team coming in for them would wait a short time before moving in to follow the tracker’s location. By now Ella should be safe with them. That’s all he cared about.

They’d come back for him, Miguel had no doubt about that, and he also rated his chances of being alive when they did as fairly high. Sure, he’d likely be sporting a few new bruises, and maybe even a bullet hole or two, but Raul’s men would want to torture him for Ella’s location so they couldn’t kill him right away. And he could withstand hours and hours of torture without cracking.

Especially if he knew that his little brave lioness was safe.

“You killed the missing guards, the ones we found in the jungle,” the man who seemed to be the leader said, still keeping the weapon he’d just fired trained on Miguel.

“Hey, not my fault they were thinking with the wrong head,” he shrugged. In addition to being on his knees surrounded by a dozen armed men, his arms were tied behind his back and he’d been stripped of his weapons. These men thought it gave them the upper hand, but so long as Ella was nowhere near there, Miguel firmly believed the ball was actually in his court.

“You are American,” the leader spat at him.

“I am. I'm here to capture Ella Whitlock.” Even though he doubted it was going to do any good he would stick with his plan to pretend he’d taken her against her will. While he was sure she was safe now, he’d rather add a second layer of protection just in case it was needed.

“The boss is not happy that you took her,” the other man informed him. “He has taken a liking to her.”

“Raul has to know it’s not reciprocated. Ella said she came because her family was threatened. She fought hard when I told her I was taking her with me. Said she couldn’t leave because your boss was threatening to blow up her family if she didn't give him what he wanted. What he’d been trying to get for over a month now,” he added with a mocking smirk.

The fist that came flying toward him, connecting with his jaw, was not unexpected. He took the blow, the jolt of pain, and relished the fact that he was the one being hit and not Ella. The thought of anyone putting their hands on her, causing her pain, made him want to burn the entire world to the ground.

“She will tell the boss what he wants to know,” the leader sneered. “And then, if he wants to keep her as his pet, she will learn to obey and follow his commands. She is nothing. You are nothing. Your country is nothing. You are not in control here. You do not have the power.”

“I do,” Raul Castillo said as he strode out of the trees. “Now I believe you stole something from me and I want it back. Now.”

Miguel merely met and held the weapons dealer’s gaze.

Just because Raul was accustomed to throwing around his money and power and getting what he wanted didn't mean he was going to get it this time.

In fact, what the trafficker wanted the most was already out of his reach.

Ella was safe and protected, away from a man who wanted to treat her like a possession instead of a human being.

“I have ways of making people talk,” Raul threatened like Miguel cared.

“So I've heard. Only I don’t think it’s yielded any results,” he taunted.

Even in the dull light of the guards’ flashlights, Miguel could see the rage brimming in Raul’s dark eyes. “I know you took her. I know she wouldn't have risked her family’s lives to go with you. I know you have her stashed out here somewhere. You pulled her out of the river, my man saw you, but he was on the other side and couldn’t get to you. She’s out here somewhere and if you don’t produce her then you won't like the consequences.”

To highlight his words one of Raul’s men pulled out a vial that Miguel was sure was filled with the arousal drug the man had already tried using on Scarlett, Lucy, and Cassie without result. If he had to take a hit of the drug he’d do it. Didn't mean he was going to give up the fact that Ella had already been rescued. And the whole time all he’d be thinking was how glad he was that he was the one suffering the effects of it and not Ella.

“I've yet to see how this works on a man, it should be interesting,” Raul said, watching with glee as the man closest to Miguel delivered a blow to his stomach, shoving the air from his lungs and making him sag to the ground, while another approached with the drug.

Even though he wasn’t fighting back the men got in a few more blows before the one with the syringe knelt beside him.

Just as the needle was about to prick his skin, the man holding it suddenly dropped as a shot tore through the night.

Chaos ensued.

Bullets were fired.

Men screamed as they were hit.

Bodies dropped.

Miguel rolled to the side, slamming his bound wrists against his backside to break the zip ties, his gaze searching for Raul. The man wasn’t getting away again. For whatever reason, the team who were supposed to be getting Ella out of there were saving his behind, and while he was grateful, he’d rather know Ella was safe.

To keep her safe Raul had to die.

Simple as that.

Catching sight of the man darting away like the coward that he was, Miguel jumped to his feet and took off after him.

“No. You don’t get to run away.”

The voice had him freezing.

It was Ella’s voice and coming from just up ahead of him.

Why was she there?

Why wasn’t she safe?

“What are you going to do to stop me?” Raul sneered, and Miguel about had a heart attack.

The last thing he wanted was Ella anywhere near that man.

But as he kept moving forward, he saw that not only was she near him, but she was holding a gun on the weapons trafficker.

It wasn’t even shaking.

The look in her eyes was something he hadn't seen on her before. It was a mixture of fear and determination. She wasn’t going to let the man who had caused her and her team so much suffering get away alive, even if she had to be the one to pull the trigger.

“It’s over, Raul,” he said, trying to move slowly to get between his girl and the dealer. While he was so proud of Ella for what she wanted to do, he didn't want her to actually have to do it. Whether the man deserved it or not, taking a life would change something in her, something she’d never be able to undo.

Ella’s gaze flicked to him, and he could see relief in it.

Knowing that she cared about what happened to him touched a place inside him that had been hardened by the neglect of his biological parents. Knowing that she was likely the reason the SEAL team had just saved him an unpleasant few hours with a rock-hard erection and no way to get off softened that place of abandonment every child who’d had parents who abused them had inside them.

“It’s not over,” Raul announced before underestimating his opponent and rushing Ella, likely intending to take the weapon from her then use it to kill her.

But Ella was strong.

Stronger than Raul understood, stronger even than Miguel gave her credit for.

Because she fired.

Over and over again until the weapon was empty, and the body of the man who had slipped through their fingers more times than he liked to admit, lay riddled with bullets at her feet.

Still, she pulled the trigger, her eyes wide with shock, even as her body stood tall and straight, confident that it had done the right thing.

“You did it, honey,” Miguel murmured as he edged closer, wishing he had been able to take this burden from her before she saddled it to herself for life.

She made no protest as he slipped the weapon out of her hands, then folded her into an embrace, crushing her against him. They clung to one another, needing to hold each other as confirmation they were both alive and in one piece.

As her fingers curled into his shirt, fisting in the material, her wet face nuzzled against his chest, Miguel realized that she wasn’t the only one who had saddled herself with something she’d never be able to shake off there in the Mexican jungle.

He had, too.

Because wanted or not, this woman had wriggled her way under his skin and he had no idea what he was going to do about it.