“That was my major, but after my experience in Tranquility, a lot of my priorities changed.”
Having been kidnapped by a cult, brainwashed, and tortured to give up all her free will, her very identity, had brought a lot of things into focus for Anna. After she was rescued, she had reevaluated every part of her life. Who she was, who she wanted to be. And what impact she wanted to make in the world.
“At first I thought I wanted to work with traumatized adults. Seeing what happened to them in Tranquility, I figured my personal experience could better relate to those kind of traumas.”
“Why’d you change your mind?”
“My last year of college, I interned at a homeless shelter and had a couple of experiences that made me realize I had a special affinity with children. It fit, you know? Challenged me in a way I’d never experienced before, but in a good way. So I took a few more classes focused on counseling traumatized children. Took a little extra time to get my degree, but the effort was worth it. When I got my masters, that was my main focus.”
“Are you going for your PhD?”
“Yes. So between that and my job, extra things like fun have been put aside.”
“You enjoy your job?”
“Yes and no. I love helping the kids and watching them recover, but it’s painful to see what they’ve gone through.”
“Yeah.”
They were quiet for several moments. She knew they would have to get up soon. They’d agreed to ten-minute breaks every two hours simply because the heat and humidity drained their strength so much. She wanted to ask him questions about his life before LCR. He’d indicated yesterday that his past wasn’t up for discussion. Which seemed incredibly unfair since there was almost nothing he didn’t know about her.
“You did some counseling with some of the victims of Tranquility, didn’t you?”
She wasn’t surprised Aidan knew this, too. Being rescued by LCR put her in the unique position of having much of her past known by a lot more people than she was comfortable with. She wouldn’t, however, ever resent that. LCR had saved her life and her sanity.
“I didn’t really do any counseling then. There were a couple of people, victims themselves, who were kind to me. I wanted to be there for them. Counseling victims who have been tortured and brainwashed requires specialized training. I was there as their friend, to support them.”
“Are you still friends with them?”
“Not all of them. Most of them wanted to get away from everything that reminded them of what they’d endured. Kelli Cavanaugh and Missy Meads are the two I’ve maintained friendships with. We see each other every other month or so.”
“How are they doing?”
“Remarkably well. Missy finished her degree in finance. She’s vice president of the bank where she used to be a teller and got married last year to a great guy. And Kelli, despite her entire family’s objections, decided to follow in her Uncle Seth’s path and is a cop in Houston.”
“Another LCR happy ending.”
“They’re not always like that, though, are they?”
“Unfortunately, no, but we do what we can.”
She got to her feet. Their conversation had brought back memories she didn’t care to dwell on. Those dark days of suffering, torture, starvation, and terror would always be with her, but she had learned that thinking about them too much was counterproductive. Moving on was the only way to survive in this world. She’d learned that the hard way, and it was a lesson she would never forget.
Aidan took one last drink from his bottle and stood. “You ready?”
Before she could answer, a buzzing noise sounded. Aidan’s phone.
He grabbed it, held it to his ear. The furrow of his brow gave her an ominous feeling.
“Hold on, McCall,” Aidan said. “I’m putting you on speaker.”
A second later, Noah said, “Anna, I was just telling Thorne that we have some additional information. Might not be pertinent, but it’s best to learn everything you can, whether it’s relevant or not.
“As you know, Julio is Juan Garcia’s youngest son. He’s had a few rifts with his father and recently tried to patch up his relationship by agreeing to marry into the Ruiz family.”
Aidan gave a snort of disgust. “The Ruiz family are rivals of Garcia’s. Joining two powerful families like that…” He shook his head. “Never seen it work.”
“Yeah,” Noah said. “Rumor is that Julio found it no hardship, though. Not only did he want to please his papa, but he’s entranced by his beautiful new wife, Elena.
“Both families are purportedly happy about the baby. It’s being touted as the consummation of a Garcia/Ruiz partnership.”
Anna swung her gaze to Aidan. “Then the speculation that he abducted Carrie to treat his wife could be right.”
“It’s a real possibility,” Noah answered. “From all accounts, though, neither Garcia nor Ruiz know about any pregnancy difficulties.”
“Sounds like we’ll just have to find out for ourselves,” Aidan said. “Anything else?”
“Nothing other than what you already know. Both families have violent pasts. Pablo, the patriarch of the Ruiz family, is known to be particularly ruthless. I wouldn’t turn my back on any of them, though.”
“I agree,” Aidan said. “Ingram and Kelly still in the air?”
“Yes. Should be landing soon. Delvecchio and Mallory are tagging along, too. Fox is on another assignment.”
Anna was watching Aidan, and when Noah mentioned Sabrina Fox, an expression flashed across his face that she couldn’t mistake. Disappointment. A sinking feeling zoomed to the pit of her stomach.
“We’ll keep you updated,” Aidan said.
“Stay safe, you two.”
Aidan slid the phone back into a zippered pocket. “Let’s go.”
Knowing the dejection would show, she kept her face averted as she repacked her bag. When he picked the bag up and helped her settle it on her back, she thanked him with a polite smile. He gave her a little frown but didn’t say anything.
In silence, she followed behind him as they continued up the small incline. How silly to be hurt by his disappointment that his partner couldn’t join them. It only made sense that Aidan would want his Elite partner, Sabrina Fox, with him. She was trained for rescues, and she was his friend.
Even though he hadn’t said it outright, she knew Aidan believed Anna would be a liability. She had promised herself she wouldn’t, but new doubts were corroding her positive attitude. What if she messed things up? What if instead of rescuing Carrie, she—
She couldn’t finish the thought. She refused to fail either Carrie or Aidan. Or herself.
Chapter Ten
Aidan looked over his shoulder. “Everything okay?”
Her expression unusually blank, Anna nodded. “Yes. Fine.”
She obviously wasn’t, but Aidan hadn’t figured out how to get her to tell him what was wrong. Ever since that phone call from McCall, she’d been quiet. Too quiet. Anna wasn’t a chatterbox, but neither was she one to stay silent for long. The first few hours of their trek, she had commented on everything from the vegetation in the jungle, to the kind of music she liked best, to questions about his favorite books and movies, to conversations about their favorite foods. He’d become accustomed to her steady stream of interesting topics. Truth was, he missed it.
“In about a mile, we’ll cross a small stream. On the other side of it, we’ll need to find a place to hunker down for about half an hour.”
He waited to see if she’d ask why. She didn’t. And that bothered him.
Coming to an abrupt stop, he turned to face her.
She stopped, too, and frowned up at him. “What’s wrong?”
“That’s what I’d like to know. You’re a million miles away from where your mind needs to be.”
Her eyes flashed with anger. “I am not. I’m keeping up. I’ve not slowed you down one bit. And I’m keeping an eye out for any dangers, just like you told me t
o.”
“Then why do we need to find a place to hunker down for half an hour?”
“Because the rains will start about that time.”
Okay, so she wasn’t completely distracted, but there was still something wrong.
“Why are you so quiet all of a sudden?”
Her eyes, which had been locked with his, skittered away. “I ran out of things to talk about. Besides, I’m sure you don’t need the distraction.”
His head told him the wise thing was to back off and leave it alone. When it came to Anna Bradford, his head was all too often in control, because he had no choice. For once, he chose to ignore the wise thing.
His fingers lifted her chin, startling her and making her look up at him.
“What’s wrong, sweetheart?”
Anna’s stomach dropped to her feet. Any other man using an endearment was either sweet or insulting, depending upon the man. Aidan Thorne calling her sweetheart was a completely different thing altogether. Her insides were melting.
Without conscious thought, she leaned forward. One step closer, and she would be in his arms.
A warm splat on her forehead and a rumble of thunder were their only warnings. A deluge of water splashed down on them as if someone in heaven had turned a river upside down.
The rains might’ve shown up early, but as far as Anna was concerned, they showed up just in time. Throwing herself into Aidan’s arms was so not a good idea.
Grabbing her arm, he shouted over the roaring deluge, “Let’s go!”
She squinted to keep her eyes from being flooded. She had never been caught in a torrential downpour. It was both exhilarating and a little scary. Most of the gravel on the road had been washed away already. Heavy streams of water rushed down, eroding even more of the path and making it almost impossible to keep their footing.
Aidan kept his hand wrapped around her wrist. His hold was so firm, she figured she’d have bruises, but she didn’t care. If he let her go, Anna knew she’d slide down the muddy hillside.
Glancing back at her, he shouted, “Looks like there’s a rock overhang up ahead.”
She nodded, but the rain was so thick, she wasn’t sure he could see her, so she yelled, “Okay!”
She took another step, and her feet slid out from under her. Anna yelped and scrambled to regain traction to no avail. Her body pitched forward. An inch away from planting her face in the mud, she was lifted to her feet. Raising her face up to Aidan’s, she tried to say thank you, but he gave her no time. Wrapping an arm around her waist, he lifted her off her feet and one-arm carried her up the hill. Even though she knew that carrying her put him in a precarious position, Anna knew not to struggle. One slip of his feet, and they’d both be sliding down the hill.
The rain pounded on them from all sides, and just when she was wearily wondering if Aidan planned to carry her all the way up the mountain, she heard him shout, “Hang on!”
She raised her head to see that they were heading toward a giant rock with a large overhang. Aidan’s grip on her slipped, and Anna scrambled on her hands and knees, water and mud sliding beneath her, carrying her away. Just when she thought she was a goner, a large wet hand gripped her upper arm and jerked her forward. Her feet found a small amount of traction. Doing everything she could to help him, Anna almost crawled to get to the rock. They reached it at the same time and collapsed beneath its shelter.
Breathless, they lay side by side for several long moments, panting and recovering as the world around them gushed with water.
Aidan was the first to recover. He propped up on an elbow to look down at her, concern etched on his face.
Anna swallowed a breathless giggle. She might be soaked to the skin and covered in mud, but they were both safe and alive, and that was all that counted right now. “Are we having fun yet?”
Warmth and something like awe flickered in his eyes. “You okay?”
“Just a little damp around the edges. How about you?”
She was sopping wet, as was Aidan, but instead of complaining or being afraid, Anna Bradford was not one bit fazed by almost getting swept away in a torrential rainstorm.
He wanted to answer with an appropriate lighthearted response. It was what he should do. Keep it light and humorous. Don’t let her see she was getting to him. Don’t let her know what was going on in his head or his heart. But she looked so sweet lying there, soaking wet, beautiful brown eyes sparkling with life, luscious mouth curved with the sheer joy of being alive.
It was that last thought that brought him to his senses. Hell yes, she was alive, and he intended to keep her that way.
Sitting up, he shrugged his backpack off and pulled her up to sit. “Let’s get yours off and see if we can dry off a bit.”
As if realizing his mood shift, she was silent as she allowed him to take the backpack from her shoulders.
Seeing to his own needs, he kept an eye on her as she retrieved a small towel from her bag. She wiped at her face and, after quickly unbraiding her hair, squeezed the moisture from the damp strands. Then, in an unbelievably short time frame, she rebraided her hair.
Aidan swiped down his own face and hair. “How’d you do that so fast?”
“My best friend and I used to compete to see who could braid our hair the fastest.”
“And you always won?”
“Nope. Never. Gina was always faster. But I can braid quicker than the average person, so that’s something.”
Using the now damp towel, she patted down the rest of her clothing.
“Unless you think something’s going to chafe, you might as well keep your wet clothes on. Once the rain stops, they’ll dry out.” His gaze moved down to their drenched feet. “We do need to change into dry socks, though.”
She looked out at the pounding rain as she untied her boots. “How much longer will this last?”
“Probably no more than another ten minutes or so. We’ll wait a few minutes after that to let the water recede.”
As she tugged off her shoes, then wet socks, she eyed him curiously. “How do you know so much about Colombia? Do you come here often?”
“LCR’s had several ops here. We learn as much about an area as we can before we embark on a mission.”
The statement was true. Aidan had been on a half-dozen missions in Colombia in the past few years. There was no need to expound on that explanation with more information. Inviting additional questions was the last thing he wanted.
He watched as she dried her feet, noting the white daisies painted on her hot-pink toenails. Everything about Anna Bradford surprised him, enchanted him, or turned him on. This whimsical bit of decoration seemed normal for her.
“Aren’t you going to dry your feet?”
Embarrassed to be caught ogling her feet like some sort of perv with a foot fetish, Aidan concentrated on getting his shoes off and drying his own feet. They were silent for several minutes, but he was aware of the curious sideways glances she threw him.
Finally, she spoke. “Can I ask you a question?”
Though he maintained a relaxed expression, his insides tensed as he nodded. He figured if she felt the need to ask if she could ask a question, it was going to be personal or shocking.
“Why do you always act as though you don’t like me?”
As usual, she surprised him. Not because the question wasn’t difficult to answer, but because she was so damned straightforward.
Denying her words would be useless. Not only was she correct, he had too much respect for her to lie. Anna often consulted with LCR on certain cases. And on occasion she had been too close to danger. Whenever that had happened, he hadn’t hesitated in making his disapproval known.
“It’s complicated.”
“You can do better than that.”
That was true. He could. But telling her the whole truth would be admitting that he cared too damn much. He could, however, give her a truthful answer—just not all of it.
He looked out at the gush of rain as he searc
hed for the right words. “Our jobs—LCR operatives—are dangerous. Having you involved when you’re not trained isn’t something I’m comfortable with.”
He glanced over at her, saw that she was about to reply, and held up a hand. “Let me finish. I know that you’ve had some training, but you’re not LCR-trained. There’s a big difference between the two. I can’t support you being involved in an op because of that. However, I do regret that you think I don’t like you. It’s not true.”
For an instant, he thought the sun had come out in the middle of the rainstorm. Her smile was just that bright. Then it turned cheeky as she said, “Oh, I know you like me.”
Aidan cracked a laugh. “And how do you know that?”
“Because you’re one of the good guys.”
“I obviously have you fooled.”
Instead of giving him another cheeky answer, her eyes went distant and sad, as if she was remembering something difficult.
“Remember the day LCR came into Tranquility and rescued me and all the others?”
“Yes.”
“I was sitting in the back of one of the medical vans, shivering from shock and pain. I had three blankets wrapped around me, and I still couldn’t get warm.”
He had no idea where this was going. Yes, he’d been in on the raid to rescue the victims of Alden Pike’s cult, but he had barely even talked to her.
“I was looking out the window, trying to come to terms with what had happened, that we had actually been rescued, and I saw you striding across the road. This little boy, he was probably only about five or six, came at you with a knife.”
Aidan remembered that all too well. He’d been focused on the job, looking for threats from everywhere. Seth Cavanaugh had been shot. At the time, Seth hadn’t been an LCR operative, but he’d been working with them to help find his niece, Kelli, who had also been abducted by the cult. After seeing Seth’s injury, no one had expected him to survive. The shooter had come out of nowhere, and Aidan had borne a huge weight of guilt because he hadn’t seen the risk.
After Seth had been transported to the hospital, Aidan had been tasked, along with several other operatives, with rounding up the residents. He had been hyperalert, looking for danger in every corner. A noise behind him had him whirling around with his gun, ready to take out the threat. Instead, he had faced a terrified child with a butcher knife.
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