“We need to get out of here. Now. I can’t wait for the provisions and transportation TIDES was arranging for us. We’ve got to take a chance and take the most direct route to Nairobi tonight.”
“How long is that going to take?” Mena asked.
Hakeem cut his eyes toward her, his jaw clenched. “Fifteen, maybe sixteen hours through al-Harakat territories, driving with no headlights to stay off any radars. Go inside and gather all the food from the safe house and the blankets from the bed. I’m going to get the Jeep from the bushes and I’ll meet you out front.”
Mena took a deep breath. She was going to do whatever Hakeem told her to do. She wasn’t the only one in danger anymore. Hakeem was risking his life to protect her and get her back home safely. Her rash actions had turned his careful plans to reunite her with Julian upside down. All because she couldn’t wait a few more hours to let Julian know she was okay.
She couldn’t feel sorry for herself. Tubeec and his men hadn’t found them yet. If she stuck to Hakeem’s instructions, she would be back in her condo safe and sound this time tomorrow.
Placing her hand on the bracelet, Mena twirled it around her wrist until the heart-shaped charm rested on the back of her hand.
I’m coming Julian.
Chapter Forty-Four
The chime on the glass door leading into the TIDES offices clanked loudly as Julian banged the door open, then stalked down the hallway toward the low murmur of voices in the conference room.
Turning the corner, Julian walked inside, dropping his assault rifle onto the table with a loud bang. He ripped off the bulletproof vest, threw it into the corner, then stared at the TIDES team sitting around the table: Sunny, Simon, and Zale.
Sunny frowned, then stood, her eyes locked on his.
Fighting the anger and confusion boiling within him, Julian said, “Hakeem has Mena. Do you know anything about that?”
“That’s impossible,” Zale said, standing up to walk over toward Julian. “Hakeem is in the Ukraine. I’ve talked to him myself and logged his updates on the security activities on our logs.”
Rigid, Sunny placed her hands palm down on the table. Her eyes darted around the room from Julian to each of the other TIDES team members. After a brief silence, she asked, “Why do you think Hakeem has Mena? What happened?”
“We were about to fly out to the airstrip in Mandera when I got a call on my cell,” Julian said, remembering the relief that had coursed through his body at the sound of the voice on the line. “It was Mena. The signal was shitty, but it was her. Thing was, she wasn’t afraid. There was no terror or fear in her tone. She kept saying things like I shouldn’t worry, she was fine and thattheywere heading back to Nairobi later and she’d see me soon.”
“That’s great news, mate. But what does that have to do with Hakeem?” Simon asked. “Like Zale said, there’s no way he can be in two places at the same time.”
“The phone was breaking up bad, so I couldn’t make out her answer when I kept asking where she was and who she was with. But finally, I asked to speak to the person helping her. That’s when I heard her calling for him. She called out the name, Hakeem,” Julian said.
“But the phone was breaking up. You can’t be sure she said Hakeem. It could have been another name that sounded similar,” Zale insisted.
“I know what I heard. She said Hakeem. I’m sure of it,” Julian said.
Simon interrupted, “That doesn’t make any sense. You couldn’t have heard right. Maybe she’s with an agent from ASF. Sunny, can you check with Reggie to see if one of his guys has found Mena.”
“If Reggie had found her, he would have called me immediately. I haven’t heard from him since Julian and I left ASF ComCentral,” Sunny said.
Taye walked into the conference room. “The signal was bad, Julian. You said Mena was confident that she’d be back in Nairobi tomorrow. Why not wait before we make a move?”
Julian glared at Taye. “You think I’m going to sit on my fucking hands and wait to see if Mena shows up?”
“We’re wasting fucking time here. Get that motherfucker on the phone so we can get to the bottom of why Mena thinks she’s with Hakeem,” Enzo said. “Julian knows what he heard and I believe him.”
“If Hakeem is in the Ukraine protecting the art deliveries, then that should be easy to prove. Get Hakeem on a video call now. I want to know everything he’s done since I talked to him two days ago,” Julian said.
Simon held up a hand, a look of disgust crossing his face. “Wait a minute, mate. You’re the new one to this operation, not Hakeem. We all have known him a lot longer than we’ve known you and there’s no need to check up on him. What reason would he have to help Mena but keep it a secret? What you’re suggesting doesn’t make any sense.”
“There’s more to it. While we were with Paul, some chatter got picked up about Tubeec Hirad connecting with al-Harakat to bring Mena to him in exchange for a hefty cash reward,” Glaze said.
“Which is why we don’t have time to be sitting around debating this shit,” Enzo added. “If Tubeec still had Mena, then he wouldn’t need to put the bounty up.”
“With al-Harakat searching for Mena, we need to figure out where she is and rescue her now. Hakeem might be able to tell us where she could be,” Julian insisted, growing impatient with the resistance coming from the TIDES team. He knew his accusation wasn’t sitting well with most of the team, but he knew what he’d heard.
“Did you ever think that this Hakeem that Mena is with could be from al-Harakat seeking to cash in on the bounty? It’s probably not our Hakeem at all,” Zale added.
