Eighty-Four

They took the jump at eighteen thousand feet. It was high enough so that Reyes’s guards wouldn’t notice the plane circling the island but not so high that they’d need the equipment for a high-altitude jump.

Falling through the dark, Michael could see the lights of the compound winking in the distance. Sabrina was in there somewhere, locked away like Lydia had been. Held against her will.

The thought of it had him moving into a free fall, head pointed toward the earth, arms straight and tight against his sides as he rocketed through the sky. He pulled his chute at the last possible second, less than two thousand feet above the ground. The landing was hard, his boots barely touching down before he hit the emergency release on his rig. He stumbled a bit but found his feet quickly, running for the cover of the trees that surrounded the small clearing he’d chosen as their drop zone.

Turning, he fell into a crouch to watch the others fall. Like him, Church waited until the last possible second to pull her chute, and she tumbled, shoulder first, as she tucked herself into the fall, cutting her chute as soon as she sprang to her feet. She was beside him a few seconds later, hunkered down, expression hidden by the deep shadows of the trees they squatted beneath.

Strickland was last, having pulled his chute at a more prudent altitude. Michael watched as he landed, boots first, taking a few running hops before he managed to find the ripcord that would release the chute. He was rusty, but beneath the rust was a confidence that surprised him.

This wasn’t Strickland’s first rodeo.

Michael watched Strickland jog across the clearing to join them. “Something you feel like sharing with the rest of the class, Christopher?” Church said before he had a chance to say anything. Her voice was quiet, carrying no farther than the tight circle they formed in the dark.

He could see the bright flash of teeth in the gloom as Sabrina’s partner shot Church a smile. “Not really,” Strickland said, looking at him. “What’s the plan?”

Michael hadn’t told them anything before they’d boarded the plane beyond assuring them that he had a way inside. He hadn’t wanted to risk tipping his hand with Lark around and even now, he was having a hard time coming clean with Church so close. Stalling, he pressed a finger into his ear. “All boots on the ground,” he said into his comm, and it crackled in response. “Moving toward our next rally point.”

“Roger that,” Ben said. “Once I kill comms you’ll have to move fast. It won’t take the guards very long to realize they can’t communicate.”

Michael knew better. It was after nine o’clock. According to Hector, Reyes evacuated the island every night. There was no one left to call. Reyes was alone on the island, waiting for him.

“I’ll let you know when we’ve reached the mountain,” he said before clicking off his comm.

Reaching into the pocket of his fatigues, he pulled out his compass. The soft greenish glow of its arrow pointed northwest. He turned his body until it rotated by a few degrees.

“Two clicks northeast from here we’ll run into the base of the mountain the compound sits on. There’s a secret entrance that leads through the mountain and into the house. Once we gain entrance into the compound, we’ll split up.” He pulled a piece of paper out of the same pocket that’d housed the compass and pressed it into Strickland’s hand. “I need you two to find someone for me. Reyes’s daughter, Christina. She’s—”

Church grabbed his arm and spun him, her face held tight in a scowl. “That’s not the mission. Sabrina and the Maddox kid—that’s why we’re here.”

“She’ll know where they’re holding him,” he said. “Enlisting her help will make things go a lot smoother.”

Church glared at him. “She takes us to the boy, but we leave her here.”

Michael could still see Christina standing at her bedroom window, staring down at him. She hadn’t known what was happening. She hadn’t understood that her father was about to kill her mother. But she’d known he was going to leave her.

“I’m not leaving here without her.” Not again.

She shook her head. “We’re not kidnapping Reyes’s daughter.”

“Think of it more as a rescue. Besides, you told me you were mine for four hours—whatever I needed.” He smirked at her when she swore under her breath. “Is that a yes?”

She let go of him and snatched the map out of Strickland’s hand. “I never liked you,” she muttered while studying it.

“Same goes, sweetheart,” he said before turning toward Strickland again. “She won’t go easily. She’s been trained to resist abductions and since she doesn’t know you, she’ll think that’s what this is. We had a code word: pink pony. Say it as soon as you have eyes on her and she’ll cooperate.” Even as he said it, he wasn’t sure. He’d let her mother die, left her alone when he’d promised otherwise. What if she hated him? He wouldn’t blame her if she did.

Strickland looked at him for a moment. “I’ve got to go with Church on this one—I didn’t tag along to rescue some drug cartel princess.”

“Think about your partner for a moment. Now you tell me how’d she respond to leaving a child on this island. Any child.”

Strickland closed his eyes for a moment before he sighed. “Pink pony. That’s cute,” he said, his tone thick with sarcasm. “Okay, I’ll do it, but you better save her. Do you hear me, asshole? You better save her.”

Michael nodded. “Trust me, saving Sabrina is all that matters.”