He couldn’t speak for a moment as the foulest form of child exploitation was revealed.There were other images: women working beyond endurance until their hands bled, young men who must dearly wish to be old and ugly rather than young and beautiful.As often as he saw proof of man’s inhumanity to man, he never lost the will to act.The only time he hit a wall was with his own feelings.
“You okay?”Sable asked, shooting him a concerned glance.“This is a lot.”
“I need air.”Gripping the back of his neck, he walked out on deck.Slavers were an infestation that was impossible to wipe out, but that was no reason not to try.
Sable followed and came to stand silently at his side.The repeated slap of water against the hull only fueled his impatience to free the people he’d seen on the screen.Every second wasted was a second lost to the victims.
“Do you think we’ll be in time?”
She must have read his thoughts.“Coordinates?”She gave them, and he called the bridge.
“Elijah?”Her voice was softer than he’d ever heard it, yet her jaw was set iron strong.
The steel in her soul had always impressed him.“This mission has just become vital to both of us.”
“Black Meridian is expanding fast.Malta, Libya, Odessa, Eastern Europe—they’re everywhere.It’s a very efficient supply chain.”
“I don’t care what they are, what they have.We’ll deal with them.”
“We?”she repeated.
“The team,” he made clear before she could get any ideas.
There was a pause, and then she said, “There’s more.”
Their stares locked.“Oh?”
“They know about you—theSeraphim, your jet, the helicopters, and the forces you command.They’ve marked you for elimination.”
He gave a dry snort.“I’d be insulted if they ignored me.”
“That means you’re in?”
“Didn’t I just say that?Tell me why you chose me when there are other mercenary groups you could have picked.”
“You’re the best, and I trust you.And you know one of the captives on the auction list.”
“Who?”he demanded.
“A woman called Mara.”
Ice gripped his spine.“You know this how?”
“I hacked an encrypted auction site.No names.Just images of the upcoming lots.I recognized Mara from that picture you carry, the one with two kids on a riverbank.Taken maybe fifteen years ago?Mara was a pretty child, but now she’s a beautiful woman.”
He remembered the day the shot was taken by neighbors who took pity on the foster children next door.He’d been holding up a fish he and Mara had caught with a hair clip and a piece of twine.They’d wanted to pay the neighbors back for their kindness.Desperation and hunger forced them to try anything, and on that day, they’d caught a fish.
Their so-called parents at the time ran their “happy” home like a business, taking in as many children as they could to make a profit.And now Mara was in danger, close enough to rescue.“You sure about this?”
“I’m positive,” Sable said firmly.
Anger boiled inside him.“Where is this auction?”
“A small island off Malta.Remote.Cameras everywhere.Security will be tight.”
“I like a challenge.”
“Don’t you mean you thrive on the impossible?”
