I ducked into a ditch and dove to the ground. Flynn was right beside me. Two more soldiers were coming our way. Just as they discovered their two comrades, I rose up on one knee and let another arrow fly, pulling a second before the first even hit its mark. The last arrow flew true as well—I finally hit where I was aiming—and I stood to move toward the four men to retrieve my arrows. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a pile of leaves erupt and a large body rise from under them, lunging toward me. His left arm wrapped around my chest, and his right arm went around my mouth. He pulled me back down into the ditch and under a large nylon net covered with leaves. He lay on top of me as I struggled to break free. It occurred to me that he wasn’t really hurting me or even trying to. He was trying to keep me quiet. And then he whispered in my ear. I froze. No frickin’ way! I hadn’t seen his face, but by his voice I knew exactly who he was.
THIRTY-SIX – Reunion (Hayley)
“Quiet, it’s okay,” he whispered. “You’re okay.”
Holy shit. Eddie!
He slowly removed his hand from my mouth. “I can’t let you go up there. It’s murder.”
Suicide. “Holy crap. Eddie, how are you here? How—”
“I can’t tell you now. I must get you out of here.”
“Eddie, I can’t go. Danny—”
“I know. Danny is coming.”
“But the commander is—” I stopped as Eddie shook his head. He had slid off me now and was lying beside me. I was finally able to peek under the net to find Flynn, and another man was holding her down under a similar net—in full Qi Jia uniform. His hand was still over her mouth. What the hell?
“The commander is not up there.” Eddie sounded certain. “He wouldn’t come for this.”
“Eddie, who is—” I pointed at the man holding Flynn.
“Don’t worry. It’s Silas. He’s with me. We couldn’t let your friend scream.” Eddie nodded at the other man, and he released Flynn. She scurried out from under the other net and over to my side.
I pulled her up against me. “It’s okay, Flynn.”
“What’s going on?” she whispered, trembling.
“Flynn, this is Lazzo’s brother, Eddie,” I replied.
I allowed Eddie to explain further. “We were trying to find a way in, and you have provided it for us. My friend here is going to blow up the building on the plateau so that Danny doesn’t come. Danny will understand the explosion was not set off by Qi Jia. It will buy us some time to try to find him.”
“How did I help?”
“Hayley, trust me. I need to get you out of here. Do you know where Lazzo is?”
“No.” I shook my head. It’s the truth.
Eddie hesitated then looked around again. “Okay.” He handed Flynn and I a pair of white booties. “Put these on and let’s go.”
Part of me didn’t want to move. I had trusted Lazzo and it had cost me greatly—and this was his brother. But I also knew Lazzo had betrayed Eddie, and I was pretty sure Eddie was aware of that too. Without asking any questions about the footwear, I nodded at Flynn and we removed our boots and put the booties—or slippers—on. “Okay.”
Eddie said something to the other man—Silas—in Arabic, and he nodded. “Come on.” He stood and pulled on my arm.
I stood up slowly, clutching my boots and bow. “I need my arrows.”
Eddie motioned for Silas to collect my arrows. “He’ll get them, don’t worry.”
Eddie led Flynn and me down the hill south of the reservoir. I understood the purpose of the booties now—they didn’t leave much of a print. We moved quickly for about ten minutes and then came upon a burnt-down farmhouse. A large—and surprisingly intact—propane tank sat next to a storm cellar, between the farmhouse and an old barn. Eddie knocked on the cellar door. I heard a lock slide, and Eddie lifted up the door. I found myself staring face-to-face with a beautiful African woman. “Hayley, this is—”
A loud explosion thundered through the valley, shaking our knees and sending a billion birds scattering—chattering—across the sky.
“Quick, in,” Eddie ordered, and I stepped into the cellar with Flynn right behind me. Eddie followed us in and locked the door.
We sat quietly in the darkness for a minute as our eyes adjusted to the dim light of a single kerosene lamp. The woman was staring at me, and I felt like I should know her from somewhere. And then it hit me. The picture Lazzo had been holding on the boat. She extended her hand to me. “I am pleased to meet you. I am Cera.”
I took her hand and nodded. Yep. I knew it. “Cera, I’m Hayley, and this is Flynn.”
Flynn shook Cera’s hand.
“Cera is Lazzo’s wife,” I explained.
Eddie looked at me in surprise. “You know this?”
I smiled. “I know a lot of things now.” I looked back and forth between the two of them. They seemed to be waiting for me to continue, but I wasn’t going to say anything until they specifically asked. I had questions of my own. “How did you find me—or us? How did you find us Eddie?”
“Truth is, I wasn’t looking for you. I wasn’t looking for Danny. I was trying to save Lazzo. I thought if I could blow up the building I would have time to find him. But when the helicopter landed, I knew General Roja is probably here. I know I can’t get close enough to him. And I no have uniform. But Silas, he has a uniform, and I have a bomb for him. I was going to kill the guards on that hill, but you killed them first. That was Silas’s way in.”
Makes sense. “But where have you been?”
“I’ve been prisoner. We both were prisoners in Puerto Rico. The other man—Silas—he helped us escape, and we flied a plane in here last night. He got the coordinates from Libyan commander, and when we figure out what they were, we know it was where Lazzo would be coming.”
“Eddie…”
“He’s not coming, is he?” The giant African’s sad face communicated he knew the answer.
I looked at Cera and could see her lower lip quivering. Tears had pooled in her eyes. I shook my head. “I don’t think so.”
“They killed him?” Eddie asked.
I shook my head again. “Not exactly.” Before Eddie could take that any other way, I completed my answer. “I’m pretty sure Lazzo gave himself…”
“He—” Eddie stopped short. He understood. So did Cera.
“No.” She buried her head into Eddie’s shoulder. He wrapped an arm around her as her sobs transferred into his chest.
I could see the hurt in Eddie’s eyes as well. He was disappointed. “Can you explain this, Hayley?”
“This?” But I knew what he meant.
“Lazzo came here to give information to Commander Boli, but why are you here? You shouldn’t be here? Boli told me Lazzo kidnapped you, but that can’t be true. It’s not true.”
“Lazzo couldn’t get the information he needed. Danny had it. So Lazzo…” Cera was looking at me again, in confusion. I didn’t want to say it and didn’t know how to.
So Flynn said it. “Lazzo kidnapped her.”
“No.” Eddie stood, and his voice boomed in the cellar. “He didn’t! He would not have done this.”
I nodded. “Yes. I’m afraid he did. He killed my boyfriend and kidnapped me, and three others. He needed me as bait so that he could be sure Danny would come here, and bring the book.”
“Hayley.” Cera was shocked. “No…”