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It was almost time to board the plane, and I still hadn’t slept. My gut was telling me Varilla was holding something back. Something big. However, until we were certain Luisa Reeve was alive, I wouldn’t push.
I got on the plane, dismayed to see the number of people who were on it.
In addition to Doc, Merrigan, me, and my team—Cayman, Puck, and Kodiak—three of the men from Los Caballeros were on board along with Seraphina Reeve, Luisa’s sister. Had I been in charge, no way in hell she’d be here. But it wasn’t my call this time around.
I was surprised to also see Dutch Miller and his wife, Malin Kilbourne, sitting near the rear of the plane, until I overheard Merrigan talking to Seraphina.
“I asked Malin to participate in this op because of her experience in the Middle East. She knows much about the plight of exploited women and will be a good source of support,” she explained.
Hearing Malin’s name made me think of my conversation with Nem. But then, everything reminded me of Nem.
Was it crazy that I missed her? Couldn’t wait to see her? Probably. If not, it was definitely inappropriate.
“Everything okay?” Doc asked, sitting beside me.
“It was all I could do not to let Kodiak bash Varilla’s head in,” I admitted.
“You may get your chance yet,” he said under his breath, winking. “Let’s get Luisa home safe and sound, and we’ll circle around to it.”
“He’s holding something back. Something big,” I said, reiterating my thoughts of a few minutes ago almost verbatim.
“It makes sense that he would. Otherwise, he has no value to us.”
Doc made a good point. Why would Varilla give everything up? If he did, he’d have no leverage.
“Get some rest, Ares. We’ll get with Gunner and Razor once we get to the hotel in London and start our action plan. Anyone you want to join us from your team?”
“Kodiak,” I responded without needing to think about it. He’d been by my side in Texas, and without him, I couldn’t say with any certainty the op would’ve been as successfully executed.
It was serendipitous that I’d pushed hard for him to get a promotion at the agency but hadn’t been able to make it happen. In the end, I’d saved him from suffering the same fate I had when McTiernan became director.
As soon as Doc switched seats, I shut my eyes and let my thoughts drift to Nem—my nemesis—and slept.
“I don’t knowhow you do it,” said Kodiak when we were deboarding. “I can’t rest at all, and you sleep the whole damn way.”
“Clean living,” said Razor, following behind us. “Either that or the love of a good woman. Isn’t that right, Gunner?”
“Yes, Raze,” he responded in a voice that sounded similar to Eeyore’s. I glanced over my shoulder and saw the grin on his face belied his lackluster response.
How great would it be to have someone in my life who put the same kind of smile on my face? Better, to know she was as anxious to see me as I was her. I shook my head, baffled by these thoughts. Since when was I that guy? I hadn’t been in arelationshipsince high school, and even then, I don’t think it lasted more than a couple of months.
I walked down the airstairs, wishing I had a compelling excuse to go to Shere prior to checking in at the same hotel where I always stayed. Merrigan had also reserved rooms for the rest of the K19 team members.
“What time do you want to meet?” I asked Doc on the drive from the airfield to Eaton Square.
“You got a hot date or somethin’, Ares?” Gunner asked from the front passenger seat.
“Yeah, do you?” asked Razor.
“Leave him alone, boys. He works for the UN now.”
I ignored their catcalls, looking out the window at the London skyline and wishing I was on the road to Shere instead.
“We’ll meet at eleven hundred, sound good?” asked Doc when we were unloading the gear at the hotel.
“Roger that.”
He handed me a key card. “Feel free to check in with the rest of your crew. I heard they had some success getting info out of the two truck drivers in custody.”
