Chapter 19

Tears streamed down Lena's cheeks as Ivan manhandled her yet again, yanking her out of the vehicle. She was shaking in the darkness, wearing her ripped dress over her bra and panties. She cringed knowing Ivan had touched her while she was passed out. He'd dressed her. Carried her, unconscious, to the car.

Gray had carried her in his arms to safety, but Ivan?

It was like he was leading Lena to her grave.

She wasn't sure how long she'd been out, but she suspected that hours had passed. Lena had briefly come to as they transferred her to a new vehicle, the light waning. The sky was dark now, the stars bright. Her stomach roiled with nausea, and her mouth was dry and felt like it was filled with cotton.

Blinking, she realized the gag was gone. Did that mean no one was around to hear her scream? Lena swayed on her feet, Ivan chuckling as he pulled her close. His cologne made her want to vomit, and just looking at him repulsed her.

"Don't fight me," he warned. Ivan reached out and gripped her chin, forcing her to look up at him. Lena was too weak and slow in her thinking from being drugged to try to push him away. "You really are my perfect little jewel. Prettier than the other girls. You'll fetch a mighty sum for me."

She stumbled, nearly falling over as he laughed. "While I planned to keep you, you've become far too much trouble for me now. I'll collect my $50 million and find some other girls to fuck."

"You're crazy," she mumbled.

Lena gasped as he slapped her across the face. While he was unhinged, he hadn't actually hurt her yet. Groped her, drugged her, yes. But hit her? Lena's cheek stung as fresh tears fell. It was dark and cold, and even if she tried to run, where could she go?

Ivan gripped her arm more tightly, no doubt leaving a bruising mark.

She shook from fear and the cold as he moved her along through some industrial buildings, the other men following behind them. She had no idea where they were, but it seemed that it was no longer New York. By now Gray would certainly be looking for her. He'd have found her car. The zip ties. At least Gray would realize someone had been watching her. Stalking her. It wasn't a coincidence that the zip ties had been outside her home.

Ivan's gaze swept to his men. "Do you still have her phone? Trash it. I'm already in communication with the head of the company she works for. They might be in the security business, but they're not bright enough to outsmart me."

The man muttered something, and Ivan swore. "They nearly found us earlier, but it actually worked in my favor," Ivan said with a dark laugh. "By the time they show up here, you'll be long gone. We'll ambush them, I'll get my millions wired offshore, and you'll already be on your way." His eyes glimmered with evil as he looked down at her. "I've got a special buyer for you. He likes it a little rough, but you should be able to take it. I'll even ship you there in your own private…accommodations."

Lena frowned, trying to work out what he was implying. Something was very off about this entire situation, but her mind was too slow from being drugged earlier to fully process it. They didn't seem to be near an airport because there weren't planes taking off or landing. They'd stopped driving. Was he just going to march her somewhere, handing her off to another man who was nothing but pure evil?

Her heart stopped as they turned a corner, moving around the last of the warehouses. There, floating in the distance, was a massive container ship stacked with cargo, the lights of the city harbor glimmering behind it.

"No."

She stumbled as she tried to stop, but Ivan pulled her along, chuckling.

"I wanted you for myself, but plans change. Most girls I take don't have anyone come looking for them, let alone a team of mercenaries. You're exactly what my buyer wants. Pretty. Curvy. Fuckable. I find all the prettiest girls," he chortled, letting his hands roam over her and giving her breasts a squeeze. "He'll use you until there's nothing left. I'll find a pretty brunette with big tits who looks just like you to keep for myself."

His laughter filled the air, and then Ivan's men were gripping her arms, hauling her away from him.

"I bet she's a screamer," one of the men said, giving her a slap on the ass.

A worker drove up on a maintenance vehicle, eyeing them with glee. He climbed out and spoke with Ivan, pocketing the money that Ivan slid into his palm. "We'll make sure she gets there in one piece," the man said with a smirk.

"Put her in the container ASAP. The ship is sailing at dawn, and I want my buyer to get exactly what he wants," Ivan ordered. "She can't be out here in the open if Shadow Security shows up."

"Got it, boss. I'll load her up like the others." His eyes landed on Lena, smirking, and he pulled out several zip ties as the other men forced her wrists together. She tried to fight them, her movements clumsy and uncoordinated. They tightened the plastic around her wrists, the edges cutting into her skin. Lena shrieked, finally letting out a bloodcurdling scream as she found her voice.

Rough arms snared around her, one of the men covering her mouth with his dirty hand. She fought against him, crying, but it was useless.

"You can scream all you want, honey," the guy driving the maintenance truck said. "No one will hear you in there."

***

"That can't be right," Gray said, staring at the coordinates West had given the team. They'd all convened at headquarters, gathering equipment and gear to roll out the second West gave them a definitive direction the vehicles were traveling. It felt like they were wasting precious time as it was, but they needed weapons. Kevlar vests. Night vision goggles. Tactical gear. If they were charging in somewhere to save her, they wouldn't be doing a half-assed job.

Lena's phone must have been turned off, because while there'd been nothing for hours, West had just now tracked the pings of Lena's cell all the way down to Baltimore. It was an odd choice given that Ivan typically traveled to Mexico or cities along the southern border. Even if he was traveling by car, Baltimore wasn't exactly a stop along the way. "What the hell's he doing in the Inner Harbor?" Gray wondered.

"Maybe he stopped for some Maryland crabs," Sam said.

"It's the goddamn middle of the night!" Gray yelled.

"Easy," Sam said, holding up his hands. "There are seafood markets that sell their fresh catch in the early morning. While the fishermen might make an honest living, I doubt they're the only dealers working at that hour."

"You think he's prostituting her?" Ford asked, anger lacing his own voice.

"I don't know what to think except I know that business is being conducted at this early hour there. Fishermen come in. Ships sail out of the harbor. Local merchants buy goods. Maybe Ivan is right in the thick of it."

The hair on the back of Gray's neck began to stand up. Once again, it felt like he was missing something. Something crucial. Significant. The connection was right there, but it was like he couldn't make it.

"None of this makes sense," Luke said carefully as he eyed the others. "Ivan traffics women to Mexico, selling them after herding them onstage to a group of buyers. We know he has various seedy businesses he works with. His flight history is chock full of trips south. Why the fuck is he in Baltimore?"

"It's the harbor," Gray said, realization suddenly dawning on him. "He said he'd send her offshore. He could be dumping her body or—" He cut off, the thought too much to bear.

"Selling her." Luke's voice was low and deadly. "Moving her onboard a ship. He can pack women in like chattel and send them off to buyers overseas. He's either putting them on a private vessel or potentially using one of those big container ships."

Jett rose from the table, his eyes hard. He pointed at West from across the conference room. "Get into those camera feeds. We need eyes on the scene right now. Every damn terminal in the harbor. Find out what ships are sailing this morning out of Baltimore. We need destinations. Manifests. Let's figure out which ship he could be putting women on."

West grabbed the secure line, calling his team of IT gurus. He was already barking out orders before Gray could process what was happening.

She'd be gone. Untraceable. And possibly in the hands of men even worse than Ivan.

Gray jumped up from the table so fast he knocked his chair over. "We have to get to Baltimore. It's almost dawn." His gaze swept over his teammates, landing on his boss. "I'm calling Boone. He lives in DC and can get there quickly."

Jett nodded his approval. "Bring him in. I've got some old buddies stationed at Joint Base Andrews that could meet us there as well. I'll arrange for a helo to transport the team. Pack up your gear."

"It's well over an hour flight time. Boone will get there before us," Gray said.

Jett hadn't brought on anyone new yet because the team functioned so seamlessly together. A new man could throw things off balance—or shift things in their favor.

Jett's eyes met his. "Then he'll have a head start."

Twenty minutes later, the men were climbing onboard a helo. Jett had a helicopter pilot at the ready in his vast arsenal of contacts. While the men typically flew commercial flights, they did what they had to do when shit hit the fan. Boarding a private helo wasn't exactly out of the norm. It wasn't a military aircraft, but it would get them there quickly just the same.

Gray adjusted his Kevlar vest, wincing slightly. Hell if his scars didn't feel tight and itchy right now. Stress sometimes made his nerve endings flare up, his entire body feeling over-sensitized. Prickly. He'd do anything to get to Lena though. Bear any burden. This was nothing compared to the hell she was living.

He swiped the screen and lifted his phone to his ear. "You still in DC?" he asked as Boone answered.

The crack of the cue ball sounded in the background, and Gray heard low conversations and music playing. The sound of drinks being poured. "Roger that. Is something wrong? You don't usually call me at three a.m."

Gray didn't even ask why his buddy was out at this hour. "Lena was kidnapped. We've traced her to Baltimore's Inner Harbor."

"Whoa," Boone said, the noise getting quieter. Gray heard a door open, and then Boone must've stepped outside into the night. "She's the woman you mentioned before? And of course I remember that, because you never mention anyone."

"It's her," Gray confirmed. "She was kidnapped by the head of a large sex-trafficking ring. We have a location and are staging a rescue op. There are multiple men involved, her kidnapping part of a massive operation. I need a favor."

"Anything."

"We need another sniper."