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Turning right, they traveled along a road about a thousand feet above the lake on a very steep mountain side. Marcus was surprised at the large size of the homes. He did not expect to see such wealth so far away from San Salvador. There were several roads off to the right reaching through the dense trees to hidden homes far up the mountainside. The homes became farther apart as the road continued to narrow.

  They emerged from a dense section of forest, to find that night had already settled. To Marcus, it seemed that the only light on earth came from his two headlamps. Even the GPS had gone to a black back screen giving little illumination to the inside of the Rover.

  Tori’s satellite phone rang.

  They both jumped.

  It had been nearly a mile since they had passed the last home.

  After glancing at him, she put it on speaker and answered, “The falcon flies free.”

  “Delta signifies change,” the man replied.

  Marcus had never been on this kind of a covert operation so all of this was new to him. The ATF didn’t have secret codes. Hell, they didn’t even have satellite phones most of the time that they were outside the country.

  “Lady Falcon, stop your vehicle,” the voice demanded.

  Marcus slowed the SUV to a stop in a place where he could see up and down a short piece of straight road. He immediately moved his mini machine gun onto his lap at the same time Tori did.

  “Lady Falcon, turn your lights out for three seconds then turn them back on.”

  Marcus did as instructed.

  “Confirm you are at position…” The man read off an extremely long string of numbers that Marcus figured was their exact location on the earth.

  Tori stared at the handheld GPS. “Confirmed.” Her voice was strong. All business.

  In the dim of only dashboard lights, Marcus watched Tori shrug when their eyes met. This was not part of the plan, nor had anyone updated this change.

  “Lady Falcon, this is Delta Two actual. Do not shoot. I repeat do not shoot. I am approaching the car on the passenger side. I need to update General Lyon and upload pictures to SOCOM. Look into the woods to your right. I will flash my light twice.”

  They both stared into the dark, dense trees ten feet away. A red light appeared and went out reappeared and went out again.

  “Confirmed, Delta Two actual. I saw your red light.” Although Tori did not move her gun from her lap, he did hear her exhale slowly.

  “Unlock the doors. I’m jumping in.”

  The thunk of the locks releasing seemed deafening in the silence. A second later, the back door flung open and immediately closed.

  “Drive,” an urgent male voice said from behind him.

  Marcus stepped on the gas, turning on the front lights at the same time.

  “We’ll do the introductions in a minute. My men are waiting up around the next corner. Look for the red lights. We need to hide this vehicle while we communicate with SOCOM.”

  The road made a wide arc to the right. Marcus immediately saw the red lights and turned where indicated. He pulled onto a road so narrow branches scraped the sides of the SUV. At movement in his rearview mirror he watched bushes seeming to grow behind him, closing the space.

  “This is far enough.” The man in the back seat reached his hand toward Tori as Marcus brought the vehicle to stop. “Lady Falcon, I’m Delta Two. Some of my team are going to join us.”

  Marcus flicked off the lights and stopped the engine before he turned toward the back seat. “Special Agent Marcus Hernandez, ATF. I don’t have any cool code name.”

  A slash of white teeth was all he could see as he shook the man’s hand. The night camouflage was pretty amazing.

  “A couple of my men are going to jump in.” That was all the warning they were given before the two back doors flew open, as did the hatch. Several thuds indicated his men were inside.

  Delta Two wasted no time. “Lady Falcon, I understand you have a laptop and satellite phone with encrypted data capability.”

  She handed them both to him. “They’re unlocked. What do you have?”

  The man completely in black, head to toe, pulled out a cord and connected the personal cell phone to the computer. He dialed a phone number. When the ringing stopped there was nothing but a beep. Delta Two entered several numbers and a phone rang again.

  “Speak.”

  “Delta Two. Uploading now.” Photographs and hand drawings flashed across Tori’s tablet as a green line slowly stretched from left to right on the bottom. “Upload complete.”

  “Upload received,” came the ominous voice from the other side. “Hold for General Lyon and place on speaker.”

  Marcus smiled when Delta Two’s eyes went wide showing lots of white. The other men seemed to shift.

  “Delta Two, good job.” The general’s voice boomed in the confined space. “I want you to brief Lady Falcon and Marcus. Share everything. We’re showing you are three clicks from the target.”

  “Confirmed, sir.” Delta Two seemed to be sitting up straighter in his seat. “I’ll completely brief them after this conversation, sir.”

  “Delta Two, take your team back to the target and resume observation.” The general’s chair squeaked. “Have you found an EZ?”

  “No, sir. We’re on the side of a mountain so an extraction zone for the packages is proving extremely difficult.” Delta Two added, “We do have an idea that we proposed in the uploaded data.”

  “We’ll take a look at it and take it under consideration.” The general’s chair squeaked once again. “Lady Falcon, Delta Two is taking possession of the sat phone and tablet. From this point forward, you will be constantly monitored through the comm devices in your ears. Activate them now.”

  The Black Swans seemed to have the newest and coolest spy toys including the communication device Marcus had been issued. It was buried so deep in his ear, it couldn’t be seen from a visual inspection. He touched the part of his outer ear that they had shown him and he heard the click, just as he’d been told.

  “Comm check, Lady Falcon,” Tori said in a normal voice.

  “Comm check, Marcus Hernandez.”

  “Comm check complete for Marcus Hernandez.” It was as though the voice was inside his head. He knew his mouth was hanging open as he looked at Tori.

  “Pretty cool, isn’t it? The first time is always a little creepy.” She shrugged. “You’ll get used to it quickly. Right now, we’re only connected to the operations center and to each other.”

  “I understand,” Marcus confirmed.

  “Lady Falcon, Delta Two, rollout. Good hunting. Lyons out.” Although the general was gone, and the satellite phone disconnected, Marcus understood that he was still being monitored by the USSOCOM operations center, audio only.

  In the next ten minutes, Delta Two went through each screen with Marcus and Tori. There were external pictures of the training camp, but the Deltas had been able to get inside the barracks, outbuildings, and mess hall. Unfortunately, the bunker where the warheads were stored was heavily guarded round-the-clock.

  The three of them devised a slightly altered plan. Marcus and Tori were to get inside, pretending to join the organization. Hopefully a tour would include the inside of the bunker so they could count the number of warheads. If that didn’t work, one of them would secure the job of guarding the bunker at night. Taking out the other guards and counting the warheads should be a relatively easy job. Then it was up to D.C. to determine the future of those warheads. Marcus just hoped they were all there and none of them were left in the hands of SV-16 back in the United States.

  Plan set, the men in the far back jumped out and helped guide Marcus as he backed up to the road. They hopped back in and rode with them only another mile.

  Marcus felt better about their situation knowing that a team of Deltas, the most elite of the Army’s Special Forces, was just outside the perimeter of the camp.

  As they drove up to the guarded gates, Tori reached over and squeezed his hand. “We’ve got this.�
�� She laid her lips on his and everything was right in his world.

  Until he looked out the window where a ragged soldier pointed a gun at his head.

  Chapter 18

  Tori watched Marcus turn white under his naturally brown skin as he stared into the barrel of the old, but well maintained, M4 machine gun. He seemed dazed, unable to respond.

  “You lost?” The scruffy soldier on Marcus’s side of the Rover yelled in Spanish through the closed window.

  Tori whispered, “Only Spanish from here on out.”

  Marcus didn’t respond. He didn’t move. She wasn’t sure he was breathing. She had to take control of the situation before the soldiers just started shooting.

  She waved to the man on her side of the vehicle and signaled for him to move as she opened the door. “Please tell me we’ve finally reached the training camp. Salvador libre.” She punched her fist into the air.

  Neither man responded.

  “What makes you think this is a training camp?” The man on Marcus’s side of the car asked as she approached him.

  She held out a piece of paper next to her GPS. “Carlos Gomez, he’s in charge of our cell back in the United States, said if anything were to happen to him, we should go to these coordinates.” She grimaced and hoped he was buying their carefully constructed background.

  Gomez was still in protective custody and the CIA wasn’t about to let him out. Or any of the illegals who helped with the foiled heist last week. A few of the U.S. citizens had made bond but were being carefully watched by the agencies in the task force and wore ankle trackers.

  Everyone that is, except the young girl who Tori supposedly ordered her tongue cut out. She’d been taken to a different facility so there could be no possible contact between her and the others arrested that night in Georgia. If anyone in SV-16 discovered their bluff, it would change the balance of power and ruin any future interrogations.

  Cesar Vasquez had personally paid her bail within hours of her capture. Somehow, the girl had removed the ankle tracker and placed it on another young woman who looked similar. The FBI had only figured that one out an hour before Black Swan Team Two carried them to El Salvador.

  Tori and Marcus were a long way from Los Angeles, and no one had time for a delay. They had to find the warheads and count them.

  “Come with me.” He jerked the door open and Marcus nearly fell out of the SUV. Grabbing him by the arm, the soldier pushed Tori and Marcus toward the largest building. Thanks to Delta Two, she knew that was the dining facility.

  “But what about my car?” Tori protested, totally getting into the undercover character. “I did everything Carlos said. I had to buy that Rover, you know.”

  “Move, bitch. El jefe will decide what to do with you.” The soldier was taking them to the boss man. At least they were headed in the right direction.

  Tori grabbed Marcus’s hand, to help establish their cover as well as to check on him. His pulse was racing. He hadn’t uttered a single word. “Marcus, sweetie, everything is going to be okay.” She leaned over to kiss him and whispered, “Get your shit together before you get us killed.”

  He snapped his gaze to her. “Shit…uh…sweetheart. Uh…I got us here didn’t I?” He was gaining confidence with every word. He stood straighter and fought against the grip the soldier had on his bicep. “Get your fucking hands off me, asshole.” He glared at the soldier who poked her in the back every three steps. “You fucking shove that gun in her back again and I’ll stuff it up your ass.”

  Marcus moved so fast he shocked Tori as well as the soldier. He had taken the rifle from the man and turned it on him before she blinked.

  “Look, assholes, we’ve been trying to get here for nearly a week after being arrested and harassed by the U.S. government.” Marcus’s speech was a good one. He was pulling this off which excited Tori. They just might live through this after all. He pounded on with the rhetoric. “We chose to come here to help free El Salvador. This is the home of my grandmother. Her family. My people. Your people. You are my brother. We’ll gladly follow you. Now point those guns down and show us to whoever is in charge. Carlos would never share his name, but I want to meet the genius who successfully stole nuclear warheads from right under the nose of the U.S. government.”

  Bury the lead. Yes. He was good at this. Find out the name of the man in charge as soon as possible.

  The soldier stared at Marcus for a long minute before he smiled, exposing rotting teeth. With a smack on the shoulder, he shoved Marcus forward toward the concrete block building where yellow light shone through large windows. “I’ll take you to meet Ademir.”

  “Ademir Vasquez? I should have guessed,” Marcus repeated clearly so everyone listening could hear. “I’m so excited to meet him.”

  Tori wanted to laugh. All agents were taught to stick as close to the truth as possible when lying. It was easier to remember. She wondered, though, who else was involved.

  When the door slammed shut, the noisy room went silent.

  “Ademir, new recruits, sent from Carlos Gomez.” The soldier sounded excited, as though he’d just found a long-lost pet.

  All eyes turned toward the dark-haired man with a very young girl in his lap. His hand was up her T-shirt, slowly caressing her small breast, all while talking to the man beside him. His face turned toward the newcomers, but he didn’t stop his ministrations.

  “Who exactly have you brought me, Jose?” His tone was terse and condescending, wrapped in curiosity.

  “What are your names?” Jose asked quietly.

  Tori strode forward, hand extended. “You won’t believe what we had to go through to get here but Carlos, that’s Carlos Gomez, told us that if anything happened to him, and you know he got captured in Georgia, that we were to find our way here, right here, and here we are.” She donned an embarrassed face now that she was three feet from Ademir. “I’m sorry, but I seem to babble when I’m nervous, and I’m so nervous, finally meeting you.”

  Ademir’s gaze started at Tori’s expensively booted feet, slowly rose up her long, exposed legs, over her trim waist and flat stomach to her low-cut tank top where her breasts were barely contained. He stared at them for a nearly a minute. Finally, their eyes met. A smile spread across his very attractive face. Tori wanted to shower. Her skin crawled as though he’d touched her whole body with slimy hands.

  He stood, practically throwing the child off. “And your name is…” He raised an eyebrow expectantly.

  Forcing her face into a bright smile, she offered in a sultry voice. “I’m Victoria Ruez.”

  Totally ignoring Marcus, Ademir’s gaze never left Tori’s face. “I don’t remember Carlos ever mentioning you.” He ran the back of his fingers down Tori’s cheek which was almost devoid of makeup. She’d decided natural and travel-tired would be appropriate for their introduction.

  The man in his forties, and those had been hard years, grinned. “But I can see why Carlos wanted to keep you for himself. Did he personally initiate you into the Vipers?” He grabbed both her breasts in his hands and squeezed harshly. She refused to show weakness and lowered her eyes, hoping it looked as though she enjoyed the rough treatment. They’d been taught in CIA seduction classes how to hide their true feelings and outwardly express the opposite. This was one of the techniques. She hoped it worked because she’d never tried it before. She’d never had to.

  Ademir stopped and spun her around, pulling down the back of her shirt. “You are not SV-16. He whipped Tori back around to face him then backhanded her. She could feel the trickle of blood down her cheek.

  Marcus jumped forward but was held back by Jose. “You never interfere with el jefe’s punishment. She’s just a woman. Not worth your effort.”

  It took everything Tori had within her not to put Ademir on the floor. Dead. Using nothing but her bare hands. Gritting her teeth, she inhaled a breath to calm herself and override her trained responses. “No, we have not yet been initiated. Carlos wanted us to prove our loyalty by par
ticipating in the heist. We were there. We got arrested. We did everything he asked of us. Now we’re here to train with you, our great leader.”

  His face changed from pleased by the praise to wary. “Exactly how did you escape from the authorities when everyone else is sitting behind bars?” He folded his arms across a broad chest and looked smug.

  Tori giggled. “I posted bail, like any other American good girl.” She wrapped her hands around Marcus’s bicep and leaned into him. “And I had to take care of my man.” She turned her face to Marcus’s. “Because he takes such good care of…me.” Just to be sure everyone assembled in that dining hall understood where things stood with the two of them, she kissed him, taking her time.

  “Well, Victoria Ruez, where did you get that kind of money? Bail was set at a million dollars per person.” Ademir cocked his head.

  Interesting he knew the exact amount of bail, but if he was a good leader, he would know how much it was going to cost him to free the people in his organization. She shrugged nonchalantly. “That’s only one hundred thousand dollars each and he’s worth it.” She gave Marcus a quick kiss.

  “Are you rich or something?” The young man next to Ademir asked, in English. The two looked so much alike, she took a guess that he was one of the leader’s American sons.

  Tori rolled with the language change and answered in English with a Texan accent. “Matter of fact, boy, I am quite wealthy. Not everybody with roots in El Salvador is poor. Isn’t that right, Ademir?”

  Ademir smiled. “So very true.” He glanced to the back of the large room filled with men standing next to food-laden tables, most holding drinks. A few women were scattered throughout the room, arms around the man next to them. “So, you said you were in on that mess that went down in Georgia?”

  “We most certainly were there.” Out of her peripheral vision, she saw Marcus nod and agree with a grunt.

  Ademir just grinned and snapped his fingers. “Boys, bring the princess.”

  The sea of people parted as three young men in their late teens or early twenties walked beside a very pretty woman about their same age.