Page 51 of Colombian Chemistry

Her eyes welled with tears as her chin puckered and shook.

“If they have you, they control him. And now that he’s made them this drug, they’re convinced he can make them others. You aren’t worth millions to the Jungle Kings, Irene. You’re worth billions. They won’t stop hunting you.”

Tears streamed down her face as she stood staring at me. Finally, she took a deep breath. “And what of my father? What happens if they don’t have me and he won’t cooperate? They’ll kill him, won’t they?”

“That’s what the US Embassy is going to help you with. Just tell them everything I’ve told you. Tell them the Jungle Kings have him at their compound in Cartagena. They’ll help him.”

“Are you sure? I don’t know what I’d do if something happened to my dad.”

“They’ll save him, Irene. That’s their job. The US isn’t going to leave a man like your father in the cartel’s hands. Just tell them everything I said and then get yourself safely back in the States while they do their job. You’ll have to go into witness protection for a while, I’m sure, but you just do whatever they say to get safe.”

“Okay. I can do this.”

I reached forward and took her face in my hands. “Yes. You can. We’re almost there. We just need to get you through those gates.”

I leaned down and pressed a kiss to her lips, closing my eyes tight while I lingered there. Finally, I forced myself to break away.

“I’ll miss you, Marcus,” she whispered against my lips. “I’ll never forget you.”

“I’ll never forget you either.”

I kissed her once more, then pulled myself away. We were too close to her salvation to get caught again. I took her by the hand and led her across the last street separating us from the gates of the embassy.

When I caught sight of a familiar red Jeep parked just down the road, I pulled her to a stop.

“Fuck,” I breathed as I yanked her backward and hurried us around the corner. I poked my head out and watched closely at the half-dozen men standing between us and the embassy. To anyone else, they looked like citizens just strolling around, but I knew exactly who they were.

Jungle Kings.

“What’s going on? What’s happening?”

“Jungle Kings are staked out here. They must have known this is where you’d go.”

She shifted nervously behind me and glanced at her bare feet. “Uh. I may have mentioned that I was trying to get to Bogotá on the Jeep ride after they captured me.”

“You told them where you were going?”

“Well, yeah! They asked, and I just... I just said it. In hindsight, probably not my best idea.”

I growled under my breath and shook my head. “Then there is no way they are going to disperse anytime soon. They’ll be waiting for you. There’s no safe way in.”

“So, then what? Can we get somewhere and call the embassy and have them come get me?”

It wouldn’t have been a bad plan, but I watched closely as one of the Jungle Kings approached a guard outside the embassy. After what looked like some heated conversation, a thick stack of pesos passed from the Jungle King to the guard.

“Fucking dickhead,” I spat. “They have a duty to protect, and they are being bought and sold just like the rest of the fucking law enforcement down here!”

“What’s happening?” Irene said.

“It looks like that guard may have just taken a bribe.”

“What? They would do that?”

My eyes narrowed into slits. “Most Marines wouldn’t ever consider it, but just like anything in life, there are always a few bad apples in every bunch. I’ve seen some pretty shady shit in my military days, and I can’t be certain this guy isn’t going to turn you in if he sees you. Maybe he just took the money and doesn’t plan on helping them, but we can’t be sure. And for all we know, another guard could have taken a bribe too. We can’t risk it. The embassy is out.”

“So now what?”

“Now we go to a safehouse here in town while I figure out how to get you safely out of the country.”