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When I was seated in the plane, I couldn’t hold it together any longer. The ache inside me had grown into a violent storm, and the tears flowed freely.
15
ARCHER
I enteredthe large meeting room where we always assembled before going on a mission. One wall was all windows, and as a result, the room was bright and open. For once I didn’t take in the view but rather focused on the people already here.
Gunner was at the head of the table that took up a good portion of the room, Devon on one side, Chase next to him. Jonas, a master at hand-to-hand combat, sat on the other side, checking over equipment spread out in front of him. I hadn’t worked with him before but had heard a lot of good things about him. Leif was next to him, a weapon’s expert who I’d gone on missions with before.
Gunner looked up from his hushed conversation with Devon when I entered. “Archer, close the door behind you and take a seat.”
As soon as I sat down, Gunner turned on the projector. An image of a smiling family greeted me, and my gut twisted. I wouldn’t be looking at them if they were okay.
“Four hours ago, militia invaded the home of Sari and Michael Houston on their property in Bogotá, Colombia. They took Sari and her two kids, Holly and Benji. Michael contacted us as soon as he was able to. He’s working on a confidential deal with the government to clear land that is currently the stronghold of a paramilitary group known as Fantasma.”
The image changed to several mug shots with names underneath. “These are the four key players.” Gunner changed the image again, this time to an aerial shot of what looked like a compound. “We believe this is their headquarters. We haven’t been able to confirm it’s where they have the hostages, but that’s where you come in.”
Devon pushed a folder in front of each of us. “We’re going in for recon first, making sure we’re hitting the right place. I don’t have to tell you we only have one shot at this. No room for errors.”
I flipped through the folder, memorizing faces and locations. “How certain are we that they’re still alive?”
I’d dealt with my fair share of hostage situations, and despite our best efforts, they didn’t always have a happy ending.
The image on the projector screen changed to a photo of a woman and two kids who had their hands and feet tied and a bandana over their eyes.
“Thirty minutes ago, Fantasma sent this image to Michael. They want him to stop clearing the land or they’ll kill them,” Gunner said. “We all know they’ll kill them anyway if we don’t get them out. And we’re running out of time. The flight to get there is seven hours. It’ll take us an hour to drive to the airport, then another hour to get to the compound once we land. But you’re the best chance they have because there’s nobody else closer.”
Devon stood up. “Get your gear and be ready to leave in ten minutes.”
My training took over, and I went through a list of things I had to bring with me. There was a reason I didn’t even have a plant in my house. This wasn’t the first time I had to go on a job without notice.
Gunner met me at the door to the conference room. “We’ll talk when you get back, see where your head is.” He hesitated, then clapped me on the back. “Your therapist says you’re ready, so don’t screw this up.”
“I won’t.”
After giving me a chin lift, he disappeared down the hallway, leaving me to get my gear. We were in the air an hour later.
* * *
“He’s looking at me again,”Leif whispered, his body tensed and ready for battle.
Devon nudged him with his elbow. “It’s a sloth, not a jaguar. It’ll take him a week just to get over here. Stop being such a big baby.”
“Have you seen its claws? They’re huge. One swipe and I can kiss my pretty face goodbye.”
We all chuckled under our breaths, careful not to make too much noise. We were far enough from the compound that they wouldn’t hear us as long as we didn’t raise our voices. The sun was about to go down, the low light casting a red glow over the forest.
We’d been lying on the forest floor for the past three hours, cataloguing guard movements and entry points. Time was running out.
Our Hail Mary came in the form of a phone call from Carter. He’d dug up satellite footage showing the hostages being brought into the compound.
“We’re going in,” Devon said, his gaze on the large, square building in front of us. We perched atop a hill, giving us the perfect bird’s-eye view of the compound.
Turning on his front, he army crawled down to the large bush that allowed him to sit up. “Leif, you stay here. If things go south, I need you to give us cover. Jonas, you’re going to find us a way inside. Archer, you’re going in with me.”
Waiting any longer would mean certain death for the hostages.
“I can’t believe you’re leaving me alone with that thing,” Leif said, nodding to the sloth hanging off a tree, watching us. It had been there since we set up camp and hadn’t moved an inch in all that time.
