“Luis?¿Eres tu?”
“Yes. You must keep Daniella safe.”
I drag myself closer to the bars. He’s across from me. But not directly. Not that it would matter. The lights are too harsh for me to see anything.
Another prisoner tells us to be quiet, and for a time, I close my eyes and let the memories of my time with Dani comfort me. I’ll never be with her again. Not like we were. I’m almost asleep when Luis calls out for me.
“Tell me about Daniella? I will never know her.”
What can I say in just a few words? Dani’s life—the parts of it I got to share—plays out like a movie in my head, and for so much of it, Austin’s there with her. I jerk up so quickly, I hit the bars overhead. Austin. He’dneverlet Dani turn herself over to Ochoa for me. She wouldn’t let up on him either. It’s not in her nature. She’d force him to do something. And that something…would likely involve Ryker, Dax, Wren…
A spark of hope flares to life, and I roll onto my side and fumble for one of the cornmeal cakes. The belly chain digs into my back, and the handcuffs cut into my wrists as I strain to bring it to my lips. Fuckers shortened the chain on purpose in the hopes I wouldn’t be able to eat.
After two bites, I drop the cake onto the rough concrete and reach for the water. It’s lukewarm, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the soldiers spit or pissed in the cup before they filled it, but I don’t care. Not with how dehydrated I am. I’ve only pissed once since I’ve been in this hell hole, and now…I have a reason to fight back.
First step is establishing a communications protocol with Luis that won’t get us beaten or killed.
Tapping my knuckle lightly on the bars, I try Morse Code forlisten.
Nothing happens for so long, I don’t think Luis understood. Closing my eyes, I feel around for the half-eaten cake in front of me, and wash it down with another few sips of water. I’m about to risk saying something when I hear scratching. In a pattern I recognize. Dot-dot. Dot-dash. Dash-dash.
“I am.”
* * *
Morse code is exhausting.CIA requires eight separate dots and dashes. Fight is fourteen. The sounds are barely audible, but I can’t be sure the soldiers aren’t listening. We speak slowly. In one or two word phrases, careful not to reveal too much. Another three patrols come and go. The second cornmeal cake is drier than the sand in Afghanistan, but I can feel myself getting stronger. As much as I can, I work my muscles to keep limber and stave off the intense shivering from the constant flow of frigid air.
Think.How long has it been?
There’s no way to mark time here other than the soldiers’ visits. Sometime in the late afternoon? Ry wouldn’t come in here guns blazing without a plan. Neither would Austin. I have to hold on at least another twenty-four to forty-eight hours. By then…maybe.
I tell Luis that Dani’s happy. That she was adopted and has a brother who will always protect her. He tells me that the floor above us is where Ochoa interrogates him. Every three days. Tomorrow is the third day. He’s too weak to walk or fight, but he observes, and he knows the soldiers’ patterns.
After several hours, I tell him to rest.“Keep hope.”
He sighs and then spells out“Si.”
* * *
Dani
With a scarf to cover my hair and a flowing black sleeveless jacket that lets me hide a knife strapped to my thigh, I climb into the backseat of Austin’s nondescript sedan. It’s not much different than the car Trevor and I used when we were here, and now that it’s dark outside, my worry for him has skyrocketed. They’ve had him for almost twenty-four hours.
Graham slides into the passenger seat. “I’d feel better if you let me drive,” he says.
“Tough shit. Who’s been here before, Jimmy Olsen?” Austin turns the key, and the car roars to life. It might look like the world’s oldest beater, but the engine has definitely been upgraded.
“Not you, too. I get enough of the nicknames from Ry and West. What’s wrong with Graham anyway? Or Peck?”
“We’re headed into the field, remember? She’s Lois, you’re Jim, and I’m Perry.”
Graham rolls his eyes as he looks back at me. “Doing okay...Lois?”
“No. We still don’t have an actual plan, do we?”
Over comms, Dax mutters, “Working on it. Though the wisdom of having ablind manorchestrate your infil is definitely questionable.”
“Until West gets in touch, you’re the best we have,” Ryker says in my ear. He and Ronan are driving the streets around The Crypt while Wren creates a backdoor into each traffic camera they find. When they infiltrate the building tomorrow night, they don’t want anyone to see them coming. Austin, Graham, and I are going to Plaza Bolivar to find Leo.
