AllFreeNovel
Share Us
We’re a go.
I blew out a breath and reached for the smokes.
* * *
“They’ve run into trouble, haven’t they?” I paced the area outside the barn and checked my phone like a fucking teenager with a TikTok obsession.
It was officially past midnight.
I’d asked Vásquez to drive to the other location and check things out, and Emerson and Danny had at least left. Vásquez had driven down to the marina too—and nada. No trace of the Paynes or their boat. Or Jorge, for that matter.
My phone lit up with an incoming call, and it was fucking Coach calling.
“Yeah?” I answered.
“Hold on, running interference,” he said, all business as usual.
He was the type of man who jumped into ops without an official debrief and somehow knew what was up anyway. Okay, Emerson had let me know he’d spoken to Coach, but I couldn’t imagine the man knew very much. Considering Emerson had only talked to Adrien. We were running two missions at once.
“Okay, that should do for a minute,” he went on. “I have a transport for you and River at zero four hundred out of Ventura marina. I also need to know your current location and if there’s cleanup required.”
Oh, for fuck’s sake, we were back in the old days.
I rubbed my forehead and rolled with the punches, and I gave him our location, which made River look up with a confused expression.
I’ll tell you when I know what the fuck is happening.
“Nice to catch up with you too, by the way.” I threw that out there.
“I’ll give you a big hug when the op is completed, my ray of sunshine,” Coach drawled. “You good to go, or…?”
“We can be in Ventura by then, no problem. We’ll definitely need cleanup.” I glanced into the barn, where Luiz was semi-crying in his semi-sleep state. “Now for the obvious question—why are we going?”
“Danny ordered the transport,” he replied. “He didn’t talk to you?”
“Yeah, he explained everything—that’s why I asked you,” I deadpanned.
“I don’t miss you, Reese.”
I smirked. “Yes, you do.”
“Let’s get off the phone in case Danny’s tryna call you,” he grumbled. “Zero four hundred, don’t be late, Mathis is your escort. I’ll see you in the jungle.”
Jungle?
Before I could say another word, Coach ended the call and gave me a fucking headache. Wasn’t the first time either. We were too alike. He was the brother I’d never wanted.
“Coach?” River guessed.
I nodded once and typed out a quick message to Danny and Emerson.
How about a goddamn update?!
“We’re going to the jungle, so I assume that’s Colombia,” I said. And the moment the words left my mouth, my mind raced ahead. Emerson knew Riv and I wouldn’t leave California until we had Shay—unless he was in Mexico, in which case we’d go there. Why thefuck…
No.
I scrubbed a hand over my jaw and mouth, frustration building up too rapidly, too forcefully. Along with chest-squeezing fear.
