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“I’m not so sure. I think we’re more than expendable. Don’t call them again, Mack?” It was a request, gently stated, not an order.
“I don’t want you dying, Maggie.”
“I have no intention of dying. Or letting you get killed either. I’ve still got a few tricks up my sleeve. When the ACSO finds out the RAO tried to kill us, they’ll bend over backward to be helpful.”
“Unless the RAO gets to us first.”
She shook her head. “They won’t. All the rebels are here in Honduras on sufferance. Word will reach the government about the shoot-out this afternoon, and it won’t go well for them. They wouldn’t dare interfere with the tourist trade of an American hotel like a Holiday Inn. If this were Managua, we’d be in a different situation—they’d blow the whole place up without thinking twice. But I really don’t think they’ll dare mess around in Tegucigalpa.”
“Does that mean we don’t have to be careful?”
“That means we have to sleep with only one eye open instead of two,” she said, dropping her towel on the bed and reaching for her one set of clean clothes. “When’s dinner coming?”
“Half an hour.”
“Then I’ll go out and see if I can find us something else to wear. My jumpsuit has seen better days.”
“I may have ripped all the buttons off it,” he agreed smoothly.
“I think you ripped the whole damned thing apart,” she said, pulling on her jeans. “Will you wait here for me?”
Again the request, not the order. “You don’t have to be that polite, Maggie May,” he drawled. “Yes, I’ll stay put. Just don’t come back with turquoise Jockey shorts this time.”
“I promise. Maybe tiger-striped ones.”
Mack was in the shower when she returned. Her excursion had been more than successful. There was no sign of any rebels in the area, and the desk clerk had been more than helpful. The plans were simple, straightforward, and already made. It would be interesting to see how Mack responded.
“We’re all set,” she announced when he came dripping into the room. “We’re meeting with Lieutenant Mendoses of the ACSO tomorrow morning. He’ll have maps, information, guns, and a Jeep.”
Mack nodded. “And you trust him?”
“No. I’ve found out where there’s another gun shop, and I thought we’d rent our own Jeep and switch when we get out of sight. But I think he’ll tell us the truth about Van Zandt. He has nothing to lose and everything to gain by helping us. Van Zandt and his bosses aren’t going to like the RAO’s attempt.”
“Why not? I’d think the CIA would like nothing better than for us to disappear.”
“Disappear, yes. Gunned down on the streets of Tegucigalpa, no. We’ll get to Van Zandt, sooner or later.”
“We still have no guarantees he’ll be able to help us.”
“We have no guarantees of anything. If worse comes to worse, we can always fly to one of the Bay Islands and hole up for a while.”
Mack smiled—a slow, sexy smile. “Why don’t we skip Van Zandt and go directly to Option B? I’d much rather lie on a warm beach with you than chase around guerrilla-infested jungles.”
“That’s not all these jungles are infested with,” she said dryly.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I’ll tell you tomorrow. Dinner’s here.”
“How do you know it’s dinner and not some unfriendly rebels?”
“Because I can smell the roast chicken,” Maggie said. “Trust me, Mack. Right now we’re safe.” And she opened the door to General Enrique Castanasta.
fourteen
It would have been nice if she’d seen whether the gun shop was still open, she thought as she surveyed her nemesis with opaque eyes. She would have felt a hell of a lot more secure if she had a gun within reach. Castanasta was carrying enough artillery for half a dozen men, wearing handguns and knives like medals around his uniform. It took only one furtive glance to ascertain that he was alone, the hallway behind him deserted. And there was no gun in his hand.
“General Castanasta,” Maggie said with ironic courtesy, “what a pleasure to see you again. I wasn’t expecting you so soon.”
