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Jax’s wife, Harlow, who was a volunteer weather specialist at Last Hope, was looking at Marshall expectantly as well.
Marshall had sent out an emergency rescue code to get our asses gathered here at Last Hope headquarters as soon as possible, so I knew whatever he had to saycouldn’tbe good.
“I meant exactly what I just said,” Marshall said irritably from his position at the head of the large meeting table. “She went missing a week ago while she was on an assignment in Bajo Chiquito. No one is calling it a kidnapping. The authorities in Panama say it’s likely she wandered away and got lost. The village is surrounded by jungle. However, all attempts to search for her have come up empty.”
I watched as Marshall slid a large envelope to each one of us. I grabbed mine with very little interest, already knowing what was inside. It would contain a detailed background check on Savannah and any intel Marshall had on the case. It was normal procedure when our volunteer rescue operation was considering some kind of rescue.
At the moment, I had more pressing things to consider than information on paper, especially since I’d known Savannah since she was a child. I didn’t need her fucking bio. I had to know what was really going on.
Christ!I knew by the way Marshall had carefully chosen his words that there was still a lot that hehadn’ttold us.
“That area is pretty remote,” Hudson said in a thoughtful voice. “What was she doing there in that area of Panama?”
The Darien Gap was a treacherous and highly dangerous route that connected North and South America. It was used mainly by migrants to escape intolerable circumstances in other countries. Not only did that area present extreme physical challenges when crossing, but the very real possibility of kidnappings and attacks from criminal gangs who made their home in the Darien jungle as well.
“She was doing a special report forDeadline Americaon the humanitarian crisis there from the elevated number of people crossing through the Darien Gap right now. The amount of children coming through that hellish sixty mile stretch of the jungle is particularly alarming,” Marshall explained.
“She was supposed to return to San Diego almost a week ago to look for a new place,” Torie said in a nervous tone. “After trying to reach her for days after she didn’t show, I finally asked Marshall to help me. It’s not like Vanna to just change her plans and not let me know. I knew something was wrong.”
“I found it hard to believe that an experienced journalist like Savannah had just wandered into the jungle,” Marshall commented thoughtfully. “After checking with some of my sources and talking to her frantic producer, I know she didn’t.”
Marshall’ssourceswere legendary. He had people who could provide some intel and resources in almost every nook and cranny on the planet—probably on both sides of the law. But none of us had ever doubted the accuracy of his information. The guy had a perfect track record.
Hudson Montgomery folded his arms across his chest as he said, “Just tell us what happened, Marshall. It’s pretty clear that you know where she is. If she was kidnapped, where in the hell are the ransom demands?”
“That’s the problem,” Marshall answered. “There haven’t been any. The government, both in Panama and the United States, is still treating this as a missing persons case.”
“Butyouapparently have the truth,” Jax said wryly.
“As close as I can get to it, anyway,” Marshall replied stoically. “My sources say that she was kidnapped by a rebel Colombian criminal gang. They initially thought she’d bring a good price in the human trafficking market because she’s an American television personality. The idiots didn’t realize they’d have a hard time trafficking her because her faceisrecognizable. Nobody wants to be caught with an American woman, much less one who has a higher profile.”
Fuck!It wasn’t like I didn’t understand just how much drug and human trafficking went on in the remote Darien jungle, but… “I thought the Colombian gangs avoided crossing into Panama because they didn’t want to risk capture by the Senafront,” I said aloud, wondering why the criminals hadn’t been concerned about Panama’s border patrol police.
Marshall nodded. “Normally, they don’t come very far into Panama for just that reason. Migrants going through the Darien Gap are generally safe once they get into Panama and reach Bajo Chiquito. This apparently isn’t a very organized crime ring. Just a few rogues who broke away from a larger group. They don’t really control any territory in Colombia, so they had to get a lot bolder and make a move in Panama to make money.”
“It’s insane for them to move that far into Panama to kidnap someone. This shit usually only happens while immigrants are passing through the Darien Gap,” Jax pointed out.
Marshall lifted a brow. “Exactly. I’m sure the crew ofDeadline Americarightly thought they were relatively safe filming from that area,” he agreed. “So that tells you what kind of lunatics we’ll be dealing with here.”
Wyatt grunted his agreement before he asked, “You have a location?”
“Yes, but it’s a remote area of Colombia in the Darien,” Marshall warned.
I wasn’t about to question the need for us to go in.
It could take both governments way too much time to abandon the missing person theory, and Savannah didn’t have that kind of time.
We were already almost a week behind the kidnapping.
Even though I didn’t doubt that Marshall had a good locationnow, that could change at any time if these assholes found a taker for Savannah.
My gut ached with the thought of how much could have happened to her already. There had been days now that we hadn’t even been aware that she’d been kidnapped.
I really liked Savannah. Always had. She’d just been starting high school when I’d left for college, but we’d bumped into each other occasionally over the years because she and Torie were close.
I tried my damndest not to think about how much I’d noticed just how grown up she’d becomevery recently. When I’d last seen her at Cooper and Torie’s wedding several months ago, the woman she’d become had been almost impossible for me to ignore.
“It’s not like we aren’t used to doing a rescue in harsh locations,” I reminded Marshall. “I’m in. We’re going to need a helicopter to get closer to that location. I’m your damn pilot.”
