When they’d reached the base camp deep in the mountainous jungles of the huge La Amistad National Reserve and met the other people they’d be working with, Kendra had immediately understood why John and some of the Committee members wanted this exercise reevaluated. It wasn’t exactly a well-run operation. In fact, it seemed sort of like a hot mess.
There were twenty of them in all—eight local cops, eight marines, and four drug enforcement agents. It was obvious from the get-go that nobody trusted or liked anyone else, and most of them didn’t want to be there. The DEA agents in charge of the training exercise didn’t appreciate the marines encroaching on their territory. The marines, who seemed to be there simply because they were part of the bargain that came with using the navy helicopters that would be part of the exercise, didn’t seem to appreciate being involved in the operation. And both groups looked down their noses at the odd team supposedly from Homeland Security. They probably thought Kendra and the guys were CIA spies. The local police officers wouldn’t talk to anyone, clearly wishing they didn’t have to be included in an exercise that had apparently devolved into more of a political hot potato than useful training.
Kendra glanced at Declan as they trudged through the undergrowth. She knew he was upset about her tagging along, but he hadn’t said two words to her since they’d gotten to Costa Rica. Figures. The moment she decided to give Declan a shot, he didn’t so much as notice her anymore.
Did she have luck with men or what?
She’d wasted years fixating on Clayne, only to discover there was absolutely zero chemistry between them. The worst part? Her damn compatibility software had told her she and Clayne weren’t a match years ago. Instead, it had correctly identified Danica as the woman he was supposed to be with. But did she pay attention to her own damn matchmaking program? No. She only wished she’d realized they were so completely incompatible before they’d slept together. Fortunately, Clayne was just as eager to forget the indiscretion as she was, and they’d sworn to never tell a soul about it. Well, Ivy knew, but that didn’t count.
As Kendra climbed over a huge fallen tree, she looked for Declan and realized he’d disappeared again. For a big guy, he could move like a ghost. She had no idea where he went, but he’d been slipping off like this the entire day. Recon, she guessed, though she didn’t know what he was looking for. Other than about a million monkeys, sloths, birds, and reptiles of every variety, they hadn’t seen another soul out here.
No surprise there. Not only was La Amistad a pristine nature preserve, but their training exercise had taken them into the very deepest, most inhospitable sections of the park, close to the border with Panama. Plus, it turned out that November was the rainiest time of the year for this part of the country. Not exactly the peak of the ecotourism season. That meant they had the whole jungle to wander around in without worrying about running into another person. And considering what Tate had told her about the government being a little uncomfortable with their presence, the timing and location for this exercise probably wasn’t an accident.
But if that was the case, why did Declan disappear every thirty minutes or so?
Kendra searched the surrounding forest again and caught sight of the bear shifter jogging into the clearing. She sighed as he brushed past her to catch up with Tate. Now that she’d started looking at Declan as something more than a coworker, she couldn’t help but notice he was a lot more attractive than she’d realized. Last night, she’d seen him in nothing but his uniform pants as he’d rinsed off in a stream after they’d stopped to make camp, and damn, he was scrumptious. Why hadn’t she ever noticed how hunky that body of his was?
She was starting to think she was really slow when it came to seeing what was right in front of her face.
They spent the next fifteen minutes skirting a rocky ridge that was too steep to go over. Even going around it was hard work and everyone was breathing heavy by the time the group leader—a gruff DEA agent named Carmichael—called for a break. Kendra opened her canteen and took a long drink. She had no idea this part of the world had such rough country. One second they were climbing up the side of a five-hundred-foot ridgeline, the next, they found themselves slopping their way through swampy marshes. And the moment they dragged themselves out of the mud, they’d be in the middle of a thick jungle where it seemed like the foliage clung to them every step they took. It was beautiful, but it was hard not being intimidated by the sheer wildness of it all.
At least it wasn’t hot. Even though she’d read all the weather profiles for Costa Rica, some part of her still thought the jungle would be hot and steamy—like in the movies. But it hardly ever got much warmer than seventy during the day, and at night it was down in the fifties.
The worst part was the rain. Most of it didn’t make it through the thick jungle canopy, but water constantly dripped off every branch and leaf. Within two days, she didn’t have a single piece of clothing that was completely dry, and sleeping turned into more of an exercise in finding a dry spot than in getting any actual rest.
Voices drifted her way as she screwed the cap back on her canteen. She looked up to see Declan and Tate deep in conversation. From the looks on their faces, they were worried about something. She stowed her canteen and walked over to join them. Brent and Gavin followed.
“What’s wrong?” she asked quietly.
Tate hesitated. “I’m not sure. But I’m getting a funny feeling that someone has us out here playing human mine detector.”
That didn’t sound good. “What does that mean?”
“Pull out your map,” Declan said.
She pulled the carefully folded laminated map out of one of the cargo pockets of her pants and opened it. She’d taken the readings from the GPS Tate had given her and logged their position every few hours. Declan stepped closer and pointed at the dots she’d made on the map.
“I know it doesn’t look like it because someone is trying to make it hard to see, but we’re not stomping around aimlessly. We’re being run through a loose search pattern. Somebody has us looking for something.”
Studying the map while standing so close to all that muscle was difficult and Kendra had to force herself to focus. Looking at the placement of the dots on the map, she could see how they might seem like a search pattern. She’d simply thought they were supposed to move back and forth through the region like this.
“Maybe it’s just easier to have us move in a relative straight back and forth pattern?” she suggested.
Declan shook his head. “I’d agree if we weren’t occasionally pulled off our path and routed through specific areas. Like that sheltered valley we just left. Or that big bend in the river we passed this morning.”
Kendra followed along as he pointed them out on the map with his long fingers, then looked up at him. “What do you think we’re supposed to be looking for?”
“I don’t know,” Tate said. “But I’m not comfortable knowing we’re only going to find out the answer after we’ve stepped into the middle of something.”
Hence the human-mine-detector reference.
Kendra glanced at Declan to see him looking off into the jungle again.
“What aren’t you guys telling me?” she asked. “Declan, where have you been disappearing to all day?”
It was Tate who answered. “Declan thinks someone’s following us and has been since late last night.”
She pinned Declan with a look. “Youthink? Or you know?”
