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“We’re about thirty minutes out from the compound,” Abel tells us as we load the vehicles.
“Sawyer, do you still have eyes on the place?” Liam asks.
Sawyer scoffs like that’s the most ridiculous question he’s ever heard. “The girl is being held in a room in the east wing. Dumb fucks have nothing but a fence and cameras in that area. When we’re close, I’ll put their cameras on a loop, so they don’t see us anywhere. Should give us plenty of time to get Isobel and get out without them seeing it on camera. Obviously, there are a few guards, but these guys are used to being the heavy out here, so they don’t expect anyone to fuck with them. Stupid bastards.” He smiles darkly as he makes sure his weapon is locked and loaded.
With the plan set and in motion, we all start to strap ourselves with weapons. It’s dark as shit out here, the sun’s not up yet, but the little bit of moonlight coming through the clouds gives us enough light that we’re not fumbling with our guns like a bunch of assholes. We each take a set of comms and night vision goggles, all of us treating it like a full-scale military operation. It helps that we’ve had extensive training. Liam wouldn’t have anyone on his team who didn’t come fully qualified.
The weight of the guns and the Kevlar vest is nothing new for me. It fits like a second skin, like I’ve been doing this every day for the last five years. I suppose it’s true what they say. You can take the man out of the military, but…
If the tensions were high on the way to the plane, that’s nothing compared to now. The adrenaline is running through my veins like fire, yet instead of making me jittery, I become laser focused. I learned a long time ago not to get caught up in an adrenaline rush and instead use it like a tool. That’s what gets people dead otherwise.
We make it to the compound in just under a half hour, although we weren’t going very fast through the bumpy terrain. I have a feeling we won’t be driving at the same slow pace on our way out.
A few hundred yards away, we stop to assess the buildings and their surroundings. With binoculars, I spot a couple guards with automatic weapons strapped to their backs while having a smoke as they both look at one of their phones, laughing.Shit isn’t going to be so funny in a minute, fellas.
There are several broken-down cars around the property like they’re attempting to make it look like there aren’t millions of dollars of cocaine on the property. Or maybe they’re just lazy assholes. Don’t know, don’t care.
Sawyer puts their cameras on a loop, and with the guards preoccupied for the moment, it gives us the perfect opportunity to head over to the east side of the gate. Sawyer stays behind with Abel, while Liam, Kingston, Hendrix, and I make it to the fence undetected. Seems with being a top-notch recon guy, Abel is also a bit of a marksman. And by bit, I mean Liam told me he blows even him out of the water, which, coming from Liam, says a hell of a lot. Enough so that I feel that much more confident in this mission. He’s staying behind to make sure no one gets the drop on us. If they try, he’ll put his considerable talent to use.
We move to the fence as a unit with the stealth you only achieve through extensive military training. Liam cuts a hole in the fence with quick efficiency. The four of us go through the hole and head around the building, spotting a door. It’s unlocked, probably left so by the two guards on the other side of the building who are out for a smoke break. That tells me we probably don’t have much time. We walk into a narrow hallway and make our way to a small set of stairs off to the right, guns drawn and ready for anyone we meet on the way.
When we reach the top, a maid is walking to a door with a tray of food, pulling out her keys to unlock it. She turns her head and spots us, but before she can make a move or scream, Kingston has his hand over her mouth as she stares at him with wide, terrified eyes.
“¿Dónde está la chica?“ I’m not sure exactly what he said to her, but she nods to the door she was about to unlock.
Kingston pulls a rag from his pocket and wraps it around the woman’s mouth, tying it behind her head. Then he pulls out zip ties and shackles her hands. We aren’t taking any chances with her running to her employers the second we’re gone.
Liam opens the door, and we see Isobel curled up on a cot off to the side of the room. Her clothes are a mess, her hair matted against her head. It’s obvious she’s been crying by the dried tear streaks running down her cheeks. Other than that, we see no other signs of abuse. I know all too well you can’t always see all the scars that belong to a person, though. Some of them are branded on your soul.
I walk to the girl and gently place a hand on her shoulder to nudge her awake.
“Isobel. Wake up, sweetheart.” I’m speaking quietly because one, I don’t want to draw attention to our presence and two, so I don’t scare her.
Her eyes fly open but before she can scream, I try to reassure her with a soft smile.
“Your daddy sent us. We’re here to get you out of here.” I pray my words reassure her, so she doesn’t scream her scared little head off.
Isobel looks around the room and spots four grown men strapped top to bottom with various weapons and the maid, who now has her hands and feet zip-tied with the rag tied tightly around her mouth, sitting on the far side of the room on the floor. I can only imagine what this poor girl has been through and what she must think of the scene in front of her.
She throws her arms around my neck and gently sobs into my shoulder.
“I just want to go home,” she says in a broken whisper.
“Okay, sweetie, let’s get you home.” I close my eyes for a moment, her terrified voice breaking my heart. I can’t dwell on that now, though. Getting her to safety needs to happen fast.
I carry her with one arm, while my gun is still in my other hand. Isobel wraps her arms and legs around me as we make our way out of the room, leaving the maid locked inside. She’s so tiny compared to my large frame that I’m able to carry her with ease instead of having her walk on her own. Liam and Hendrix walk in front of us as Kingston covers my six. We don’t run into anyone as we make our way down the small staircase or the hallway.
Just as we’re getting to the door, I hear Sawyer over the comms.
“The two guards are on their way back into the building. Where are you guys?”
“On our way out the door. Take care of them for us,” Liam replies.
I hear two loud thumps right outside the door we were about to open. When Liam takes a peek outside, I spot the two men on the ground missing parts of their skull.
I hold Isobel’s head tighter to my neck.
“Keep your eyes closed, sweetheart.” The last thing I want her seeing is the blood and brain matter staining the ground and building.
