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She looks at me for a beat before she laughs. “No. Definitely not. Why would you think—” She sucks in a sharp breath and tries to scramble away, but Zig grabs her and pulls her into his lap, holding her tightly as she struggles.
“Simmer down, pretty girl. We are just working out what we missed. You are in no danger from us, but we need to figure out who is targeting us and why. At first, we assumed it was Alejandro—that he had a mole working for him in the FBI. But now I’m thinking that’s not it at all.”
“What do you mean bytargeting us?” She shakes her head as if trying to force something free before she freezes. “You’re talking about the plane crash. You…you think someone did this on purpose. But why?”
“To get rid of us. We’re mercenaries, but occasionally we will work with some of the alphabet agencies if there is a particularly sensitive job that needs doing and they can’t do it for whatever reason. Usually some bureaucratic bullshit from some pansy assed dicks.”
“Why work for them at all, then?” I can see how tense she is in Zig’s arms, but she isn’t fighting him anymore.
I sigh. “Last year, we rescued nineteen girls. All under the age of twelve from a trafficking ring that was being funded by a foreign diplomat, one that had immunity. This man was well-connected and had an endless supply of money. The government got intel that the cargo of girls would be arriving at one of his European estates, but they were told explicitly to stay out of it. Instead, they tossed it to us. We got to them before they were sold off like cattle to the worst of the worst. The government would have left them in hell just to save their political allegiances and to prevent a public scandal. There is no love lost between us and them, but those girls needed someone, and it just so happens that was us.”
She bows her head and sighs. “It doesn’t matter how many times I see or hear things like this; I’m always shocked by the level of depravity this world has to offer. The sheer fucking evil that exists among otherwise good people.”
Lifting her eyes to mine, she braces herself. “I thought you stumbled on me by chance. That you came for all of us, but I was the only one alive. I should have known that wasn’t the case. You came for me?”
I nod, and Zig turns her so she can see him when he talks.
“We were told you needed to be recovered. We had no clearance when it came to information. We had to push just for the little scraps we did know. Normally, we would have passed, but there was something about you. Your eyes… I just couldn’t leave you behind,” he tells her honestly.
“My eyes? They have a photo of me?” She panics.
“Yeah. A recent one, too, though pre-Alejandro taking over, I’m assuming from the state you were in when we found you. We knew off the bat that there was something about you that wasn’t adding up. Governments don’t rescue lone agents, risking many others in the process, unless that agent is of some value. We figured you knew something. Now we know differently.”
She looks defeated in his arms. “Do you know what the government would do with someone like me? They’d try to make a dozen more that are even better. Imagine having a healer available to your soldiers on the battlefield. They could build treaties with other countries, brokering the services of a healer for their world leaders. I’d be nothing more than a bargaining chip and a tool. Painful experiments would all be justified under the guise of doing the greater good. And all the while, I would have escaped from one cage to be placed in another because knowing what I can do means they can’t let me fall into the enemy’s hands either.”
We’re all silent for a minute, taking her words in before she turns to look at Zig and me with confusion. “But why sabotage the plane? I’m only of use to them alive.”
I wince. “There was an FBI agent at the airstrip, but we didn’t know he was one at the time. I’m guessing his team was supposed to keep us busy while they grabbed you. The plane was meant for Zig and me.”
Zig growls. “Like we’d get on the plane and leave Salem behind even if they did get the jump on us, which is insulting.”
“They had numbers on their side. They were thinking eight to two were pretty good odds.”
“When we called in our Mayday, we were told we had been compromised. But again, at the time, we didn’t know by what or whom. Could have been a virus or a hacker. It still could be because I won’t rule anything out until I have a full picture. But right now, I say the safest thing to do is assume everyone is out to get us.”
“Even Apex?” I frown. I’d trust those guys with my life.
“Not the guys, the system. Until we know what kind of issue they’re facing, we’re on our own.”
I scrub my hand over my face, feeling really fucking tired. I’m not sure the enormity of it all has sunk in yet—a plane crash, a jungle, a woman who can heal with her hands, not to mention my brush with death. Part of me thinks I’m asleep and that this is all just a messed-up nightmare because I ate cheese last night. The other part knows it’s just wishful thinking.
“I won’t go with them,” Salem states quietly, but there is a hard resolve in her voice now that wasn’t there before.
“Of course you won’t,” Zig snaps, making her look up at him in surprise.
“What the asshole is trying to say is that things are different now. Before, we thought we were just returning you home. Now, knowing what we do, it will be a cold day in hell before we let them get their hands on you.”
She squeezes her hands together in her lap. I can tell she wants to believe us, but there is a part of her that refuses to let her guard down, only to find herself wrong again. That’s okay, though, because, from the looks of things, we have plenty of time to prove ourselves to her.
“Where do you live? Do you have people looking for you?”
“You mean besides a cartel and the government?” she asks sarcastically.
“Well, yeah, besides them. Loved ones. You mentioned your mother and grandmother.”
She shakes her head, her anger evaporating as quickly as it arrived. “They’re gone. I don’t have anyone.”
“You do now.” I reach over and take one of her hands, and I lace my fingers through hers. “Whatever happens from here on out, you are not alone any longer.”
