Yet, he could be so gentle.
And he loved her.
Was that why he’d agreed to help her from the start? And, God, if he’d truly always loved her—as he’d claimed earlier—no wonder he’d taken her rejection so hard. Had he pulled out of her life without a goodbye and thrown himself into PJ training as a form of protection?
Her throat tightened. She understood that as well as anyone.
About a hundred yards from the freshly stuccoedwall that marked the entrance to Zanana Shores, Kurt held up a hand and stopped walking. She barely managed not to collide with him.
Up ahead at the gate, two guards stood on the side of the road, lazily holding rifles and chatting.
Kurt pointed to his left, and they veered into the vegetation just enough to be hidden from the road while using the light from the street lamps to avoid trippingon tree roots or holes in the ground.
Snakes she wouldn’t even think about. St. Isidore had a few nasty ones.
Caitlyn’s heart knocked into her ribs with more force the closer they got.Please let Rose be here.
They had studied the layout of the resort from an aerial map Valerie had found, but had no idea how many of Lambert’s men were guarding the compound. For all they knew, this whole thingwas a trap.
No fence encircled the hotel grounds, so they crept past the wall, which bore a sea-themed tile mosaic embedded with the resort’s name. So far, they hadn’t seen a soul other than the sentries, but as they approached the open-air reception building that formed the right-hand terminus of the upside-down-V-shaped string of cabins, low, deep voices stirred the quiet.
Caitlyn grabbedKurt’s arm to keep herself from running straight toward the sound. He gave her the signal to duck down. They doubled over and jogged toward the first villa, where dim light glimmered around the edges of thick curtains that hung in the front window.
Slipping between the cabin and the pool house, they came out on the beach side, suddenly assaulted by a stiff wind, and the shushing sounds of theocean not a hundred yards from the back patios that lined the spit of land to give each guest a view of either the Caribbean Sea or Zanana Bay.
Vine-covered trellises on either side of the patios provided a measure of privacy between villas, and shielded Caitlyn and Kurt from view.
Bending at the waist, both of them peered through the slats and the glass sliding door beyond, which had no curtainsor blinds. Five men appeared to be sleeping on thick piles of blankets spread around the tile floor.
She didn’t recognize any of them, nor the two who sat on folding chairs hunched over a small table playing cards, guns on the table. What she guessed was the bathroom was dark beyond the open door.
No sign of Rose.
They went down the line, finding three more rooms with a similar setup. In onecabin lit only with a nightlight, nine women huddled together in a dark corner—none of them Rose—watched over by two guards.
“The big, white guy is Jack Cartwright,” she whispered into Kurt’s ear. The other she didn’t know.
They moved swiftly down the line. All of the rooms beyond the apex of the V, facing the bay, were dark and devoid of people, but fully furnished and ready for guests.
Thepool house was also empty.
“She’s not here.” Caitlyn had known this was a gamble, but she couldn’t ignore the leaden feeling in her chest.
Kurt grasped her hand and whispered, “We’ll find her.”
“We have to do something about the people who are trapped here.”
“Call Shaylee. Have her call her police friend. Then we can check the other buildings. Maybe Rose is in one of them.”
Caitlyn quicklymade the call, giving Shaylee all the information they had. Somehow, Rose’s girlfriend held it together. Probably the same way Caitlyn was right now. Sheer will.
Shaylee had no idea how long it would take for her friend to mobilize a team she could trust. For now, they were on their own.
Caitlyn and Kurt jogged in a straight line from the tip of one wing to the other. The only buildings theyhadn’t yet explored were the reception center, the restaurant, and the equipment rental shed.
So far they had encountered no perimeter security other than the guards at the front gate, who were probably there to prevent looters and squatters who might stumble upon the operation. Given the setup, Lambert seemed more worried about people escaping.
She and Kurt quickly cleared the areas behindthe check-in desk, the tours office, management offices, and housekeeping. The gift shop was stuffed full of unopened boxes, its door locked, no sign of anyone inside.
If her sister wasn’t here—
“Not another step.”
Caitlyn knew that voice, that Aussie accent. She turned. With a rifle pointed at her chest, she’d never reach the knife tucked into her bra before he shot her. She held up her hands.“Hello, Jack.”
